47% of Detroit 'functionally illiterate'. (bailout, work, tax, war)

[RCCCB]

Originally Posted by chattypatty

More insults, but your argument is not getting any stronger.

Who said anything about "working hard will make you rich"?? I never said anyone would get rich. Only a few people actually get rich, no matter where they started in life. But working hard will USUALLY, barring especially bad luck, result in one's ability to support oneself and perhaps even a family.

It is easy to sound sophisticated by prefacing every discussion with a claim that everything in life is "complicated," but the truth is, some things are extremely simple.

This generation may have to work harder than our generation did, but they won't work NEARLY as hard as our parents and grandparents did. That's a fact.

You are 100% right and if you go back to my grandparent's generation often no one owned a house and most were sharing rent two families to a home the size of a two car garage.
People have entitlement mentalities and gross expectations these days.

Your post was spot on.

[JazzyTallGuy]

Originally Posted by Tiger Blood

Sorry but it is a fact that Mississippi is not some lily White state like Utah or Idaho.

Mississippi is one of the few states in the U.S that actually has majority Black counties.

Mississippi would be in better shape if the percentage of Blacks there wasn't so high.

Oh like Kentucky?

Clay County, Kentucky
Per capita income: $9,716
Median household income: $22,365
Percentage High School Graduate age 25+: 49.4%
Percentage College Graduate age 25+: 8.0%
Percentage of County Below Poverty Level: 38.3%
White Non-Hispanic: 92.2%

McCreary County, Kentucky
Per capita income: $9,896
Median household income: $22,253
Percentage High School Graduate age 25+: 52.6%
Percentage College Graduate age 25+: 6.7%
Percentage of County Below Poverty Level: 35.4%
White Non-Hispanic: 94.9%

Wolfe County, Kentucky
Per capita income: $10,321
Median household income: $23,310
Percentage High School Graduate age 25+: 53.6%
Percentage College Graduate age 25+: 10.6%
Percentage of County Below Poverty Level: 36.1%
White Non-Hispanic: 97.7%


Leslie County, Kentucky
Per capita income: $10,429
Median household income: $23,627
Percentage High School Graduate age 25+: 52.5%
Percentage College Graduate age 25+: 6.3%
Percentage of County Below Poverty Level: 30.0%
White Non-Hispanic: 98.3%

Martin County, Kentucky
Per capita income: $10,650
Median household income: $22,841
Percentage High School Graduate age 25+: 54.0%
Percentage College Graduate age 25+: 9.0%
Percentage of County Below Poverty Level: 35.3%
White Non-Hispanic: 93.2%

Knox County, Kentucky
Per capita income: $10,660
Median household income: $25,090
Percentage High School Graduate age 25+: 54.1%
Percentage College Graduate age 25+: 8.8%
Percentage of County Below Poverty Level: 33.4%
White Non-Hispanic: 96.6%


Magoffin County, Kentucky
Per capita income: $10,685
Median household income: $25,890
Percentage High School Graduate age 25+: 50.1%
Percentage College Graduate age 25+: 6.3%
Percentage of County Below Poverty Level: 34.9%
White Non-Hispanic: 98.5%

Jackson County, Kentucky
Per capita income: $10,711
Median household income: $25,084
Percentage High School Graduate age 25+: 52.9%
Percentage College Graduate age 25+: 6.8%
Percentage of County Below Poverty Level: 27.1%
White Non-Hispanic: 98.3%

Owsley County, Kentucky
Per capita income: $10,742
Median household income: $19,829
Percentage High School Graduate age 25+: 49.2%
Percentage College Graduate age 25+: 7.7%
Percentage of County Below Poverty Level: 37.6%
White Non-Hispanic: 98.4%

By the way here is a list of the poorest counties in Mississippi:

Jefferson County, Mississippi
Per capita income: $15,853
Median household income: $37,818
Percentage High School Graduate age 25+: 72.9%
Percentage College Graduate age 25+: 16.9%
Percentage of County Below Poverty Level: 20.8%
White Non-Hispanic: 58.3%
Black persons: 37.2

Issaquena County, Mississippi
Per capita income: : $10,581
Median household income: $26,522
Percentage High School Graduate age 25+: 58.8%
Percentage College Graduate age 25+: 7.1%
Percentage of County Below Poverty Level: 48.1%
White Non-Hispanic: 38.1%
Black persons: 60.5%

Holmes County, Mississippi
Per capita income: $10,683
Median household income: $23,369
Percentage High School Graduate age 25+: 59.7%
Percentage College Graduate age 25+: 11.2%
Percentage of County Below Poverty Level: 34.9%
White Non-Hispanic: 17.6%
Black persons: 80.9%
Tallahatchie County, Mississippi
Per capita income: $10,749
Median household income: $27,493
Percentage High School Graduate age 25+: 54.4%
Percentage College Graduate age 25+: 10.9%
Percentage of County Below Poverty Level: 28.9%
White Non-Hispanic: 37.4%
Black persons: 60.6%

Quitman County, Mississippi
Per capita income: $10,817
Median household income: $25,407
Percentage High School Graduate age 25+: 55.1%
Percentage College Graduate age 25+: 10.6%
Percentage of County Below Poverty Level: 34.9%
White Non-Hispanic: 28.8%
Black persons: 69.5%

Wilkinson County, Mississippi
Per capita income: $10,868
Median household income: $26,759
Percentage High School Graduate age 25+: 58.1%
Percentage College Graduate age 25+: 10.0%
Percentage of County Below Poverty Level: 31.6%
White Non-Hispanic: 29.2%
Black persons: 69.9%

Humphreys County, Mississippi
Per capita income: $10,926
Median household income: $24,091
Percentage High School Graduate age 25+: 53.7%
Percentage College Graduate age 25+: 11.6%
Percentage of County Below Poverty Level: 35.2%
White Non-Hispanic: 22.9%
Black persons: 73.9%

Claiborne County, Mississippi
Per capita income: $11,244
Median household income: $27,876
Percentage High School Graduate age 25+: 71.6%
Percentage College Graduate age 25+: 18.9%
Percentage of County Below Poverty Level: 35.1%
White Non-Hispanic: 14.1%
Black persons: 84.6%

Sunflower County, Mississippi
Per capita income: $11,365
Median household income: $28,266
Percentage High School Graduate age 25+: 59.3%
Percentage College Graduate age 25+: 12.0%
Percentage of County Below Poverty Level: 36.1%
White Non-Hispanic: 24.9%
Black persons: 72.8%

Sharkey County, Mississippi
Per capita income: $11,396
Median household income: $26,217
Percentage High School Graduate age 25+: 60.6%
Percentage College Graduate age 25+: 12.6%
Percentage of County Below Poverty Level: 38.1%
White Non-Hispanic: 27.9%
Black persons: 69.8%

If you compare the poorest counties in Mississppi to those in Kentucky the counties in Mississippi the counties in Mississippi tend to have higher per capita and median household incomes. They also tend to have a higher percentage of people age 25 and over with high school diplomas or college degrees. Also the poorest counties in Mississippi tend to be more racially diverse.

[tickyul]

Originally Posted by Violett

You can have a full-time job not being able to read and write. I know it seems ludicrous, but it's possible.

A family member of mine tutored the adult illiterate. One of his students was a Frenchman who lived in the U.S. for 20 years but never got a license because he didn't know how to read English. Yet, he still had a job and made a decent salary.

A client of mine who was a 45-year-old illiterate African American lady was able to hold down jobs and rise to supervisoral status never knowing how to read or write. She WATCHED what other people did, memorized it, and she was able to learn enough to get by.

I'm not advocating that being literal is not necessary, I'm just saying that if you have a will, you don't need to be able to read in order to make it. Nor does it mean that if you can't read as a child that you won't be able to learn as an adult.

Well, I agree with you, you can work and be illterate. But, I was mainly targeting my remarks towards the notion that dummies can get into a trade and do great.....maybe SOMETIMES in SOME trades........most likely you will be a crummy tradesperson.......probably end up getting fired sooner or later.

IF you are a lead electronics technician at a manufacturing plant.......and the line starts acting up....and you cannot fix/figure out the problem in a reasonable amount of time........well, you will not last long. Being a janitor is a whole different game.

[JazzyTallGuy]

Originally Posted by calibro1

People have posted that illiteracy rates are similar in rural conservative Kentucky and Appalachia. Different culture. Low literacy rates do not exist in wealthy communities (even when the parents do not motivate their children...which happens a lot).

You're right, it's not race...however it's not values.

Poverty is not cultural. It is structural.

Actually I think it's both structural and cultural. Geographically speaking the poorest areas of the United States in order are areas in South Dakota with high concentration of Native Americans, the Rio Grande Valley in Texas with a high concentration of Hispanic Americans, Kentucky with a concentration of White Americans and areas in Mississippi with a high concentration of Black Americans.

Just about every area with a high concentration of poverty tends to have several things in common.

There is very little industrial or economic development.

There is a cycle one can argue if it's structural or cultural of low educational attainment.

The amount of education resources tends to be limited in quality and in financial resources.

The areas with the highest levels of poverty i.e. South Dakota, the Rio Grande, and Kentucky tend to be the least culturally and racially diverse.

If you don't have a lot of economic development in your area, or the educational resources are substandard or limited financially that's a structural problem. If you live in an area where poverty is generational and educational achievement is not encourage that is cultural.

[tickyul]

Originally Posted by malamute

It's really not all that complex. Schools are not expected to teach children to read and write much less learn math and science. They've become giant baby-sitting centers that seem to have the main duty of providing 2 meals to kids and making them feel good about themselves.

Laziness and sloth is rewarded with very generous welfare programs. Don't feel like working for a living? Don't feel like studying? Feel like laying around and getting high on drugs? Well don't worry - you will be given free housing, food stamps, Medicaid, even cash handouts for the rest of your days.

And colleges today are nothing but degree mills. Many colleges have no admission standards and a 4 year degree no longer means someone can read and write past a third grade level or perform complex math equations.

I agree with this post 100%. Liberal programs have just make/made things worse.

But what do you expect, if the government is giving away goodies......welll, expect a line about a quadrillion miles long, same thing with Baby Momma Bennies.

[Willsson]

Originally Posted by rogerbacon

Report: Nearly Half Of Detroiters Can’t Read « CBS Detroit



What do all of those areas have in common besides a high illiteracy rate?

Union solidarity, through successful community organizing.

[tickyul]

Originally Posted by HappyTexan

They get calculators (class use only), paper, pencils, binders, crayons, etc.
All the school supplies one would normally buy for their kids is handed out free if you cannot afford them.

There is nothing holding a kid back from being able to attend school from a material standpoint.

So true, this country has a large segment, that for the most part is nothing but full of excuses. Your parents do not value learning and it reflects in the kids you have, they go to school and put in little if any effort and act up in school/class on top of it all.

I mean, how do you think humans learn stuff....osmosis......lol........sometimes learning takes a lot of drudgery and effort.

[tickyul]

Originally Posted by calibro1

They have universal preschool. However, its not compulsory. HUGE difference. The majority do use it.

Our system is expensive because of privatization (books, universities, etc.)... a very conservative concept.

More excuses.....par for the course.

[calibro1]

Originally Posted by tickyul

More excuses.....par for the course.

That's a fact. How's that an excuse?

[JazzyTallGuy]

Originally Posted by HappyTexan

And the civil rights movement of the 60's ended all that.
So 50 years later where are we ?

How many generations of Blacks since the 60's have not had these barriers ?
Black kids entering school today have more opportunities than some of their counterpart middle class White kids to attend college due to government money.

It's NOT money because the money is there for any that want to make use of it.

In 1959 there were 9.927 million Black Americans below the poverty level and the overall population of Black American was 18.013 million. In 2009 were 9.944 million Black Americans below the poverty level and the overall population of Black Americans was 38.556 million. So the number of Black Americans NEARLY DOUBLED yet the number of Black Americans below the poverty level HAS NOT INCREASED MUCH IN THE LAST 50 YEARS. In fact the overall percentage of Black Americans living below poverty level has decreased by over 50% in the past 50 years.

Also in 1960 277,871 Black Americans had a least bachelors degree in 2009 that number was 4.367 MILLION Black Americans with a least a bachelors degree or higher. Again the number of Black American has more than double yet the number of Black Americans with a bachelors degree or higher HAS INCREASED BY A FACTOR OF OVER 15.

Also:

Report: Shifting African-American Population (http://www.adweek.com/news/advertising-branding/report-shifting-african-american-population-114439 - broken link)

• African Americans are nearly six years younger than all consumers; 47 percent are between 18 and 49 years old, which is considered the top-spending age demo by marketers.

• Black households making $75,000-plus have increased 47 percent in the last five years—1.5 times faster than the general population.

• If current trends continue, by 2015 more than half of all black Americans will live in the suburbs.

If people think that no progress has been made in the reducing poverty with regards to Black Americans they are either ill informed, chose to remain willfully ignorant of the facts or they are simply biased.