The Problem With The American Dream

Here is a link to a Dec. 8, 2016 New York Times article about the American Dream


http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/08/opinion/the-american-dream-quantified-at-last.html?_r=0


Let me start by declaring that I hate The American Dream.

Why do Americans think the world is coming to an end if they don't make more money and live with more toys than their parents had? Too many Americans do not have a sense of community, or a sense that their purpose in life is to help other people or to work towards an environmentally sustainable lifestyle. As the prophetic novelist Kurt Vonnegut wrote 50 years ago in God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater, the true American flag is the black flag with the white skull and crossbones. The true national motto, which Vonnegut said should be inscribed on the pirate flag, is "SCREW YOU JACK. I GOT MINE."

The obsession with economic growth is common to both of our major parties. That is probably because it is an underlying assumption shared by a majority of Americans. It's a compulsive national drive to always have more that is mindlessly destroying our planet. Is growth in fossil fuel extraction good? Is growth in prison construction good? Is growth in nuclear weapons manufacturing good? Is growth in soft drink consumption or cigarette sales good? OF COURSE NOT! Shrinkage or extinction is a much better goal for all of these things. Growth industries should be strategically selected. Manufacturing of saxophones, or bicycles, or wind turbines and solar panels instead of cars and military hardware are obviously steps in a positive direction.

If the American Dream is disappearing, I say good riddance. It's too bad so many knuckleheads want to hang on to it. Because of it, we've seen white Americans in Idaho and Florida and every state lying in a broad swath between them send a man who is the ultimate personification of Vonnegut's motto to the White House.

This is a sick country and Leonhardt, with all his slick graphs and charts, doesn't seem to understand that.

The future is bleak and this rant is over.

On Projecting an Appropriate Image

What's going on here? Haven't we lost track of something that is worthwhile? I'm referring to the appropriateness of the image that candidates project. Shouldn't a person have personal attributes that are appropriate to the position that he or she seeks?

To illustrate what I'm getting at, try to visualize an ideal principal for a high school that you would want your child to attend. I understand that every job requires specific skills that are necessary for functioning successfully. I am not thinking of the specific skills that the person will use regularly. I am thinking of the kind of person that a high school principal should be.

A high school principal should be a role model for teenagers -- a mature adult who is dignified, learned, well-mannered and well-spoken.

- A principal should be able to engage faculty in informed discussions of the curricula of every subject.

- A principal should be physically fit and maintain a healthy lifestyle.

- A principal should have facility with at least one foreign language.

- A principal should have a deep understanding and appreciation of literature, music, art, dance, and drama.

- A principal should should habitually demonstrate behavior that we would want teenagers to emulate -- courtesy, respect, kindness, etc.

All of this is part of the person's image. I would want to see that all the desired image components were in place before considering a candidate for the position. Only after ascertaining that a candidate is the kind of person we want, should we try to assess his or her job-specific skills.

Image IS important. Do you agree? If so, good.

Let us now extend this concept to another leadership position -- President of the United States. Shouldn't a candidate for President have all the attributes that we would look for in a high school principal and then some? In 2016, we've seen some candidates for President whom I would never consider for a school principal's job because their image is inappropriate. If I can't visualize someone as a good principal for a school, I cannot vote for that person to be president. I hope that you couldn't either. Let's have a little class.