People didn't die of cancer in the old days. That's because they didn't live long enough to contract it. Instead, they died of tuberculosis, polio, typhoid and pneumonia. In 1900, the average life span was 47 years. Today, it's more than 77.Posted on 07/31/2005 10:16:49 AM PDT by SmithL
A few weeks ago, my father and I attended a family reunion in Olney, Ill. On the way, we visited a town of 1,100 called West Salem. I'm pleased to say it was founded in 1844 by my great-great-great-grandfather, a preacher of the Moravian Church named Martin Houser. He is honored at the cemetery by a large arch, constructed by his grandchildren in 1919.
By sheer chance, we met a genealogist who lives to share data. One of her documents provides Martin's account of life in the 1840s and '50s. In case you didn't know, it was painfully hard.
For example, there was no defense against disease. In 1854, measles struck the town, killing 12 of 84 residents. As the summer was exceptionally hot (global warming, I'm sure), the townspeople had to bury the dead by nightfall.
Loaded down with cell phone, camera, voice recorder and laptop computer, I got a stark reminder of just how well-off we Americans are today. And I mean all Americans. The poorest of us enjoy luxuries that kings of 100 years ago never imagined.
Even our convicted murderers have it good. I read recently that prisoners on Death Row at San Quentin, Calif., live better than 50 percent of all the people in the entire world.
As for the poor Islamists we are "torturing" at Gulag Guantanamo? They eat better than they've ever eaten in their life. Their average weight gain is 18 pounds.
The libertarian Cato Institute has produced a report documenting our life of luxury. It's titled "The Greatest Century That Ever Was: 25 Miraculous Trends of the Past 100 Years." Here are some of its points:
People didn't die of cancer in the old days. That's because they didn't live long enough to contract it. Instead, they died of tuberculosis, polio, typhoid and pneumonia. In 1900, the average life span was 47 years. Today, it's more than 77.
Back then, parents worried their children would not live to age 1. One in 10 did not. Now parents worry their kids won't make it to a good college.
The American worker makes much more than he used to, and, yes, that's in constant dollars. In 1909, the typical hourly wage was $3.43. In 1950, it was $9.70. Last year it was $15.70.
In 1950, more than 30 percent of Americans were classified as poor. Today the figure is 10 percent to 15 percent — with a poverty level that Democrats set artificially high for political purposes.
Today, even the poor have a bewildering array of comforts. "More than 98 percent of American homes have a telephone, electricity and a flush toilet," the study says. "More than 70 percent of Americans own a car, a VCR, a microwave, air conditioning, cable TV, and a washer and dryer." In 1900, almost no homes had such conveniences.
In 1998, the study says, an American worker with an $800 Pentium-chip laptop had more computer power at his fingertips than was contained in all the computers in all the world in World War II.
Even in 1976, the typical computer processed just 20,000 instructions per second. In 1998, it processed 700 million. That means it was 35,000 times faster.
Applying Moore's Law, which says processor speeds double every 18 months, we see a new computer in 2005 is not 35,000 times faster than a computer from 1976 — it's 163,000 times faster. And for $500!
Running for vice president last year, John Edwards said there are two Americas: a rich one and a poor one. Not really. There are three. One is incredibly well-off. One is nicely well-off. The third has to settle for just well-off.
You can call that injustice if you want. I don't. I call it prosperity never before seen in human history.
In America, poor means starting at Wal-Mart for $10 an hour. That's $19,500 a year. Granted, I wouldn't want to live on such a salary. But I'm older than I look. If I were right out of high school, it wouldn't sound too bad at all.
Furthermore, look what happens if you marry a co-worker. Your household income leaps to $39,000. Meanwhile, expenses plunge. Two people in one household live for 60 percent of the cost of two people in two households.
Now, if your expenses drop by 40 percent, that sounds to me like a 40 percent gain in your standard of living. In essence, the two of you are living as if you earned $54,600.
Now go to the Web site "globalrichlist" and type in $39,000. Guess what. Your new household income ranks in the top 4 percent of all the people in the world. Only 72 million people make more than you do. Almost 6 billion make less. And you didn't even have to go to college.
So excuse me if I don't get too worked up about how bad we're supposed to have it under mean old George Bush. In 1854, America, poor meant walking a mile for water. In 2005 America, poor means you have a slick cell phone but not a Wi-Fi laptop.
America is a nation where the poor face a serious obesity problem. The masses of undernourished people in nations that truly are stricken, such as Ethiopia and Malawi, must be dumbfounded.
Michael Bowers is a copy editor and page designer for The Star. Send e-mail to mbowers@starnewspapers.com.
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Great post!
Not to hear our SOCIALISTS tell our story -- of doom and gloom, of negativism, of how terrible anyone but the rich have it.....a bunch of crap-weasels.
Things in the U.S. have never been better.
At the same time, life in these United States has never been risk-free.
It's a shame there is so much we take for granted. Great article!!
People in 1900 did not make three something an hour nor nine seventy in 1950. There may have be some, but it certainly was not the average.
Need is one of those things that is self-generated once it gets beyond raw survival. There is always something else that is needed as soon as a neighbor has it.
like this guy??
he likes e-mail.
mbowers@starnewspapers.com
send some to his editor, too...we want more and more from him.
here's one I really liked...
http://www.starnewspapers.com/star/spedit/col/17-col1.htm
CONSTANT dollars - good definition:
http://dola.colorado.gov/cedis/dollarInfo.htm
'
Converting Financial Data to Constant Dollars
As most consumers are well aware, inflation exerts an effect on the value of a dollar. In most cases, a dollar can't buy the same amount of goods or services it did five or ten years ago, or even what it could last year. Some users prefer to analyze financial data that has been "deflated" to produce a more useful time series.
Financial data can be adjusted for inflation using the Consumer Price Index (CPI) prepared by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The CPI tracks changes in the prices paid by urban consumers for a representative basket of goods and services through a survey of retailers, landlords and consumers. The survey targets day-to-day expenses such as housing, transportation, food and education. The BLS publishes a national average each month, as well as data for Chicago, New York and Los Angeles. Data specific to the Denver-Boulder-Greeley urban area is released every six months.
The deflated figures available through CEDIS use the most current annual average for the Denver-Boulder-Greeley urban area. This may result in over or under estimating conditions in other areas of the State.
To convert dollar values in one year to constant dollars in a second year, multiply the first-year dollar value by a factor whose numerator is the average annual CPI of the second year and whose denominator is the average annual CPI of the first year. For instance, to convert $10,000 in 1982 dollars to 1997 constant dollars, multiply $10,000 by the average annual CPI in 1997 divided by the average annual CPI in 1982: $10,000 * 160.5 / 96.5 = $10,000 * 1.663212435233 = $16,632 in 1997 constant dollars.
For more information on the CPI, or to see the most currently available data, see the Bureau of Labor Statistic's web site at www.bls.gov/cpi/home.htm'
slight funny comparo...author talks about families in 1900 not having car, vcr, microwave, ac, cable TV, washer and dryer, but duh!!!, those were not invented (well, maybe the car) at that time. None of them were in high volumes to be sure...so the comparison is kinda lame..
It would have been better to see how many families in 1900 had a buggy, or horse, a fan, person to wash and dry dishes, a person to wash clothes, and a clothesline, and some records , or books with pictures in them, and then compare that with the current versions of those products..
But it is true, we live like kings....my question is always this...you're going to Vegas for vacation?...don't tell me you're poor! Got someone to farm for you, and deliver the food to some pickup point? Got a mechanic to fix your car, got health insurance, got bus drivers, pilots, boat captains, florists, barbers, manicurists? Please don't tell me, that you got no money...Kings couldn't live like that long time ago....
That is all true, but we pay the price in other ways. When you get too comfortable, life quickly loses its meaning, and we seek greater comforts and entertainments to numb ourselves to the monotony and stress of it all.
Children used to die like flies. Now we abort ours because we don't want them. I wonder if our ancestors really wanted each child sometimes. Even reading between the lines in studying my family history, I don't see where all those children were valued other than to boost the family income or drag the family down to feed them. Many were put out to do servile work, white slavery if you will. Nobody talks about that.
I think many of our ancestors would look at us and be ashamed at what we've become.
""More than 70 percent of Americans own a car, a VCR, a microwave, air conditioning, cable TV, and a washer and dryer." In 1900, almost no homes had such conveniences."
duh
"America is a nation where the poor face a serious obesity problem."
I know people who work at Walmart, try $6 something an hour, maybe $7 if they've been working there awile. Possible in DC Walmart pays that much but not around here.
I do agree, we American's have no idea how well we have it but the article seems a bit biased. As it mentioned, in 1900 almost no American's had VCR's, cars, etc. Yeah well, I bet they didn't have TV's either.
It was 1948 before the people in my area who lived outside cities got electricity. We do have it good, I'm not arguing that but I wonder where they are coming up with these figures, obviously not from the Midwest.
I'm not impressed.
But the strongest survived.
..... The American worker makes much more than he used to, and, yes, that's in constant dollars. In 1909, the typical hourly wage was $3.43. In 1950, it was $9.70. Last year it was $15.70. ......
I did not know that. $15.70 is the average wage today? I'm not disputing that, I just did not know how that was arrived at. At first I thought you were talking about minimum wage but you are not. Frankly, I know several typical people who are glad to be making the $9.70 - $10.00 range. They are relieved to have a job at all after losing their $15.00 an hour job to downsizing, out sourcing, etc.
Loaded down is right.
It's all crap, and it enslaves you.
Probably because cheap food mostly simple,starchy carbohydrate loaded with corn starch and syrup.
America, the only place in the world where the poor are overweight....
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