Is that what is called a meritocracy?
I suppose there's good things about that but then again only applies to certain groups of people.
I suppose america is the land of dreams for new immigrants - anywhere is better than where they came from. I suppose that's why my cousin went there, to make his fortune.
Also called the land of opportunity.
That prolly wasn't the case for those that went there to be slaves!
Meritocracy? Ok, but that is more of a description than a definition, and it is only one side of it. Americanism and the dream that it inspires is also about aiding those that have not fared as well.
There seems to be a lot of distrust of ‘the other side’ of the have/have-nots. Some people on the lower half of the income scale see those at the top as getting there through unfair privilege. Some at the top see those at the bottom as being there because they are too lazy to apply themselves and spend too much on beer and other strong drink. You can find examples of both stereotypes. I do not believe that either view is accurate, or fair.
And there are many things that distort the theoretical. A wealthy man who has an impoverished son is likely to be thought a miser. If he provides a first class education and sees to the career of his offspring, his children are thought to be given unfair advantages.
And there is the ‘Peter Principle’ that holds that within an organization, as long as an employee is successful, he will be given promotions. Eventually that employee will rise to the point where he is only mediocre, or even incompetent. The end result is the so-called dead-wood people that used to be productive but are now just extra drag.
None of these concerns with climbing the corporate ladder mean that the persons trying to make the best life they can for their family are evil or back-biting. It's just that the world is competitive. I would agree that it is too competitive, but that doesn't mean doing one's best and being trustworthy to your employer is being wrongly motivated.
For myself, I never made it into management. In fact I avoided it. I assessed early on the cost getting a degree would have on my marriage and on the time and quality of time spent with my kids. I chose not to work toward a degree, but to keep my reputation as a dependable, talented performer and team player. I did keep going to school, but on my terms. Eventually the University I was taking courses at wanted me to enter a degree program or be content with lower level studies. I found other avenues.
I wrote a lot of computer code. I designed a lot of modules, taught a lot of young programmers how to be productive, I became a quality engineer, and finally performed Independent Validation & Verification tasks. I did well in IV&V because I was seen as a straight forward reviewer, not trying to unfairly criticize, and I could accurately report back to project management rather than simply find fault. So I progressed without climbing the corporate ladder. I could have climbed higher if I had rolled everything up into an advanced degree, but that is not success for me. I put away for rainy days. I had something to fall back on when it rained. Still the American Dream. I did not climb over anyone else to do it.
House? I have three roofs, and one small mortgage:
one is the townhouse I had when I was working.
About 18 months before my job ended, I bought a small home farther out on a couple of acres, I intend to stay here. Never sold my townhouse since the market was pretty bad. I let my son who has a lower paying job stay there. He is out now and I will be selling.
And last year my wife's sister was moving out of the house my wife grew up in. Its special to her so I cashed in some of my rainy day fund and bought it for us.
So, even though I have had challenges, the American Dream is alive here.
