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July 4, 2003
The American Dream
Last week I happened to catch the Diane Rehm show on a topic I felt was very fitting for Independence Day. She was interviewing Jim Cullen, the author of The American Dream.
Jim Cullen tries in his book to answer the question: What is the American Dream? He finds there is no single answer, but that The American Dream is what makes America ... America. It's what motivates us, what unites us and makes us distinct and unique at the same time. It goes back to the founding of our country, and still is the driving force for hundreds of millions of people today. It is what makes the rest of the world resent us, but at the same time want to have what we have more than almost anything else.
It's amazing to me that out of the chaos that we consider our country, that allows for so much debate and discussion and trial-and-error, that we in only a little more than 200 years, and representing a tiny fraction of the world population, have become the most powerful nation in the world, at least by many significant criteria.
What makes the American Dream so powerful--that it's such an ingrained part of our culture and personalities--also makes it difficult for us to recognize that it's there, and to appreciate how unique our culture is, that not only allows, but encourages and celebrates the pursuit of the American Dream.
Ultimately, for all the freedoms we enjoy, the greatest one is to create and pursue and achieve our own individual American Dreams.
Posted by pete at July 4, 2003 11:48 PM