It's all lies I tell you. The American dream of studying hard and working hard so that you can live in a big house in a nice neighborhood and have two cars in every garage. There's enough lies to go around. Something for everyone if you will. The migrant thinks the streets are lined with gold. That if he can just get here by some magical fate he'll be living in a middle class neighborhood in short order. He sees the minimum wage like a pot of gold making more in one hour than he did all day in his country. Then the reality sets in. He can't speak the language and must rely on friends for work. He's the last hired and the first fired and always gets the worst jobs the company has to offer.
Then there's the teens who with optimistic eyes head into the workforce thinking that they'll step into a top spot and be making six figures before they're 25. They get an offer of $14 an hour and think they've made the big time until the first check comes with all the deductions. Suddenly that Xbox will have to wait and forget that new car he'd been drooling over since freshmen year.
Then there's those who have been in the workforce for some years and are beginning to realize that those at the top of the ladder have cut the rungs below their high positions. They now know that they may make a sideways move or worse move down on the ladder but getting to a higher position is out of the question. Those at the top know that as long as they play by the groups rules and not step on toes that even if they fail their brothers the good ole boys that they are will pick them up, dust them off and get them going again.
And with the current economic correction was it starting to get too crowded up there at the top? Can't have an abundance of rich people you know that would just water down the value of old money. Nothing worse than the newly rich moving into the neighborhood. They have such gawdy tastes you know. Not to forget to get the word out that change is bad. It will kill your grandmother and your children (but the real issue is that it will kill the corporate bottom line and limit bonuses).
So you work all your life and your body's starting to give out and you think you've saved enough to at least afford a studio apartment and not have to live off of cat food, but no matter what you've socked away there's that nagging feeling in the back of your mind that you didn't save enough. The thought comes to mind that what if an emergency comes up and takes even a third of your nest egg. You might think of some type of insurance but can you afford those monthly costs and would the insurance company really pay out or find some loophole in the fine print? And you're still at the mercy of the economy where costs go up while your income is fixed. And the retiree lay dead in the living room wrapped in a carpet with frozen burst pipes, the electricity shut off for non payment but the bank account was full of cash.
Maybe if I'm lucky I'll just develop alzheimers and forget all of this. Do I hear the alarm clock? Is it time to go to work? That's right there is no work...back to sleep.
Ah yes this is the American Dream... er nightmare.
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12 comments:
SAd but true. The American Dream with all its Free Enterprise frills is just to keep the great unwashed from demanding their share of the pie. A few people make it happen every year, crawling from ash heap to top of the pile, and so everyone dreams of doing the same. It is a hoax perpetrated by those who have to prevent those who have not from what any other country provides to all its citizens.
Demeur, you give good rant :)
Many sadly feel your frustration. The American dream has become the American illusion thanks to Bush!
So you work all your life and your body's starting to give out and you think you've saved enough to at least afford a studio apartment and not have to live off of cat food, but no matter what you've socked away there's that nagging feeling in the back of your mind that you didn't save enough.
Come on buddy, get a bit of a grip. I get by just fine on 938 bucks a month, it just depends on how you look at things and what your wants are.
My wants and needs are few and basic and my world has never revolved around money so even that little amount is more than I need.
As for health care, I don't want to get old and feeble and shitting in a diaper again, but you already know that about me.
Worrying about dying is so overrated, I figure it will just be the last interesting thing I do.
Hell, you may die tonight, just be okay with it.
And Patriot, it's not all Bush's fault even though I don't like the son of a bitch, it's been a long time coming.
And Obama can't fix it so just expect more of the same. Or be optimistic, there is always that delusion, ha ha ha.
Fuck it, we have the system we deserve.
The problem with migrants is that they think there's some magic formula for hitting middle class but with no education that's unlikely to happen. Yes some make it but most don't. It's a lie.
Bee I have nothing on the Ornery Bastard. Now there's somebody who can rant.
Billy I've lived the last thirty plus years on a very marginal lifestyle. But when the money is fixed and everything is going up we'll land up getting taxed out of our homes if medical costs don't do it first.
But when the money is fixed and everything is going up we'll land up getting taxed out of our homes if medical costs don't do it first.
I don't know what it is like in the Seattle area but over here if your income is under 35 grand a year and if you go in and fill out a form property tax is zilch.
Well, other than about two bucks for weed control, if your income is low go to the courthouse and check that option out.
Besides, I have a 5th wheel camper, three pickup campers and a camp trailer so will always have a home.
Never mind, I guess that I just don't need what everyone else thinks they need.
Besides, just exactly what does an old fuck need other than a dry room and some friends?
And I have plenty of friends here so I guess I have it going for me okay. No?
"The migrant thinks the streets are lined with gold. That if he can just get here by some magical fate he'll be living in a middle class neighborhood in short order."
I read a few weeks back that the jobs situation is so lousy, more and more illegal immigrants are crossing the border headed south. Meanwhile, almost none are heading north. Now, that's bad.
It's no coincidence that after 30 years of mostly Republican conservative government we now have an employers' market for workers, with Americans in direct competition for jobs with child labor, prison labor and peasants fresh from the countryside and willing to work for coolie wages.
I can just see Tom Donohue and the rest of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce having a group orgasm after reading the latest labor situation report.
The US is the biggest debtor nation in the world and more and more of the Federal budget will be going to pay off those debts, more and more government programs will get cut because of the shrinking budget. Average credit debt is $10,000, average mortgage debt is $200,000. An economy build on debt is unsustainable.
To an extent, optimism is a good thing. But when it's overdone, like this American Dream that's held in front of everybody like a carrot on a stick, it just dupes everybody into being a hamster on a treadmill.
Seattle's Sunday paper had an article about a recent college graduate who owes $145,000 debt from student loans, and his income is $40,000 a year. Ouch!
You all better watch it or Zombie Horatio Alger will eat your brains.
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