For the record, I've never heard a successful person claim that they did everything on their own. Every successful person I know has a whole line of people they are grateful to who have supported them and believed in them along the way. No one lives in a vacuum. Obviously success, financial or otherwise, is impossible to achieve without some input (financial, educational, etc.) from other sources. But none of the successful people I know have had success handed to them either; they've worked, sacrificed, and struggled for it. For the record, there are many people who receive hands up and loans and what have you who aren't good at what they do, don't have a strong work ethic, or are lacking in some other way; it's not a failure of the country, it's a failure of that individual to be a good businessperson, restaurant owner, or other profession. In other words, you can receive the help but unless you also have skills and a desirable product/output it's not going to matter how much help you have in the end.
Having said that, here is what I owe my country: 1. to follow the laws, including ones I don't like, which includes paying taxes if the law dictates that I do so 2. to be an involved citizen who stays informed and voices her opinion through participating in elections and other civic activities (thereby participating in shaping and changing the laws as needed) 3. to be a decent human being: this is a very broad subject, but it can be boiled down to say that I'm not infringing on the rights of other people--that's real rights, by the way, not entitlements or luxuries that they want. For me personally, being a decent human being also includes following my religious beliefs which, among other things, lead me to be charitable with my time, money, and belongings.
As for the questions about public education, roads, etc., public education is paid for by tax money. Everyone pays into it, not everyone uses it who pays into it. Same with roads and infrastructure. Same with government loan programs. Some people would argue that successful people pay more into those things than unsuccessful people, but no need to get into that since there is a whole other post about taxes. My point is, however, it's a bit of a red herring to throw these things in as though they are equivalent to receiving an inheritance, especially if you are not going to acknowledge how much people contribute to those things. Have you never seen a business sponsor a school? Remember Boxtops for education? That isn't a government program. That's a big company. What about the adopt-a-mile program or private organizations that participate in consistent community improvement and beautification projects? All of those things are done out of a desire to give back to the community by recipients of the benefits of these resources, and many of the people giving the most are those who are the most successful. It seems to me that "wealthy" people are also painted with a very broad stroke of being greedy and turning their noses up at and their backs away from others, which is simply not true in America.
In short, it is my opinion that we rise together when we all respect the right everyone has to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness instead of trying to keep one group down so another group can be satisfied. We fall together when we cease to universally support basic human liberties in the name of equality, safety, or whatever other excuse is given to revoke the basic rights of some or all of our citizens.