Hello everybody

[Jeff]

"Basically the UN child poverty study (that you cited) used a relative scale to determine poverty."

Actually, the study used the US's own official definition of poverty.

[Jeff]

And what motivation would UNICEF have for slanting these statistics? Is it just because they're "evil liberals of the UN?"

And why would the study praise the US for it's declining child poverty if it had a "socialist bias?"

[ofLI]

europe has been slathered in decades of stagnation and have terrible economy...they have almost no manufacturing outside of Germany...and are primarily service sector economies...(periphal markets)...never mind the fact here wouldn't be a europe if it wasn't for the USA...see Hitler and Stalin folks did we forget...we single-handedly protected them from dictatorship for the better part of 50 years spending untold millions so they can sit on the bloody park benches...they better be giving something

[hansmast]

And what motivation would UNICEF have for slanting these statistics? Is it just because they're "evil liberals of the UN?"

Yup! I taught you well!

Laying any speculation about motivations aside, it all boils down very simply:

The methods used in that study were bogus. They used a relative defintion of "poverty". The "poverty line" was set much higher for the U.S. The playing field was not level.

[Elihu]

going back to the original topic of this thread...hi Jeff! nice to see you're keeping things interesting around here.

[hansmast]

Yeah, Elihu, he just showed up and Voila! Instant controversy!

Ok, so I had a bit to do with that...

[ofLI]

We would be better off without Yale...and please tell me Elihu that they are now offering public speaking classes at Yale...as the alumni rep. seems to be at stake...

(all in good fun=) (and some envy thrown in)

[Elihu]

We would be better off without Yale...and please tell me Elihu that they are now offering public speaking classes at Yale...as the alumni rep. seems to be at stake...

ouch. i go to lick my wounds in the corner.
about public speaking...i assume you're referring to mr. bush's amazing rhetorical abilities? i would agree that he would provide a fine reason to offer such, but i don't think they've taken any steps in that direction just yet:)

[Edited to correct formatting. Please read this and this. -Hans]

[Jeff]

I have decided
Prose is ridiculous. Ha!
I think in Haiku.

[hansmast]

I have decided
Prose is ridiculous. Ha!
I think in Haiku.

I seriously doubt that. I have every confidence that you think in prose and then spend time thinking to convert to Haiku.

[Jeff]

Ha! Hans Mast has nothing to do,
But question my skill at haiku
But I will now move,
To speedily prove,
I can write limerick too.

[hansmast]

Ha! Hans Mast has nothing to do,
But question my skill at haiku
But I will now move,
To speedily prove,
I can write limerick too.

You have just proved my point.

[jnisly]

europe has been slathered in decades of stagnation and have terrible economy...they have almost no manufacturing outside of Germany...and are primarily service sector economies...(periphal markets)...never mind the fact here wouldn't be a europe if it wasn't for the USA...see Hitler and Stalin folks did we forget...we single-handedly protected them from dictatorship for the better part of 50 years spending untold millions so they can sit on the bloody park benches...they better be giving something

Umm, even the U.S. is primarily service sector economy. I think there would still be a Europe, it might look different, but the U.S. wouldn't exist at all if not for European immigrants, so whatever.

[ivorykeys]

Btw, Im pretty socialistic myself. I think capitalism is evil...its roots are in enlightenment humanism and darwinism.

If you think socialism is so great, maybe you should spend some time in Vietnam.

[jnisly]

at the risk of being obnoxious, socialism and communism have very little in common. Socialism depends on free, informed societies to function and aims only to make life better and more equitable for all citizens, while communism is a totalitarian means of trying to achieve utopia. Vietnam is communist. Please at least try not to be ignorant.