4 ms·

The "American Dream" is not white picket fences, 2 and a half children and a dog. It can be, but that is not the only thing it is. While you are absolutely rig

by groaner 16y ago

The "American Dream" is not white picket fences, 2 and a half children and a dog. It can be, but that is not the only thing it is. While you are absolutely right, there's no denying that there is intense societal pressure against making anything other than that your "American Dream." Ugh. Everyone I know seems to think I'm crazy for not chasing after some promotion so that I can buy a bigger house, a better car, find a spouse, etc. I have the freedom to choose otherwise, but not the freedom to not be ridiculed for it.

nostrademons 16y ago
Depends who you listen to. There is intense media pressure about making anything other than that your American dream. That's because the media seeks the largest possible market, so their goal is to find the largest identifiable subgroup of people and then make it even bigger. If people broke down into subcultures of small groups, they'd never be able to target a demographic efficiently, and they'd be out of business. Perhaps that's why they're so vitriolic against Google and FaceBook and blogs and anything that empowers people to seek out like-minded folk independently. If you listen to actual people, however, I can almost guarantee you that you'll be able to find someone who shares your quirks. You might be separated by 3000 miles and have to limit your interactions to the Internet, but there's somebody out there. If your American dream is to write Battlestar Galactica fanfiction, well, there's a fandom for you. If it's to play in a garage band at night and live the struggling rock star life, there's a group waiting for you (you might have to move to a city, though). If it's to work odd jobs during the weekends so you can write the next great American musical, that's possible too (thank you, Jonathan Larson). Heck, if you want to live in a log cabin in Montana, you can do that too. You can choose your friends, but you generally can't change your friends. Pick wisely. :-)

by groaner 16y ago

nostrademons 16y ago

Depends who you listen to. There is intense media pressure about making anything other than that your American dream. That's because the media seeks the largest possible market, so their goal is to find the largest identifiable subgroup of people and then make it even bigger. If people broke down into subcultures of small groups, they'd never be able to target a demographic efficiently, and they'd be out of business. Perhaps that's why they're so vitriolic against Google and FaceBook and blogs and anything that empowers people to seek out like-minded folk independently. If you listen to actual people, however, I can almost guarantee you that you'll be able to find someone who shares your quirks. You might be separated by 3000 miles and have to limit your interactions to the Internet, but there's somebody out there. If your American dream is to write Battlestar Galactica fanfiction, well, there's a fandom for you. If it's to play in a garage band at night and live the struggling rock star life, there's a group waiting for you (you might have to move to a city, though). If it's to work odd jobs during the weekends so you can write the next great American musical, that's possible too (thank you, Jonathan Larson). Heck, if you want to live in a log cabin in Montana, you can do that too. You can choose your friends, but you generally can't change your friends. Pick wisely. :-)