poverty

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To Battle Climate Change, Look Toward Africa

Fallout from changes in weather patterns threatens hard-won gains

(Newser) - A quarter-century after the Ethiopian famine crisis, another catastrophe threatens Africa: climate change. But this time, the First World stands to gain from improving the lot of the Third World. "The inefficiencies of the hydrocarbon economy will be replaced by clean, cheap renewables," pop star and activist Bob...

Half of US Kids Will Get Food Stamps at Some Point

Figure hits 90% for black children, study finds

(Newser) - Nearly half of all US children and 90% of black youngsters will be on food stamps at some point during childhood, and fallout from the current recession could push those numbers even higher, researchers say. The estimate comes from an analysis of 30 years of national data, and bolsters other...

Recession Leads to Uptick in Teen Runaways

Increase in fleeing juveniles strains social services

(Newser) - More and more young Americans, including many under 13, have left home or been kicked out as foreclosures, unemployment, and the rising cost of living make conditions in lower-income homes even tougher than usual. Experts and government studies estimate that 1.6 million juveniles leave home each year, though there...

US Poverty Rate Hits 11-Year High

First figures since recession reveal decline in incomes

(Newser) - The share of Americans living in poverty soared to 13.2% last year, its highest level since 1997, according to new census data. Median household income also fell, to $50,303 from $52,163 the previous year. Latinos have suffered the most from the recession. Their median income dropped by...

Ranks of Uninsured Grow; Poverty Rate Soars

(Newser) - The number of uninsured Americans rose to 46.3 million last year, up from 45.7 million in 2007, as the poverty rate hit an 11-year high, the Census Bureau announced today. The poverty rate was 13.2% for 2008, up from 12.5% in 2007, the largest annual jump...

Under New Math, 1 in 5 Seniors Is Poor

Outmoded federal statistics don't reflect reality, group says

(Newser) - Based on official statistics, only 10% of Americans aged 65 and older are poor, the lowest rate of any age group. But the actual number should be nearly twice that, finds the National Academy of Sciences, which has developed a new, modern way of calculating poverty that is quickly gaining...

King Sends Wives on Spree While Africans Starve

(Newser) - Swaziland King Mswati III sent several of his 13 wives on a multi-million-dollar shopping spree in the Mideast and Europe while two-thirds of his subjects continue to suffer in abject poverty, reports the Times of London. The move has triggered sharp criticism in Britain, which provides the impoverished nation with...

Microfinance Bubble Traps Poor in Debt

Predatory lenders offer easy cash with gouging interest rates

(Newser) - Microfinance, loaning tiny sums to the world's poor to help start small businesses, began as an anti-poverty strategy but quickly became highly profitable for private equity firms and foreign investors. In India, writes the Wall Street Journal, poor neighborhoods are being bombarded with high-interest loan opportunities, resulting in a bizarre...

Food Stamps Make You Fatter
 Food Stamps Make You Fatter 
Aug 12, 2009 2:40 PM CDT

Food Stamps Make You Fatter

Limited budget may promote unhealthy choices

(Newser) - Barack Obama might like to think that the down-and-out are using food stamps to buy arugala at Whole Foods, but as Science Daily reports, people tend to gain weight on food stamps. The average benefit of $81 a month doesn't go a long way toward nutritious foods, researchers suggest in...

Recession Delivers Double Whammy to Legal Aid Offices

(Newser) - The recession has crippled funding for legal aid even as it has bumped up the number of people requesting representation, McClatchy reports. Though the federal government ramped up spending this year—and plans an even bigger increase for 2010—state funding and private donations have cratered, forcing legal aid to...

Poverty, Heat, Infrastructure Make Southerners Fat

(Newser) - The American South is the most obese region in the country because of a “perfect storm” of factors, Claire Suddath writes for Time. Mississippi, whose 33% adult obesity rate makes it the fattest state, is also the poorest, with 21% of people living under the poverty line. That means...

UN: Hunger Affects Record 1B
 UN: Hunger Affects Record 1B 
Jun 20, 2009 8:17 AM CDT

UN: Hunger Affects Record 1B

Food program directors warn that hunger crisis threatens world peace

(Newser) - United Nations food officials warn that a record 1 billion people worldwide aren't getting enough to eat, the BBC reports. The UN said the number of people affected by hunger—defined as getting less than 1,800 calories daily—has jumped by 100 million people over the last year because...

For Now, Edwards 'Working Quietly' Against Poverty

(Newser) - John Edwards is spending a lot of time out of the spotlight these days, but that doesn’t mean he’s given up his trademark fight against poverty, he tells the Washington Post. “If I can help the most by working quietly, that’s what I’ll do,”...

Giving Away Billions Feels Great: Gates

Microsoft founder touts philan-therapy for world's rich

(Newser) - Bill Gates is touting the feel-good benefits of giving away money, telling a crowd in Oslo that “all billionaires should give away the vast majority of their fortunes.” Leave enough for the kids, he says, but, “I’m a great believer that great wealth should go from...

Homeless Use Street Smarts to Stay Wired

Street, shelter dwellers feel compelled to stay connected

(Newser) - A growing number of middle-class Americans are being forced onto the streets, creating a homeless population that increasingly values an Internet connection, the Wall Street Journal reports. Big-city shelters have responded by adding computer terminals, and some determined people manage to keep their laptops with them despite the problem of...

From Food to Health Care, the Poor Pay More

The economics of poverty mean the poorest pay higher prices for everyday essentials

(Newser) - The economics of poverty are complicated, the Washington Post reports, but it boils down to this: “The poorer you are, the more things cost.” The poor spend more in time, money, hassle, and exhaustion than do the middle class or wealthy on everything from a loaf of bread...

Couple Held for Ditching Hungry Kids at Italy Pizzeria

(Newser) - A German couple has been detained in Italy for abandoning their three hungry kids at a pizzeria, reports Der Spiegel. The poverty-stricken young parents, found in a forest outside the town of Aosta, said they didn't know what else to do. The parents had left behind their car and a...

Slumdog Makers Give $740K to Educate Poor

Fun intended to hush critics who call film 'poverty porn'

(Newser) - To combat accusations that Oscar sensation Slumdog Millionaire is a form of “poverty porn,” the filmmakers have donated about $740,000 toward a health education initiative in Mumbai’s slums, the Times of London reports. The funds are in addition to trusts set up for the movie’s...

Clinton Heads to Haiti With $325M Boost

New aid will combat drug trafficking, island's economic crisis

(Newser) - Hillary Clinton is headed to Haiti to meet with the president and pledge her support for economic help for the hemisphere’s poorest nation. The trip comes on the heels of an international fundraiser that generated $325 million for programs aimed at the nation’s 70% unemployment, reports NPR. The...

US Military May Strike Pirates on Land

In Jefferson's time, US hit land bases

(Newser) - One way for the US to combat piracy in the Gulf of Aden is to cut it off at the source, targeting Somali pirate land bases. Coupled with economic and food aid for Somalia’s citizens, this plan is the only “silver-bullet solution,” an analyst tells Bloomberg. Such...

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