Leadership and Culture

The egalitarian tradition of Quaker Philadelphia discouraged aristocrats from rising above their peers to assume positions of leadership.

Philadelphia has never produced a leader of national stature because the Quaker ethos lacked "the arrogance of authority."

Conversely, the Puritan culture of the Boston Brahmins, which is hierarchical and authoritarian, has spawned US presidents, Supreme Court justices, renowned statesmen, and legions of academic and literary greats.

Source: Sammy Preston

Comment: In Israel, most of the leadership has come from the kibbutz movement. A kibbutz is a democratically-run collective farm that discourages hierarchy and authoritarianism and elitism.