Originally from Moon Pie...

This passage caught my eye:

It has always been good to have a rich or powerful father. Last week my Princeton colleague Alan Krueger wrote a column for The Times surveying statistical studies that debunk the mythology of American social mobility. "If the United States stands out in comparison with other countries," he wrote, "it is in having a more static distribution of income across generations with fewer opportunities for advancement." And Kevin Phillips, in his book "Wealth and Democracy," shows that robber-baron fortunes have been far more persistent than legend would have it.

The country is in the hands of the elites in the society and you aren't invited. You could, theoretically, claw your way into that circle, but it's not going to be easy and it would take the kind of success that someone like Bill Gates has had.

Your average American still doesn't get this country is run by Blue Bloods and pretty much has been since it's inception. Rich White Folk (TM) wrote the constitution and instituted the initial U.S. government, not your momma or your daddy. . .