I'm intrigued now. One of your labels reads "Decline and Fall of the American Dream," but the American Dream was always about the ability to make something of oneself. I do agree there's a decline in this "can-do" mentality as somehow the victim/"I'm owed something" mentality has almost completely taken over, but the American Dream as consumeristic is a later iteration and an aberration, IMO. Anyway, I would also argue that most Americans currently want their cake and to eat it too. Broken and never-formed families make any sort of "American Dream" almost impossible, and yet even Christians argue in favor of both things as somehow "good." So that's my complete random hot take on your one label and I look forward to your coming explanation!
I've been busy and a bit of a cold recently, but I'll get to this presently. I think you're right, but I also think the same attitudes are alive and well in the corporate board rooms just the same. I know from talking to youngsters (I believe Gen-Z if I get the terms) that they see some industries that more or less continue on in the old style - hard work and loyalty will be rewarded. But in many other industries within the commercial sector, they don't see that at all. There are likely reasons for that, but I don't think the divide between the entitled youth and the hard working older class is quite as thick as we'd like to think.
I'm intrigued now. One of your labels reads "Decline and Fall of the American Dream," but the American Dream was always about the ability to make something of oneself. I do agree there's a decline in this "can-do" mentality as somehow the victim/"I'm owed something" mentality has almost completely taken over, but the American Dream as consumeristic is a later iteration and an aberration, IMO. Anyway, I would also argue that most Americans currently want their cake and to eat it too. Broken and never-formed families make any sort of "American Dream" almost impossible, and yet even Christians argue in favor of both things as somehow "good." So that's my complete random hot take on your one label and I look forward to your coming explanation!
ReplyDeleteI've been busy and a bit of a cold recently, but I'll get to this presently. I think you're right, but I also think the same attitudes are alive and well in the corporate board rooms just the same. I know from talking to youngsters (I believe Gen-Z if I get the terms) that they see some industries that more or less continue on in the old style - hard work and loyalty will be rewarded. But in many other industries within the commercial sector, they don't see that at all. There are likely reasons for that, but I don't think the divide between the entitled youth and the hard working older class is quite as thick as we'd like to think.
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