American Dream Turned American Nightmare

For decades the United States was a symbol of wealth and was a Mecca for those in pursuit of the “American dream.”

Today, the economic situation in America has changed dramatically. The standard of living has decreased, as have wages and unemployment, and disillusion is at an all-time high. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, increasing numbers of Americans are committing suicide. Today, 22 out of 100,000 people will kill themselves, a number comparable only to the time of the Great Depression. In 2000, the ratio was 10 out of 100,000 people.

When Barack Obama took charge of the White House, the unemployment rate hovered at 7.6 percent, but it has now shot up to 9.1 percent. Young people are finding themselves in tough times. Some cities have more than a 50 percent unemployment rate among young people.

If you include the unemployed who are not currently looking for work, the permanently unemployed, and part-time workers in the number of unemployed citizens, the actual unemployment rate rises to about 23 percent according to John Williams from Shadow Government Statistics.

Fear of Unemployment

The number of people in the U.S. who are worried about losing their jobs has hit a record high. According to a Gallup poll, 30 percent of Americans are fearful of losing their jobs. After years of high unemployment, people are feeling desperate and are ready to take any job, regardless of compensation. In 1980, less than 30 percent of jobs were low-wage positions compared with over 40 percent today.

The percentage of the eligible male workforce has fallen as well. In July, 63.5 percent of males under 65 were employed. As of 1948, the percentage had only been lower once: two years ago.

The American Job Migration

The high levels of unemployment have encouraged increasing numbers of Americans to look for jobs overseas. Canada has seen a 100 percent increase in the amount of temporary work applications. More Americans are learning foreign languages in order to find jobs in places such as China, Singapore and India, according to USA Today. Many American companies have outsourced jobs to other countries. Barack Obama’s policies have exacerbated the problem and have devastated the domestic job market.

The average household income has dropped over the past year by 2.3 percent and now stands at $49,445, the lowest since 1996. For comparison, the 2000 average incomes were 7 percent higher.

One-sixth of Americans in Poverty

According to the Census Bureau, the number of Americans living in poverty has increased by 2.6 million. This has been the largest increase since the bureau started recording these statistics in 1959. Currently, 15.1 percent of all Americans live in poverty. The poverty index, which combines unemployment figures with inflation numbers, reached 12.87, up from 7.46 in 2007. This is the worst result since 1983.

On Barack Obama’s first day in office, 32 million Americans used food stamps. Today, the number has risen to 45 million.

Almost 50 million individuals residing in the U.S. do not have health insurance, and the percentage of Americans with employer-provided insurance has fallen from year to year.

In 2011, the amount of American credit card debt rose by $54 billion according to studies done by CardHub. The total debt has reached $772 billion.

American students have also been hit hard. In 2011, the number of defaults on student loans rose to 15 percent, up from 11.6 percent the year before.

Housing Slump

The housing situation is worsening as well. Banks have been repossessing more houses than ever. Even the government of the United States has taken over 250,000 homes. The effects of this nightmare on family life have been taxing. In California, 7 percent of all kids have experienced losing their home since 2007.

The tightening of the credit market has decreased the availability of mortgages. This has a negative impact on the home-building market. Between 2000 and 2007, ground was broken for 1.5 million to 2.2 million homes every year. Today, that number has fallen to half a million. The situation in the housing market has had an enormous impact on many other parts of the economy. Most Americans do not expect real estate prices to rise. Experts think that the housing market will continue to languish at least until 2014.

The combined debts of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Sallie Mae have risen from $3.2 trillion in 2008 to $6.4 trillion in 2011. If the bill is not paid soon, taxpayers will suffer.

Bankruptcies, Foreclosures and Liquidations

In 1950, the industrial sector produced 28 percent of American GDP. Last year, this number was 11.7 percent. As a comparison, Chinese manufacturing accounts for 25 percent of China’s GDP.

Many stores have been closing their doors. Payless shoe store has announced that it will close 475 stores and Border has already closed over 400 stores.

Bank of America has announced that it will close 600 branches, cutting over 30,000 jobs. The U.S. Postal Service announced that it is on the verge of bankruptcy. The plan designed to save USPS is projected to cut 120,000 people from the payroll.

The number of small businesses has also dropped dramatically. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 16.6 million Americans were self-employed in 2006. This number has now dropped to 14.5 million.

Growing Pessimism

Consumers have grown more pessimistic over the past year. According to a joint CNBC/New York Times study, 61 percent of Americans don’t believe that their living standards will reach pre-recession levels by 2014. Over 39 percent believe that the American economy has entered a permanent downturn.

The number of households containing extended families has risen as well. The Census Bureau has recorded a 10.7 percent rise since 2007. Today, 18.3 percent of all American households have extended families.

Cities in Ruins

Car owners have also fallen on hard times. When Barack Obama started his term as president, the average price per gallon for gas was $1.83. Today, the price is $3.58.

The financial crisis, combined with shoddy city management, has led many metropolises to the verge of economic ruin. One great example is Detroit. Once the pearl of the United States and a center of automotive innovation, today, the city faces grave problems stemming not only from the crisis, but also to incompetent management and the destructive force of labor unions. Many locals have packed up and left. The young generation, disillusioned and without hope for a better future, has become a source for new soldiers for military missions across the globe.

The Domino Effect

If the European financial crisis deepens, the United States will be affected as well, causing a double-dip recession. Investors might be inclined to sell their share of American debt, decreasing the demand for Treasury notes. Chinese officials have openly discussed reallocating Chinese investments elsewhere.

People all over the world have chosen to opt for gold instead of American dollars. Since 2001, the price of gold has risen seven-fold. In the last 10 years, the purchasing power of the dollar as compared to other major currencies has decreased by 20 percent.

U.S. debt has surpassed $14.8 trillion and has eclipsed last year’s GDP. The debt has reached $47,000 per capita.

Worse Than in Greece

According to Prof. Laurence J. Kotlikoff of Boston University, the financial situation in the U.S. is worse than in Greece in the long run. Greece has help available from the European Union. The United States has no one to turn to.

The Economist has also recorded an increase in the mention of the word “recession” in the press. In the last quarter, the Financial Times and The Wall Street Journal talked about the recession over 1,500 times.

Will the United States ever be an economic power and a beacon for mankind again? Or is this the end of an era?