President Coolidge’s statement, "The business of America is business," still points an important (36) today—that business institutions have more (37) in American society that any other kind of (38) , including the government. Why do business institutions (39) this great prestige One reason is that Americans view business as being more firmly based on the (40) of competition than other institutions in (41) . Since competition is seen as the major source of progress and (42) by most Americans, competitive business institution are respected. Competition is not only good in itself, it is the means by which other basic American values such as individual , (43) of opportunity, and hard work are protected. Competition protects the of the individual by ensuring that there is no monopoly(垄断)of power. In contrast to one, all-powerful government, many businesses compete against each other for profits. (44) Where many businesses compete for the customers’ dollar, they cannot afford to treat them like inferiors or slaves. A contrast is often made between business, which is competitive, and government, which is a monopoly. (45) , even though government leaders are elected by the people and business leaders are not. Many Americans believe, then, that competition is as important, or even more important, that democracy in preserving . Competition in business is also believed to strengthen the ideal of equality of opportunity. (46) .Competitive success is commonly seen the American alternative to social rank based on family background.