"Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she
with silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
the wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"
America has never been about quality. Quality is a result of vigorous and excessive competition.
It is sort of funny to say, "America has never been about quality," while referencing a poem about immigrants who moved here for a better quality of life. I think you've missed something rather obvious.
America used to be about quality. Sure, quantity was still a thing but the "shining city on the hill" image of America was about quality.
We've lost our way.