Comments on: The American Dream, in trouble http://www.marcgunther.com/2007/06/03/the-american-dream-in-trouble/ This blog is about the impact of business on society. Thu, 09 Feb 2012 04:08:41 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: David Wolfe http://www.marcgunther.com/2007/06/03/the-american-dream-in-trouble/comment-page-1/#comment-14194 David Wolfe Mon, 04 Jun 2007 19:59:28 +0000 http://www.marcgunther.com/?p=199#comment-14194 Marc, In researching for the new book I'm co-author of, "Firms of Endearment," we found the American Dream alive and well. Wages and benefits at "FoEs" are above average for their categories, balance between work and family life is strongly supported, and most have liberal educational benefits that will enable an employee to go far. You wrote of some of these companies in "Faith and Profit," so you know there are companies that are protecting teh American Dream. Also, the grocers we researched (Whole Foods, Trader Joe's Wegman's) have quite different attitudes about employees eating their food than the management of the store you visited in Greenwich Village. They not only want their employees tasting their offerings, they strive to hire only foodies on the premise foodies will give customers a greater experience Marc,
In researching for the new book I’m co-author of, “Firms of Endearment,” we found the American Dream alive and well. Wages and benefits at “FoEs” are above average for their categories, balance between work and family life is strongly supported, and most have liberal educational benefits that will enable an employee to go far. You wrote of some of these companies in “Faith and Profit,” so you know there are companies that are protecting teh American Dream.

Also, the grocers we researched (Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s Wegman’s) have quite different attitudes about employees eating their food than the management of the store you visited in Greenwich Village. They not only want their employees tasting their offerings, they strive to hire only foodies on the premise foodies will give customers a greater experience

]]> By: Marc http://www.marcgunther.com/2007/06/03/the-american-dream-in-trouble/comment-page-1/#comment-14159 Marc Mon, 04 Jun 2007 18:09:45 +0000 http://www.marcgunther.com/?p=199#comment-14159 Stuart, you are right that our standard of living can rise even if your inflation-adjusted income does not. I am not suggesting that life is worse for Americans of any age today than it was 30 years ago. I suspect that it is, in fact, better, for the reasons you cite. Although while it's true that cars, restaurant meals, cell phones are more widely available, I wonder (but don't claim to know) whether that's also true for such goods a post-secondary education and basic health care, whose costs have risen faster than the CPI. I'm also concerned about what Pew calls "relative mobility." How hard or easy it is to climb up (or fall down) the economic ladder? They are doing more studies on this, but the early signs are that there is less relatively mobility (i.e., Horatio Alger stories) than there used to be. More generally, I think it's good that Pew has brought together the four think thanks to analyze this since both conservatives and liberals can agree that the idea of the American dream is well worth preserving. Stuart, you are right that our standard of living can rise even if your inflation-adjusted income does not. I am not suggesting that life is worse for Americans of any age today than it was 30 years ago. I suspect that it is, in fact, better, for the reasons you cite. Although while it’s true that cars, restaurant meals, cell phones are more widely available, I wonder (but don’t claim to know) whether that’s also true for such goods a post-secondary education and basic health care, whose costs have risen faster than the CPI.

I’m also concerned about what Pew calls “relative mobility.” How hard or easy it is to climb up (or fall down) the economic ladder? They are doing more studies on this, but the early signs are that there is less relatively mobility (i.e., Horatio Alger stories) than there used to be.

More generally, I think it’s good that Pew has brought together the four think thanks to analyze this since both conservatives and liberals can agree that the idea of the American dream is well worth preserving.

]]> By: Stuart http://www.marcgunther.com/2007/06/03/the-american-dream-in-trouble/comment-page-1/#comment-14140 Stuart Mon, 04 Jun 2007 17:21:22 +0000 http://www.marcgunther.com/?p=199#comment-14140 Marc, Using inflation adjusted income to examine changes in the long term standard of living is not sound. The methodology used in calculating the inflation rate is necessarily complicated and arbitrary making it useless for long term changes. For example, how does inflation adjusted income account for the widespread availability of computers and the Internet in 2008 but hardly dreamed of in 1973. The answer, not very well. Since your focusing on the middle class, I suggest you examine the median levels of items that people use their income to buy. How have these changed since the 1970s? The median size of homes, availability of air-conditioning, the number of cars owned, the safety and reliability of those cars, life expectancy, the number of meals eaten at restaurants, the amount of travel, mobile phones, etc,etc.. All of these categories have skyrocketed among all income levels in the past 40 years. Marc,
Using inflation adjusted income to examine changes in the long term standard of living is not sound. The methodology used in calculating the inflation rate is necessarily complicated and arbitrary making it useless for long term changes. For example, how does inflation adjusted income account for the widespread availability of computers and the Internet in 2008 but hardly dreamed of in 1973. The answer, not very well.

Since your focusing on the middle class, I suggest you examine the median levels of items that people use their income to buy. How have these changed since the 1970s? The median size of homes, availability of air-conditioning, the number of cars owned, the safety and reliability of those cars, life expectancy, the number of meals eaten at restaurants, the amount of travel, mobile phones, etc,etc.. All of these categories have skyrocketed among all income levels in the past 40 years.

]]> By: Preston http://www.marcgunther.com/2007/06/03/the-american-dream-in-trouble/comment-page-1/#comment-13890 Preston Mon, 04 Jun 2007 04:25:05 +0000 http://www.marcgunther.com/?p=199#comment-13890 Excellent article. My wife and I were talking about the "American Dream" just today. We still have one car, which is about 7 years old, still rent, just graduated from grad school, and are looking forward to big loan payments. Sometimes it's hard not to look around at all the new cars and nice houses and think, "How in the world is everyone paying for this stuff?" I can't figure it out. It's hard to see a time in the near future when we'll get a more reliable, new car. I hard to see a time when I can rent/own something that doesn't come with the mandatory lead paint disclosures. Prices are getting higher, wages are getting lower, time at home is getting drained. I probably shouldn't look at it this way, but it's kind of sobering. Excellent article. My wife and I were talking about the “American Dream” just today. We still have one car, which is about 7 years old, still rent, just graduated from grad school, and are looking forward to big loan payments. Sometimes it’s hard not to look around at all the new cars and nice houses and think, “How in the world is everyone paying for this stuff?” I can’t figure it out. It’s hard to see a time in the near future when we’ll get a more reliable, new car. I hard to see a time when I can rent/own something that doesn’t come with the mandatory lead paint disclosures. Prices are getting higher, wages are getting lower, time at home is getting drained. I probably shouldn’t look at it this way, but it’s kind of sobering.

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