by Vicki Brown

Created on: October 07, 2010   Last Updated: October 08, 2010

Of the two choices given, I would have to say that former President Bush is to blame for our current economic situation. He led us into two wars which have cost billions if not trillions of dollars. He gave tax cuts to his wealthy cronies.

If I were an economist, I’m sure I could come up with other examples of government waste and hand-outs. But, I am not an economist. I’m a normal American who wants to believe that the Federal Government is indeed “for the people”.

But, the true culprit in all of this is me and you. Michael Douglas, as Gordon Gekko, said, “Greed is Good”. In his new movie, Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, the same character says that “now it seems it’s legal”. The sad truth is how true each statement is.

The American Dream has turned into the American Nightmare. A roof over your head, a chicken in the pot, and a Ford in the driveway is no longer good enough. Enough isn’t enough.

We took Gordon Gekko’s pronouncement and made it our national motto. We borrowed when we had no money to repay what we owed. We bought houses that were far too big for our needs. Those houses needed cars in the driveway that matched.

A vacation was no longer a trip in the family car to see grandma or to camp. Flying to (fill in the blank) wasn’t just a nice trip. We deserved a week at Club Med or Jamaica or some other exotic destination.

That’s what they say in their commercials. “You deserve to get away to our island paradise.” What did we do to deserve this? Did we spend time at a homeless shelter or a food pantry? Did we do something spectacular for mankind?

No. We didn’t do any of those things but we do deserve this kind of vacation because everyone else is doing it. This is the American dream. A 5 Night Cruise in the Bahamas?

How did we get here? Our “needs” are easily met. For most Americans, food, clothing and shelter are taken for granted. So, now our “needs” have turned into extravagant wants.  

I “need” a McMansion because all of my friends have one. I “need” a Mercedes because my job demands that I look professional when I take clients out. One car company equates their make of car with love. A car is a symbol of love? Have we lost our minds?

Along with greed comes deception. We lie to ourselves when we excuse our greed by saying “I deserve this”. We set very low standards for our children. They

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