Economic and Social Inequality in the United States Essay - 1

Economic and Social Inequality in the United States - Essay Example America, while promoting liberty and freedom of speech, has been seen as a place where people are afraid of speaking their minds. This can be attributed to the cultural socio-economic history of the nations, with regard to trying to protecting the many ethnic groups which have lewd to a situation where people have to be careful what they say, rest they be in a situation where they are accused of hate speech. The most significant difference between American and European culture is the American consumerism. In the past five decades, American consumerism has been said to increase and it has also been attributed in part to the recent economic crisis. Europeans are seen as shyer with regard to spending and have been seen as more conservative. In line with this consumerism, American has also been seen as too concerned with money as opposed to trying to live more well-rounded lives. In this regard, quality if life matters less as long as one has a fat bank account in America. Americans are not all bad though. In fact, it is considered that Americans are some of the most inspiring people in the world, always seeing their problems as opportunities to do greater things (Katzenstein, 78). This is unlike people from most European countries such as Germany where people live more closeted lives and adventure is not considered as a good way to spend a life. These cultural differences have significant implications, both positive and negative, with regard to the economics of nations and are necessary to study and understand. In order to be able to successfully achieve these objectives, I will need to take Sociology 130AC: Social Inequalities: American Cultures- the course will help me gain a deeper perspective into the historical causes as well as consequences of inequality in the United States.