Jay Ross's Blog, page 11

Ten Facts About Police In America

Well, my boys in blue have been in the news a lot lately.  As we do each week, I’ll let you take a look at some interesting numbers and sort it out yourselves...

1.        In 2012, the average patrol officer made $55,270.

2.        Washington D.C. has the most law enforcement officers per capita…by A LOT (66 per 10K pop.).  NYC has 42; Los Angeles has 26; and Irvine has 9.

3.       In 2013, 49,851 officers were victims of line-of-duty assaults.

4.       Local police kill about 400 people per year.

5.       More than $34 billion in DHS grants have gone to local police to buy military-style equipment..and that was in 2011.

6.      
7.       Only 6% of the police officers in Ferguson are black.  The national average is 75% white.  In 1984,  21% of the police officers in Police Academy were black.

8.       There is no evidence that white officers and black officers treat suspects any differently.

9.       In August about 62% of blacks and 69% of whites had a favorable opinion of police officers in their community.  An almost identical percentage of blacks (26%) and whites (23%) felt like they have been personally targeted or treated unfairly by police.

10.   The Police have no famous songs about police.

DiaryOfAmerica@gmail.com

Ten Interesting Things About Race in America

Ancient societies, of course, didn't divide people by physical characteristics.  They divided them by things like language, religion, class, and political systems.  What savages.  Since we do like to divide people by physical characteristics (even though it's not scientifically based and membership can shift), I thought this week would be a good week to look at some numbers.

1.  I have 211 million whites, 35 million blacks, 35 million Hispanics, 10 million Asians, and 2 million Native Americans.
2.  About 27% of blacks live in poverty, 26% of Hispanics, 12% of Asians, and 10% of whites.
3.  About one in ten marriages are interracial--up 28% from 2000.  The most interracial state is Oklahoma.  And a black wife/white husband couple is 44% less likely to divorce than an all white couple.
4.  There is as much genetic variety within races as there is between them.  Often more.
5.  About 90% of a typical white person's friends are white, and about 85% of a typical black person's friends are black.
6.  I have about 500 white billionaires but only two black ones--Oprah and Michael Jordan.
7.  The number of interracial murders has been the same for almost 30 years--when my population was about 90 million folks less.
8.  The number of "justifiable homicides" by law enforcement officers has also been pretty steady over the last 30 years--between 300 and 462.
9.  About 62 percent of whites thought the shooting of Michael Brown was justified.  About 65 percent of blacks thought it was not.
10.  And finally, NFLer Benjamin Watson's Facebook post about Ferguson has been shared by over 370,000 people.  His final takeaway:  "I'M ENCOURAGED, because ultimately the problem is not a SKIN problem, it is a SIN problem. SIN is the reason we rebel against authority. SIN is the reason we abuse our authority. SIN is the reason we are racist, prejudiced and lie to cover for our own. SIN is the reason we riot, loot and burn. BUT I'M ENCOURAGED because God has provided a solution for sin through the his son Jesus and with it, a transformed heart and mind. One that's capable of looking past the outward and seeing what's truly important in every human being. The cure for the Michael Brown, Trayvon Martin, Tamir Rice and Eric Garner tragedies is not education or exposure. It's the Gospel. So, finally, I'M ENCOURAGED because the Gospel gives mankind hope."


DiaryOfAmerica@gmail.com

Ten Interesting Things About Thanksgiving

"Be thankful for what you have; you'll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don't have, you will never, ever have enough."
Oprah Winfrey


Scientists say that the odds of you existing are 1 in 10^2,685,000.  (The number of atoms in the known universe is only 10^80.)  It's incredible.  This life.  So, as we celebrate the 393rd Thanksgiving, let's do what we do every week take a look  at some cool numbers.

1.  The first Thanksgiving, celebrated in 1621, lasted three days and did not include potatoes, pumpkin pies,  corn on the cob, or cranberries...It did have lobster, rabbit, deer, shellfish, squashes, onions, and eggs, though.
2.  Abraham Lincoln made Thanksgiving a national holiday in 1863.
3.  About 46 million turkeys are eaten on Thanksgiving, more than twice the number consumed on Christmas (22 mil) or Easter (19 mil).
4.  About 90% of Americans eat turkey on Thanksgiving, and the average American will consume about 4500 calories (including 229 grams of fat).
5.  The day after Thanksgiving is the busiest day of the year for plumbers.
6.  Thanksgiving gave birth to TV dinners in 1953 when Swanson had an extra 260 tons of turkey they didn't know what to do with.
7.  Over 46 million people will drive over 50 miles to be with loved ones.  Just under 25 million will fly somewhere.
8.  Americans will spend $2,375,000,000 on Thanksgiving food.  Each household will spend about $55 on dinner.
9.  Americans will spend $60,000,000,000 the next day on Black Friday stuff.
10.  There are currently 1,750,000 homeless people in America and 31,000,000 Americans who live in hunger or on the edge of hunger.  


I hope you have a great holiday.  Check out my new book, Thanksgivingland, if you get bored.  Thanks!

DiaryOfAmerica@gmail.com

Ten Things Everyone Should Know About Reading in America

"A person who won't read has no advantage over one who can't read."
-Mark Twain

I set out with high hopes to write this week's blog about books and reading habits in America.  I'm not exactly sure what I expected to find.  I usually let the questions come to me at the computer and get surprised by what I discover.  This week was certainly no exception.  But very depressing...

1.  America is the only free-market country where the current generation is less educated than the previous one.
2.  The average American grown-up reads less than 1 book per year. (The average American college graduate reads only 5 books in his life after graduation, and 33% of high school graduates will NEVER read another book.)
3.  The average literate adult reads 300 words per minute.  (The average 3rd grade student reads 150, 8th grade student 250, college student 450, high level exec 575, college professor 675, speed reader 1,500...and the world speed reading champion reads 4,700 wpm.)
4.  Software exists that allows normal readers to read Harry Potter in 90 minutes.
5.  Nearly 2/3 of students who can't read proficiently by the end of fourth grade will end up in jail or on welfare.
6.  Nearly half of American adults are poor readers.  (About 44 million of them can't read stories to children and 46% can't understand the labels on their prescription drugs....14% are illiterate.) 
7.  Less than half of families read to their kindergarten-aged children.  And studies show there is a 74 point gap in achievement between classrooms with high parental involvement and those with low parental involvement.
8. The average American spends 10 times more money on music and TV than he does on books and reading.
9.  In 2012 my top ten selling books were: 1.  Fifty Shades of Grey, 2. The Hunger Games, 3.  Fifty Shades Darker, 4. Fifty Shades Freed, 5. Catching Fire, 6. Mockingjay, 7. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Third Wheel, 8. Fifty Shades Trilogy Box Set, 9. The Mark of Athena, and 10. Gone Girl...In 1952, they were 1.The Silver Chalice, 2.  The Caine Mutiny , 3. East of Eden, 4. My Cousin Rachel, 5. Steamboat Gothic, 6.  Giant , 7. The Old Man and the Sea, 8. The Gown of Glory, 9.The Houses in Between, and 10. The Catcher in the Rye.
10.  Reading makes you more likely to exercise, stave off Alzheimer's, empathize, and be foxy.


Having trouble knowing what or how to read with your family?  Try this free resource.
 
DiaryOfAmerica@gmail.com.

Ten Things You Should Know About American Veterans

"Every veteran is a hero."
-Joe Walsh


The world is a dark and dangerous place, and its greatest source of light is my veterans.  Throughout history, they have been the ones willing to fight evil throughout the planet and do whatever it takes to keep the rest of us safe.  Here are some numbers you should know.

1.  I have 22 million veterans, and nearly two million of them are female.
2.  By branch, my vet population looks like this:  1.  Army (9.3 million), 2.  Navy (4.8 million), 3.  Air Force  (4 million), 4.  Marines (2.4 million), 5. Reserve (925,000), and 6.  Non-Defense (258,000)
3.  In the 1970's, veterans made up 14% of my population and over 75% of Congress.  Today, veterans make up 7% of my population and less than 20% of Congress.
4. 5.  The average wait time for the VA to recognize a disability claim is about 320 days, and its backlog is 600,000 claims long.
6.  Despite research that shows that veterans are more "emotionally resilient" than civilians, the unemployment rate for veterans is 9.2%, and 1.4 million veterans are at risk to become homeless.  Veterans are twice as likely as civilians to become homeless and make up 13% of my homeless population.
7.  In 2013, my government stopped releasing information on soldiers injured in Iraq and Afghanistan after the number reached one million.
8.  Over 2.5 million service members have been to war since 2001 and about 50% have been deployed more than once.
9.  At least 20% of my vets who served in Iraq or Afghanistan suffer from PTSD or depression, but only 50% of them seek treatment.  Only 50% of those who seek treatment receive even "minimally adequate" treatment.  (And a veteran commits suicide every 65 minutes.)
10.  The Defense Department estimates that over 70% of Americans between 17-24 are ineligible for military service because they're not in good enough shape, don't have a high school diploma, or have a criminal record.

These people are the best of the best.  In 1954, President Eisenhower signed a bill to change November 11th from Armistice Day to Veterans Day to honor all of my heroes.  Please click here for a list of one hundred things you can do to show your appreciation.  Happy Veterans Day!

DiaryOfAmerica@gmail.com

Ten Interesting Things About the NBA

"Not only is there more to life than basketball, there’s a lot more to basketball than basketball."-Phil Jackson

The NBA kicked off its 69th season this week.  The Cavaliers and 29 other teams will be playing games for the next eight months.  (That's assuming the Sixers decide to play this year.)  Let's take a look at some pretty interesting numbers...

1.  Just .03 percent of high school seniors playing on their school's team will even be drafted by an NBA team.  (And, statistically, being poor greatly hurts someone's chances of making it.)2.  If you're between 20 and 40 and are 7 feet tall or taller, you have a 17% chance of playing in the NBA.  (And you will probably get paid about $1.2 million more than someone 6'11".)
3.  The college conferences with the most NBA players are: 1.  ACC (69), 2,  Pac 12 (62), 3.  SEC (55), 4.  Big Ten (35),  and 5. Big 12 (34)
4.  The average NBA career lasts only 4.8 years.  But the average player will make $24.7 million in his career, nearly $18.5 million more than the average NFL player.5.  SIxty percent of NBA players are broke within five years of retiring.
6.  The average NBA player is just over 27 years old, just over 6'6", and just under 220 lbs.  (The average player was actually taller 30 years ago, at almost 6'8".)
7.  The five highest paid players are:  1.  Kobe Bryant ($23.5 mil.), 2.  Amar'e Stoudemire ($23.4) , 3.  Joe Johnson ($23.2), 4.  Carmelo Anthony ($22.5), and 5.  Dwight Howard ($21.4)
8.  According to Forbes, the average NBA team is worth $634 million (25% more than last year).  The top five most expensive teams are:  1.  Knicks ($1.4 billion), 2.  Lakers ($1.35 billion), 3.  Bulls ($1 billion), 4.  Celtics ($875 million), and Nets ($780 million)
9.  According to Bovada, before the season started the five teams with the best chance to win the title this year are:  1.  Cavaliers (5/2), 2. Spurs (4/1), 3.  Bulls (11/2), 4.  Thunder (6/1), and Clippers (12/1).  (Before Lebron rejoined the Cavs, they were at more than 60-1.).
Personally, I would take Michael Jordan and any four other Mikes you can name...
Questions or comments?  Contact me at DiaryOfAmerica@gmail.com.  Thanks!

Ten Interesting Things About Halloween in America

Eat, drink and be scary. 
~Author Unknown

According to polls, Halloween is my third favorite holiday (behind Christmas and Thanksgiving).   Here's everything you need to know about it!

1.       Halloween comes from a pagan harvest festival in Ireland called Samhain, which honored the dead.  October 31st,  the Celts believed the dark half of the year began and treats were left out to pacify evil spirits.

2.       This year Americans will spend almost $7.5 billion on Halloween—including $2 billion on candy, $2.5 billion on costumes, and $350 million on costumes for their pets.

3.       About two-thirds of Americans who celebrate will buy a costume, and the average person will spend about $75 on Halloween.   Also, Americans will spend more on adult costumes ($1.4 billion) than on kid costumes ($1.1 billion).

4.       Amazon’s top 5 selling costumes this year are:  1. Elsa, 2. Seattle Seahawk, 3. Waldo, 4. Olaf, and 5. A ninja

5.       Americans’ top 5 Halloween candies (in terms of sales) are:  1.  Reese’s ($509 million), 2.  M&M’s  ($500 million), 3.  Snickers ($456 million), 4. Hershey’s ($324 million), 5. Kit Kat ($306 million).

6.    Over 90% of American parents admit to stealing Halloween candy from their kids.

7.       Americans’ top 5 horror movies (in terms of gross totals) are:  1.  The Sixth Sense ($293 million), 2.  Jaws ($260 million), 3.  The Exorcist ($233 million), 4. What Lies Beneath ($155 million), and 5. The Blair Witch Project ($140 million). 

8.       Horror movies may be the best genre for beating a franchise to death:  Evil Dead (4), Exorcist (5), Final Destination (5), Friday the 13th (12), Halloween (10), The Mummy (4), Nightmare on Elm Street (9), The Omen (4), Paranormal Activity (5), Psycho (4), Resident Evil (5), Saw (7), Scream (4), Texas Chainsaw Massacre (7), Underworld (4)

9.       According to Billboard, my top 5 Halloween songs are:  1.  Thriller, 2.  Monster Mash, 3. Ghostbusters, 4. Werewolves of London,  and 5. Highway to H***.

10.   Jack-o-lanterns were originally made out of turnips or potatoes, but when Irish immigrants got to me, they switched to pumpkins.  Americans will spend over $150 million on pumpkins (twice what they did in 2001).  And the largest pumpkin ever grown was a 2,058 pounder by John Hawkley of Napa just this year.

So, get your jack-o-lantern carved, suit up--if that's your thing--and stay safe.  Halloween is right around the corner!

Comments or questions?  Shoot me an email at DiaryOfAmerica@gmail.com

Ten Interesting Things About the Texas Voter ID Law

“I'm against voter fraud in any form, and I have long supported a national voter ID card. But ID cards need not - and must not - restrict voting rights in any way, shape or form.”
-Andrew Young

Earlier today my Supreme Court decided to allow the great state of Texas to go ahead with its voter ID law.  The law, which was passed by the Texas Legislature in 2011, requires voters to present one of seven different forms of identification.  Proponents say it will stop voter fraud.  Opponents say it will disenfranchise hundreds of thousands of people—especially the poor, the minorities, and the elderly.  So, as always, without judgment let’s just look at numbers…

1.       Thirty-four states have passed laws requiring voters to show some kind of ID at the polls.

2.       Indiana, Georgia, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, and Kansas have my strictest voter ID laws.  (Indiana’s law was upheld by the Supreme Court six years ago.)

3.       Eighty-nine percent of Americans have a photo ID…but as many as 21 million eligible voters do not.

4.       State ID cards cost between $5 to $25, and in many states are free for seniors.

5.       A valid ID is required by grown-ups to do just about everything.  

6.       The U.S. spends nearly $650 billion a year on public education…and most employers require an ID to get a job.

7.       About 90% of the Texas voters identified by the Department of Justice as not having an ID actually have one

8.        If someone in Texas does not have an ID, he or she can get an Election Identification Certificate for free.

9.       Texas has over 13.6 million voters (and 2 million undocumented people) and has already been using the voter ID law in non-federal elections with no impact on voter turnout.

10.   In Ginsberg’s dissent, she called the law “racially discriminatory.”  Clarence Thomas did not.

What are your thoughts? 

DiaryOfAmerica@gmail.com

Ten Interesting Things about Fatness in America

“Leave all the afternoon for exercise and recreation, which are as necessary as reading. I will rather say more necessary because health is worth more than learning.”
-Thomas Jefferson

Odds are if you’re reading this you’re probably fat.  Not because mostly fat people read blogs called “Ten Interesting Things about Fatness in America.”  But because America is full of fat people.  I know that’s not politically correct.  Let’s just look at the numbers…

1.        More than 80% of American grownups and kids don’t get enough exercise.  Kids now average over 7.5 hours a day in front of a screen!

2.       Over 69% of my grownups over 20 are overweight and over 35% are obese.  I have more obese grownups than the number of people in Canada and Australia combined!

3.       In the past 30 years, my number of obese kids (and teens) has tripled to a robust 12.5 million.  Almost a third of my kids are now overweight.

4.       About 360,000 Americans die each year from diseases related to obesity and unhealthy livin’.

5.       Americans spend $60 billion a year on dieting and exercise stuff.  We spent half that twenty years ago…when we were skinnier.

6.       There are over 103,000 diet books on Amazon.

7.       Kids should get 60 minutes of physical activity each day. 

8.       The gubment recommends 150 minutes of aerobic activity a week for grownups (with 2 or more days of strength training).

9.       Fitness magazine’s ten healthiest foods on the planet are:  lemons, broccoli, dark chocolate, potatoes, salmon, walnuts, avocados, garlic, spinach, and beans.

10.   Despite everyone knowing that to lose weight you have to eat better and exercise more, 95% of diets still fail.  Try these five tips from Health.com expert, Heidi Grant Halvorson:  be specific with your goals, define foods that are all right to eat, monitor your progress, be optimistic (and realistic), and practice staying strong.

Not sure if you’re fat?  Click here for a BMI calculator that lets you know if you’re underweight, just right, overweight, or obese.  And then let’s get real, get some goals, and get ourselves in shape.  We can do this!

Comments or questions?  Contact me at DiaryOfAmerica@gmail.com.

Ten Things You Should Know About Ebola

“We respect your concern. We understand your concern. But the evidence tells us that that is not going to happen.  And we have to say that a lot.”

-Dr. Anthony Fauci

Well, the Ebola is here.  After a Liberian man arrived in Big D last week with the virus, the media did what they do best and seized upon the opportunity to completely saturate us with information and confuse us at the same time.  You can walk away from some reports thinking everyone is going to die.  You can walk away from others thinking the only way to catch it is by picking an infected monkey’s nose and eating it.  So…let’s cut through it with ten things you should probably know.

1.        Ebola has been around since 1976 when it was identified in parts of Africa around the Ebola River.  Researchers think it first busts out from contact with an infected animal.

2.       This year’s outbreak has infected at least 7,560 people (all of them in Africa except the one man in Dallas) and killed at least 3,480.  There have been more cases and deaths in this year’s outbreak than in all the other years’ outbreaks combined.

3.       It can be spread from direct contact with infected blood, pee pee, saliva, mucus, sweat, feces, vomit, breast milk, needles, syringes and infected mammals.

4.       Ebola’s incubation period is 2 to 21 days, and doctors say humans aren’t infectious until they start showing symptoms.

5.       Symptoms can include fever, headache, joint and muscle aches, sore throat, weakness, diarrhea, vomiting and stomach pain.  I know that’s not very helpful.

6.       Doctors say there are no known cases of it being spread through coughing or sneezing.  Ebola can live on surfaces but can be killed with bleach or disinfectant.

7.       Ebola dries out in the air and dies.  The NY Times says it can live outside the body for only about 24 hours.  (Though in one study it survived on glass in cold temperatures for like three weeks.)

8.       Experts say the chances are very slim of Ebola mutating so it can be spread through the air.

9.       Fatality rates have varied from 25% to 90%.  So far this year—as you can see from #2—it’s at about 50%.  Rehydration and treating the symptoms helps, but right now there are no proven treatments or vaccines.  So survival is based a lot on luck.

10.   The vast majority of cases Ebola cases are people who have cared for an infected person in their home, treated a sick person without protection or dealt with their dead body.  Liberia has less than four thousand cases in a country with over four million people.  That’s less than 0.1%.  And that’s in Liberia.

It would be silly to say that Ebola is nothing to worry about.  And it would be an insult to its nearly 3500 victims.  Even the CDC says that without intervention, as many as 1.4 million people could be infected by January...But, the world has almost 7.5 billion people.  So, all things being equal, your odds of getting a hole in one (1 in 5,000) would still be better than your odds of getting Ebola (1 in 5,300).

Stay safe.  Help if you can.  Thanks!

Comments or questions?  Contact me at DiaryOfAmerica@gmail.org