The American Dream and Occupy Wall Street

The American Dream is so misunderstood. People seem to think that the American Dream is dead because they moved here from Mexico or Russia or China or where ever else and their life isn't that much better. They may not have a job, or welfare may not pay all their bills. That's not what the American Dream is. The American Dream was to MAKE a better life for yourself through an OPPORTUNITY given to you by being in a free country. You have to WORK. Create a business, go find a job, earn the money you need to feed your family.

The American Dream is not about moving to America and instantly having a better life.

The American Dream is about having an opportunity to create a better life.

This goes for you "Occupy Wall Street"ers too. Does the economy collapse suck? Absolutely. Is it fair that CEOs got raises larger than what most of us will earn in a lifetime? No. But life isn't fair. Quit sitting around waiting for someone to change things. You're throwing a temper tantrum. "Johnny has all the toys and I don't have any and I don't like that. Make him share." "The Big Four have all the money and I don't have any and I don't like that. Make them share." You don't even have a proposed plan for change, nor do you have specific demands.

Why don't you learn how to save, start a company, and create jobs? Then you're making money, the unemployed get jobs, and we can start healing our country. Instead, you're standing in various cities around the country throwing a temper tantrum reminiscent of a three-year old. Grow up. Take some responsibility for yourself.

By the way, NYC has estimated this has cost them $2mil in overtime for police forces. Guess who's paying for that overtime out of the money they don't have? The 99%.

I'm not part of the 1%. I have student loan debt. I don't like the banks. But I am part of a different 1% (if it's even that big). I'm part of the 1% of this country that has mentally grown up and taken steps to protect myself from these banks. Why don't you go educate yourself on how credit cards and ARMs work instead of standing around, whining? Maybe if you better understood how those worked, you wouldn't be a part of the 99%.

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A woman walked out of her shop one day. She sat down at the bus stop just outside, next to a man who had been there quite a while. She knew he was headed nowhere, so she spoke to him alone there, trying to bring his problems into light. She said,

“I can see the sadness in your eyes,
Such sadness,” she said.
“What's causing this sadness within
Your eyes, my friend?
Have you had your heart broken?”
“No, not my heart,
Only a high school crush, long-forgotten,
many years ago.”
“Have you lost someone dear?”
“Not for multiple years.”
“So why the sadness,
the hurt,
the pain in those bright blue eyes?”
He said,

“I'm a traveler of this world,
I see firsthand how life swirls.
I've see life and death and ev’rything in between.
I see joy and I see suffering
I see hatred and some loving
But the one thing that I have yet to see
Is someone
Who truly loves
Me.”

At this, she was shocked. She had seen this man around town with his wife, child, and friends, and they all got along very well. She just couldn’t see how this man, who had a wonderful family and friends, could possibly say he hadn’t been loved! She said,

“Now you know that's crazy!
Your friends, wife, and baby
all look at you with those adoring eyes.
If love is not within them,
they're good at keeping hidden
their true selves
way down deep inside.”
And he replied,

“I'm a traveler of the world,
See firsthand how this life swirls.
I've seen hope and despair,
jealousy so green.
My family loves my money,
my friends so cruel, ‘cause Honey,
the one thing I have yet to see
Is someone who truly loves
Me.

10/06/2011

© 2007-2011 Jacob Tauer
This information is not to be used in any form, online or off, without the express permission of the author.