American Dream

                                                                                                                                                                            Hua Yan

                                                     9/12/2016

   In the article, “Confronting inequality” by Paul Krugman, states the inequality in America today.  Paul Krugman uses convincing data and authority sources to prove his opinion that American dream has been weakened by the increasing gap between the wealthy people and the poor people. Paul Krugman emphasizes how an income inequality leads to a social inequality. However, Both Brandon King in his article “The American Dream: Dead, Alive, or on Hold and Tim Roemer in “American Remains the World’s Beacon of Success” believe that American dream still exists. Brandon King also cites the convincing facts and reputable sources to reinforce his argument that American dream is alive and more important than ever. He challenges economists who think that American dream no longer exist unless the government adopts certain policies to close the income gap by pointing out that sometimes the government policies might have negatively impact the economy. He claims that American dream is not merely based on the money but more on the people’s own thoughts. In addition, Tim Roemer who also believes that American dream does exist applies his experiences in foreign country as an ambassador to strengthen his standpoint.

  In my point, Paul Krugman made the strongest argument. In his article, his authority and all those convincing facts and statistics add his credibility. Moreover, he views the American dream in a prospective way by advocating that income inequality can result in social inequality which negatively affects people’s life. He applies a lot of facts to show how wealthy people differ to the middle class in many ways. The unfairness can make middle class feel depression and burdened.  He also cites many persuasive evidence to challenge the opposite side. For example, he states that there is no evidence showing raising the minimum wage will lead to the job loss. In fact, “increasing the minimum wage in range that is likely to take place can benefit the workers.”  Overall, Paul Krugman believes that government should adopt policies to narrow the income inequality in order to make American dream more touchable.

  Therefore, I agree with Paul Krugman’s argument that American dream has been weakened. It is time for government to reduce the inequalities to make American dream revive. Nowadays, American people have been living in pressure. They have to work day and night to repay their mortgage debt, to get their children a better school, etc. They get more burdens on their shoulders in this competition and unfair society.  Not knowing when they forgot the true meaning of American dream, as they are under greater pressure than ever.