Constructive Cynicism: The
American Dream is really a bad nightmare.
Breaking News: The Environmental Protection Agency just put
American currency on the endangered species list. A spending freeze will be
instituted at the opening of tomorrow's stock market, Eastern Standard
Time.
Where did the cold, hard cash go?
It's funny, rich people are still rich, poor people still poor, the
population is growing older, living longer, and the money is growing thin. As
if no other solution exists, the debt ceiling continues rising to somewhat of
an arbitrary level. I know that I will not be the first or the last to
debate on this topic, but do the ends justify the means?
Can we not learn from the
hardships of every average American who took on more credit card debt than they
should've so as not to 'default on their obligations'? Strangely, despite
living in The Great Recession, people continue to search for ways to spend
money. While I agree that many of us have shifted to more meager
lifestyles, there is a noteworthy faction that still clings on to the hope that
the economy "bounces back". Call me a cynic (hence the thread
title), but isn't the problem that we continue to let the economy blow bubbles?
Using "derivative financial models", and other such instruments, the
market effectively delays risk rather than absorbing it. This
allows the people doing the investing to make their quick money and get out.
This money isn't real - it was created by genius mathematicians with
marketing skills who knew how to create a dynamic investing environment in
which people could rally. In the long-run, it is coming out of the
pockets of the people. Bubbles burst - that is what they do. People:
What goes up must come down!
Hey, I am an advocate for financial leverage. I
get it.... leverage promotes growth, you have to spend money to make money...
blah, blah, blah. The bottom line is that we have reached a dangerous
level. America was the cookie-cutter for capitalism yet, somehow, we have
transformed money into something that we no longer have but need to borrow
excessively. Does anyone else see the tragic irony here? We are on a path to
destruction just like every civilization in the history of humanity! The
only difference is the type of resources that we are depleting: natural,
physical, and fiscal. As academic Jared Diamond once noted, "We are the
first society to be living amongst ruins of our own construction".
That idea alone speaks volumes:
American industry has transformed itself so quickly that entire industries have
collapsed, leaving many towns with shopping-mall wastelands and rows of
dilapidated houses. If an integral industry can collapse, then it stands
to reason that the nation leaning on such industries could do the same. I am
worried that, rather than collapse, we may implode. Enveloping itself, our
culture needs a hard reset, our mentalities need to be adjusted, and our
spending needs to be curbed.
Call to Action: Live the American Dream... but within your means.
Like Lupe Fiasco said, "your child's future was the first to go with budget cuts." Stupid to quote a rapper? Nope, not when he has something to say.
ReplyDeleteYou are so right, but the American dream seems to be built on excess. Spend more, make more. Does it work? I don't think it does. You see people continue to live in some goddamn bubble where they will sit at home and laugh to "Two and a Half Men" while Ashton Kutcher (spelling ?) gets paid something like $700,000 per episode. Meanwhile, the average joe is busting his ass to make $40,000 a year...while he spends $60,000 to buy all the garbage society says he needs.
But how can you stop it? How can you change the American dream, even though most people who chase it fall into a horrible nightmare?
Yeah it is funny. The American Dream was built upon people's hard sweat, good ideas, and adventurous undertakings. Those who colonized America brought hopes and dreams with them in their far-spirited crusades. I like that you mention that there are people sitting at home watching other people on TV who are rich, wishing that they themselves were rich. I've written before that "people allow misfortune and pity over integrity and self-activation". That certainly applies here. A brief piece I wrote in 2005 called Inner-national talks about the direction that society is heading based on devotion to such "norms". I have done a lot of editing on in it past years, so I will put it up again. It seems to tie in with the topic.
ReplyDeleteIn answer to your question, perhaps rhetorical... I don't know if it is something that can be stopped. I've said before "you can't stop a train in its tracks". Sure, you can derail it.... what then?
Again, you talk about "spend more, make more". I think a "material revolution" attached itself to success and really gained momentum in the late 80s, incidentally, not long after Madonna released her hit song 'Material Girl'. In its popularity, its message spread throughout middle-class America like a harsh fever.
In an effort to "curb the American Dream", I would, like to add that I think more stringent regulations on consumer lending is necessary. And I think they have become so. I have written on this topic; a consumer watchdog is an element deemed important to financial markets and financial reform. This same principal should be applied to corporations and government.
ReplyDelete