Alright, let’s pull up a chair and talk about something that’s been gnawing at me for a while. The American Dream—the idea that if you work hard enough, you can achieve anything—is a cornerstone of our national identity. But for a lot of us, it feels more like the American Scam. You bust your tail, do everything “right,” and yet somehow you’re still buried under debt, struggling to keep your head above water, and wondering if you’ll ever feel secure.
So, I have to ask: Is capitalism, in its current form, working for anyone other than the ultra-rich?
Let’s break it down. For most Americans, life feels like a hamster wheel: running harder every year but never actually getting anywhere. Housing costs are through the roof. Healthcare is so expensive it feels like a luxury. And education? Don’t even get me started. We tell kids to take on massive student loan debt so they can get a degree to land a job that often doesn’t pay enough to cover the cost of that degree. It’s a system that profits off your struggle, and it’s exhausting.
Now, let’s talk about the endless growth this system demands. Capitalism is built on the idea that there’s always more—more resources to extract, more profit to make, more markets to expand into. But here’s the ugly truth: the Earth isn’t infinite, and neither are we. This relentless push for “more” comes at the expense of our health, our environment, and our communities. It’s not sustainable, and deep down, I think we all know it.
Here on the farm, I see the cracks in the system every day. Small farmers are getting squeezed out by Big Ag, families are going hungry while food waste piles up in landfills, and the people working hardest to grow and raise our food are often the ones struggling the most. It’s a system that rewards exploitation and punishes sustainability, and it’s breaking us.
So, what’s the alternative? I don’t have all the answers, but I know this: we can start by focusing on community. By supporting local businesses and farms. By teaching our kids that success isn’t measured by the size of your bank account but by the strength of your relationships and the impact you make on the world. By recognizing that we’re all in this together—and that when we help each other, we all rise.
And before anyone accuses me of being anti-capitalist, let me clarify: I believe in hard work. I believe in innovation. I believe in rewarding effort. But what I don’t believe in is a system that hoards wealth at the top while leaving the rest of us to fight over scraps. That’s not capitalism—it’s greed. And it’s killing the American Dream.
So, here’s my challenge to you as we head into a new year: Look at where your money goes. Are you supporting systems that exploit, or are you investing in businesses that build up your community? Are you chasing “more,” or are you finding ways to live with purpose and intention? Let’s start making choices that reflect the kind of world we want to live in—because if capitalism is going to work for anyone other than the ultra-rich, it’s going to take all of us demanding better.
Until next time,
Traci
