The American Nightmare
Since the discovery of the New World, long before the United States even became it’s own country, the American Dream has been slowly evolving and transforming itself into the Nightmare it is today. The phrase “too much of a good thing can be bad” holds considerable truth. However, I’ll counter this with my own phrase, “too much of a bad thing considered to be good is catastrophic.” The American Dream never stemmed from roots of pure intention, but from greed and self-focused pursuit. Our country claims and believes the American Dream is about having the opportunity to become financially stable, secure and content. Yet, this is not the truth. In fact, the American Dream is about having the opportunity to advance from being the person stepped on to being the person stepping upon others.
The Dream never incorporated contentment, but an insatiable desire for more and to be the one whose hands grasped the most. The discovery of the New World was funded by this attitude, as countries in the East competed for the ability to clench tightly the world’s highest prestige and power. However, this greedy hunger is not contained to one corrupt country, king, queen or leader. It’s a toxic seedling which is embedded into each individual, and if given the proper environment it will grow. The New World became the optimal environment; a greenhouse filled with people all thriving for the East’s lust of power. It is from these people a country was birthed. A country with an appetite so ravenous before it was even founded it nearly decimated the entire Native American population, and abducted, dehumanized and enslaved African’s to do their bidding!
Now even in the present day, the United States shallowly takes responsibility for it’s past. The suffering of Native Americans and African-Americans has over time become slowly and cautiously removed from our conscience as we disconnect from our past. Our country is much like the apathetic adult child who inherits the business of a passed away, wealthy parent. We grimly acknowledge our parent is emotionally indebted as they have mistreated many people, specifically their racially diverse workers. Yet, we do not make amends for our parents words and actions by apologizing with our own words and actions. We do not take the time to invest in the worker’s emotional debt which we’ve inherited. Instead, publicly we give them an elaborate apology, but then in private attempt to appease and quiet them with money saying, “I’m not my parent, and I mean even then we all make mistakes right?” All the while, throughout this whole process our young child has been tentatively observing us. This child is the future generation of our country, and this is what we are teaching them.
We as a country today have become so disconnected from our past, we continue to repeat the behavior of our forefathers while the future generation watches. Unfortunately, this greedy hunger which led to mercilessly ravaging more than one group of people has now shifted into societal cannibalism. We no longer need to feed off of other countries because we’ve already “conquered them” and brutally obtained the title as the world’s “super power”. With no more prey available, our fellow lions begin to look more appetizing. Thus, we begin to stalk and compete with each other just to be the leader of the pride; the one with the most and the best. All the while calling it the “American Dream” as our children quietly observe the only way to be successful is to trample anyone who will or could get in your way. People are no longer people, but a means to an end in order to achieve and conquer the greatness we’ve been taught to pursue. We continue to live in this self-focused society because we are blissfully ignorant to the truth of our past. Over time the greed which founded our nation continues to seep into the dream of freedom and opportunity creating a nightmare.
The freedom and opportunity abounds in the United States, but the freedom and opportunity is not free nor is it equal. In fact, it’s costly because our society functions at a vertical level and not a horizontal. The American Dream claims it’s at a horizontal level, but the nightmarish truth is it’s vertical. We are given this vision of everyone walking equally side by side and given the freedom and opportunity to live life to the fullest. However, greed changes the definition of living life to the fullest from subjective to objective. It infiltrates our innocent dreams and aspirations, as we become inundated with discontentment as every commercial, billboard, internet ad and Hollywood release tells us we don’t have enough. So we climb on top of each other, push, pull, shove and dig our heels into the people below us to get closer to the top and reach the “American Dream”. Your location in this pile of human chaos? Well contrary to those with greater wealth and status might say, it actually does depend on your wealth and status. There are still those in this country who fervently believe everyone has equal opportunity to get to the top, but this is simply false. As stated before the only equal aspect of anyone’s opportunity is everyone is allowed to take part in this ruthless fight for the top. Unfortunately, it’s your race, wealth, environment, access to good healthcare and education which determines if you’re on the bottom, the middle or the top of the pile.
The reality is all of these attributes are out of anyone’s control, as you do not get to decide the family you are born into or the genes you’ll receive. If you are born as a minority to a poor, single mother your access to good education and healthcare is greatly diminished, and yet many Americans still believe you have the same opportunities as those born in better circumstances. The harsh truth is unless you are given outside help or have been born with special athletic or musical abilities there is no opportunity let alone an equal opportunity. Thus, if you are born at the bottom of the pile unless you have something which benefits somebody higher up or you receive help from the government who is at the top the chances are you’ll remain at the bottom. Unfortunately, it’s the selfishness and greed of those above you whether you’re at the bottom or in the middle, which determines your opportunity to advance.
The American Dream is tailored for the 1% because it’s foundation is rooted in the hunger and greed of our past’s “1%”. This past “1%” were the Kings and leaders who ultimately set in motion the formation of our country. Therefore, anyone who is not on top, born into the top or benefits those on top will have a minuscule chance of ever reaching the top. If the 99% are asking themselves how do we fix this problem? We are blind to the real issue. There is not a problem with not being on top; rather, the problem is not being content with not being on top. The problem is greed, and it lies deep within each of us and has been nourished by our environment. Greed has been running the globe since the beginning of time when the fall of man occurred.
In the first chapter of Genesis, God created man in His image. In the second chapter, God directed Adam, “From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die (2:16–17). However, when Satan tempted Eve he was tempting her greed and desire for more. Both Eve and Adam would succumb to this temptation, man would fall into sin and their descendants all the way to the founders of the New World would have the seeds of sin in their heart. It was the seed of greed which would and has flourished and intertwined with the rising structure of this Country.
In conclusion, when we look at the current state and the past of our country we can see the influence of the American Dream. However, if we open our eyes we will be exposed to the truth of what this American Dream has cost the lives of many both past and present. I believe it’s time we stop and ask ourselves if the American Dream is brimming with greed, suffering, exploitation and the inability to succeed by it’s standards is this not torture? and if so, why are we continuing to pursue a dream masquerading as a nightmare?
