41–50 of 131 posts
The amount of single parent households has 5X'd since the 50s. The US now leads the world in this measure. This seems like such an obvious factor to leave out of an article like this. I have trouble believing it's not one of, if not the most important changes the US has gone through.
Reducing the U.S. military budget by 20% and spending it on poverty relief programs could eliminate poverty to a large degree in the U.S. (not entirely, but that's unrealistic). It's not that the government doesn't have the money or that we're not paying enough in taxes. It's that we're spending it on the wrong things (if we want to have a generally prosperous and stable society).
Biden recently talked about limiting "junk fees" for example - we need more focus on stuff like that, and incidentally, these policies probably help all Americans.
Our military budget is substantially larger today than it was when we were actively engaged in both Iraq and Afghanistan just a few short years ago Our military budget will soon pass $1 trillion annually Our elected representatives now routinely provide the Pentagon with more money than it even requests Every NYTimes article on Ukraine is riddled with comments suggesting we provide a blank check for weaponry The Wash…
Despite absolute dollars per person spending increasing since the Reagan years, Americans remain in poverty because: 1. Raising health care costs 2. Very little poverty spending actually goes to the recipients' pockets 3. Decline of union membership 4. Home ownership is out of reach and the rent is too damn high 5. Banking is expensive for poor people Most of these issues can be traced back to corporate lobbying. The…
> If enough workers in a specific economic sector — retail, hotel services, nursing — voted for the measure, the secretary of labor could establish a bargaining panel made up of representatives elected by the workers. The panel could negotiate with companies to secure the best terms for workers across the industry. I'd be wary of these 'mega-unions' my SO has one here in Spain as she is a nurse and it hasn't been ver…
I wonder if any countries regulate these kinds of unions as the monopolies that they are?
Poverty persists because Americans have abandoned the notions of education and safety. Entire cities are destroyed by generational poverty but those are also the highest in crime. No one talks about the 20+ murders a weekend in South-side Chicago. No one. How do you expect children to get an education and lift themselves out of poverty when they are terrified of being gunned down every single day? The worst parts of…
I am sorry but I believe that data suggest that income inequality and marginalization are what cause those issues. No child wakes up one day dreaming about shooting someone. Also, if I am correct, I think teachers and underpaid and schools are working at max capacity. This also creates a big inequality with people that can afford the best schools. And better if we do not talk about the crime that is healthcare in the…
Being poor and downtrodden forces one to turn to street violence? Nonsense. Poor kids raised in cultures that value education and self-improvement are able to turn their lives around. Poor kids in cultures that value other things aren't, which obviously isn't the fault of the kids, but there is only so much the state can do to step between the parent and the child.
Poverty persists because Americans have abandoned the notions of education and safety. Entire cities are destroyed by generational poverty but those are also the highest in crime. No one talks about the 20+ murders a weekend in South-side Chicago. No one. How do you expect children to get an education and lift themselves out of poverty when they are terrified of being gunned down every single day? The worst parts of…
Crime in Chicago isn't talked about? That's not been my experience. It's literally infamous for it.
>The worst parts of the US need a well-trained, well-monitored police state that will bring safety to those neighborhoods and so that the kids can get educated properly and level up into the middle class and higher.
The police are generally not all that different than the other street gangs, especially in cities. The LA County Sheriff has an actual literal street gang operating in it.
There is no such thing as a 'well-monitored' police state.
Safety and education can only be achieved through economic security, not incarceration and abuse by the state.
> The deregulation of the banking system in the 1980s heightened competition among banks. Many responded by raising fees and requiring customers to carry minimum balances. In 1977, over a third of banks offered accounts with no service charge. By the early 1990s, only 5 percent did. I would think that increased competition would improve conditions for customers?
But this is an unstable equilibrium.
If competitors focus on attracting more profitable customers then I'd imagine that this subsidy becomes unsustainable as unprofitable customers migrate to banks with lower fees and minimums and profitable customers migrate to banks with higher rates. (Which those banks can afford to pay because they are no longer subsidizing as many unprofitable customers.)
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I am sorry but I believe that data suggest that income inequality and marginalization are what cause those issues. No child wakes up one day dreaming about shooting someone. Also, if I am correct, I think teachers and underpaid and schools are working at max capacity. This also creates a big inequality with people that can afford the best schools. And better if we do not talk about the crime that is healthcare in the…
> data suggest that income inequality and marginalization are what cause those issues Being poor and downtrodden forces one to turn to street violence? Nonsense. Poor kids raised in cultures that value education and self-improvement are able to turn their lives around. Poor kids in cultures that value other things aren't, which obviously isn't the fault of the kids, but there is only so much the state can do to step…