4 ms·

Loved this article. There's so much doom and gloom out there, and yeah, there's plenty more we could be doing and need to fix. That said, it's nice to stop ever

by trg2 13y ago

Loved this article. There's so much doom and gloom out there, and yeah, there's plenty more we could be doing and need to fix. That said, it's nice to stop every now and then and realize what's really going on here: we're living in the god damn golden age.

digitalengineer 13y ago
The HN crowd is. Most Americans? Not exactly moving forward: The United States now ranks lowest or close to lowest among advanced “affluent” nations in connection with inequality (21st out of 21), poverty (21st out of 21), life expectancy (21st out of 21), infant mortality (21st out of 21), mental health (18th out of 20), obesity (18th out of 18), public spending on social programs as a percentage of GDP (19th out of 21), maternity leave (21st out of 21), paid annual leave (20th out of 20), the “material well-being of children” (19th out of 21), and overall environmental performance (21st out of 21). Add in low scores for student performance in math (17th out of 21), one of the highest school dropout rates (14th out of 16), the second-highest per capita carbon dioxide emissions (2nd out of 21), and the third-highest ecological footprint (3rd out of 20). http://www.nationalmemo.com/weekend-reader-what-then-must-we-do-straight-talk-about-the-next-american-revolution/#.UatMuNzMQHI.reddit http://www.nationalmemo.com/weekend-reader-what-then-must-we... Not US bashing, EU is taking a different but essentially equal direction.
- icebraining 13y ago
  Comparing the US with other countries doesn't tell you if you're moving forward or not. You need to compare it to its own past. How do those metrics compare with the US of the 1950s? Or of the 1980s?
  - digitalengineer 13y ago
    Agreed. But I think it is rather obvious the US did not always rank so low. Here is some more data on poverty in the US (dating back 50 years): WASHINGTON — The ranks of America's poor are on track to climb to levels unseen in nearly half a century, erasing gains from the war on poverty in the 1960s amid a weak economy and fraying government safety net. The official poverty rate will rise from 15.1 percent in 2010, climbing as high as 15.7 percent. Several predicted a more modest gain, but even a 0.1 percentage point increase would put poverty at the highest level since 1965. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/22/us-poverty-level-1960s_n_1692744.html http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/22/us-poverty-level-19...
- yummyfajitas 13y ago
  Have an original source so we can see how these rankings are constructed?
  - digitalengineer 13y ago
    Yes, the United Nations Development Programme: http://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/presscenter/pressreleases/2011/11/02/2011-human-development-index-norway-at-top-dr-congo-last.html http://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/presscenter/pressre... The United States, New Zealand, Canada, Ireland, Liechtenstein, Germany and Sweden round out the top 10 countries in the 2011 HDI, but when the Index is adjusted for internal inequalities in health, education and income, some of the wealthiest nations drop out of the HDI’s top 20: the United States falls from #4 to #23, the Republic of Korea from #15 to #32, and Israel from #17 to #25.

by trg2 13y ago

digitalengineer 13y ago

The HN crowd is. Most Americans? Not exactly moving forward: The United States now ranks lowest or close to lowest among advanced “affluent” nations in connection with inequality (21st out of 21), poverty (21st out of 21), life expectancy (21st out of 21), infant mortality (21st out of 21), mental health (18th out of 20), obesity (18th out of 18), public spending on social programs as a percentage of GDP (19th out of 21), maternity leave (21st out of 21), paid annual leave (20th out of 20), the “material well-being of children” (19th out of 21), and overall environmental performance (21st out of 21). Add in low scores for student performance in math (17th out of 21), one of the highest school dropout rates (14th out of 16), the second-highest per capita carbon dioxide emissions (2nd out of 21), and the third-highest ecological footprint (3rd out of 20). http://www.nationalmemo.com/weekend-reader-what-then-must-we-do-straight-talk-about-the-next-american-revolution/#.UatMuNzMQHI.reddit http://www.nationalmemo.com/weekend-reader-what-then-must-we... Not US bashing, EU is taking a different but essentially equal direction.

icebraining 13y ago
Comparing the US with other countries doesn't tell you if you're moving forward or not. You need to compare it to its own past. How do those metrics compare with the US of the 1950s? Or of the 1980s?
- digitalengineer 13y ago
  Agreed. But I think it is rather obvious the US did not always rank so low. Here is some more data on poverty in the US (dating back 50 years): WASHINGTON — The ranks of America's poor are on track to climb to levels unseen in nearly half a century, erasing gains from the war on poverty in the 1960s amid a weak economy and fraying government safety net. The official poverty rate will rise from 15.1 percent in 2010, climbing as high as 15.7 percent. Several predicted a more modest gain, but even a 0.1 percentage point increase would put poverty at the highest level since 1965. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/22/us-poverty-level-1960s_n_1692744.html http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/22/us-poverty-level-19...
yummyfajitas 13y ago
Have an original source so we can see how these rankings are constructed?
- digitalengineer 13y ago
  Yes, the United Nations Development Programme: http://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/presscenter/pressreleases/2011/11/02/2011-human-development-index-norway-at-top-dr-congo-last.html http://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/presscenter/pressre... The United States, New Zealand, Canada, Ireland, Liechtenstein, Germany and Sweden round out the top 10 countries in the 2011 HDI, but when the Index is adjusted for internal inequalities in health, education and income, some of the wealthiest nations drop out of the HDI’s top 20: the United States falls from #4 to #23, the Republic of Korea from #15 to #32, and Israel from #17 to #25.