Friday, August 19, 2011

More Shame of a Nation


On the heels of the Annie E. Casey report (below) comes another devastating report from the Children's Defense Fund on the State of America's Children. Here's the high lowlights

How America Ranks Among Industrialized Countries in
Investing in and Protecting Children
 

1st in gross domestic product
1st in number of billionaires
1st in number of persons incarcerated
1st in health expenditures
1st in military technology
1st in defense expenditures
1st in military weapons exports
21st in 15-year-olds’ science scores
21st in low birthweight rates
25th in 15-year-olds’ math scores
28th in infant mortality rates
Last in relative child poverty
Last in the gap between the rich and the poor
Last in adolescent birth rates (ages 15 to 19)
Last in protecting our children against gun violence

2 comments:

  1. I suppose we couldn't expect less from a system that places profits before people.

    ReplyDelete
  2. And we're #1 in soft drink consumption (by far).

    Since I like these sorts of comparisons, here are others I unearthed last year, comparing the U.S. to Finland and other countries in various categories.
    http://perimeterprimate.blogspot.com/2010/03/very-important-collection-of-other.html

    ReplyDelete

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