Giving Thanks This Day
Among Other Things, I'm Thankful For the Following
By Adam C Posted in Culture — Comments (9) / Email this page » / Leave a comment »
The media often ignores good news, so today I'm thankful for the following good news:
1) Your plane is less likely to crash last year than any time in the past.
2) The number of young children who died last year fell under 10 million for the first time in recorded history.
3) Political violence is at an ebb with the end of the Cold War, wars for independence, and the 1990s civil wars slowly ending.
4) The number of people in absolutely poverty (less than $1/day) is at an all time low despite the booming population in the developing world.
5) Life expectancy is at an all time high (which is good despite putting a strain on our Social Security and Medicare systems)
(Cite)
Also, I'm happy to report that since the early 1990s in the United States, the country has improved a myriad of social indicators.
1) Crime has plummeted across the U.S. The days when "tough on crime" and the "war on drugs" were top issues in Presidential campaigns are over. This has taken away a major Republican issue, but more importantly it has made the country a safer place for all citizens.
2) Teenage drug use is down over the past 15 years with notably large drops in use of ecstasy and LSD.
3) The national welfare caseload is down 60% from the high water mark in 1994. At the same time, poverty rates, black poverty rates, hunger and childhood poverty rates have fallen.
4) Abortions are down from a peak of 1.6 million a year to a level close to 1973 when Roe was handed down.
5) Divorce rates have fallen to the lowest level since 1970.
6) Childhood pregnancy is down 35% from the 1991 peak.
7) Teen alcohol use is down, teen binge drinking is at an all time low, and teen daily smoking is at an all time low.
(Cite)
America is not perfect, but America is great. Among other things, I grateful for all the wonderful things that make up America. And I'm optimistic we can always make Her better.
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Giving Thanks This Day 9 Comments (0 topical, 9 editorial, 0 hidden) Post a comment »
God knows that we would never hear all this positive change from the MSM. They are as mute on good news about America as they are about good news from Iraq. Of course the reason is the same--the good news in Iraq is directly due to the actions of good Americans and we can't have THAT now, can we?
One of the things I am so grateful for this Thanksgiving is alternate media. Thanks to them, I know LOTS of things to be grateful for!
May all of you have a warm, safe and loving holiday.
it is the best damn country in the world... Happy Thanksgiving all.
Freedom of Religion not Freedom from Religion
I tried posting a version of your first list to a general-interest board I occasionally read. The general reaction? This was all bad news because it would lead to more overpopulation and hence, more global warming.
Sigh. Only in the sad ranks of the lunatic left could children not dying of diseases be seen as a disaster.
resulting in overpopulation, I just saw a link on Drudge this morning about some "eco-warrior" who decided to get himself sterilized in order not to add to the population. Now that right there is a plan that we really need to promote to ALL the loony tunes lefties! Talk about something to be thankful for...
...though I'm dubious about some of the factoids, particularly things like teen drug use (though I'd believe that LSD use has fallen). I wish your citees were as conscientious as you with their referencing!
Well, OF COURSE crime is down. That's what happens when you incarcerate every first-time drug user in the country! But, seriously, good news indeed. Just a friendly suggestion: Your stats need to have meaning. Saying, for example, that Childhood pregnancy is down 35% from the 1991 peak means nothing if we don't know what that peak was or where it's at now. But I digress...
Specifically, it means the direction is good. The magnitude of the problems would have made the post much more cumbersome and long. But here's a graph on teenage pregnancy in the US and Canada. The US has dropped from 120 pregnancies per 1000 teenagers to under 100 pregnancies per 1000 teenagers.
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You see, all my liberal-leaning friends HATE me for reading this blog but it's exactly that kind of professional courtesy - following up with statistics (although I would have liked to have known the source, too.) - that keeps me coming back to this site. I may not agree with you on many, many subjects but I never have to fear that I'll be shouted down, cursed out or dismissed with illogical attacks. I'm as liberal as they come but truly you all have a model for what intellectual debate can be. I read The Huffington Post religiously but with each passing day - and each four-lettered, CAP-EMPHASIZED, ridiculously framed comment - I think there may be a grain of truth to the stereotype that there is a large segment of "screechies" on The Left. Thanks again for your work and diligence.
Victor
"There isn't a man alive who hasn't wanted to boot an infant." - W.C. Fields