At the New York Times, Thomas Edsall works through the implications of whether America should retain a culture of cutthroat capitalism. Go read it.

Despite its egalitarian tradition, America may have already become a two-class society, with an elite benefiting from advantages in background, wealth, access to higher education and skill sets passed from generation to generation (whether through inheritance or cultural transmission). If that is the case, and there is some evidence that it is, the question is whether our rhetorical obeisance to egalitarian tradition will prevent us from openly recognizing what we have become – thus sapping our ability to do something about it.