[Marxism] The American dream is "obsolete"

[Sayan Bhattacharyya]

On 7/3/07, Louis Proyect <lnp3 at panix.com> wrote:

> from the July 03, 2007 edition -
> http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0703/p01s04-ussc.html
>
> American dream still burns bright for many – but results vary

> Overall, there is actually less economic mobility in the US than in
> Canada and many European countries, notes John Morton, Managing
> Director, Program Planning and Economic Policy, for the Pew Charitable
> Trusts.

Does anyone have any information about "The Sphere Institute"
mentioned below, which seems to paint a very different picture than
the above? What is the agenda/credibility of this institute?

-Sayan.

"The Sphere Institute, a California public-policy think tank founded
by Stanford University professors, charted the economic path of
workers in the state from 1988 to 2000 and found extraordinary
mobility across industries and up the economic ladder. Over 40 percent
of the lowest income group worked in retail in 1988; by 2000, more
than half of that group had switched to other industries. Their
average inflation-adjusted income gain after moving on: 83 percent, to
over $32,000 a year.

The workers who stayed in retail, moreover, were usually the higher
earners, making about $10,000 more a year than the leavers. They had
already started improving their lots back in 1988, in other words, and
probably elected to stay because they rightly saw further opportunity
in retailing, though the study doesn't say what happened to them. The
same dynamic occurs in other industries where low-wage jobs are
concentrated, the study found: those who do well stay and watch
earnings go up; those who feel stuck often depart and see earnings
rise, too, as they find more promising jobs. In total, over 12 years,
88 percent of those in California's lowest economic category moved up,
their incomes rising as they gained experience on the job and time in
the workforce, two things that the marketplace rewards."

 From: <http://www.city-journal.org/html/14_4_working_poor.html>