eals. In stark contrast, is the American geographical situation, which has had an equally profound influence, albeit with radically different results (Heywood 98). Unlike Russia, America is a temperate and relatively sheltered land. The Atlantic Ocean has provided protection from most serious invasion threats, while the Native American tribes of the interior never proved to be a serious danger to the United States. As a result, the American people never saw a need for an immensely powerful central government to protect them. The enormous prosperity of the land also reinforced this notion. Food was never a serious problem in America, especially after the settlement of the Midwest, and other resources were similarly abundant (Heywood 99). The American Frontier has been a pillar in democracy providing hope for improvement when conditions degenerate. The idea of "moving westward" for more opportunity and prosperity has fostered American culture by ensuring trust in that eventually, conditions will improve and benefits reaped. Trust is a foundational basis of all democracies and if this can be garnered through the geographical situation of a nation, the better off the democracy will be. Trust and respect for government can be achieved many ways, not just through geographical status. It takes commitment from society as a whole. Imbedded beliefs and values are inevitably at the source of this commitment. Through experience over long periods of time, opinion of government, by way of society, is greatly influenced. In America, the foundation of democracy began with the Revolutionary War. People desired to govern themselves. The war was against the King of England, as well as autocratic traditions of the rest of the world (Heywood 126). Americans wanted to represent themselves and fought hard throughout the war to achieve this goal. After winning the war the nation was united in patriotism. The success of the war led to the establishment of the m...
