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Old 05-06-2016, 10:16 AM   #21
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I've achieved My Dream, which was to free myself of The Job Great And Quite Insecure Employment Machine by becoming be financially independent.
Well, yeah, fair enough. I think of "the dream" in the general case. I reject any idea that "The American Dream" is one static set of achievements, accomplishments or states of mind/being. It simply means having the freedom to pursue your own value set, and the ability (not the right) to seek it through your own initiative.
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Old 05-06-2016, 10:24 AM   #22
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Not everyone wants to have kids, so for childfree people like myself, #5 would be a nightmare, not a dream.
You're not kidding! (Pun sort of intended!!!) I get tired of folks asking us if we dislike being "childless." Well...there is a HUGE difference in being childless v. childfree. I have nothing against kids, as a matter of fact, most of my volunteering that I do involves kids that are having a rough go at life. If I wasn't so damn selfish, we would open our home to foster kids, but after a trial run when we lived in Texas, I figured out that it wasn't my cup of tea. When I had my vasectomy, I walked out of the clinic with the biggest grin on my face...it was one of the most liberating things I have ever done in my life.

Anyway...back to the original topic. I would say that my "American Dream" is to do whatever I want, wherever I want. And I would say I have achieved that. Granted, there are some thing I cannot do (usually things that don't comport with laws or being a reasonable person) but generally speaking, I am free to do anything and everything I would like to do and I can do it on my terms. But, after 20+ years of military service, my "freedom" is probably not measured with many of my community peers. Freedom to do what I want, is quite precious to me....and I take great liberty in doing whatever the hell I want.
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Old 05-06-2016, 11:01 AM   #23
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I would say that I have achieved it. However, I would say that my children will not do so if you include the aspect of doing better than your parents. I believe that they can reach a stable level of comfort, but will not literally be able to do better than I did.
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Old 05-06-2016, 12:44 PM   #24
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Yet roughly 50% of the students at Yale are minorities, 46% at Harvard, etc., ? whites represent 63% of the population in America... So is it seems it is more then a dream for some...


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According to Yale's web site, the domestic student body is 73% Caucasian

Yale Facts | Yale University
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Old 05-06-2016, 12:47 PM   #25
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The quoted article talks about "minorities" but doesn't mention Asians once.
You're right, they should have limited their language. It appears to be solely about African-Americans.
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Old 05-06-2016, 12:55 PM   #26
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Old 05-06-2016, 01:05 PM   #27
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American Dream? No just life goals which are all probably some subset of the dream.
- Go to college and get a degree. I'm the only one of my siblings (11 of us) to do that. Check
- Get a job with a future in a field I was interested in. Check
- Become debt free quickly (except for a mortgage). Check
- Get married, optionally have a kid or two. Decided on only one kid. Check
- Save as much as possible and invest wisely. Took a decade or so after college before I realized that should be in the list, but it got included. Check
- FIRE - A work in progress. Sometime in the next 0-4 years.....
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Old 05-06-2016, 02:29 PM   #28
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There were six kids in my family and we alternated between working class and downright poor. Two have been able to achieve the American Dream (although I never married or had children) and one did okay. The others did not do so well although they may have had more fun along the way than my brother and me. But my brother's children are approaching their 40's and remain somewhat financially dependent on him. And I see this a lot in my friends' children.
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Old 05-06-2016, 02:47 PM   #29
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We are batting 8 for 9, or .88888.

Counting siblings for spouse and I, we have 8 American dreams come true. Seems to be simpler for married folks, at least in our limited sample.

Except for the one single individual, I am pretty certain that all would state they have achieved the goal(s).
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Old 05-06-2016, 03:51 PM   #30
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According to Yale's web site, the domestic student body is 73% Caucasian

Yale Facts | Yale University
Latinos are counted as Caucasian, since under our system they are an 'ethnicity,' not a 'race.' So 27% is Native-/Asian-/African-/possibly other-American; and some percentage of the remaining 73%, and some percentage of the 27% is Latino but would be considered a 'minority.'

So it's likely more than 27% 'minority', though how the earlier poster got to "nearly 50%" is unclear and seems unlikely.

I went to an elite university 25 years ago. Our student body was about 25% Asian American. Berkeley was over 50% at the time.
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Old 05-06-2016, 09:39 PM   #31
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The reason they call it the American dream, is because you have to be asleep to believe it.- George Carlin
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Old 05-06-2016, 10:35 PM   #32
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I see the future generations as only getting the good life if they are born lucky. Some kids are born healthy with good brains and loving families. They can become professionals and build good careers and own homes. The less fortunate who have bad health, lower IQ and don't have loving families don't have as good of a chance. Too many parents on drugs with no ambition so their kids are born addicted and even if they finish high school won't go to college. For them working minimum wage, smoking pot and barely making rent is more likely. Jobs like Walmart clerk don't pay enough to buy a house or live a good life, without parents to help you get a foot in a door someplace and a good enough brain to work your way up you are stuck.
My family mostly is smart so even the young get decent jobs and will get houses. Those not smart will be supported by parent or others so they have enough even if they can't earn a living.
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Have you found achieved your American Dream?
Old 05-07-2016, 04:08 AM   #33
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Have you found achieved your American Dream?

Quote:
Originally Posted by brainsqueeze View Post
Latinos are counted as Caucasian, since under our system they are an 'ethnicity,' not a 'race.' So 27% is Native-/Asian-/African-/possibly other-American; and some percentage of the remaining 73%, and some percentage of the 27% is Latino but would be considered a 'minority.'

So it's likely more than 27% 'minority', though how the earlier poster got to "nearly 50%" is unclear and seems unlikely.

I went to an elite university 25 years ago. Our student body was about 25% Asian American. Berkeley was over 50% at the time.
Point of order: You should have the courtesy of doing homework before you challenge anyone. ...my citation is right from their website
Please note the pie chart: 47% white.. Since white is the majority all others are considered minorities -it is actually quite simple...

http://www.collegefactual.com/colleg...ife/diversity/


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Old 05-07-2016, 04:29 AM   #34
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Counting siblings for spouse and I, we have 8 American dreams come true. Seems to be simpler for married folks, at least in our limited sample.
For married folks on the same page about their goals and desires, yes. For others who have different ideas entirely.... not so much.
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Old 05-07-2016, 06:19 AM   #35
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More and more I find myself rolling my eyes when I hear the term American Dream.

  • It is frequently used by politicians, automatically making it suspect
  • There's no set definition
  • Pointing out the demonstrable advantages of living in the US economy often seems to morph into an implication that Americans' aspirations for health, security, etc. are somehow superior to the rest of the world. This make little sense, IMO.
I just focus on my dreams and leave it at that.
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Old 05-07-2016, 06:36 AM   #36
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I'm early retired, live where I want and have good health. That's the American dream for me.
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Old 05-07-2016, 06:44 AM   #37
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For married folks on the same page about their goals and desires, yes. For others who have different ideas entirely.... not so much.
That was more about our family. I realize the divorce rate is high. Divorce is more likely.

For whatever reason, both sets of parents remained married, as did all of the children. Have to be honest, that I have little experience with divorce and the associated fallout.
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Old 05-07-2016, 07:03 AM   #38
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[*]Pointing out the demonstrable advantages of living in the US economy often seems to morph into an implication that Americans' aspirations for health, security, etc. are somehow superior to the rest of the world. This make little sense, IMO.

I just focus on my dreams and leave it at that.
A wise point, Harry. In my observation, people the world over all want roughly the same things.

1. They want enough food to eat, clean water to drink, and a warm dry place to sleep.
2. They (mostly) want to have children, whom they would like to see grow into adulthood.
3. They want good health and physical security for themselves and their children.
4. They want to have friends and family who respect them, value them and love them.
5. They want a job that provides some financial security. Even better if that job also brings self esteem and a sense of satisfaction.
6. They want a sense that they have some control over their own destiny.
7. They want to look back on their lives and feel that they have contributed and made at least some difference in the world.

I think it helpful to keep this list in mind, especially when we think about how the USA interacts with other countries. The people who live in those countries are not caricatures; they are real, living, breathing human beings who have the same hopes and dreams that we do.
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Old 05-07-2016, 07:11 AM   #39
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More and more I find myself rolling my eyes when I hear the term American Dream.

  • It is frequently used by politicians, automatically making it suspect
  • There's no set definition
This. It's basically become just a phrase used by politicians and writers to invoke whatever vision they are promoting at the moment.

The term is of fairly resent origin - less than 100 years ago. James Truslow Adams coined it in 1931 in his book The Epic of America:

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The American dream that has lured tens of millions of all nations to our shores in the past century has not been a dream of material plenty, though that has doubtlessly counted heavily. It has been a dream of being able to grow to fullest development as a man and woman, unhampered by the barriers which had slowly been erected in the older civilizations, unrepressed by social orders which had developed for the benefit of classes rather than for the simple human being of any and every class.
That is, it's really about what drew people to America. Some came for the "streets paved with gold", but more came to start a new life without whatever constraints they experienced in their country of origin.

For a time, people already in America headed for the frontier for much the same reason - a fresh start and fewer people telling you what to do. But eventually, we ran out of frontiers.

I moved to Silicon Valley in the 80's for much the same reason many people headed for the frontier - new opportunities and a place that was making up it's own rules.

Maybe if people make it to Mars, they'll have a new frontier where they can built their own Martian Dream.
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Old 05-07-2016, 07:42 AM   #40
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In my observation, people the world over all want roughly the same things.
yep.

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