Re: The American Dream is Dead
I think it all depends on how you choose to define "the dream." If you think the dream is to be assured that you will live at a higher standard of poverty, then maybe Europe is better. The tradeoff for the higher low is lowering the obtainable high you can reach. Higher lows = lower highs. If you lower the reachable highs too much, then you create a disincentive for hard work and creativity.
The American dream has never been about assuring every person that they will reach some minimal standard of existence. It is and always has been about preserving the opportunity for every person to reach incredibly high standards of existence. That dream lives.
You can argue all you want about which system or focus for a society is better. I like ours. So do the millions who immigrate here. If they want to be unproductive and still have a higher minimum standard of living, let them go to France or anywhere else in Europe they want. That type of person does not help prime the pump for our economic engine.