Certain American politicians and media figures are fond of repeating the slogans of America as “the wealthiest country in the world” – and of course if has “the most powerful military the world has ever seen.” Certainly we know the US spends more money on weaponry than all other countries combined. Such patriotic boasting surely sounds hollow and and absurd to the millions living in abject poverty. Our own US Census figures give some corrective facts:
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, a higher percentage of Americans is living in extreme poverty than they have ever measured before. In 2010, we were told that the economy was recovering, but the truth is that the number of the “very poor” soared to heights never seen previously. Back in 1993 and back in 2009, the rate of extreme poverty was just over 6 percent, and that represented the worst numbers on record. But in 2010, the rate of extreme poverty hit a whopping 6.7 percent. That means that one out of every 15 Americans is now considered to be “very poor”. For many people, this is all very confusing because their guts are telling them that things are getting worse and yet the mainstream media keeps telling them that everything is just fine.
According to an article in The Daily Mail
About 20.5 million Americans, or 6.7 percent of the U.S. population, make up the poorest poor, defined as those at 50 per cent or less of the official poverty level. That 6.7 percent share is the highest in the 35 years that the Census Bureau has maintained such records, surpassing previous highs in 2009 and 1993 of just over 6 percent.Those living in deep poverty represent nearly half of the 46.2 million people scraping by below the poverty line. In 2010, the poorest poor meant an income of $5,570 or less for an individual and $11,157 for a family of four. One in 15 Americans now officially living in poverty as number receiving food stamps rises 8.1% in a year. Worst hit states are Mississippi, Tennessee, Oregon, New Mexico and Louisiana.
Filed under: Current Events, Economics & Finance
