- Capitalism and Alternatives -

Statistics and Gee

Posted by: Quincunx on October 03, 1999 at 19:40:06:

In Reply to: 5=300? posted by Gee on October 01, 1999 at 17:38:07:

B: : Yahoo stats? No thanks, I 'll stay with the New York Times: '[F]our out of five households, or about 217 million peole, are taking home a thinner slice of the economic pie today than in 1977.' (5 September 1999, sec. A, p. 14.)

G: The 'yahoo stats' were based upon a 'line' the crossing of which entails poverty. We both know the line gets shifted upwards regularly, but its at least a half hearted attempt at objectivity.

Qx: What "line" are you referring to? And how do we know that the line gets shifted upwards regularly?

G: The NY stats are completely relative and meaningless. A $100k a year worker is 'very poor' relative to Warren Beatty (oh but hes so socialist!) but he is not impoverished by any objective standard.

Qx: I think you're simply jumping to conclusions to serve your argument better Gee. No matter how you attempt to chop suey it I still feel that poverty statistics need to be looked at much closer


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