American Nightmare
M Alan Roberts

You say it's rainin', but you're pissin' down my back. Stop reading me the Riot Act.

Sebastian Bach, of Skid Row

Tolerance, compassion, patience and understanding go lost, in my world; at least for now. In the United States, the average state's unemployment rate is greater than 9%. Those who are still fortunate enough to have the opportunity to trade their time for money and make corporations richer and meagerly sustain their own states of restitution, have to settle for fewer earnings than they used to make. There's always a hungry wolf lurking in the shadows that would be all too happy to jump in and take over your job for you. While you're at work, you had better take the time to strategize your production plans; you need to shine. You need to take your job very seriously and do everything that you can possibly think of in order to be an effective slave.

You see, most Americans never experience the benefits associated with a white-collar lifestyle. For the majority of us wealthy Americans, a job that pays even $8.00 an hour must be looked upon as a blessing right now. As I was trying to save nickels at Wal-Mart the other day, I overheard two members of the crack management team there discussing a prospective new hire. The obvious underling said to his superior, "His application looks great. He's available immediately, but says he can't do it for less than $7.50 per hour." Bursting with authority apparently housed under his purple bib, the department head exclaimed abruptly, "No way! I just cannot go above $6.75; it won't happen."

The two continued their important business discussions as the distance between us increased and I could no longer decipher what they were saying. Looking up at the long row of checkout lines, I watched as the loyal Wal-Mart customers contentedly purchased their Doritos, Cheez Whiz, hot dogs and 2 litre bottles of Pepsi. I watched them filing through individual lines as other consumers waited to purchase their wares and fares. The lines backed up. I noticed only about half of the checkout lanes were open, yet the store was packed. The crowds frustrated consumers, who had limited amounts of money. Retail priced items were zooming through electronic price scanners at light speed - and still, this Wal-Mart location was apparently not generating enough profits to open another checkout lane, or to pay a man that was willing to work nearly every day of his life there more than $6.75 per hour.

This got me to thinking a bit, so I did some math. $6.75 times 40 equals $270. Now once the local, state and federal governments take approximately 23% of that in taxes, the average hardworking American has only about $220 per week. Hey, if there are two people in a household working at that rate, they're generating over $1600 per month. There's another excellent reason to cohabitate, marry or otherwise spend all your time around someone you can't stand. A family income of just $1600 for a month is exactly the kind of number that necessitates shopping at Wal-Mart in the first place.

Now, of course we know an employee is not going to get 40 hours, of work, in any given week at Wal-Mart. When people work 40 hours or more per week, they're full-time employees. Full-time employees are entitled to a company benefits. Wal-Mart and just about every other American company that provides blue collar jobs makes it a point to not allow employees to work full-time, as if that's some kind of honor. It's not enough that they lock you into jobs where you cannot even make 300 measly dollars per week; they have to ensure your perpetual poverty by providing no benefits as well.

American families, reportedly some of the richest people on the planet, can't get their lives together. It's certainly not because they're not willing to work; they work all the time. It's because of corrupt governmental officials inducing the wills of the powerful onto the people. Ordinary folk cant rise. They're cant make enough money to buy decent foods to fuel their bodies. Their burdens are multi-directionally: low wages, no benefits, ever-increasing taxation, so many laws that they cannot possibly remain legal, not to mention the very destruction of their hopes for betterment.

Decades have passed and the government has continued to abuse us. With more than 25% of the entire American population, either in prison, in jail or on probation, the people fear standing up and fighting. They blindly accept whatever the powerful deal them. They tuck their tails and cower back into their mobile homes. Inside, they douse their beaten-down minds with Internet surfing, televisions that isnt shut off, unruly children, poor food choices, alcohol, pornography, crystal methane, crack - and worst of all, hip-hop and country music. To tell you the truth, I can't blame them one single bit.

The American dream is one complete, foul hoax excreted from the greedy bowels of the rich. I used to tell people to wake up. I wanted them to see that they are controlled, that they have no chance for good lives unless they become aware of all that is holding them down. Now, I realize it's hopeless. Members of Congress that self-command significant pay raises each year; disease-causing poisons genetically bred into our food sources, and hundreds of billions of dollars wasted every year on frivolous bullshit like wars, bailouts and immense police forces are just the beginning of what makes the lives that we live totally ridiculous. To tell the average American that it's time to take the power back is a waste of time, breath, thought and words.

If they are intelligent enough to learn, they are too busy trying to figure out how to make their lives work. If, like most, they have the educational equivalents of eighth graders, they will fail at no matter what they try. Herded as retarded sheep, we form a mass farm of imbeciles. Denied the truth, our money taken from us, only a deeply hidden, minuscule of individualism that remains between the robots and the masters. America is failing, people. In fact, I believe it's already dead.

Maybe the best thing to do is just to pull the shades, lock the doors, fry up some hot dogs, immerse ourselves in the latest episode of American Idol, smoke some crack and wait for imprisonment.

Well, either that or singularly step up, educate ourselves, start fighting like mad animals, eradicate and reform the entire US governmental system. Isn't this an election year?