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" The American Dream is based on the idea that with a dose of hard work and dedication, anyone can become successful, regardless of race, gender or socioeconomic class. Although the belief is still alive, is it actually attainable? The recent recession, home foreclosures and high unemployment rates have undermined our nation&amp;#039;s faith in this ideology. In fact, when we asked readers, 70%* said it is less attainable now than in past years. Intrigued, we decided to delve a little deeper and discover exactly where you stand when it comes to the American Dream.   Dollars and Cents No surprise here: 76% of you said money is the biggest hurdle you face in achieving the American Dream, while only 16% of you said the problemis time and 9% said it is education.   Enterprising Endeavors With legacies such as Ford Motor Co., Microsoft and even Ben &amp;amp;amp; Jerry&amp;#039;s, the United States is known for its entrepreneurial spirit\u2014but starting a business is a risky venture. That may be why you were torn on whether or not you&amp;#039;d take the plunge: 42% said you might launchyour own company, 32% could never take the risk and 26% of you would risk it all to make it big.   Nest Egg If one thing is crystal clear, it&amp;#039;s that Americans aren&amp;#039;t feeling very confident about their retirement. In fact, only 19% of you said you&amp;#039;d be able to retireearly, whereas 62% said you wouldn&amp;#039;t and 20% weren&amp;#039;t sure.   Equal Rights When it comes to issues of equality, it&amp;#039;s a close divide: While there&amp;#039;s no doubt that President Barack Obama played a role in 31% of you saying that anyone could become president of the United States despite race, class or gender, 35% of you said maybe any child could become president and 34% said only those born into money or certain social circles could get elected. In the same vein, 37% of you said America only offers certain groups/classes/races equality, 38% said America does not offerequality to all and 25% of you said that America does offerequality to all.   Does Hard Work Pay Off? Talk about mixed feelings! When asked if you think that anyone who works hard can achieve the American Dream, 41% of you said yes and 41% said no. The remaining 18% of you were undecided.   Future Generations While respondents to the American Dream survey were mostly women, their ages spanned from 20s to 60s, and their household income levels from $21,000 to more than $81,000. And the differences didn&amp;#039;t stop there. You were torn about the fate of future generations: 47% said your grandchildren&amp;#039;s chances for success will not be as good as your own, while 24% of you said their chances will be better and 29% of you were undecided.   Education Nation One surprising commonality did crop up: Most of you think that higher education may not be the key to success for future generations. A whopping 52% of you said that attending collegeis not essential to achieving the American Dream.   *Figures have been rounded to the nearest full number. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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