What happened to the American Dream?

Evidence of the current downturn in the economy is all around us. Drive through any neighborhood and you will find homes with “For Sale” signs that also note it is a “Foreclosure”. Everyday, television reporters and newspapers provide the latest tally of the unemployed. Today brought the news that the Dodge dealership in Manassas is to be one of the victims of the Chrysler bankruptcy. There have been four foreclosures in my own neighborhood—one home originally sold for $850,000—the owner simply walked away. One neighbor moved out in the middle of the night—just left. Several other families in the area are “upside down” with their mortgage after the last tax reassessment. As I said in the beginning, evidence of the current downturn in the economy is all around us. I guess the reality of the whole thing came home just the other day when we went to the dry cleaning shop we have used for perhaps 20 years. A Korean couple, a man and his wife, who worked six days a week from early morning to late at night, owned this shop. They’re immigrants, coming here to make a new home and give their children opportunities they could not have in their native country. When we talked in, it was easy to see the husband was very upset, almost to the point of tears. When we asked what was wrong, he said they were closing the business. Their landlord had raised the rent, their taxes and utilities were going up and the boiler that provided steam for their presses needed to be replaced. There was no way they could continue and make a living. With sad eyes, the owner looked at us and asked, “What happened to the American dream?”