Dreams, as they were, lie dead.
The American Dream lies dead.
It is thus interesting to poke and prod at this corpse. It would be quite- no, most interesting to dissect this corpse.
What is the American Dream?
One that promises to he who works hard glories and success.
But who determines what is considered successful?
***
Let us move on to talk about something I am completely under-qualified in.
It's everyone's favourite, economics.
It is entertaining how the concept of success intertwines and meshes so well with neo-liberal economics and policies (oh dear, the closeted anarchist is complaining about austerity, shocker).
I mean, after all, this is a meritocracy, is it not?
I mean, after all, haven't we suffered through poverty? Haven't we pulled ourselves up by our bootstraps to become what we are today? So what is this nonsense about them, the poor, wanting- well, what is it now? Some other nonsense. Really, they ought to learn how to live within their means. And doubtless this applies our nation as well (thanks Hayek, motherfucker). Why, in order for this country to be successful, like us, it must spend within its means.
And so what do you get?
Austerity measures. Against, funnily enough, both states and citizens. Measures which say that countries must put the needs of their citizens aside in favour of paying of debts. Measures which put numbers on a graph above very real human suffering.
I say against. Let us never delude ourselves into thinking that these measures were ever "for" us. They may not have been implemented with malicious intent, but at the very least they are patronising as fuck.
And what is the result of this frantic slashing (apart from the military, because god knows the world runs on zero sum games)?
Well, the poor are (to put it politely) fucked. You have an economic slowdown amongst the working class, and increasingly, the middle class. You have unemployment and layoffs as bosses earn more. You have the working class unable to access basic necessities. You have despair and unease.
So, what does this lead to?
Well. Let's address that with a segue.
What causes extremism? And let us not answer this with the thought terminating cliche of "some ideas are inherently violent, man". Because honestly, what idea hasn't been used to justify shitty actions?
Excuse my facetiousness.
But as Francesca Borri noted in her book Syrian Dust, a decent chunk of extremists are dispossessed youth (Noam Chomsky also pointed this out, but I haven't been bothered to read any of his work yet). A decent chunk of them live in backwaters, forgotten by society, with nothing to gain and nothing to lose. In an atmosphere of hopelessness and despair, what else do you expect?
And it's not limited to religious extremism. We have seen the rise of reactionary politics over the last 20 years. We have seen the resurgence in anti-globalisation, and protectionist policies (not that they ever went away, neo-liberalism is literally just protectionism with a free trade Halloween costume). So much for the Death of History, eh?
But ultimately, at some point, something's gotta give. We can't continue in a state where policies cause the poor to become poorer. We can't continue in a state where these constant wars, where climate change, where these policies impact the poor such that we're not merely rubbing salt into their wounds. No, what's going on is more akin to dousing the poor in water, and then dumping pure sodium onto them.
So where do we go on from here?
To be perfectly honest, I have no fucking clue.
There is no easy solution.
We require greater democratisation.
We require a voice in the work we partake in, in the markets we've been forced into, in the politicians we vote for.
Let no person be left behind. The story of humanity is not one of great figures. The story of humanity is not one of triumphant conquerors, victorious kings, untold glories. It is this wondrous tale of interconnected individuals, working towards their own goals and desires. It is a tale of cooperation, marked by heinous blotches of division. Because after all, what is Alexander without his army?
But above all else,
We require the repudiation of the American Dream.
We require the repudiation of all such dreams.
Here's to you, Reagan and Bush
Really do be taking our kush
The last and final moment is yours
Our agony is your triumph.