Bush declares war on children: More US children in poverty and poor health

[Karmadillo]

Conditions are worse in the South. One would think a genuine Opposition Party would be all over figures like this. Imagine what the $300 billion for our illegal war in Iraq could do to alleviate the condtions discussed below.

http://www.wsws.org/articles/2005/aug2005/kids-a13.shtml

More US children in poverty and poor health

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Ten indicators are recorded by the study, including family structure and employment, high school dropout rates, death rates for three age groups, and teen birth rates. Five of the ten indicators registered worsening conditions from 2000. This is in contrast to last year’s Kids Count, which suggested general improvement from 1996 through 2001 in eight of the ten key indicators.

The AECF estimates that 4 million US children currently live with parents who struggle with long-term, “persistent” unemployment, over a million more than in 2000. This figure accounts only for low-income families where no adult worked for a year prior to the survey, and does not include children living in group homes or institutions.

The number of children living in poverty increased by 6 percent from 2000 to 2003. In 2003, the federal poverty threshold for a household consisting of two adults and two children was $18,660. The term “low-income” refers to families within twice the poverty threshold, which is considered the minimum income necessary to meet the most basic needs.

<edit>

The clear differentiation between the North and South in many of the indicators maps the economic disparity between the geographic regions. Inequality in the southern US has been especially intensified by the recent recession coupled with cavalier legislation bent on enriching the top tax bracket. However, the conditions in many regions of the North are just as bad. Particularly in urban areas, low-income and poverty conditions are the rule rather than the exception, sharpened by lack of jobs and cuts to social infrastructure.

In Michigan, approximately one-third of children now live in poverty, most of them in Detroit. According to the state Department of Human Services, the number of Michigan households dependent on Food Stamps has increased 87 percent since late 2000. The AECF ranked Michigan overall in the middle, although recent regional data for selected cities placed Detroit last, on par with the poorest rural areas of Mississippi. More and more families in Washington DC, New York and other large cities are in comparable positions, contending with low wages, lack of transportation and high housing costs.

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[rodeodance]

1. BushCo priorites!!!!!

[Karmadillo]

2. Kick to see if more inflammatory title gets more comments

n/t

[Karmadillo]

3. One last kick

nt

[proud2BlibKansan]

4. Kerry and Edwards were all over these issues

this time last year. Unfortunately, not enough people were listening.

[Karmadillo]

6. I agree. I wish the Democrats would pick about four or five

issues (at most) and just hammer them every day of the year, especially whenever they show up on TV. We can't make the case just during an election year and then fall silent the rest of the time. This is one of those issues that could help build a long term movement that would be directly opposed to the plutocracy. If we aren't for giving children a decent start, what are we for?

[ninkasi]

5. This is outrageous

I find it intolerable that an incoherent, arrogant, blithering idiot of a "president", is adored by a hardcore group of deluded followers. He and his thugs are destroying everything that was ever good about America.

No person who claims to be such a good christian would ever act in this manner. Where did Jesus say to take from the poor and give to the rich? Read me a verse from the Bible that says to ignore the elderly, the children, the disabled, and take money that could be used to help them, and give it to the ones who already have more money than anybody ever dreamed of.

Is this Iraq fiasco something Jesus would support? I agree that morals in this country have grown extremely lax, but I'm not talking about gay marriage, or a woman's right to choose; I'm talking about allowing corruption in government, business, and the military.

I hope that enough people develop a conscience, and start voting these crooks out of office, and doing so in such overwhelming numbers that not even Diebold can change the results. To all of the fundies who picket Planned Parenthood clinics, when you are ready to agree to help raise the children you are trying to force women to bear, whether they want to, or feel able to, then maybe I can begin to view you as human again.