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Death Rates Rising for Middle-Aged White Americans

nytimes.com

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Re: Death Rates Rising for Middle-Aged White Americans

#61

Post by tomp »

ageek123 wrote: post #51
xacaxulu wrote: post #44

I'm in my 30s, male and ostensibly white by American standards and I've been watching these sorts of trends for a while. Distrust in our certain brand of capitalism has led me to regard America with a wary eye. It has influenced a lot of my life decisions, i.e. stack cash, stay mobile/agile, no spouse, no children, etc. so that I can continually pursue the best jobs no matter when/where they appear. I luckily was abl…

I guess you haven't looked to carefully into how the EU economies are doing.

Don't worry about that, we might not have amazing growth, but the actual living standards are still amazing in the EU (specifically, Slovenia). If it changes soon (hopefully not), it's more likely to be because of the influx of immigrants/refugees, not because pf the economy.

Re: Death Rates Rising for Middle-Aged White Americans

#62

Post by creshal »

curiousgeorgio wrote: post #52
artur_makly wrote: post #10

"Visit some formerly middle class suburbs of cities in the Midwest and you can see exactly why this is happening. No decent jobs, no social clubs, no children playing outside, sports tickets out of the budget of anyone but the 1%, no decent restaurants and obesity everywhere. Add decayed infrastructure and empty malls. You should see it. Horrific. " "These sad statistics should come as no surprise given the pummeling…

It's a sad state of affairs made worse by undereducated, lazy people who blame the government and simultaneously elect politicians who promise to solve the problem for them by handing out a gift-wrapped "american dream" that everyone feels they deserve. I see this kind of self-destructive philosophy/behavior every day, and I'm getting tired of it. It's always someone else's fault, yet it seems the "progressives" in o…

> the only way we get decent jobs and favorable social and family conditions is by letting people fulfill their own dreams through hard work and less government intervention

We tried that during the industrial revolution. Didn't quite work out that way…

Re: Death Rates Rising for Middle-Aged White Americans

#63

Post by ak39 »

wyclif wrote: post #41

Ageism still seems to be very much in play in technology, and a trap to avoid for middle-aged, skilled white men: http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2014/06/02/google-agei... This guy had eyelid surgery, shaved his head, and got a pair of Converse "Chucks" to look younger because he was worried about jobs (previous HN submission): http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/11/27/us-valley-ageism-i... "Don't hire anyone o…

Thanks for the links. This from the last link:

   "To walk the streets of Austin during tech’s biggest annual confab, South by Southwest Interactive, is to experience a society where Boomers and Gen Xers have vanished into a black hole. Photos of those open-space offices favored by start-ups document workplaces where people over 35 are as scarce as women on the streets of Kandahar."
At least made me chuckle against the backdrop of an otherwise serious topic. Well-written piece.

Re: Death Rates Rising for Middle-Aged White Americans

#64

Post by TeMPOraL »

creshal wrote: post #62
curiousgeorgio wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's a sad state of affairs made worse by undereducated, lazy people who blame the government and simultaneously elect politicians who promise to solve the problem for them by handing out a gift-wrapped "american dream" that everyone feels they deserve. I see this kind of self-destructive philosophy/behavior every day, and I'm getting tired of it. It's always someone else's fault, yet it seems the "progressives" in o…

> the only way we get decent jobs and favorable social and family conditions is by letting people fulfill their own dreams through hard work and less government intervention We tried that during the industrial revolution. Didn't quite work out that way…

Indeed. It's ironic how the new generation forgets that their grandparents and their grandparents' grandparents fought and bled so that we may enjoy somewhat stable and abuse-free employment today. Entrepreneurs will always complain about government intervention and will always spin dreams of better future "if only we could get that pesky government out of the way", but the truth is this future will be delivered only to few, and the rest will pay in blood and tears. We've been there. Be careful what you wish for - you may actually get it.

Re: Death Rates Rising for Middle-Aged White Americans

#65

Post by Steko »

artur_makly wrote: post #10

"Visit some formerly middle class suburbs of cities in the Midwest and you can see exactly why this is happening. No decent jobs, no social clubs, no children playing outside, sports tickets out of the budget of anyone but the 1%, no decent restaurants and obesity everywhere. Add decayed infrastructure and empty malls. You should see it. Horrific. " "These sad statistics should come as no surprise given the pummeling…

Turns out that voting against your own economic interests for a few decades has consequences.

Re: Death Rates Rising for Middle-Aged White Americans

#66

Post by intopieces »

Steko wrote: post #65
artur_makly wrote: post #10

"Visit some formerly middle class suburbs of cities in the Midwest and you can see exactly why this is happening. No decent jobs, no social clubs, no children playing outside, sports tickets out of the budget of anyone but the 1%, no decent restaurants and obesity everywhere. Add decayed infrastructure and empty malls. You should see it. Horrific. " "These sad statistics should come as no surprise given the pummeling…

Turns out that voting against your own economic interests for a few decades has consequences.

I usually don't go in for snark but this is the hard truth that bears repeating. The same group that consistently derided the poor for being lazy and completely ignored their circumstances is now on the receiving end. The sad part is, I'm not sure this same group (which certainly includes my parents) will ever be cognizant of that irony. Essentially we've made the poor poorer so the middle class can feel superior to someone and ignore the fleecing they've been getting from the "job creators" who seem only to make jobs for overseas workers.

Re: Death Rates Rising for Middle-Aged White Americans

#67

Post by nikanj »

ageek123 wrote: post #51
xacaxulu wrote: post #44

I'm in my 30s, male and ostensibly white by American standards and I've been watching these sorts of trends for a while. Distrust in our certain brand of capitalism has led me to regard America with a wary eye. It has influenced a lot of my life decisions, i.e. stack cash, stay mobile/agile, no spouse, no children, etc. so that I can continually pursue the best jobs no matter when/where they appear. I luckily was abl…

I guess you haven't looked to carefully into how the EU economies are doing.

There's some similarities to Japan here, their economy is a disaster but they live long, have excellent health, decent purchasing power, low tuitions and incredibly low crime rates.

Re: Death Rates Rising for Middle-Aged White Americans

#68

Post by Steko »

curiousgeorgio wrote: post #52
artur_makly wrote: post #10

"Visit some formerly middle class suburbs of cities in the Midwest and you can see exactly why this is happening. No decent jobs, no social clubs, no children playing outside, sports tickets out of the budget of anyone but the 1%, no decent restaurants and obesity everywhere. Add decayed infrastructure and empty malls. You should see it. Horrific. " "These sad statistics should come as no surprise given the pummeling…

It's a sad state of affairs made worse by undereducated, lazy people who blame the government and simultaneously elect politicians who promise to solve the problem for them by handing out a gift-wrapped "american dream" that everyone feels they deserve. I see this kind of self-destructive philosophy/behavior every day, and I'm getting tired of it. It's always someone else's fault, yet it seems the "progressives" in o…

This is a laughable takeaway. These white rural voters haven't voted themselves any government benefits, they've voted to dismantle the welfare state, destroy collective bargaining, increase the middle class tax burden, drastically increase mandatory prison sentences for non-violent drug crimes, a parade of trojan horse giveaways to the rich, etc. Now those chickens are increasingly coming home to roost at their doorstep.

Re: Death Rates Rising for Middle-Aged White Americans

#69

Post by intopieces »

curiousgeorgio wrote: post #52
artur_makly wrote: post #10

"Visit some formerly middle class suburbs of cities in the Midwest and you can see exactly why this is happening. No decent jobs, no social clubs, no children playing outside, sports tickets out of the budget of anyone but the 1%, no decent restaurants and obesity everywhere. Add decayed infrastructure and empty malls. You should see it. Horrific. " "These sad statistics should come as no surprise given the pummeling…

It's a sad state of affairs made worse by undereducated, lazy people who blame the government and simultaneously elect politicians who promise to solve the problem for them by handing out a gift-wrapped "american dream" that everyone feels they deserve. I see this kind of self-destructive philosophy/behavior every day, and I'm getting tired of it. It's always someone else's fault, yet it seems the "progressives" in o…

Your statements are such a massive oversimplification of a system that is so endlessly complex and full of exploitation that I'm beginning to suspect it's a well formed parody. Only a person with little experience "on the ground" in the formerly middle class America could produce such a piece without a derisive snicker. I won't bore the audience with anecdata but sufficed to say: The idea that hard work is both necessary and suffient to shape one's own life meaningfully is six feet under everywhere between the coasts. The people are fooled no longer and we shall see next election if they're willing to vote that way.

Re: Death Rates Rising for Middle-Aged White Americans

#70

Post by Steko »

intopieces wrote: post #66
Steko wrote: post #65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Turns out that voting against your own economic interests for a few decades has consequences.

I usually don't go in for snark but this is the hard truth that bears repeating. The same group that consistently derided the poor for being lazy and completely ignored their circumstances is now on the receiving end. The sad part is, I'm not sure this same group (which certainly includes my parents) will ever be cognizant of that irony. Essentially we've made the poor poorer so the middle class can feel superior to…

> I'm not sure this same group (which certainly includes my parents) will ever be cognizant of that irony.

Sadly you may be right, Exhibit A being the reelection of Sam Brownback, destroyer of worlds. The plutocrats behind the GOP curtain seem to have an unending stream of reactionary social issues to mobilize these votes.

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