There was a point in my life when I could easily hire a maid to clean my bathroom - or buy $200 sneakers. Neither thought had ever occured to me. Nothing against quality footware - it's just that I would rather have books and tools, for the same money. And I am perfectly capable of handling a brush and a Chlorox bottle, whether I make $10/hr or $1000/hr...
Granted, I may be not a typical upper-middle class American - a first-generation immigrant, as a matter of fact, naturalized in 1988.
But in all my American experience, I haven't actually met too many native-born Americans who would fit the "greedy little spoiled scum bags" label.
Mostly I've met decent, hardworking people. Sure, many of them are easy marks for cynical politicians, many of them are pretty ignorant (especially those who think that having some formal education means automatically that they are not), many of them appear to be conditioned to worship the collectivist idols...all true.
But this is nothing like a truly ruined, mortally wounded society. Trust me, it is not. I've lived there.