American Dream vs. European Reality

The recent two Economist issues deal with the world's two biggest powers--America and Europe--and their problems at home and abroad. It's funny that I refer to two continents as two "powers," but this seems to have become reality today. The U.S. exerts economic influence over the North American region through NAFTA, and its European counterparts struggle to consolidate a completely free trade zone. The most blessed two continents, it seems, are powerful than ever, able to establish world order to their wishes.

Yet several articles in the June 17th and 24th Economist issues reveal some pessimism. For America, inequality between socioeconomic classes is greater than ever. True, capitalism has long credited itself with a fundamental value of inequality, something so deeply rooted in what we call the American Dream--a dream of having the opportunity to outstand others, a hope to achieve a higher status than the rest, and a chance of good life for those of us who are willing to work hard. Despite the fact that the U.S. is widely seen as a country that promises equality to its people, too often the American model leaves the poor behind. The American Dream is still a sweet dream for most of the people in the world, but meritocracy cannot guarantee fairness, and the dream is and will remain a series of restless competition.

For Europe, the battle seems to be along ideological lines. The Euro performed well in the past several years, but in many European minds, the EMU is still a concept hard to adjust for. A free trade zone takes a great deal of trust and, in the age of terrorism, it could mean a leap of faith. The creative phrase "Eurabia," perfectly exemplifies the existential fear of Europeans in regards of Europe's Muslim communities. In almost ancient ways, the psychological dichotomy between "us" and "them" is at play. The split between the two communities is no longer a difference between religions or languages. Rather, it is a split between believing and non-believing, between belief and non-belief. Post medieval Europe turns radically to secularism, and it tends to look at faith-based America and the Middle East with skepticism. Interestingly, in its worship of secularism, Europe reminds the world of how far "believing" takes. When French minister of the interior Nicolas Sarkozy refers to young Arabs as racailles, Europe subscribes to a fundamentalist version of a secular state, and in so doing it rejects openness and respect. By turning the word "Islamic" into "Islamist," Europe immerses itself in laïc naïvité and falls into the psychological trap to reinforce difference than to acknowledge similarity.