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Liam Dietrich Ahart: Different Versions of an American Dream

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Liam Dietrich Ahart: Different Versions of an American Dream
Liam Dietrich
Ahart
CAIII
14 December 2012

There are many different versions of the American Dream, for some it is material goods, good health, and an equal opportunity. Some people say that the American dream no longer exists; others still believe that it is out there. The American dream can be preserved in many ways. There is a debate going on that if the American dream is still alive, or if it has disappeared.

In 2004 the National League of Cities (NLC) did a study of over a thousand Americans aged 18 or older, asking them what they considered to be the American dream. The NLC found that for the majority of Americans- adults aged twenty-three to sixty-five saw material prosperity
As the American dream. But for many adults older than sixty-five material and financial
Abundance takes second to the quality of their lives. During the NLC’s study they found that over. One-fourth of the older participants rated the ability to enjoy good health as the primary priority. But for those whose American dream is money their dream is a much harder one to achieve. Many American’s embrace the idea that anyone can get rich and live the American dream but in reality it is a much harder goal to achieve. There is no single limit as to how much money a single person can have. According to economist Edward N. Wolff at New York University, in 2007, 1 percent of Americans controlled 42.7 percent of all the nation’s financial wealth; and the next 19 percent of people own 50.3 percent of the nation’s wealth; That is leaving the other 80 percent with only 7 percent of the nation’s wealth. Money, and politics go hand in hand together, between 1990 and 2010, AT&T donated over $44 million to both Republican and Democratic parties; in the same period Goldman Saches donated over $31 million. But while money and power are for some, there are the people who are in America for an equal chance. Thousands upon thousands of people come to the United States of America each

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