Acting like Soviets

When I lived in the Soviet Union during its last years, one of the things that struck me as a critical difference between Soviets and Americans was the attitude when your neighbor had something you did not.

In America, if your neighbor bought a nice, shiny new car, you wanted one.  You tried to figure out how you could get a car just like it - or better.  We called it, "Keeping up with the Joneses."  This mentality helped fuel economic expansion in the 20th century by increasing demand for consumer products and rewarding innovation.  Your neighbor got the new color tv?  Well, you had to get one, too.  Sometimes that meant trying to get a promotion or bonus, or maybe even switch companies so you could earn more money.  When it got out of control, it meant over-borrowing by running up our credit card bills or by borrowing against the equity in our houses.

In the Soviet Union, if your neighbor got that nice, shiny new car (ok, they weren't that nice or shiny...), you thought, "How did they get that?  Must have paid someone off.  I should report them to the authorities so they will take it away!  I can't afford one, and even if I could, I'd have to wait 5-10 years on a waiting list in order to get one.  Ivan shouldn't be able to buy one now!"  People resented any evidence of success or wealth or improvement in the standard of living of their neighbors.

Now I am not a big fan of America's consumption mentality.  I think it is a source of unhappiness and stress and waste.  But it also is a source of innovation and ambition and progress.  It is part of what unites us in the pursuit of the American dream - that we will live better than our parents and that our kids will live better than we do.

The current attacks on public employees and their unions smacks of a Soviet-style attitude of resentment:  "Why should government workers have cheap health insurance or a decent pension when private sector employees increasingly do not?"  Rather than denying public workers affordable health care and a pension, why don't we have a national conversation about how to really make health care affordable for all - beyond what Obamacare might or might not do?  Why not discuss how everyone will live comfortably in old age, especially as life expectancy increases?  Will 401k's and Social Security be enough?  Can Social Security and Medicare be made solvent for the long term without making them ineffective as safety nets?  If most people do have to save for their own retirement now, how can we better educate and empower them to do it wisely and successfully?  After all, most high school students never learn about financial planning and investing, yet most will be responsible for managing their finances, saving for their kids' college educations, and building a pretty big nest egg for retirement.

Let's not make public employees the villains here and try to tear everyone down to a poor lowest common denominator.  Let's figure out what or new vision of the American dream is and then figure out the best way to make it happen!