What Happened to the American Dream?

These days, I hear everywhere about how the American Dream has become the "American Nightmare". Now, we're all familiar with this tough economy, and what has happened with home prices and adjustable rate loans. The result is that many Americans who once owned homes are now enslaved by their homes, assuming they've been able to keep them.

I've realized that the American Dream has shifted over time, though. It hasn't always been the goal of owning one's own home. Let's take a look at the Dream over the years:

1492 - Christopher Columbus sets sail across the Atlantic searching for a new trade route to India.

1607 - The Virginia Company landed at Jamestown, with the charter of finding gold, settling the area, and locating a water route to China

1620 - The Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock in search of religious freedom

1776 - The Declaration of Independence was written and signed, signaling the birth of the United States of America, and becoming a catalyst in the war for American freedom.

1848 - Gold was discovered in Coloma, California, sparking a gold rush in which prospectors sought great riches.

1861 - The US Civil War began, in large part over the issue of freedom for those who were then being held as slaves.

1880-1910 - Many waves of immigrants came to the United States in and around this period in order to find greater economic opportunity, often escaping tragic circumstances like political oppression and famine.

You're probably seeing a trend here. Freedom and opportunity. Those were the original American dreams. People believed the grass was greener on the other side of the ocean - and in many cases, it was.

1929 - The stock market crash that led to the Great Depression left people scrambling to the banks demanding their money.

1945 - World War II ended. Soldiers coming home from war needed places to live and settle down with new brides. Along came homebuilders who, glad to oblige, built up tracts of land with inexpensive cookie-cutter homes. Suddenly, this became the new version of the American Dream - to own one's own home.

Somewhere between the stock market crash in 1929 and the end of World War II, there was a dramatic shift. No longer were Americans to be risk-takers, pursuing opportunity and freedom. Americans now sought safety and security and control. Yet, for those experiencing the "American Nightmare", those goals are beyond reach. Even worse, our ever-expanding governments, and every other American's shift toward safety and security, continue to close paths to opportunity and freedom.

Take back the original American Dream. Continue to fight for your freedom, and continue to pursue economic opportunities like your forefathers did.