---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: America is now a land that rewards…"
description: "\"America is now a land that rewards failure - at the personal, corporate, and state level.\" — Mark Steyn"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd9/mark-steyn-1844_america_america-is-now-a-land-that-rewards-failu_694913.png"
---

#  America is now a land that rewards failure - at the…

![“America is now a land that rewards failure - at the personal, corporate, and state level.” quote by Mark Steyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd9/mark-steyn-1844_america_america-is-now-a-land-that-rewards-failu_694913.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd9/mark-steyn-1844_america_america-is-now-a-land-that-rewards-failu_694913.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd9/mark-steyn-1844_america_america-is-now-a-land-that-rewards-failu_694913.png)

> “America is now a land that rewards failure - at the personal, corporate, and state level.”

[Mark Steyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Societal systems sometimes reward failure, encouraging risk‑taking and innovation, but this can also incentivize reckless behavior.

**In simple terms:** Failure can be rewarded, prompting both innovation and recklessness.

Key Takeaway

Recognize when reward structures may encourage harmful risk‑taking.

Themes

economics culture risk tolerance

Mood

critical analytical

Type

essay commentary

When to use this quote

- entrepreneurial ventures
- policy making
- investment strategies

Key Concepts

incentive theory behavioral economics social critique

Questions to Reflect On

- When does rewarding failure become counterproductive?
- How can we balance risk and responsibility?

A Different Perspective

Overemphasis on failure rewards may erode accountability.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [America land](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america-land/) [Corporate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/corporate/) [Failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) [Rewards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rewards/)

## Related quotes

> [“America is now a land that rewards failure--at the personal, corporate and state level. If you reward it, you get more of it. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/america-is-now-a-land-that-rewards-failure-at-the-personal-corporate/)

[Mark Steyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/)

> [The corporate state is an immensely powerful machine, ordered, legalistic, rational, yet utterly out of human control, wholly and perfectly indifferent to any human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-a-reich/the-corporate-state-is-an-immensely-powerful-machine-ordered/)

[Charles A. Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-a-reich/)

> [The fascist state is the corporate state.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benito-mussolini/the-fascist-state-is-the-corporate-state/)

[Benito Mussolini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benito-mussolini/)

> [“A free state is a corporate state.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marie-lu/a-free-state-is-a-corporate-state/)

[Marie Lu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marie-lu/)

> [The corporate State considers that private enterprise in the sphere of production is the most effective and useful instrument in the interest of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benito-mussolini/the-corporate-state-considers-that-private-enterprise-in-the-sphere/)

[Benito Mussolini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benito-mussolini/)

> [Perhaps the greatest and least visible form of impoverishment caused by the Corporate State is the destruction of community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-a-reich/perhaps-the-greatest-and-least-visible-form-of-impoverishment-caused/)

[Charles A. Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-a-reich/)

> [America is a land of creators and rebels.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-marti/america-is-a-land-of-creators-and-rebels/)

[Jose Marti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-marti/)

> [God bless America, land that I love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irving-berlin/god-bless-america-land-that-i-love/)

[Irving Berlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irving-berlin/)

> [America might be the land of second chances, but it ain't the land of third chances.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-finkel/america-might-be-the-land-of-second-chances-but-it-ain-t-the-land-of/)

[Michael Finkel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-finkel/)

> [America's a land of second opportunities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-mcconnell/america-s-a-land-of-second-opportunities/)

[Mitch McConnell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-mcconnell/)

> [Brain surgeons are dealing with the very last thread of life, and they have to be very confident, but I think they tend to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-nesbitt/brain-surgeons-are-dealing-with-the-very-last-thread-of-life-and-they/)

[James Nesbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-nesbitt/)

> [Failure is a very personal thing and everybody goes through it very personally.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirron-kher/failure-is-a-very-personal-thing-and-everybody-goes-through-it-very/)

[Kirron Kher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirron-kher/)

> [I'm motivated by fear of failure. It's a personal mission to say to all those people from years ago, 'Look, I'm seriously not a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-evans/i-m-motivated-by-fear-of-failure-it-s-a-personal-mission-to-say-to/)

[Lee Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-evans/)

> [I'm kind of a failure. I mean, I'll be honest. I'm successful in that I'm getting to work on great stuff, but I think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-feig/i-m-kind-of-a-failure-i-mean-i-ll-be-honest-i-m-successful-in-that-i/)

[Paul Feig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-feig/)

> [“Most people put too much emphasis and value on their own family, but when a family is promoting anti-survival ideals, it is actually healthier…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sacredfire/most-people-put-too-much-emphasis-and-value-on-their-own-family-but/)

[Robin Sacredfire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sacredfire/)

## More by Mark Steyn

> [Popular culture as a whole is popular, but in today's fragmented market it's a jostle of competing unpopular popular cultures. As the critic Stanley…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/popular-culture-as-a-whole-is-popular-but-in-today-s-fragmented/)

[Mark Steyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/)

> [“The populations of wealthy democratic societies expect to have total choice over their satellite TV packages, yet think it perfectly normal to allow the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/the-populations-of-wealthy-democratic-societies-expect-to-have-total/)

[Mark Steyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/)

> [For Al Gore and Paul Ehrlich and Co., whatever the problem, the solution is always the same. Whether it's global cooling, global warming, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/for-al-gore-and-paul-ehrlich-and-co-whatever-the-problem-the-solution/)

[Mark Steyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/)

> [Sadly, a U.S. invasion of Iraq 'would threaten the whole stability of the Middle East' - or so Amr Moussa, secretary-general of the Arab…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/sadly-a-u-s-invasion-of-iraq-would-threaten-the-whole-stability-of/)

[Mark Steyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/)

> [I don't think Donald Trump is a conservative. I think his line on China for example, that he's going to talk tough to China.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/i-don-t-think-donald-trump-is-a-conservative-i-think-his-line-on/)

[Mark Steyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/)

> [A big chunk of Western civilization, consciously or otherwise, has given the impression that it's dying to surrender to somebody, anybody. Reasonably enough, Islam…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/a-big-chunk-of-western-civilization-consciously-or-otherwise-has/)

[Mark Steyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/)

> [“But that's Islam in the third millennium: they want the certainties of seventh-century society with the conveniences of the twenty-first century.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/but-that-s-islam-in-the-third-millennium-they-want-the-certainties-of/)

[Mark Steyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/)

> [The progressive Left can be in favor of Big Government or population control but not both. The mutual incompatibility is about to plunge Europe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/the-progressive-left-can-be-in-favor-of-big-government-or-population/)

[Mark Steyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/)

> [“But in practice the lack of belief in divine presence is just as likely to lead to humans avoiding responsibility: if there's nothing other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/but-in-practice-the-lack-of-belief-in-divine-presence-is-just-as/)

[Mark Steyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/)

> [No family of an American hostage has ever been prosecuted for paying a ransom for the return of their loved ones. The last thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/no-family-of-an-american-hostage-has-ever-been-prosecuted-for-paying/)

[Mark Steyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/)

> [“America is now a land that rewards failure--at the personal, corporate and state level. If you reward it, you get more of it. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/america-is-now-a-land-that-rewards-failure-at-the-personal-corporate/)

[Mark Steyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/)

> [Obama's Nobel Peace Prize is an exquisite act of condescension from Norwegians, a dog biscuit and a pat on the head to the American…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/obama-s-nobel-peace-prize-is-an-exquisite-act-of-condescension-from/)

[Mark Steyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/)

> [“You cannot wage a sustained ideological assault on your own civilization without grave consequences. We are approaching the end of the Anglo-American moment, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/you-cannot-wage-a-sustained-ideological-assault-on-your-own/)

[Mark Steyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/)

> [“Almost by definition, secularism cannot be a future: it's a present-tense culture that over time disconnects a society from cross-generational purpose. Which is why…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/almost-by-definition-secularism-cannot-be-a-future-it-s-a-present/)

[Mark Steyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/)

> [Her Majesty's government is engaging not merely in Orwellian Newspeak but in self-defeating Orwellian Newspeak. The broader message it sends is that ours is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/her-majesty-s-government-is-engaging-not-merely-in-orwellian-newspeak/)

[Mark Steyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/)

[Explore all 204 Mark Steyn quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/)

## More America quotes

> [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/)

[Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/)

> [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/)

[Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/)

> [Well, The Day the Earth Caught Fire was a story... I don't if anybody knows what it is but it was about... in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-guest/well-the-day-the-earth-caught-fire-was-a-story-i-don-t-if-anybody/)

[Val Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-guest/)

> [So here's what I want you to know, and here's what I want all our men and women in uniform to know: Because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/so-here-s-what-i-want-you-to-know-and-here-s-what-i-want-all-our-men/)

[Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/)

> [Today, the world looks to America for leadership. And America looks to its Corps of Marines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/today-the-world-looks-to-america-for-leadership-and-america-looks-to/)

[Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/)

> [The image of blacks usually is one of people who are suffering from hunger, unemployment, and poverty. The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/)

[Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/)

> [ I'll smoke, I'll cough, I'll get the tumors, I'll die, deal? Thank you America. \[salutes\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/i-ll-smoke-i-ll-cough-i-ll-get-the-tumors-i-ll-die-deal-thank-you/)

[Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/)

> [America is a democracy and has no Hitler, but I am afraid for her future; there are hard times ahead for the American people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/america-is-a-democracy-and-has-no-hitler-but-i-am-afraid-for-her/)

[Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/)

> [I'm gonna bring America together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/i-m-gonna-bring-america-together/)

[Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/)

> [In the nineteenth century some parts of the world were unexplored, but there was almost no restriction on travel.:; Up to 1914 you did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/in-the-nineteenth-century-some-parts-of-the-world-were-unexplored-but/)

[George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/)

> [We need a system that serves our needs, not the needs of others. Remember, under a Trump administration it's called America first. Remember that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/we-need-a-system-that-serves-our-needs-not-the-needs-of-others/)

[Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/)

> [America, you're sending girls a mixed message. On one hand, you're saying to have positive body image and love who we are; on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adora-svitak/america-you-re-sending-girls-a-mixed-message-on-one-hand-you-re/)

[Adora Svitak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adora-svitak/)

> [You live overseas, you see these exotic places and you want to know about them. But, weirdly, it also made me homesick for all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-jennings/you-live-overseas-you-see-these-exotic-places-and-you-want-to-know/)

[Ken Jennings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-jennings/)

> [Freedom in every sense but primarily political sense, a rise in repression that stems from a repression of sexuality. It's AIDS, it's herpes, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-nicholson/freedom-in-every-sense-but-primarily-political-sense-a-rise-in/)

[Jack Nicholson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-nicholson/)

> [“In American terms, the accomplishment of Genghis Khan might be understood if the United States, instead of being created by a group of educated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-weatherford/in-american-terms-the-accomplishment-of-genghis-khan-might-be/)

[Jack Weatherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-weatherford/)

[Browse all 20,382 America quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "America is now a land that rewards failure - at the personal, corporate, and state level.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Mark Steyn"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/america-is-now-a-land-that-rewards-failure-at-the-personal-corporate-2/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "America"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/america-is-now-a-land-that-rewards-failure-at-the-personal-corporate-2/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd9/mark-steyn-1844_america_america-is-now-a-land-that-rewards-failu_694913.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd9/mark-steyn-1844_america_america-is-now-a-land-that-rewards-failu_694913.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd9/mark-steyn-1844_america_america-is-now-a-land-that-rewards-failu_694913.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“America is now a land that rewards failure - at the personal, corporate, and state level.” — Mark Steyn",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Mark Steyn",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "America is now a land that...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/america-is-now-a-land-that-rewards-failure-at-the-personal-corporate-2/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/america-is-now-a-land-that-rewards-failure-at-the-personal-corporate-2/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
