In the USSR, there was democratic control by the public at each given level of the economy. Which is why people who were born to poor rural farmers were able to get education, and then get to the top of the USSR's economy and politics.
In the US, that never has been the case. Even in its golden years.
Even in 1960s, 30,000 people (families, children included) dominated all US economic and political institutions. This group was an exclusive group with class consciousness, thwarting any reduction of their control and keeping outsiders out. This phenomenon continues today. Some freak successes in tech space did not change the pattern.
