Okay, I’ve had it.
I’m sick of blogging about politics. I don’t care how juicy the news is, for the next week, I’m only blogging about programming and economics, and anything else as long as it doesn’t relate to Bush, Kerry, or the 2004 campaign.*
So, with that in mind, I’d like to direct your attention to Tyler Cowen’s latest Marginal Revolution post. He quotes and summarizes economist Robert Samuelson on the nature of American poverty:
To state the obvious: Not all Hispanics are immigrants, and not all immigrants are Hispanic. Still, there’s no mystery here. If more poor and unskilled people enter the country — and have children — there will be more poverty. (The Census figures cover both legal and illegal immigrants; estimates of illegal immigrants range upward from 7 million.) About 33 percent of all immigrants (not just Hispanics) lack a high school education. The rate among native-born Americans is about 13 percent.The bottom line: The American middle class is doing better than many commentators would have you believe. And while I don’t think we should neglect the welfare of Hispanics, in many cases the correct comparison is with their native countries, not with other U.S. statistical aggregates.
(And don’t miss the link to this Slate article on how the Federal government determines the rate of poverty in America.)
* I reserve the right to link to any particularly good Mark Steyn or James Lileks column.