Most Americans would probably agree that the age-old Golden Rule, “treat others as you would like to be treated,” has no place in the business world. After all, it’s “nothing personal,” but “strictly business.” We’re proud of the capitalist culture we have developed in which, if you have the talent, you can rise to the top. We have stood by the notion that, in our great country, if you work diligently and intelligently, you can reach The American Dream. We teach our children that, if they dream big, they can live big too. “Follow your dreams and your intuition,” we say. We see sports stars, actors, musicians, and other celebrities that have made it big. Top executives like Steve Jobs and Mark Zuckerberg are celebrated throughout the nation for their successes, and we tell our children “See The American Dream at work. This is still the land of opportunity.”
We like to believe that this type of thinking promotes a more prosperous society, but it doesn’t always. Capitalism is merely an ideology, and as with all ideologies, there is no perfect one that will solve all of our problems. We must be balanced. While capitalism is often regarded as America’s greatest achievement, socialism has been besmirched by the examples of nations that valued it too greatly. According to Mark Abley of the Montreal Gazzette, the word socialist is often thrown about by politicians as an insult akin to being called fascist. In reality, it is the yin to capitalism’s yang. It’s, again, not meant to be considered as a solution to all of our problems, but rather, to counterbalance the greed that is inherent in the survival of the fittest struggle that is capitalism. The real solution is to balance our economic and political viewpoint.
Many would argue that capitalism is the root of The American Dream, and that maintaining this vision is imperative to our success as Americans. Again, balance is the answer. Of course, a positive attitude is imperative in life. Keeping that value and instilling it in our progeny is intrinsically important to our future. What has been advocated, however, is not always wholesome optimism, but mostly overly-enthusiastic and unbalanced greed.
As documented by Coral Davenport in NationalJournal, this greed has been seen in the efforts of large oil companies and their political supporters trying to disband something as necessary as the Environmental Protection Agency because they are unhappy with the extra cost incurred in following clean air regulation. It is further demonstrated in the inconceivable reality brought out by Eduardo Porter from the New York Times:
“In 1977, an elite chief executive working at one of America’s top 100 companies earned about 50 times the wage of its average worker. Three decades later, the nation’s best-paid C.E.O.’s made about 1,100 times the pay of a worker on the production line.”
Astonishing greed is evident, not only in the songs of popular musicians that advocate gang violence and the objectification of women in order to make a quick buck, but also in those that buy these songs without a thought given to how the reinforcement of such values (encouraged through their purchase) will impact society. Americans have come to idolize these celebrities and subscribe to this type of thinking, hoping to join the superstar ranks someday with their own brand of cheap entertainment.
Rana Foroohar summed up the perspective of the average American very well in her recently featured article in Time Magazine: “We may be poor today, but as long as there’s a chance that we can be rich tomorrow, things are O.K.” This may seem to be inspiring, but is this really an intelligent way to look towards the future?
Primarily, the overly capitalistic viewpoint is just plain ignorant. Immediately after her statement above, Foroohar continues with the question, “Does America still work like that?” The appearance of the Occupy Wall Street (OWS) movement in recent months and the Tea Party over the past few years would seem to suggest that many believe it doesn’t. Both groups advocate strengthening the middle class and bringing more opportunities to Americans, revitalizing The American Dream. According to Foroohar, statistics show that 35% of America’s entire wealth belongs to 1% of the population, and that 42% of Americans born into the lowest income families will remain at poverty level. In other words, it is increasingly difficult to move upward.
Yes, The American Dream seems to be a fairytale at the moment. Yet, in stark contrast, it is very much alive in the insatiable appetites of the top corporate executives, politicians, and celebrities. What can we do to level the playing field?
Instead of making a constant effort not only to keep up with, but beat the Joneses, and be the epitome of a capitalist, we can start making a change to equalize opportunity in America and remove the perversion of greed from The American Dream. The balancing act starts at home. Rafael M. Alunan III, from BusinessWorld, points out that even many of those in the OWS movement probably have to concede that “they, too, have lived a life of excess for far too long; that they lived beyond their means which mortgaged not only their future, but that of their descendants as well.” Why do we continue, even in a failing economy, to use money and time (which is money) unwisely? Why do we give undue attention to celebrities?-Many of who are famous for no good reason apart from their ability to market themselves. We need to stop generously rewarding those that add little but a bit of cheap entertainment to our society. Many of us live ‘beyond our means’ so that we can have the most popular products available. Spending that money to purchase organic food, a more efficient engine for our car, or a better version of a product-being a smart consumer-that may not be as popular, will not only be healthy, cost-effective, and good for the environment; it will also be good for society as these are the types of purchases that will create new jobs. It is time to temper even our purchasing for the betterment of society.
In addition, more value needs to be placed on careers such as teaching through governmental restructuring of the educational system. According to an article in Time Magazine by Fareed Zakaria, public school teachers in European countries, such as Finland, are “paid well and treated with the same professional respect as doctors and lawyers.” Whereas half of the teachers in the United States graduated in the bottom third of their class, Finland’s teachers go through a rigorous screening process. They are also required to have a master’s degree. Their “students score near the very top on international tests.” These are the types of values we should be encouraging.
As a point of contest, there would probably be an argument made against the cost of such restructuring. The solution can be found in one of the many demands forwarded by the OWS movement: Greater taxes on the richest one percent. They are the proud heirs of 35% of the wealth in this nation. I am no economist, but I do know that only small percentage of that 35% would take care of these costs. The middle class in this country is shrinking; they and the poor have no more to give. We’ve given it all to the companies and celebrities that refuse to reinvest in our nation. However, so as not to merely victimize the wealthy, it should be noted that taxes across the board in the United States are the lowest among similarly developed nations. We could surely demand, as OWS does, that the wealthy in our country, for the good of the economy, jump-start the funding for these educational programs. When we are a forceful competitor again in world trade, and the economy picks up, then we can further balance these taxes. As well we should.
The U.S. needs to take a balanced approach toward its politics and economics. This includes the corporations and politicians, of course, but it also includes us. We have become a nation in which The American Dream has been perverted by greed. Many of us, from the corporate elites to the politicians and from celebrity to civilian, seem to believe this opportunity is owed to us. However, the generations before us didn’t view things this way. They worked hard to get their shot. We can do the same. We can bring equality back to American business practices. Those families that have lost their jobs and have been displaced, while the rich continue to get richer, would probably agree that business isn’t just business. It’s very personal-just as The American Dream is personal-perhaps even a little social.
Mark Abley, “‘Socialism’ Replete With Negativity”, The Montreal Gazette
Rafael M. Alunan III, “Global Indignation”, BusinessWorld
Coral Davenport, “Rick Perry’s Air War”, NationalJournal
Rana Foroohar, “What Ever Happened to Upward Mobility?” Time Magazine
Eduardo Porter, “How Superstars’ Pay Stifles Everyone Else”, The New York Times
Fareed Zakaria, “When Will We Learn”, Time Magazine