I agree that the American societal zeitgeist has certainly not evolved to a point where we acknowledge luck as a major factor in personal success.

Personal success is attributed to the talent and persistence of the individual.

Personal failures are attributed to character flaws of the individual.

In the US we lionize billionaires because we believe if we are smart enough and work hard enough we could become one. We spare no thought for the role of luck in the rise of a billionaire.

But if we work hard and don’t become a billionaire, best believe it’s somebody else’s fault.