End of the American Dream - more difficult to climb the social ladder in the US
By: Cahir O'Doherty | Published Thursday, December 15, 2011, 11:30 AM | Updated Thursday, December 15, 2011, 11:30 AM
 |
| A sign at a deserted construction site |
You probably don't need to be told this, and I’d rather not be the messenger, but nonetheless it’s a fact -- climbing the social ladder in the United States is actually harder than in Europe now.
Think about that for a minute. That's a reversal of everything that the U.S. has stood for in the European imagination, for centuries. That's big news.
According to a new report from the non-partisan Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), social mobility between the generations is now dramatically lower here in the U.S. than in Europe and many other developed nations.
In terms of America itself, that's not what it says on the label though, is it? America still bills itself as
"the land of opportunity," doesn't it?
But the truth is you'd have much better luck these days in Australia or Canada.
---------------
Read more: More on US politics from IrishCentral Why was an Irish businessman and father-to-be arrested in his NYC home?
Was quarterback Tom Brady ‘talking Gaelic’ during heated argument?- VIDEO--------------
None of this has happened by accident. At a time when America needs good governance more than at any time in its history, we have a Tea Party, a religious right and all the top Republican presidential candidates telling us that government is actually the problem.
Nonsense. Government can narrow the income and opportunity gap, government can grant you access to affordable health care, government can make a university education achievable, government can set a minimum wage and ensure that the rich pay their fair share for participating in our democracy.
The problem is that many of the better off in our society simply don’t want to pitch in their share.
Instead of reinvestment these days, we have outsourcing, downsizing, union busting and job elimination and the dismantling of every worker protection.
I'd like America to succeed, but I can't see how it can while we're saddled with this kind of capitalistic cannibalism and one political party that seems intent on marching us all the way back to the frontier.
It can be surprisingly hard to explain to an American how great the gulf between the rhetoric and the reality has actually grown over the last 30 years.
Americans seem hardwired to believe the country is exceptional. You can't blame them for wanting to believe that, but it would be foolish to agree now. To an outsider the contrasts are stark.
The truth is America's middle class had already been eroding for three decades before the financial crisis hit during George W. Bush's second term. Currently we have more income inequality now than at any time since the twenties, and that kind of inequality tends to grow.
What that means is that the next generation may be stuck with even less opportunity to get ahead.
It's time we all started discussing this. It's probably not very wise to simply look on as millions of Americans begin to discover they will remain poor, locked into poverty in fact, for the rest of their lives, without imagining there will be profound social consequences for all of us.
It's time we started discussing the threat of downward mobility that so many professional people (our friends and neighbors) are already experiencing as either a threat or a reality.
There has been such a prolonged conservative attack on any levers of social and political redress in America that voters often feel disenfranchised before they even start to agitate for their rights.
Conservatives here claim they don't want America to turn into Europe -- yet Europe now has better economic mobility, infinitely more accessible health care, better environmental standards, higher education standards, and even a higher “happiness" rating.
---------------
Read more: More on US politics from IrishCentral Why was an Irish businessman and father-to-be arrested in his NYC home?
Was quarterback Tom Brady ‘talking Gaelic’ during heated argument?- VIDEO--------------
So those anchormen on Fox News are selling you a bill of goods. The dream that you'll do better here is on decidedly shaky ground.
Disastrous and seemingly never ending wars waged in countries that didn't attack us, the epic waste of the nation’s resources, the export of jobs and industry to cheaper, less regulated nations . . . the list goes on.
These days a trader on Wall Street makes more in one day than a computer engineer makes in a year.
The trader will get taxed at 15% and the engineer will be taxed at 30%.
The question is, who created more value? The trader enriches himself, does nothing for anyone else, helps no one else, employs no one else and produces nothing of value.
Can it be much longer before we witness Americans emigrating abroad in search of a land of opportunity?
What will the anti-immigrant crowd have to say when it becomes apparent that Americans are now border hopping in search of a better life?
23 Comments
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Switch to the desktop site to post a comment.barbaral | Dec 27, 2011, 09:24 PM EST
The American Dream probably worked more easily for more people for a brief period, but it's true that even the founding principles are based on a certain assumption of elitism. It's *relatively* more democratic compared to previous standards, but it doesn't mean there wasn't and isn't a long way to go. I think part of the reason the dream is so enduring is because, well? you have to believe in *something.* And-there's a lot of shame in not meeting the ideal, especially if there's this widespread narrative that it's really *not that hard,* that *anyone can do it.* There's just enough truth to that narrative to make it still attractive. Yes: any*one* can probably succeed on the current terms. But: that's like saying anyone can win the Olympics. Emphasis on *winning.* There are the winners, and then there's everybody else. Everyone gets talked to as a *potential* winner-because no one wants to identify as having already lost. Just try again. And again. And again. Don't ever think about how maybe a decent baseline standard of living should be work, sure, but shouldn't be like running a damn marathon. Especially if no one listens if someone took your sneakers and kicked you in the kneecap before you even got started.
sirpeter | Dec 16, 2011, 09:40 PM EST
AlunPalmer.You are right about the UK having no immigration control on Irish moving to the UK.We had the same problem in Ireland when it came to the British.But we had it really bad in Ireland.The British didn't come to work.They came with guns to kill us.I think that was really sad and we Irish saw it as a real bad problem.
AlunPalmer | Dec 16, 2011, 06:00 PM EST
I agree. I came to the US (legally) from England, and this is what I see too. When I lived in London, 20 years ago, I knew some Americans who were in the UK as illegals even back then, so that would be nothing new. There would have to be a lot more of them before anyone saw it as a problem, though, if they ever did. Sadly, people did complain about the Irish, though, despite (or perhaps because of) there being no immigration control on Irish moving to the UK.
joycean | Dec 16, 2011, 01:40 PM EST
It is not necessarily important to climb the social ladder. Scandinavian countries have much less wealth disparity. Being middle class would be fine if we tightened the social nets. We also need to do away with Fair Trade. That sounds like such a fine thing, but it basically means we give away American jobs.Ireland, for instance, should not be able to lure American firms by underbidding our corporate tax. I have seen this country cycle up and down financially, but I still have enormous love for this country.
McNamara31 | Dec 16, 2011, 09:55 AM EST
Pittsburghkid "Class Warfare is ugly" A term coined by Fox News; a talking point used to deflect from the factual problems facing America. All you had to do is see the interview this week with Rush Limbaugh to realize just how low this cable station will go to manipulate the voting public. But what do you expect from an enterprise owned by a family presently being litigated for hacking into the phones of the deceased. You may think its "class warfare" until you get sick; lose your health insurance and then your house like many of the working poor. Many in America are still thinking it's the same as when they came up. There’s a previous generation that benefited from long-term employment with insurance and retirement plans. The up and coming middle class and the student graduating college are entering a (corporate driven) America that doesn't offer middle class benefits anymore (even though they continue to make huge profits) taking away the ability to enter the middle class as in the past. If you think that class warfare there's a vast amount of people who won't agree.
IrelandNorth | Dec 16, 2011, 07:49 AM EST
Like all capitalisms everywhere, I expect that the American dream, (if there ever was one?), was so for a very privileged minority, and a nighmare for the majority. The more things change the more they stay the same. Justice is distributive. Share!
Pittsburghkid | Dec 15, 2011, 11:55 PM EST
Class Warfare is ugly. Every City in America has Casino Gambling. Government Pensioners are the main customers of these Casinos. You can sell your Obama brand Class Warfare, but look to Wisconsin. A Republicans state, because the people of Wisconsin figulared out who pays these pensions.
sirpeter | Dec 15, 2011, 10:42 PM EST
The American government is still peddling the American Dream that it is still the best country in the world to live in.That must be very frustrating for people who are having a hard time making ends meet because it implies that it is the individual who is at fault for his/her own problems.This is simply not true most of the time.High expectation of life and the frustration and pressure seems to be manifesting itself in some disturbing ways.I read this recently~Nearly 20% of women in the US have been raped according to a U.S study An estimated at 25%,have been attacked by a partner or husband, according to Centers for Disease Control.More than one million American women reported being raped in the 12 months prior to the survey.According to American experts this is the root of the problem.Other nations have social policies that provide child care, universal health insurance, pre-school, parental leave and visiting nurses to virtually all in need. In the US, when children are born into young families not prepared to receive them, local social safety nets may be frayed, or non-existent. As a result, they are unable to compensate for the household stress the child must endure. More than 6 million American women and men were a victim of stalking.More than 12 million American women and men reported rape,physical violence or stalking by an intimate partner over the course of a year.Violence against children is so much more acute in the US than anywhere else in the industrialized world.Sounds like a hell of a lot of people are under immense long term stress to me and the odd thing about stress is.A person is not always aware he/she is getting close to the edge.
bonjouryall | Dec 15, 2011, 10:42 PM EST
I have yet to be convinced by the author that Americans will attempt to sneak into Europe for jobs and upward mobility anytime soon, given Europe's finances. But as to America, perhaps he considers 'unlimited free trade now' by Obama/Clinton is good for the middle class and unions, whereas the republican's 'unlimited free trade now' is harmful. And Obamacare's unfunded liability will be paid by the tooth fairy rather than the middle class in the form of higher costs. Perhaps too the author believes Obama's neglect of, no, his leadership in actually reducing funding to social security will help the middle class in its retirement years. I will not defend the republican party. Both bailed out Wall Street. Ginnie Mae and Freddie Mac paid off both parties for their inaction. In my opinion, both have taken aim at reducing the middle class in this country-barefoot, dumb, and poor but equal is what the rich Demo's and Repub's want for this country. No one could easily challenge their power under those circumstances. We're just being played.
allentown | Dec 15, 2011, 05:36 PM EST
McNamara31--- We'll put you in the un-decided group.
joycean | Dec 15, 2011, 02:09 PM EST
TicfaidhArmani31, You misunderstood. I was not writing about the woam's health care issues, but Cahir and MacNamara's comments about America's financial situation. My family has suffered from the current health care. When my 22 year old daughter was badly injured in a car accident and our health insurance refused to pay, we had to care for her at home. my husband went to a nursing home and borrowed a hospital bed. There are community resources, but a state or national system is needed.
McNamara31 | Dec 15, 2011, 01:25 PM EST
TiocfaidhArmani.. SYes sad and so true each and every day in America. Americans have to start thinking in terms of "we" and not "I". It was all the "I's" that got us into this mess.
McNamara31 | Dec 15, 2011, 01:18 PM EST
allentown... It's not a "left" or "right" thing. Its money and influence and politicians on the take or in need of the money to run their campaigns. FOX will tell you it's everybody else’s fault, because they represent Wall St and corporate interest in America; so they will smear and pander to deflect away from the facts. Nothing appears on Fox that doesn't fit the FOX narrative and sadly many in America are still buying it. Just look at their ratings...smear sells.
TiocfaidhArmani | Dec 15, 2011, 01:01 PM EST
McNamara, that's a heart breaking story and true of the inequality in America. Joycean, your reply is just plain dumb. "Have faith". Faith in what? What faith did that person with cancer have in America when it left her to die without even a bed? A Christian nation my ass. Thank God I live in Ireland, our health system is far from perfect but you're entitled at least to a bed when you're dying!
allentown | Dec 15, 2011, 12:50 PM EST
So long as the left continues to blame Wall Street for the entire financial debacle and have blinders on to the liberal Democrats in Government who laid the groundwork for the debacle, how can you have compromise?
joycean | Dec 15, 2011, 12:34 PM EST
For many years, I envies Europeans' life styles. Their government benefits meant working was optional. I also thought that America was subsidizing those lifestyles because they were not putting the money into defense that we were.Example: Libya. NATO countries wanted to help the rebels, but without us, NATO ran out of equipment and ammo. Obama threw in a little air cover.
joycean | Dec 15, 2011, 11:48 AM EST
MacNamara, My grandfather came here from Canada, made a fortune and lost it in 1929. My mother described his reaction. He said ,"We own our house. And I have faith in America." Americans will be fine if they adopt my grndfather's strategy. Pay off whatever debts you are carrying and have faith.
joycean | Dec 15, 2011, 11:25 AM EST
hoolgan6a, I was answering Cahir's question. He used the term, which is why I answered with quotation marks. Those may be two groups, of course. But I think the latest immigration reform represents a tightening of legal immigration limits. Probably because we just don't have the money for large numbers right now, so certain groups are being given priority: Mexicans,, Filipinos, Chinese, and Indians. Of course, illegal immigation is an even more serious problem because it gives us no control over who comes into the country and seriously strains our social services.
hooligan6a | Dec 15, 2011, 10:52 AM EST
joycean, We are not anti-immigrant. We are anti- ILLEGAL- immigrant. . That is a big difference
McNamara31 | Dec 15, 2011, 10:47 AM EST
Last night on 60 minutes(on CNBC) chronicled two stories; one of Wall St and the derivative markets and how these were actually all “side bets” a practice that had previously been made illegal after the crash of 1907, which preceded the major crash in 1929. The other story followed the lives of cancer patients, “the working” poor in Nevada, one of which was a mother of two who had worked all her life, came down with breast and bone cancer, lost her job, then her insurance, and now the clinic that had been providing her with chemo had closed leaving her to die. As the episode ended the commentator said "in the past week the medical supply company had come and taken her medical bed back". In her final days she couldn’t even have a bed. These are the haunting inequities of life in America today. The greatest nation has been corrupted by a predatory banking system which paid Washington billions to deregulate systems that were there to protect the everyday man. Because of their greed this country is feeling a pain not felt since 1929. People left to die in the greatest nation while bankers and hedge fund managers manipulated the market to provide them gains that came from your devalued communities, your retirement plans, and you kid’s college funds. They broke America, and not a single one of them has served time. Some blame the Republicans some blame the Democrats, that’s all a sideshow to who is really pulling the strings in America in the last 30 years. If the income inequity continues to persist we will begin to look more like Latin America than that the “dream” country our immigrant ancestors crossed oceans to get to.
SeamusMor | Dec 15, 2011, 10:45 AM EST
New York was once ruled the by "The Four Hundred", the number of persons who could fit into Lady Astor's 19th century ballroom. Their descendants and a lucky few newcomers, like Donald Trump, buzz from helipad to helipad without ever descending below the penthouses of Manhattan's skyscrapers. The view from the top is beautiful, and they do not want it cluttered with vulgar upstarts. America is a Plutocracy. In a democracy, it would be so crowded at the top that one's personal assistant would forever be in frantic competition with the personal assistants of others for tee times and dinner reservations. There will always be complaints from the Maples about no sunlight, and Oaks to ignore their pleas. Can't they just be happy in our shade?
newnation | Dec 15, 2011, 10:37 AM EST
Exactly right, good luck convincing people that's the case though..
joycean | Dec 15, 2011, 10:02 AM EST
Cahir, I agree with most of the points that you make, but I don't see that your conclusion makes sense. The "anti-immigrant crowd" would argue that if there aren't jobs for Americans, we can't admit immigrants. We need to re-employ Americans, and we are going to need to find jobs for a lot of returning soldiers. Ireland developed an immigrant problem when it was doing well; not when it was impovershed. As for Americans finding jobs elsewhere: that is difficult because many countries like EU countries already limit immigrants to those with job offers that cannot be filled by their citizens.