how things work. I'm personally living the American dream, so I can attest that personally it's not a myth. I've worked with countless people from ordinary upbringings who have achieved great success. My career mentor grew up dirt poor in a small town in west Virginia and is now CEO of a fairly major company. Nearly 2/3 of the richest billionaires in the US are self made. They're not living the American dream?

Yes, the stats will show limited overall economic mobility... but that's because people generally follow in the footsteps fo their parents. If your parents were doctors, there's a good chance of you becoming a doctor. If your parents didn't go to college there's a good chance you won't either. If your parents dropped out of high school, you're much more likely to drop out too. But there's nothing systematic in the US that stops you from getting a college degree or staying in high school.

This topic came up on the corner a few weeks back and Wembly's response pretty much perfectly summarizes my view except I think he overstates the minimum IQ required. Achieving a comfortable upper middle class lifestyle in this country is not hard.