I hear that less than 25% of the American public knows approximately how many US soldiers have died in Iraq. The total as of today is 3,986. Two other US statistics of note: of men in prison and teenage girls:
The 4,000 death was predicted to fall a month from now, until a casual suicide bomber ambled up to a group of our soldiers. The death toll was five, though I find it beyond curious that Iraqi observers were insistent it had been six.
ONE PERCENT of all Americans is behind bars. The number represents 7% of all Black Americans, 11% of young black males, and 3% of Hispanic males. The work gulag capitalist enterprise system in China boasts the next highest incarceration rate, where the percentage of the Chinese population imprisoned is 0.1%.
One in four teenage American girls have an STD. That’s three million girls aged 14-19. 48% of all black girls, 20% of white girls. In 18% of the cases the STD is genital warts.
The stats on the STDs are meaningless. Teenagers who aren’t having sex, or who aren’t going to public health clinics, aren’t part of the study. The researchers are selecting from a very limited subset of the sexually active poor. Simply another fake alarming statistic that will undoubtedly cause much hand-wringing, but nothing else.
As for the prison stats, if only the powers-that-be would decriminalize marijuana those numbers would be much lower.
I agree with your comment per stats, Marie. The old joke: 50% of all statistics are false remains a truism. Yet one has to have reference points of some sort.
I’d further your thoughts on STDs and marijuana, by returning this to the subject of war casuality. Who can name the true number of deaths. Every young death is also the death of a potential parent – the loss of legacy and generation.
Too often our (mental/media) culture likes to stare at the coffin without account for the ripples as it drops in the earth like a rock in a lake.
Really good post Eric on paint by number living, and how easy it is to paint in your own colors, denying that 2+2 equals something, anything, at all.
No, these statistics do mean something and should be paid attention to. The problem of sexually transmitted disease is very much real and paying no attention to it is like putting one’s head underneath the sand like an ostrich.
Here is a link to info about the human papilloma virus
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_papillomavirus
Per STD statistics, I don’t think the “guilty” head is hiding in the sand, Tony…. lest it’s an oyster bed to which you refer.
Sorry I couldn’t resist (transmitting). You’re right of course Tony – awareness IS, however it’s relayed or generated, but I still wouldn’t trust the numbers.
Tip your resevoirs, guys! Two pointy heads are better than one. CARE for your partner and self, or make the pass a hand off.
Don’t share an STD – share this instead: http://www.scarleteen.com/
The number two spot actually belongsnot to China, but to the Russian Federation. Its incarceration rate when computed on a comparable basis, is approximately 84% of the U.S. rate (the link is to the report which is the ultimate basis of the statistics you describe in the post above).