I cannot speak for Ray's thinking, but I can state that the poor tend
to be under-nourished (not always malnourished, but that problem
affects some, as well), and thus less resilient to environmental
teratogens, toxins, or other shocks to the system. In addition, in the
US (and presumably in Japan and other countries), the poorest
individuals live in the most undesirable neighborhoods - closest to
landfills, powerplants (nuclear and conventional), industrial areas.
This ensures a greater exposure to environmental toxins, and thus, a
greater 'load' to overcome.
You and Ray may want to look at http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/ed20100125a2.html
. I've pasted the article below.
Ray's reference to the "Texas miracle" is a reference to a current US
politician with presidential aspirations. The governor of Texas has
claimed that his policies have helped protect Texas from the current
recession, but this doesn't seem to be true.... https://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/15/opinion/the-texas-unmiracle.html
for more details on this. Ray's link showed the child poverty rate
in a number of areas of the US. In Texas, it ranges from 25% to 37%,
depending on the area of the state, and is 11.7% in Canada (18.8% in
B.C., according to data from Statistics Canada)
Barry
On Aug 28, 2011, at 4:13 PM, D and N wrote:
Could you please make the connection that you have in mind?
Natalia
On 8/27/2011 2:41 PM, Ray Harrell wrote:
I wonder what the child poverty rate was in Japan? Check out the
Texas miracle.
REH
Monday, Jan. 25, 2010
Poverty in Japan
Japan's relative poverty rate as of 2007 stood at 15.7 percent, the
Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry announced last October. This marks
the first time the government has officially released its own data on
the subject. Past rates were known only through surveys conducted by
the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. The public
announcement of this data is a welcome end to the willful denial of
previous administrations, but one demanding a response and action.
The 2007 relative poverty rate, up from 14.9 percent in the 2004 OECD
survey, is the fourth-highest among OECD's 30 member nations. With
half the median income for all income earners in the nation serving as
the dividing line, the relative poverty rate is likely to have
worsened in the past few years, but we will never know until more
recent data is forthcoming. For now, though, the reality is that 19
million Japanese are living below the poverty line, or nearly one in
every six citizens.
Japan may imagine itself as middle class and, compared with other OECD
countries, the distribution of income before redistribution has
remained better than many, but Japanese society is increasingly
becoming pear-shaped. The elderly, older workers, recent unemployed
graduates and especially single mothers and their children make up an
ever-larger portion of those in poverty. According to the OECD survey,
some 59 percent of those below the poverty line are single parents.
This figure was one of the worst of all OECD countries in 2004.
Now that the administration has announced its base figure for the
first time, it will have a clear, public benchmark. Once ministries
start announcing statistics, academic researchers, independent
organizations and the press can check these figures. That will help to
hold the current and future administrations accountable. Admitting the
problem is the first, big step, but finding solutions is the more
important second step.
As welcome as this announcement was, facts are sometimes not as
visible as the human beings in poverty. Last year's "temporary workers
village" in Hibiya Park over the new year holidays caused the
administration to scurry around this year to find shelter and extend
unemployment benefits to over 230,000 people.
The hard work of creating a fair and just economic system will demand
a substantial readjustment of Japan's past socioeconomic norms and
practices. Now that the government has admitted there is poverty,
action must follow.
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