Yeah, the Clinton / Christie polls. There’s no saying what might have been, but I could see how the “vote on principle” strategy *might* have kept us from the prospect of having two terrible candidates to choose from, but what is certain is that the “lesser of two evils” strategy didn’t do anything to keep it from happening…assuming it does.
Good piece by Barone on what has become Obama’s big focus (“income inequality”). Much of it can be traced to the breakdown of the family, he says. But no one wants to really go there in the debate, of course.
“… it is an uncomfortable truth that children of divorce and children with unmarried parents tend to do much worse in life than children of two-parent families. … While children are born with certain innate capacities, those capacities can be broadened or narrowed by their upbringing. The numbers indicate that single or divorced parents — however caring and dedicated — are unable, on average, to broaden those capacities as much as married parents can. These differences have sharp implications for upward mobility.”
It’s interesting to me that both Presidents Obama and Clinton had really only one parent–a mother with interests away from her children–and involved grandparents but both lacked a significant father. President Obama’s grandfather tried, but based on what I read in Dreams of My Father, he was over his head with his only grandson.
I wonder if that has anything to do with how they envision government’s work–as a protector–since they both grew up without a strong father.
I’m not a psychologist, but I’ve often wondered if part of President Clinton’s foreign policy problems were because he had a nanny for his perfect daughter and never learned that once you draw a line in the sand, you can’t move it.
Canny lawyers, both men obviously learned how to talk their way out of situations, not forcibly deal with them.
A judge has ruled that the collection of our phone data is legal. This conflicts with a different judge’s ruling, so it looks probable that this will go to the Supreme Court.
George H. W. Bush was so absent from his son George W.’s life that the father confessed: “Barbara raised him.” The fathers of Clinton, Andrew Jackson, and Rutherford B. Hayes died before they were born. And the fathers of James Garfield, Andrew Johnson, Herbert Hoover, George Washington, and Thomas Jefferson all died when they were young. In fact, only two fathers lived to attend the presidential inaugurations of their sons. The absence of fathers from the lives of American presidents might actually refute the conventional wisdom that only strong two-parent families produce children who accomplish anything in their lives.
There’s no doubt divorce contributes to a decline in income and wealth but single family households are not the cause of income inequality. They correlate but there’s no causation. In fact income inequality rose steeply since the 80s whereas divorce and single parent families have levelled off since then.
In countries with a strong welfare system and progressive taxation, income inequality is lower and upward mobility is higher. This includes countries with high single parent families. When the US had a more progressive taxation, higher corporate tax rates, lower school tuition etc income inequality was at its lowest point.
Looking for moral causes to economic problems is possible when discussing individual cases but in general economic problems results from systematic errors. An other interesting question is what come first; income inequality or single parenthood. Research has shown societies with high level of income inequality have higher rates of teen pregnancies and thus single parent households. Countries with low income inequality have much lower teen pregnancy rates and divorce rates. I would argue the National Review has it backwards; economic problems cause moral failings not the other way around.
Define “income inequality”. Countries where everyone is poor may have less Income inequity than a country with a large middle and working class and some really rich people. The poor in some countries are better off than the middles class of others.
Good point. Income inequality is fairly low in some poor countries but when economist and sociologist are discussing the effects of income inequality and mobility, they are referring to OECD countries. My comments are in reference to those countries only. Within the OECD, the Scandnavian countries have the lowest income inequality and the highest income mobility. High taxes, free education, free health care, etc. generally result in societies with low income inequality, less crime and greater mobility. And not to mention these are the countries with the largest middle class.
Wandering Views 
Early polls for the next presidential contest.
http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2013/12/poll-has-clinton-and-christie-in-a-dead-heat.php
Which can’t come soon enough for me. 😦
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Yeah, the Clinton / Christie polls. There’s no saying what might have been, but I could see how the “vote on principle” strategy *might* have kept us from the prospect of having two terrible candidates to choose from, but what is certain is that the “lesser of two evils” strategy didn’t do anything to keep it from happening…assuming it does.
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Frankly, none of them are wonderful. Some are (we hope) better than others. It is what it is.
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Good piece by Barone on what has become Obama’s big focus (“income inequality”). Much of it can be traced to the breakdown of the family, he says. But no one wants to really go there in the debate, of course.
“… it is an uncomfortable truth that children of divorce and children with unmarried parents tend to do much worse in life than children of two-parent families. … While children are born with certain innate capacities, those capacities can be broadened or narrowed by their upbringing. The numbers indicate that single or divorced parents — however caring and dedicated — are unable, on average, to broaden those capacities as much as married parents can. These differences have sharp implications for upward mobility.”
http://www.nationalreview.com/article/367109/uncomfortable-truths-about-family-breakdown-michael-barone
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It’s interesting to me that both Presidents Obama and Clinton had really only one parent–a mother with interests away from her children–and involved grandparents but both lacked a significant father. President Obama’s grandfather tried, but based on what I read in Dreams of My Father, he was over his head with his only grandson.
I wonder if that has anything to do with how they envision government’s work–as a protector–since they both grew up without a strong father.
I’m not a psychologist, but I’ve often wondered if part of President Clinton’s foreign policy problems were because he had a nanny for his perfect daughter and never learned that once you draw a line in the sand, you can’t move it.
Canny lawyers, both men obviously learned how to talk their way out of situations, not forcibly deal with them.
Curious. There’s a PhD topic for someone . . . 🙂
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A judge has ruled that the collection of our phone data is legal. This conflicts with a different judge’s ruling, so it looks probable that this will go to the Supreme Court.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/nsa-collection-of-phone-data-is-lawful-federal-judge-rules/2013/12/27/4b99d96a-6f19-11e3-a523-fe73f0ff6b8d_story.html?hpid=z1
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Good thoughts, Michelle. However, this blog post somewhat counters your argument:
George H. W. Bush was so absent from his son George W.’s life that the father confessed: “Barbara raised him.” The fathers of Clinton, Andrew Jackson, and Rutherford B. Hayes died before they were born. And the fathers of James Garfield, Andrew Johnson, Herbert Hoover, George Washington, and Thomas Jefferson all died when they were young. In fact, only two fathers lived to attend the presidential inaugurations of their sons. The absence of fathers from the lives of American presidents might actually refute the conventional wisdom that only strong two-parent families produce children who accomplish anything in their lives.
LikeLike
There’s no doubt divorce contributes to a decline in income and wealth but single family households are not the cause of income inequality. They correlate but there’s no causation. In fact income inequality rose steeply since the 80s whereas divorce and single parent families have levelled off since then.
In countries with a strong welfare system and progressive taxation, income inequality is lower and upward mobility is higher. This includes countries with high single parent families. When the US had a more progressive taxation, higher corporate tax rates, lower school tuition etc income inequality was at its lowest point.
Looking for moral causes to economic problems is possible when discussing individual cases but in general economic problems results from systematic errors. An other interesting question is what come first; income inequality or single parenthood. Research has shown societies with high level of income inequality have higher rates of teen pregnancies and thus single parent households. Countries with low income inequality have much lower teen pregnancy rates and divorce rates. I would argue the National Review has it backwards; economic problems cause moral failings not the other way around.
LikeLike
Define “income inequality”. Countries where everyone is poor may have less Income inequity than a country with a large middle and working class and some really rich people. The poor in some countries are better off than the middles class of others.
LikeLike
Good point. Income inequality is fairly low in some poor countries but when economist and sociologist are discussing the effects of income inequality and mobility, they are referring to OECD countries. My comments are in reference to those countries only. Within the OECD, the Scandnavian countries have the lowest income inequality and the highest income mobility. High taxes, free education, free health care, etc. generally result in societies with low income inequality, less crime and greater mobility. And not to mention these are the countries with the largest middle class.
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