[tw]

Originally Posted by DanaC

Terrifying how many adults are out there with barely functional literacy and numeracy.

From The Economist of 16 Feb 2013:

Here is a test. Suppose you had $100 in a saving account that paid an interest rate of 2% a year. If you leave the money in the account, how much would you have accumulated after five years: more than $102, exactly $102, or less than $102? ... But a survey found that only [slightly more than] half of American aged over 50 gave the correct answer. ... it is hardly surprising that they struggle to deal with the small print of mortgage and insurance contracts.

The solution seems obvious: provide more financial education. ... A survey by the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland reported that "Unfortunately, we do not find conclusive evidence that, in general, financial education programmes do lead to greater financial knowledge, and ultimately to better financial behaviour."

(The authour was clearly British.)

A problem is traceable to something even seen here. Eyes glaze over when numbers are provided. Many foolishly believe car loans are acceptable. Having an outstanding balance on that credit card is acceptable behavior. But the problem is even worse. Essential is to retrain so many into what is necessary to know anything. Always want and demand numbers. Ignoring ‘perspective’ is akin to illiteracy.

Again The Economist:

The survey found that one in every five American households is "underbanked" meaning they have a bank account but also rely on alternative solutions - typically high-cost products such as pay-day loans, cheque-cashing services, non-bank money orders, or pawn shops.
Not all the unbanked are poor, nor do all poor people lack bank accounts. But the rate of the unbanked among low-income households (defined in the FDIC survey as those below $15,000) is more than three times the overall rate. The proportion of poor Americans without an account compares particularly badly with other rich places.

UT describes Norristown as the ghetto. Norristown is the county seat for one of (if not the) Pennsylvania's richest county. Norristown is far from a ghetto. It is typical of what happened to so many American towns after 2000. Eliminate the super rich from numbers. Left is vast numbers of Americans who are impoverished. A great income disparity.

46 million Americans now live below the poverty line. Numbers that have not been seen since Johnson's war on poverty. And numbers that are actually only now reporting what was happening four and ten years ago. A legacy of trickle down economics. And a trend that can only change when income disparities start decreasing. (A higher minimum wage is one part of a solution.)

Poverty is defined by a family of four living on $20,000 (12,800 pounds or 14,800 Euros) annually. A larger percentage of those poverty numbers include young kids. Perspective provided by numbers explains why Norristown - the ghetto - represents what was happening to large parts of America after 2000 when America stopped growing (except with the super rich).