Update on the American Dream: In response to my earlier post, "Testing the American Dream", a lengthy comment thread has erupted here on QandO.net, some supporting the overall conclusion and others attacking it for a variety of reasons.

Of the supportive comments, this one by "Minh-Duc" struck me the most:

Why bother with the experiment. Just go talk to immigrants. I arrived to the U.S. with a shirt on my back and spoke no English. I consider myself in the upper middle class now. This is the story that repeated itself a million time in the history of this great nation.

Speaking of family obligations; both of my parents were janitors, my uncle and aunts were (and still are) janitors. My uncle and aunt is even more successful. They put three kids through medical school.

"The American Dream" is a misnomer. It is not a dream. It is a reality.