General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsReport: 1 out of 6 young men are either unemployed or in prison
5 million of those young men were jobless, and 1 million were incarcerated.
Those numbers and some related longer-term trends have significant economic and budgetary implications. Young men who are jobless or incarcerated can be expected to have lower lifetime earnings and less stable family lives, on average, than their counterparts who are employed or in school. In the short term, their lower earnings will reduce tax revenues and increase spending on income support programs, and the incarceration of those in federal prison imposes costs on the federal government. Farther in the future, they will probably earn less than they would have if they had gained more work experience or education when young, resulting in a smaller economy and lower tax revenues.
The share of young men who are jobless or incarcerated has been rising. In 1980, 11 percent of young men were jobless or incarcerated; in 2014, 16 percent were (see the figure on page 3). Specifically, 10 percent of young men were jobless in 1980, and 1 percent were incarcerated; those shares rose to 13 percent and 3 percent in 2014.
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Changes in federal policy have contributed to the increased joblessness among some young men since 1980. First, employment in the military, which had long been an important source of work for less skilled young men, fell significantly during the 1990s; also, the military now employs more young women than it did in the 1980s, and it has stopped accepting people who have not graduated from high school. Second, the federal government has increased its efforts to elicit child support payments from noncustodial fathers (who now account for a larger fraction of young men than they did in 1980), and that increased enforcement has probably made employment less attractive to some young fathers, because they can now keep less of their earnings.
https://www.cbo.gov/sites/default/files/114th-congress-2015-2016/reports/51495-YoungMenReport.pdf
The report was released by the Congressional Budget Office.
The CBO says that since crime has been decreasing during most of this period, it suggests laws and policies are to blame. Men are going to prison for lighter crimes and for longer sentences. The economy has also stagnated for especially the lower and middle class. It's also very difficult for someone released from jail to re-integrate back into society. Finding a job and a stable environment is very difficult.
Sanity Claws
(21,866 posts)SammyWinstonJack
(44,130 posts)Katashi_itto
(10,175 posts)We have a prison population gap by god!
FLPanhandle
(7,107 posts)The jobless and incarceration rates are lower now than during the big recession.
The charts correlate with the economy nicely, so I disagree with the idea it's laws and policies that are to blame. It looks like pure economics. They are choosing to use 1980 as their reference point but a 3% increase in unemployment and a 2% increase for incarceration since then isn't dramatic. If they chose 1983, as their reference point, the numbers would show no change.
GummyBearz
(2,931 posts)Was it too low? Was it too high? Do we need more jails to fill?
FLPanhandle
(7,107 posts)I'm saying the data correlates with how the economy does and not any new "laws and policies" that have been implemented.
The data swings by 3-4% points based on the economy of the time regardless of the Laws and Policies in effect at that time.
davidn3600
(6,342 posts)There is no denying that. The United States jails more people than any other nation on the planet.
FLPanhandle
(7,107 posts)But, I wasn't judging the numbers, just making comments on their conclusions.
Wednesdays
(17,465 posts)That's all right. They're all just thugs, anyway.
Javaman
(62,534 posts)all young men will be put in prison starting at age 3 (the point where they are strong enough to pull a trigger), and released at age 18.
during their internment, they will be reeducated in the right wing mythology.
upon release they will be battle trained for entrance right into the military.
do I really need to add a sarcasm tag? (but like most sarcasm, it shrouded with a bit of truth)