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As we head toward the presidential election this November, the Republican front runner Mitt Romney is a man whose estimated net worth is $250 million. Romney claims to be a “self made man” despite his privileged upbringing and the fact that he made most of his money through financial investments which are taxed at a lower rate than regularly earned income. Now, authors Brian Miller and Mike Lapham in their book titled ‘The Self Made Myth,’ examine the fantasy that a person who merely works hard can achieve the American Dream. The ‘self made myth’ has its origins in early America which was intent on setting itself apart from the pedigreed aristocracies of Europe which offered little hope for individual success. Horatio Alger’s stories of the individual’s rise from rags to riches struck a deep chord in the American psyche. But, as Miller and Lapham point out in their new book, businesses and individuals can not succeed without certain infrastructure in place like a public education system, public transportation, the US postal service, and other laws and regulations. When one acknowledges all the ways in which entrepreneurs benefit from these pre-existing systems, taxes are seen more clearly as a way to financially support the structures which helped these individuals create their wealth in the first place. Instead of the self made man there is actually a ‘built together’ reality which helps us as a community. By debunking the idea of the self made man, Miller and Lapham show us that there is no level playing field and ideas about the self made man are at the heart of how we shape our public policy decisions. With interviews from Warren Buffett, Disney heir Abigail Disney, Ben Cohen of Ben and Jerry’s, among others, Miller and Lapham show how these successful business people benefited from governmental programs.

GUEST: Brian Miller is executive director of United for a Fair Economy

Visit www.selfmademyth.org for more information.