*Rich Boy* the Shrinking American Middle Class and *South Park*

http://www.businessinsider.com/22-statistics-that-prove-the-middle-class-is-being-systematically-wiped-out-of-existence-in-america-2010-7


          There are multiple issues in the economy today that are resulting in the shrinkage of the American middle class.  The middle class is a topic that has not been covered in our class but is equally as relevant as the upper and lower classes.   *Rich Boy* exhibits upper class ambitions that result in a young man ascending to the upper class through receiving a first rate education.  Ambitions such as his are a part of the reason that the middle class is shrinking, but this article reveals the even greater issue of the competition for and the exportation of labor.  There are many of people in other countries far more desperate and willing to work for extremely low wages that middle class and even some lower class Americans cannot survive on.  The American dream is being exported to places such as India and removing the money from circulation in our own economy.  I'm no economist, and I can't say that I have a firm grasp on concepts of pecuniary circulation, but this article gave me a pretty concrete idea of what is going on in today's economy and why the middle class is decreasing.
          I wanted to briefly note the prolific ammount of references to this issue in pop culture, particularly in the show South Park.  South Park began as a generally crude-humored program, and although offensive and frequently inappropriate, it have grown to expose current cultural issues and satirize American values and events.  One episode is a parody of "The Grapes of Wrath", expect it mocks the loss of internet in one area resulting in a mass migration to Silicon Valley, California famous far and wide for its abundance of electronics and wireless resources.  An episode which directly addresses the issue of labor exportation is called "Goo Backs", a made up slur for an imaginary race of peoples that come to our time from the distant future, stealing jobs because they are willing to work for next to nothing and then returning to their own time where the minimal wages are worth millions.  This leaves the present middle class angry and out of jobs, breeding hate towards the "Goo Backs".
          This trajectory of thought brought me to the realization that class issues are not simply confined to our own country, but extend internationally.  This international competition due to the significant global economy generates negative feelings between many cultures let alone classes.  It is interesting to trace the root of many cultural tensions and discover that money has been the root.  Is money truly the root of all evil?  It creates divisions within countries and between countries, but can you really eliminate a class system, which would most likely result in the elimination of ambition and drive to work?   These are complicated questions that have occurred to me throughout the course and my cross-references between literature and media.  I'm not sure how many answers I have come to or will be able to come to in the future, but the examination and discussion of our texts have certainly made me aware of and sensitive to class values, monetary status and the problems that can ensue.

Osama Bin Laden....was also a "Rich Boy"

          http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/b/osama_bin_laden/index.html?scp=8&sq=Rich%20Boy%20&st=cse

         My search for information on the release and public perception of the novel, *Rich Boy*, coincided with the overwhelming onslaught of media frenzy over Osama Bin Laden's death.  Typing "rich boy" into the search engine actually yielded results about Bin Laden's upbringing.  Although his wealth is not surprising I learned that he was born into one of Saudi Arabia's most affluent families, wealth that he later used as an adult to finance major terrorist attacks carried out by Al Qaeda.  In reading our most recent novel and in hearing about the past of one of the most evil figures of my own time,  I began to contemplate the concept of conspicuous leisure that many of our protagonists strive for or attain.
         In the novel Robert frustrated me;  his attempts to forge an entirely new identity in an upper class setting suggested his distaste for where he came from.  As he rises socially he begins to believe that being well endowed financially will somehow be fulfilling.  His dissatisfaction with his life as a child and young adult leads to his struggle to be someone and something more, which to him means becoming rich.  This gives him a sense of purpose, although it does not appear to give him very much satisfaction in life as he decays morally.  Osama Bin Laden is a severely emphasized case of the dangers of the idle rich.  Born with money, he too may have sought more purpose in life and his moral degeneration was advanced by a privileged life-style.  Throughout the course our novels have exemplified the dangers of wealth, and the evils that can take hold of affluent people.  Bin Laden is an excellent reminder that this sort of evil exists in real life.  Not everyone donates their millions to starving children in Africa like Oprah or Angelina Jolie.  Some dedicate their wealth to the mass murder of innocent people.  Many even make their millions from child labor, drug trafficking and human trafficking.
          This sort of corruption begs the question, what is it that we are striving for when we seek wealth?  There are people like Robert who are in the early stages of corruption and seeking empty goals, but eventually that can and does develop into people like Bin Laden who seek goals formed by an entirely warped perception of morality.  What do we hope to gain by becoming rich?  At first it might be the large house, the nice cars and the designer labels on our clothes.  However, for many this is not enough.  These material items become commonplace and unsatisfactory and what's next then?  What will be a person's new goal in life?  Feed the starving children?  Build the underprivileged a school?  Or finance massive terrorist attacks that shock and devastate human-kind?