The Land of Opportunity and Wealth

The Land of Opportunity and Wealth

To fully explore the statement “America is the land of wealth and opportunity” We must first decide what “wealth and opportunity” is. Merriam-Webster defines wealth as:

2 : abundance of valuable material possessions or resources

3 : abundant supply:

4 a : all property that has a money value or an exchangeable value b : all material objects that have economic utility; especially : the stock of useful goods having economic value in existence at any one time *national wealth*

and opportunity as:

1 : a favorable juncture of circumstances *the halt provided an opportunity for rest and refreshment*

2 : a good chance for advancement or progress

For this essay I will use the number 2 and 3 definitions of wealth and the number 2 definition of opportunity

Using these definitions America is the land of wealth and opportunity. People from all over the world have come to these shores to start a new life and where able improve themselves. This is not to say that everyone has the same amount of wealth or the same opportunities but in general and on average there is more wealth and opportunity here than elsewhere in the world.

Politically we are a “free” people we are allowed to vote and to voice our opinions aloud. Theoretically this is supposed to be meted out equally. We have seen throughout history that this was not the case nor is it the case today. People of color, women, Catholics, Protestants, and any number of other groups of people have been mistreated and treated in a way that is both a shame and in direct conflict with the constitution of the United States of America. This is a dark part of Americana but it does not take away the fact that these groups of people ...

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... male peers. Although this is obscene and horrible it reduced there will to work as hard as they could have. Today this is slowly being reversed. Education is again the only means by which we can overcome these feelings of inequality that the minorities feel and then everyone will work as hard as they can in relation to what their discount rate of work is. (This is the proportion of work to reward that a person is willing to do) some people have a high discount rate and will do as little work as they can to survive while others will work harder if the rewards are greater. This is more complicated than I can cover in the scope of this paper. In conclusion, in order to have a truly productive society that utilizes its people to the highest possible degree of utility we must make people believe that what is possible for others is truly possible for themselves.