Is USA still the promised land?

[lovelight 1]

Is the USA still the promised land ???

...well it depends on your expectations...I´m about to move to the us (my k1-Interview is in two days) because I decided for the man (USC) I love and it is easier for me to move over there than for him coming here since he doesn´t speak my language and probably won´t be able to find a job here in his profession... I dont go there because it might be promised land...

actually I gotta confess that i´m a little bit scared of the future in the us, because of the economy crisis...I´m from Germany, I have a well paid and secure bankingjob, a great appartement and don´t need to be worried about health care...so and now I´ll move to new york city....where the rents and the costs of living are extraordinary high and the last thing they need is another banker....so I won´t find a job in my profession....

Right now, I fell like I give up the land of "milk an honey" for moving to my fiance who fortunately has a relatively good income with a really good health plan. ...we can survive without a second income...but anyway I wanna and probably gotta find a job (any job !!!) as soon as i´m legally able to work..

I never questioned myself if the US is the promised land ...I go there because the man I love lives there ...and if he would live at the end of the world, I would go there...

[Scott & LC 3]

Is the USA still the promised land ???

...well it depends on your expectations...I´m about to move to the us (my k1-Interview is in two days) because I decided for the man (USC) I love and it is easier for me to move over there than for him coming here since he doesn´t speak my language and probably won´t be able to find a job here in his profession... I dont go there because it might be promised land...

actually I gotta confess that i´m a little bit scared of the future in the us, because of the economy crisis...I´m from Germany, I have a well paid and secure bankingjob, a great appartement and don´t need to be worried about health care...so and now I´ll move to new york city....where the rents and the costs of living are extraordinary high and the last thing they need is another banker....so I won´t find a job in my profession....

Right now, I fell like I give up the land of "milk an honey" for moving to my fiance who fortunately has a relatively good income with a really good health plan. ...we can survive without a second income...but anyway I wanna and probably gotta find a job (any job !!!) as soon as i´m legally able to work..

I never questioned myself if the US is the promised land ...I go there because the man I love lives there ...and if he would live at the end of the world, I would go there...

I agree with the post above. I have a stable job right now, it's not exactly what I want in life but it's stable and I have money coming in, just living life as it is. I know it'll definitely be difficult to find a job in the US right now. But I'm just gonna take it slow, take it as it's a few months vacation, take everything in when I reach the US. All I want is to be with the man I love

[HelloMiffy 1]

I agree that "the promised land" catch may no longer stand. But the job market condition may be bad everywhere now because of the globalization. My hubby is an IT so we could have lived in Japan happily if my hubby weren't a noncustodial parent of his little daughter. I can't wait until she gets a little older (at least teenage). Then we might think about retiring in Japan, England or Norway (where my hubby's mother lives) IMO, US may be ideal for people who can work (20-45 y-o) because tax is held relatively cheap. But when you hit 60 y-o bell, the most secure country to live may be where social / medical benefits are good.

[John and Camie 39]

If my Honey wanted to stay in England, I'd go to him. Anywhere he goes is the promised land for me.

[otso88 0]

if it's bad here, well try somewhere else let's see what you'll get.

[joelunchbox 0]

Please define "The American Dream".

If it is the ability to pretty much do what you like, when you like, with who you like. Then this is the place to be.

If it is simply to make a lot of money and screw people around, well I hope we are no longer seen in that light.

Edited May 24, 2009 by joelunchbox

[buster2209 2]

I come from England which isn't the worst country in the world and the USA has more jobs in my field than England

The mainstream media ONLY reports on the negative

And, as most people have pointed out, every country is feeling the effects in one way or another for the greed of the bankers so the choice is yours

[rebeccajo 14]

I still love my country.

But I'm very worried about it. I truly no longer believe that the desire to succeed and improve your life is all it takes to make it here.

IMO there is too much power in the hands of a very few. And also too much wealth.

So if the 'land of milk and honey' means you will fare better in America than your homeland, then no I do not believe that is true.

[kaffy 2]

But when you hit 60 y-o bell, the most secure country to live may be where social / medical benefits are good.

I totally agree. We love it here now but once we hit retirement age we'll be looking at our other options

[scandal 951]

I still love my country.

But I'm very worried about it. I truly no longer believe that the desire to succeed and improve your life is all it takes to make it here.

IMO there is too much power in the hands of a very few. And also too much wealth.

So if the 'land of milk and honey' means you will fare better in America than your homeland, then no I do not believe that is true.

I truly no longer believe that the desire to succeed and improve your life is all it takes to make it here.

I don't think this was ever true. I think there's a romanticized myth that this used to be true. In reality there have always been barriers based upon race, gender, religion in America. Jews were banned from colleges and white shoe law firms. Blacks were slaves, and then sharecroppers, and until the 1960s were kept from advancing by Jim Crow laws. Women still face a glass ceiling in the workforce, and earn lower wages than men for comparable jobs.

I do believe that things are better in this regard than they used to be. America 2009 is closer to the romantic ideal of the American Dream than it probably ever has been. Does that mean that everyone makes it? No, of course not. The Dream is about opportunity, not about achieving it. And not everyone has the opportunity equally - inner city kids have much grimmer statistics than middle class suburban kids. We do still have a long way to go.

IMO there is too much power in the hands of a very few. And also too much wealth.

Power and wealth tend to gravitate to the powerful.

This has always been the case. America began with a bunch of privileged wealthy landowners from Virginia (Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, Washington) along with people of more humble beginnings (Adams from an undistinguished background in Massachusetts, Hamilton as an orphaned kid immigrated from the West Indies).

In the 19th century the country power and wealth was concentrated by the Robber Barons - Carnegie, JP Morgan, Rockefeller. Corruption and greed were rife, much worse than today.

[rebeccajo 14]

I still love my country.

But I'm very worried about it. I truly no longer believe that the desire to succeed and improve your life is all it takes to make it here.

IMO there is too much power in the hands of a very few. And also too much wealth.

So if the 'land of milk and honey' means you will fare better in America than your homeland, then no I do not believe that is true.

I truly no longer believe that the desire to succeed and improve your life is all it takes to make it here.

I don't think this was ever true. I think there's a romanticized myth that this used to be true. In reality there have always been barriers based upon race, gender, religion in America. Jews were banned from colleges and white shoe law firms. Blacks were slaves, and then sharecroppers, and until the 1960s were kept from advancing by Jim Crow laws. Women still face a glass ceiling in the workforce, and earn lower wages than men for comparable jobs.

I do believe that things are better in this regard than they used to be. America 2009 is closer to the romantic ideal of the American Dream than it probably ever has been. Does that mean that everyone makes it? No, of course not. The Dream is about opportunity, not about achieving it. And not everyone has the opportunity equally - inner city kids have much grimmer statistics than middle class suburban kids. We do still have a long way to go.

IMO there is too much power in the hands of a very few. And also too much wealth.

Power and wealth tend to gravitate to the powerful.

This has always been the case. America began with a bunch of privileged wealthy landowners from Virginia (Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, Washington) along with people of more humble beginnings (Adams from an undistinguished background in Massachusetts, Hamilton as an orphaned kid immigrated from the West Indies).

In the 19th century the country power and wealth was concentrated by the Robber Barons - Carnegie, JP Morgan, Rockefeller. Corruption and greed were rife, much worse than today.

The middle class expanded though during the 50's and 60's. Hard working middle class persons could afford better housing than was previously available to them. Health care was more affordable and therefore employers offered it readily as a benefit, so the health of people improved.

I agree there have always been myths. I don't agree we are closer to the romanticized notion in 2009 than in the past. Indeed I would say we are somewhat where we were pre-WWII. The wealth of everyday people has shrunk far more than the wealth of the privileged. Wherever the money is - that is where the power and influence will be.

Edited May 24, 2009 by rebeccajo

[scandal 951]

I still love my country.

But I'm very worried about it. I truly no longer believe that the desire to succeed and improve your life is all it takes to make it here.

IMO there is too much power in the hands of a very few. And also too much wealth.

So if the 'land of milk and honey' means you will fare better in America than your homeland, then no I do not believe that is true.

I truly no longer believe that the desire to succeed and improve your life is all it takes to make it here.

I don't think this was ever true. I think there's a romanticized myth that this used to be true. In reality there have always been barriers based upon race, gender, religion in America. Jews were banned from colleges and white shoe law firms. Blacks were slaves, and then sharecroppers, and until the 1960s were kept from advancing by Jim Crow laws. Women still face a glass ceiling in the workforce, and earn lower wages than men for comparable jobs.

I do believe that things are better in this regard than they used to be. America 2009 is closer to the romantic ideal of the American Dream than it probably ever has been. Does that mean that everyone makes it? No, of course not. The Dream is about opportunity, not about achieving it. And not everyone has the opportunity equally - inner city kids have much grimmer statistics than middle class suburban kids. We do still have a long way to go.

IMO there is too much power in the hands of a very few. And also too much wealth.

Power and wealth tend to gravitate to the powerful.

This has always been the case. America began with a bunch of privileged wealthy landowners from Virginia (Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, Washington) along with people of more humble beginnings (Adams from an undistinguished background in Massachusetts, Hamilton as an orphaned kid immigrated from the West Indies).

In the 19th century the country power and wealth was concentrated by the Robber Barons - Carnegie, JP Morgan, Rockefeller. Corruption and greed were rife, much worse than today.

The middle class expanded though during the 50's and 60's. Hard working middle class persons could afford better housing than was previously available to them. Health care was more affordable and therefore employers offered it readily as a benefit, so the health of people improved.

I agree there have always been myths. I don't agree we are closer to the romanticized notion in 2009 than in the past. Indeed I would say we are somewhat where we were pre-WWII. The wealth of everyday people has shrunk far more than the wealth of the privileged. Wherever the money is - that is where the power and influence will be.

You have a point. Wages increases in the middle class have not kept up at the same rate as increases for the wealthy. Many who were in the middle class have been sliding out of it. That is particularly true for people without college educations, people who work(ed) in traditional manufacturing industries such as automotive, textiles, etc. which have been decimated. There is an upheaval in American society that's been underway since the 1970s and 1980s in which we're moving to a services-based economy. That has hit hard blue color union jobs which used to provide middle class families with an honorable paycheck, and has uplifted so called "knowledge workers". As a result, a large segment of America feels as you do: lost, cut adrift, worried about their future. While another segment of America still sees opportunity, and looks beyond the current economic downturn with optimism.

[KingCan 0]

With a rate of 26% of US population with a college degree, that means 3/4 of US citizens don't see the future with optimism?

I'd like to know if there are any blue collar workers in this forum who are feeling the pinch in this economy.

[OKIE2 0]

[

You have a point. Wages increases in the middle class have not kept up at the same rate as increases for the wealthy. Many who were in the middle class have been sliding out of it. That is particularly true for people without college educations, people who work(ed) in traditional manufacturing industries such as automotive, textiles, etc. which have been decimated. There is an upheaval in American society that's been underway since the 1970s and 1980s in which we're moving to a services-based economy. That has hit hard blue color union jobs which used to provide middle class families with an honorable paycheck, and has uplifted so called "knowledge workers". As a result, a large segment of America feels as you do: lost, cut adrift, worried about their future. While another segment of America still sees opportunity, and looks beyond the current economic downturn with optimism.

I think all of you are missing what is the real problem:

Its not the rich, its not the media,

the whole problem is the #### holes we put in Washington DC that are only there to line their pockets with our money

and your great grand childrens too.

when it is voting time who do you get to vote for ? yes only the rich ones with a good line of bull ###### that you always believe. Where else can you go to work for 8 years and retire with full pay only in WASHINGTON DC.

So why do you worry now you have Obama and he will get ALLA to save your ####.

Wise up people put some honest working people in DC that cares about other people not their pockets.

George Wallace, Ross Pero tried to tell the american people the truth but no one listened to them.

As far as the rich Bill Gates deserves every dollar he ever made. The Wallton's if he were still alive he would fire all of his kids for doing what they do now.

Write to your congressman or senator ask for some help I did in febuary I'm still wating for a reply.

[scandal 951]

So why do you worry now you have Obama and he will get ALLA to save your ####.

When you say he will be getting ALLA (sic) to save our ####, would that be before or after he declares us all to be infidels and unleashes a fatwa Executive Order from the Oval Office?