Preying on the American Dream
I know snake oil salesman and scams are as old as time, but I am struggling to grapple with how prevalent they still are today.
We are flooded (especially as young people) with ads selling courses on crypto, trading, real estate, Airbnb arbitrage, social media marketing, drop shipping, [insert any other ‘entrepreneurial’ venture advertised as ‘low effort & low upfront investment.] All things marketed as a way to ‘escape the matrix’ and live the American dream.
I get it’s simple numbers for them, if they just make 2.000.000 impressions that 1% convert to sales of a product that nets you $100 per sale… they now have a $2.000.000 nest egg and can live off the 4-5% withdrawal for the rest of their life without ever working. Of course the more they sell/scam, the better their life gets.
I just wonder how these people sleep at night intentionally preying on the American dream. It just really doesn’t sit right with me.
Although the recent market has punished these endeavors (crypto, trading, real estate), it really only hurt the people who bought the courses and tried to do it themselves (who are largely working class and spending their limited savings on these ventures/bets), the people who sold the courses made out like a bandit.
Maybe it’s just a symptom of growing up in an 0% interest rate environment where anything and everything can make you rich. Reminds me of the end of the big short, where it shows a seminar presenting how the crash represents the ‘the biggest wealth creation opportunity of our generation’, right after the crash. Proof we are in a simulation?
Those scams are a actually a sign that the younger American simply does not believe in the American Dream. A substantial amount of the younger generations in this nation believe the game is rigged (and 2008 had a lot to do with it).
Once you stop believing that hard work makes you progress, then it is about survival. Truly sad this country came to this, but I don’t see an easy way out.
There’s also something to be said about America’s obsession with more, more, more. Christopher Lasch discussed this at length, but philosophically this never ending hunger leaves us materially wealthy and spiritually sick. I do really love the idea of the American Dream—and I do believe this country is fairer than most see it to be. But it’s so absurdly oriented around the individual that it erodes our sense of connection and community. Humans *need* to feel an obligation and connection to others. Just look at any case in which a few dudes are left on isolated islands—there’s like 20 of these cases and they go insane every time.
I know the irony of discussing this on a finance forum. As I said, I really do love many of the things this country stands for. But our society is lonely, sad, and absolutely hell if you’re poor.
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