Chapter 12 of Out of Many argues that the “American System” of interchangeable parts and mass production helped to make America more democratic.  It also says that the system came about in part because of American attitudes towards democracy.

In this chapter, the authors argue that America had a different attitude towards manufacturing than European countries did.  They say that American manufacturers were much more interested in producing goods for the common people than the European companies were.  They say that this showed that America was more democratic and that it helped to make America more democratic as well.

In addition, the authors cite historian David Potter.  They quote him as saying that American democracy requires that all people should be able to have high-quality goods made through mass production.  This is in contrast, Potter says, to Europe where radicals thought that the property of the rich should be taken away.  In America, people believe that the things the rich have should be mass produced and made available to all.  This is a much more democratic vision than the vision held by the Europeans.