I am starting this thread as it was brought up, off topic, in another thread and I believe it is worth talking about.
The phrase "The American Dream",AD, seems to have had its first publishing in 1931 ( http://www.csustan.edu/english/reuben/pal/append/axs.html ).
This phrase has the word "American" in it only because it was The USA where such an idea could become a reality. If a person, through hard work and education, could acquire some money, own land and build a house, invest in the economy and insure that his family had it better then which was his before, could do that in the DR then it is possible that the phrase would have been "The Dominican Dream" but needless to say that has never been possible before.
Before the phrase was coined it was in the minds of the emigrants as they fled their native countries in the search for a better life in the USA. The reason those people fled, and still do, their native lands was and is because they were and are oppressed, ( Main Entry: op?press Pronunciation: &-'pres Function: transitive verb Etymology: Middle English, from Middle French oppresser, from Latin oppressus, past participle of opprimere, from ob- against + premere to press -- more at OB-, PRESS 1 a archaic : SUPPRESS b : to crush or burden by abuse of power or authority 2 : to burden spiritually or mentally : weigh heavily upon synonym see WRONG), in their native countries.
So what made the USA the place to search for the better life? Is it possible that the USA has a constitution that allows the people to take an active role in how their government is formed and functions? Is it possible that the people are allowed to follow any religion they wish? Is it possible that the people are allowed to openly say their president is stupid if that is how they feel? Is it possible that a lot of checks and balances have been placed within the government entities to help insure that nobody can get the upper hand? All of the above?
Now for those of you that live in the Dominican Republic or live elsewhere but are Dominican. Does the Dominican Republic have a constitution? Does it have almost all the same human rights that the US constitution contains? Are you allowed to take an active role in how your government is formed and functions? Are you allowed to follow whichever religion you wish? Are you allowed to say that your president or political leaders are stupid if that is your opinion? I will not mention checks and balances because not enough presently exist and those that do are not adhered to.
Dominicans, have you read your constitution? It looks like a lot of it was copied word for word from that of the USA in a lot of portions of it. It it possible that your forefathers knew that you needed individual rights and guarantees and applied them. Is it possible that your forefathers knew that a government by the people for the people was better then a dictatorship?
If the structure of the Dominican government is a lot like that of the USA then why is it that the phrase isn't "The Dominican Dream" and why do so many people risk their lives by trying to travel to the USA to live the supposed AD?
I would suggest to you that it is because the Dominican people have been oppressed for so many years that they acquired a sense of "fatalism" (Main Entry: fa?tal?ism Pronunciation: -"i-z&m Function: noun : a doctrine that events are fixed in advance so that human beings are powerless to change them; also : a belief in or attitude determined by this doctrine).
The Dominican Republic operates under a democracy in that the final count of the vote by the people determines who will serve their duties for the people. If you elect a person who only serves themselves then the blame is on you the voter for not researching the history of the elected official OR you knew their history but you didn't try hard enough to convince the other voters that this particular person did not have their best interests at heart. In other words a democracy demands that the people get involved in the political process. If you sit on your hands and do nothing, say nothing and demand nothing then nothing is what you will get.
Another thing, IMHO, that the Dominicans need to learn is how to organize and to do so effectively. It just seems to me that there is a better way to petition the government then to shut down the public transportation system to the many poor people that depend on this system to survive,( From the DR1 news 19 Oct 05)
"Political organizations as well as workers unions and popular front organizations are holding a 24-hour strike in the Cibao Valley".
Do you think the government officials are going to jump through hoops just because, through all your wisdom or lack thereof, you decide to hurt the common folks? Damn the political organizations as well as workers unions and popular front organizations who make the poor suffer more throught their stupid decisions.
Anyway, back to the original subject. The AD can be realized here in the DR but it requires a concerted effort on the part of the Dominicans. You have all the necessary tools and items at your disposal all you need to do is implement them and it all starts with entering the political arena or convincing the right persons to enter, getting involved by campaigning and speaking out and it ends with the casting of the vote. If the correct people are in office then the necessary rules and laws are passed to insure that the DR prospers for all the people and not just for a few.
THE MOST VOTES WIN THE ELECTION!
The Dominican women make up over 50% of the eligible voters in this country. If THEY were to organize THEY could rule this country. DEMOCRACY!!
This link is for you Nals as it is a very nice tit-for-tat by Americans as to what the "American Dream" is;
http://cellar.org/printthread.php?t=6717&pp=60
or this - http://www.phrases.org.uk/bulletin_board/21/messages/588.html
He is the reason for this thread. He he
Rick:nervous: :lick: :classic:
The phrase "The American Dream",AD, seems to have had its first publishing in 1931 ( http://www.csustan.edu/english/reuben/pal/append/axs.html ).
This phrase has the word "American" in it only because it was The USA where such an idea could become a reality. If a person, through hard work and education, could acquire some money, own land and build a house, invest in the economy and insure that his family had it better then which was his before, could do that in the DR then it is possible that the phrase would have been "The Dominican Dream" but needless to say that has never been possible before.
Before the phrase was coined it was in the minds of the emigrants as they fled their native countries in the search for a better life in the USA. The reason those people fled, and still do, their native lands was and is because they were and are oppressed, ( Main Entry: op?press Pronunciation: &-'pres Function: transitive verb Etymology: Middle English, from Middle French oppresser, from Latin oppressus, past participle of opprimere, from ob- against + premere to press -- more at OB-, PRESS 1 a archaic : SUPPRESS b : to crush or burden by abuse of power or authority 2 : to burden spiritually or mentally : weigh heavily upon synonym see WRONG), in their native countries.
So what made the USA the place to search for the better life? Is it possible that the USA has a constitution that allows the people to take an active role in how their government is formed and functions? Is it possible that the people are allowed to follow any religion they wish? Is it possible that the people are allowed to openly say their president is stupid if that is how they feel? Is it possible that a lot of checks and balances have been placed within the government entities to help insure that nobody can get the upper hand? All of the above?
Now for those of you that live in the Dominican Republic or live elsewhere but are Dominican. Does the Dominican Republic have a constitution? Does it have almost all the same human rights that the US constitution contains? Are you allowed to take an active role in how your government is formed and functions? Are you allowed to follow whichever religion you wish? Are you allowed to say that your president or political leaders are stupid if that is your opinion? I will not mention checks and balances because not enough presently exist and those that do are not adhered to.
Dominicans, have you read your constitution? It looks like a lot of it was copied word for word from that of the USA in a lot of portions of it. It it possible that your forefathers knew that you needed individual rights and guarantees and applied them. Is it possible that your forefathers knew that a government by the people for the people was better then a dictatorship?
If the structure of the Dominican government is a lot like that of the USA then why is it that the phrase isn't "The Dominican Dream" and why do so many people risk their lives by trying to travel to the USA to live the supposed AD?
I would suggest to you that it is because the Dominican people have been oppressed for so many years that they acquired a sense of "fatalism" (Main Entry: fa?tal?ism Pronunciation: -"i-z&m Function: noun : a doctrine that events are fixed in advance so that human beings are powerless to change them; also : a belief in or attitude determined by this doctrine).
The Dominican Republic operates under a democracy in that the final count of the vote by the people determines who will serve their duties for the people. If you elect a person who only serves themselves then the blame is on you the voter for not researching the history of the elected official OR you knew their history but you didn't try hard enough to convince the other voters that this particular person did not have their best interests at heart. In other words a democracy demands that the people get involved in the political process. If you sit on your hands and do nothing, say nothing and demand nothing then nothing is what you will get.
Another thing, IMHO, that the Dominicans need to learn is how to organize and to do so effectively. It just seems to me that there is a better way to petition the government then to shut down the public transportation system to the many poor people that depend on this system to survive,( From the DR1 news 19 Oct 05)
"Political organizations as well as workers unions and popular front organizations are holding a 24-hour strike in the Cibao Valley".
Do you think the government officials are going to jump through hoops just because, through all your wisdom or lack thereof, you decide to hurt the common folks? Damn the political organizations as well as workers unions and popular front organizations who make the poor suffer more throught their stupid decisions.
Anyway, back to the original subject. The AD can be realized here in the DR but it requires a concerted effort on the part of the Dominicans. You have all the necessary tools and items at your disposal all you need to do is implement them and it all starts with entering the political arena or convincing the right persons to enter, getting involved by campaigning and speaking out and it ends with the casting of the vote. If the correct people are in office then the necessary rules and laws are passed to insure that the DR prospers for all the people and not just for a few.
THE MOST VOTES WIN THE ELECTION!
The Dominican women make up over 50% of the eligible voters in this country. If THEY were to organize THEY could rule this country. DEMOCRACY!!
This link is for you Nals as it is a very nice tit-for-tat by Americans as to what the "American Dream" is;
http://cellar.org/printthread.php?t=6717&pp=60
or this - http://www.phrases.org.uk/bulletin_board/21/messages/588.html
He is the reason for this thread. He he
Rick:nervous: :lick: :classic: