The close of the year 2008 saw one of the most troubled last quarter years for the United States. With the collapse of the financial market, people lost their jobs, their investments, and their savings. Most people either lost hope in the American Dream or worse, became a disgusted member of society who viewed all hope as lost and futile in pursuit of the American dream. However, these sentiments seem to have become isolated only to the adult sector of society. Those who have worked for a very long time and hoped to be able to retire in the near future. As far as my generation, the Millenial Generation, is concerned, there is a bright future to look forward to during these darkest hours of our lives.
As a young person living in America today, I acknowledge the fact that our nation’s future is envisioned by the generation before us. Therefore, every single movement of society, every action from the legislative and executive branch of government speaks of the dreams and hope of a previous generation. These ideas are usually set in stone for them. Which is why when things such as the financial mess happens, their generation sees all hell break lose.
The Millenial generation however, sees these economically trying times as a way to rediscover what exactly our country stands for, our vision of the country’s future, and what we can do to achieve it. For my generation of future leaders, the American Dream is not dead. It merely needs tweaking and enhancing in order to properly reflect the changing times and needs of the population. The American Dream, for me at least, is now all about helping our country reclaim it’s rightful place of leadership in the world. Something that we lost during the last part of the Bush Administration due to his ill advised war policies.
As a future college student, my goal is clear. I must choose to study and complete a degree in a field of study where I will be most helpful and effective in helping our country get back on its feet. The point I want to make is that my American Dream right now is to see my bleeding country recover from the injuries of a war that was caused by deceit and the crashing of our economy due to greed and selfishness.
Indeed, we are faced with an uncertain future due to the prevailing economic time. However, it is the duty of every youth of the land who holds the American Dream so close to their hearts, to insure that the dream, regardless of the differences in vision, becomes a reality. We all have to remember that there is no such thing as a stable economy, only informed economic decisions. By making informed economic decisions on an individual basis, we can help stop the financial bleeding and instead achieve the greatest American Dream we each envision.
In our hands, we hold the future of the country. It is my generation’s turn to sculpt the American Dream as we see fit for our needs and capabilities. Our American Dream boils down to helping stabilize our economy and in the process, gain a political voice that will force the politician to take heed and do their jobs properly.