The Myth of the American dream

The stories of the exceptions are a regular feature in the US popular culture.  Capitalism (and government) need them as much as capitalism needs religion.  They are the examples that are used to justify the "myth of the metals" in Plato's republic.  They serve the same function: to rationalize and justify the fundamental inequality of the system.  Look at this trash:  "Mr. Sanchez is part of a small class of immigrants who arrived in the United States with nothing and, despite speaking little or no English, became remarkably prosperous. And while generations of immigrants have thrived despite language barriers, technology, these days, has made it easier for such entrepreneurs to attain considerable affluence."  I tell Americans often: those stories are not unique to to the US.  In every country there are stories of somebody poor becoming rich, but they are the exceptions.  The system needs to talk about them to pretend that the system is fair.