Five myths about the American dream

[alp227]

about the author: Michael F. Ford is the founding director of the Xavier University’s Center for the Study of the American Dream.

Ford breaks down the following common myths about the American dream:
1. The American dream is about getting rich.
2. Homeownership is the American dream.
3. The American dream is American.
4. China threatens the American dream.
5. Economic decline and political gridlock are killing the American dream.

[ErikJ]

1. The American Dream is OPPORTUNITY-duh.

Is America the "land of opportunity"? Not so much.

A new report from the Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) finds that social mobility between generations is dramatically lower in the U.S. than in many other developed countries.

So if you want your children to climb the socioeconomic ladder higher than you did, move to Canada.

As American Inequality is at record highs, Say Goodbye to the American dream

The report finds the U.S. ranking well below Denmark, Australia, Norway, Finland, Canada, Sweden, Germany and Spain in terms of how freely citizens move up or down the social ladder. Only in Italy and Great Britain is the intensity of the relationship between individual and parental earnings even greater.

For instance, according to the OECD, 47 percent of the economic advantage that high-earning fathers in the United States have over low-earning fathers is transmitted to their sons, compare to, say, 17 percent in Australia and 19 percent in Canada.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/03/17/social-im...

[msongs]

2. It's called the American "dream" because you have to be asleep to believe it - George Carlin nt

[Webster Green]

3. Beat me to it.

I just listened to that routine earlier this evening.

"It's a big club, and you ain't in it".

RIP George!

[ciaoant1]

4. Citigroup tells it like it is

Here's something from a Citigroup report that was leaked 6 years ago:

"Perhaps one reason that societies allow plutonomy, is because enough of the electorate believe they have a chance of becoming a Pluto-participant. Why kill it off, if you can join it? In a sense this is the embodiment of the “American dream”. But if voters feel they cannot participate, they are more likely to divide up the wealth pie, rather than aspire to being truly rich.

Could the plutonomies die because the dream is dead, because enough of society doesnot believe they can participate? The answer is of course yes. But we suspect this is athreat more clearly felt during recessions, and periods of falling wealth, than when average citizens feel that they are better off. There are signs around the world that society is unhappy with plutonomy - judging by how tight electoral races are. But as yet, there seems little political fight being born out on this battleground.

Our overall conclusion is that a backlash against plutonomy is probable at some point. However, that point is not now. So long as economies continue to grow, and enough of the electorates feel that they are benefiting and getting rich in absolute terms, even if they are less well off in relative terms, there is little threat to Plutonomy in the U.S., UK,etc."


Link: http://whataboutmarx.blogspot.com/2012/01/citigroup-tells-it-like-it-is.html