Riches to Rags US Style

In the run up to the US Presidential Elections, we hear nothing but the various visions of the American Dream, how hard work can take a man from "Rags to Riches" in a land of opportunity.

However there is a downside to this dream, an 'American Nightmare' if you will, that the two candidates will never allude to, except maybe in passing references to helping the poor (aka black), Americans rise up and grasp the chances afforded by US society. So it was with some interest to read a story about this downside, and how the ride from Riches to Rags can be spectacularly fast in a society, that has little by way of social safety nets.

The story concerns Bruce Richall an I.T. consultant who was based in the affluent Connecticut suburb of Westport and had the 'American Dream'. He had been a IT contractor (much like this blogger), but had decided that it was too unstable a lifestyle, and who had therefore taken a 'permanent' job with a bank.

However this years bank collapses have suddenly catapulted him into a spiral of poverty which has left him sleeping in his car and eating at soup kitchens. This story illustrates how quickly the dream can sour for even the white middle class exponents of it who are meant to flourish in it.

One part of this story did jar as odd though, I myself have been in I.T. as a contractor, and I am aware that if you are prepared to travel and live out of a suitcase (in B&Bs), there is always I.T. work, even if its not as well paid as it might be in an upturn. So its not clear why this man, who had been a contractor and presumably as aware of this as I, had apparently decided to just sit around until he lost his home.

The comments by BBC US readers, suggest that you can't just move around the US taking employment that's available, and that there are protectionist laws in the various states, and that you need "out of state papers" to work in each state, but I am not entirely clear on this point, if that's true then living in the 'land of the free', ain't all that free!

That oddity aside though, the story shows how quickly things can go to hell in a basket in the US.

However we should be careful not to be too smug in the 'Peoples Republic of Britain', because even in a welfare state such as the UK, I know of a single man who has been made redundant last month, and who can get no help with his housing costs, or any welfare benefits, despite getting no redundancy payments, or having any major savings .... he is getting the run around, and will likely lose his flat (apartment) unless he finds work soon.

I suspect that the common theme of these two stories are the words "Single", "White" and "Male" ..... so no help available.