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The exact degree of economic mobility might be a point of contention, but I see very little merit in the statement that "very few Americans get out of poverty"
by ryanwaggoner 16y ago
The exact degree of economic mobility might be a point of contention, but I see very little merit in the statement that "very few Americans get out of poverty" or "The American Everyman is very likely to die in the class into which he was born." The data says otherwise.
- bluedanieru 16y agoPerhaps more likely than in much of the developed world, however. There doesn't seem to be any reason to think the US has high economic mobility.
- shadowfox 16y agoFrom saying "very few" to requiring "high mobility" seems like a change of goal posts.
- ryanwaggoner 16y agoAgain, how is this relevant in the context of the claim that there is almost no economic mobility in the US? This is sort of like claiming that we have hardly any people in the US because China and India have so many more. We still have hundreds of millions.
- bluedanieru 16y agoIt's relevant because we're talking about poverty in the context of policy and values, and if the US is falling short on poverty metrics compared to the rest of the developed world, then it's evidence we're doing something wrong.