Last published on 10/1/2020
SOURCES
[1] “The USA budget has three parts: (a) Discretionary, (b) Mandatory, and (c) Interest."
SOURCES:
(a) Congress of the United States, Congressional Budget Office, "Updated Budget Projections: 2019-2029" at www.cbo.gov/system/files/2019-05/55151-budget_update_0.pdf
(b) www.thebalance.com/u-s-federal-budget-breakdown-3305789
[3
SOURCE: See chart below which is provided annually by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget, a government agency
[4] "Interest is owed by our government on its National Debt. In February 2019, the National Debt reached its highest in U.S. history --$22 Trillion-- and has continued to climb."
SOURCES:
(b) www.cbsnews.com/news/us-national-debt-tops-22-trillion-for-first-time-in-history/
[5] "The national debt increased $4 Trillion (20%) from just under $20 Trillion in early January 2017 to $24 Trillion on April 6, 2020, just before pandemic economic stimulus spending began. The U.S. debt increased another $2 Trillion in only 2 months (from 4/6/20 thru 6/8/20) to reach $26 Trillion."
SOURCE:
U.
(b) www.barrons.com/articles/federal-debt-spending-puts-an-entire-generation-at-risk-51596485149
[7] “Countries with the highest military spending (rounded) in 2019 were: USA $732 billion, China $261 billion, India $71 Billion, Russia $65 Billion, and Saudi Arabia $62 Billion.”
SOURCES:
(d)
[8] "38% of the world's total military spending was by the USA in 2019. (There are 193 nations in the United Nations.)"
SOURCES:
SOURCE:
Divide the USA's 2019 military spending of approx $732,000,000,000 (excluding veterans' pensions &
benefits) by the 118,825,921 households in the USA per the most recent household
census. Sources for military spending are at [7] above, and the last census of
households is at
www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/US/BZA115216
[10] "Approx $4,000 is the amount of extra money that every American household would have had in 2019 if the USA had matched its military spending to China's. The U.S. government spent $732 Billion on military (excluding veterans' pensions & benefits) while China spent $261 Billion. (Note: China's 2019 military spending was the world's 2nd largest, and India's $71 billion was the 3rd.)”
SOURCE:
Subtract the USA's 2019 military spending of $732 billion (excluding veterans' pensions & benefits) from China's 2019 military spending of $261 billion, for a difference of $471 billion. Divide the approx $471,000,000,000 difference in spending by the 118,825,921 number of U.S. households [per the last U.S. census of households at www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/US/BZA115216]. Sources for military spending amounts are at [7] above.
[11] "The USA has 6,185 nuclear bombs (2019), including those taken out of service that could be re-activated."
SOURCES:
(a) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_weapons_of_the_United_States per publication update of 10/10/2019
(b) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_and_weapons_of_mass_destruction per publication update of 8/31/20
[12] "The USA must stop going to war. Wars enormously increase our National Debt, bombs terribly damage our environment, and --most tragically-- wars kill and injure a horrifying number of human beings. Since 9/11 through a reliable report dated 11/20/19, the US government has spent $6.4 Trillion on wars, mostly in Afghanistan and Iraq."
SOURCE:
www.cnbc.com/2019/11/20/us-spent-6point4-trillion-on-middle-east-wars-since-2001-study.html
[13] "The US military death count is approx 6,967 from wars (mostly in Afghanistan and Iraq) between 9/11 through last report date."
SOURCE:
https://fas.org/sgp/crs/natsec/IF11182.pdf
[14] "Over 111,000 Afghans have been killed from the U.S. war and related conflicts between 9/11 through the last report date."
SOURCE:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civilian_casualties_in_the_war_in_Afghanistan [report as updated on 5/14/2020]
[15] "Approx 288,000 Iraqis have been killed from the U.S. war and related conflicts from 2003 through last report date."
SOURCE:
www.IraqBodyCount.org as reported on 9/2/2020. (The U.S. government does not provide data on Iraqi body counts.)
[16] "The USA has repeatedly threatened war against Iran. If war happens, the loss of human life will be horrifying. Iran has a population of approx 83 Million (as of 7/31/2019)."
SOURCES:
(a) United Nations "World Populations Prospects 2019" https://population.un.org/wpp/Publications/Files/WPP2019_DataBooklet.pdf
(b) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_population_(United_Nations) per updates through 7/31/2019
[17] "Iran’s military spending was less than $13 billion in 2019, while the USA’s was $732 billion. It would be an utter slaughter."
SOURCE:
The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute's "SIPRI Military Expenditure Database" : www.sipri.org/sites/default/files/2020-04/fs_2020_04_milex_0_0.pdf
CLIMATE CHANGE FACTS:
[18] "Tragically, 162 regulations for environmental protection --or other legislation that detrimentally affects our environment or delays its protection)-- have been removed or negatively affected between January 2017 to 9/24/2020 per the Climate Regulation Database maintained by Columbia University."
SOURCES:
(a) https://climate.law.columbia.edu/climate-deregulation-tracker
(b) https://www.brookings.edu/interactives/tracking-deregulation-in-the-trump-era/
(c) https://www.cnn.com/2020/01/25/politics/trump-environmental-rollbacks-list/index.html
[19] “97% of scientists agree that human actions are causing severe climate change.”
SOURCES:
(a) NASA: https://climate.nasa.gov/scientific-consensus/
(b)
www.edf.org/climate/9-ways-we-know-humans-triggered-climate-change
[20] “Sea levels are rising at the fastest rate in 3,000 years.”
SOURCES:
[21]“Climate change has been proven to increase and worsen the intensity and number of hurricanes, wildfires, flooding and droughts.”
SOURCES:
(a)
https://earthjustice.org/features/how-climate-change-is-fueling-extreme-weather
(b)
www.edf.org/climate/climate-change-and-extreme-weather
(c)
www.wired.co.uk/article/climate-change-facts-2019
[22] “June and July 2019 were the hottest in recorded history.”
SOURCES:
(a)
www.cnn.com/2019/07/19/us/june-2019-hottest-on-record/index.html
(b)
www.noaa.gov/news/july-2019-was-hottest-month-on-record-for-planet
[23] “There is 46% more carbon dioxide in our atmosphere than at the start of the Industrial Revolution.”
SOURCES:
(a) NASA: https://climate.nasa.gov/evidence/
(b)
www.wired.co.uk/article/climate-change-facts-2019
[24] "The largest source of greenhouse gas emissions from human activities in the United States is from burning fossil fuels" (gas, oil, coal)
SOURCE: This is a direct quote from the Environmental Protection Agency, the government agency assigned to protect our environment. The quote is from its 2018 report "Sources of Greenhouse Gas Emissions" at www.EPA.gov/ghgemissions/sources-greenhouse-gas-emissions
[25] “Lower gas prices result in higher gas use, which increases damage to our planet's atmosphere"
SOURCES:
(a)
https://cityobservatory.org/cheaper-gas-bad-for-climate-and-safety
(b) www.nytimes.com/2015/12/13/business/energy-environment/cheap-gas-is-a-thrill-but-a-costly-one.html
ARE YOU PAYING MORE THAN YOUR FAIR SHARE for U.S. income tax?
[26] For 2020, how much will you benefit from the "2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act"?
The "Top 1%" of income
earners will receive 27% of the tax cut benefits.
The Top 4% will receive 24%
of the tax cut benefits
The Top 20% will receive 21% of
the tax cut benefits
Taxpayers with income between the Top 40% and Bottom 40% will
receive 9% of the tax cut benefits
Taxpayers in the Bottom 40%
will receive 4% of the tax cut benefits
The poorest taxpayers -
those in the Bottom 20% - will receive only 1% of the tax cut benefits
SOURCE: See chart below prepared by the Institute on Taxation and Economic
Policy, https://itep.org/tcja-2020/
[27]
"
SOURCES:
(a) www.thebalance.com/exemption-from-federal-estate-taxes-3505630
(b) www.forbes.com/sites/ashleaebeling/2017/12/21/final-tax-bill-includes-huge-estate-tax-win-for-the-rich-the-22-4-million-exemption [this article applies to the 2018 exemption amount]
(c) www.taxpolicycenter.org/briefing-book/how-do-estate-gift-and-generation-skipping-transfer-taxes-work
[29] “What about enormous and rich Corporations? Their maximum tax is now 21%, not 35%, due to the "2017 Tax Cuts & Jobs Act" (the new, low corporate tax rate was not given a future expiration date). Disgracefully, due to the lowered tax rate (and other tax breaks, loopholes and deductions), large corporations have ended up paying much less than 21% --an average of 11.3%. In 2018, $0 federal tax was paid by 91 huge and profitable corporations, including Amazon, Netflix, Chevron, Murphy Oil, General Motors, U.S. Steel, Levi Strauss, Delta, and FedEx.”
SOURCES:
(a) www.cnbc.com/2019/12/16/these-91-fortune-500-companies-didnt-pay-federal-taxes-in-2018.html
(c) https://finance.yahoo.com/news/trump-tax-law-fortune-500-companies-pay-0-taxes-2018-213157006.html
(d) https://itep.org/corporate-tax-avoidance-in-the-first-year-of-the-trump-tax-law/
[30] “Many large corporations receive subsidies, such as Exxon’s $5.9 Billion in 2017.”
SOURCES:
EARNINGS, WEALTH, DEBT, AND COST OF LIVING
[31] "The richest 1% of Americans own almost as much wealth as the entire middle class combined."
SOURCES:
(d) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wealth_inequality_in_the_United_States as published by Wiki on 10/31/2019
[32] "40% of U.S. workers earned less than $25,000 -- before subtracting taxes and other deductions-- per the most recent SSA report."
SOURCE:
Social Security Administration's "Wage Statistics Report for 2018”
SOURCE: Social Security Administration's "Wage Statistics Report for 2018". The 2019 report is expected in mid-October 2020. www.ssa.gov/cgi-bin/netcomp.cgi?year=2018
[34] "On average, an American over age 17 has $90,460 of debt [per 2019 report]. The highest debt sources are: Home mortgages ($9.6 trillion), student loans ($1.4 trillion), auto loans ($1.3 trillion), consumer credit cards ($829 billion), home equity credit lines ($420 billion), personal loans ($305 billion) and retailer credit cards ($90 billion). As the second highest debt, student loans have grown the fastest, at 113% since 2009, which indicates that a college education in the USA has become very unaffordable.
SOURCES:
(a) Experian's reknowned "2019 Consumer Debt Study": www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/research/consumer-debt-study/
(b) www.bankrate.com/finance/debt/average-american-debt
(c) www.microcreditsummit.org/american-consumer-debt-statistics/
[35] "30% of American adults were either unable to pay their bills or were one modest financial setback away from hardship (per Federal Reserve report issued May 2019)."
SOURCE:
Federal Reserve's most recent "Economic Well-Being" report issued May 2019 at www.federalreserve.gov/publications/2019-economic-well-being-of-us-households-in-2018-dealing-with-unexpected-expenses.htm
[36] "40% of American adults would have difficulty covering an unexpected $400 expense (per Federal Reserve report issued May 2019)."
SOURCE:
Federal Reserve's most recent "Economic Well-Being" report issued May 2019 at www.federalreserve.gov/publications/2019-economic-well-being-of-us-households-in-2018-dealing-with-unexpected-expenses.htm
[37] - [39] : The U.S. cost of living for the middle class is terribly high. For example:
"Housing cost averaged $20,091 for U.S. households (per most recent
report by the U.S. Department of Labor)."
"Transportation cost averaged $9,761 for U.S. households (per above
report)."
"Food cost averaged $7,923, including food away from home (per above
report)."
SOURCE:
The government agency U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, most recent "Consumer Expenditures" report --for 2018 issued May 2020: www.bls.gov/opub/reports/consumer-expenditures/2018/home.htm
[40] "Daycare cost is outrageously high in the USA. The average cost for a daycare center was $215 per week per infant in 2019. The average cost for after-school care was $243 per week per child. Some organizations, programs, tax credits and subsidies help with the problem, but they're far too little and too few. Jobs that don't pay enough can force parents onto welfare because they can't afford childcare."
SOURCES:
(a) www.care.com/c/stories/2423/how-much-does-child-care-cost/
(b) www.care.com/c/stories/16863/cost-of-child-care-survey-2019-report/
(c) www.epi.org/child-care-costs-in-the-united-states/#/NY : cost is only shown by state. However, many relevant facts are provided.
HEALTHCARE
[41] “The Coronavirus pandemic has revealed serious weaknesses in the USA’s healthcare system. The necessity for National Universal Healthcare in the USA is being increasingly proven.”
SOURCES:
(b) https://issues.org/american-health-system-design/
(c) www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2020/3/16/21173766/coronavirus-covid-19-us-cases-health-care-system
(d) www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp2000821
(e) www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/podcast/2020/mar/coronavirus-reveals-flaws-us-health-system
[42] “The USA has 21% of the world's coronavirus deaths, but only approx 4% of the world's population (as of this publication’s update on 9/22/20)”
SOURCES: % of world deaths
(a) www.statista.com/statistics/1093256/novel-coronavirus-2019ncov-deaths-worldwide-by-country/ [deaths statistic as of 9/21/2020]
(b) www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/countries-where-coronavirus-has-spread/ [deaths statistic as of 9/22/2020]
(c) www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/09/20/coronavirus-which-countries-have-confirmed-cases/ [deaths statistic as of 9/20/20]
(d) www.cnbc.com/2020/09/22/us-coronavirus-death-toll-tops-200000-just-the-tip-of-the-iceberg-.html [deaths statistic as of 9/22/2020]
SOURCES: % of world population
(a) www.worldometers.info/world-population/us-population/ [population stat as of 9/22/2020]
(b) www.census.gov/popclock/ [population stat as of 9/22/2020]
(c) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_population#Global_demographics [per wiki update of 9/22/2020]
[43] One of the causes of the USA’s high number of coronavirus deaths is “the enormous number of Americans who didn’t have health insurance before the pandemic, and therefore weren’t prepared to fight the disease [ref.41]. Also, untreated pre-existing conditions can make a person more susceptible to coronavirus [ref.41]. There were 37.5 million uninsured Americans in the second half of 2019, per the U.S. Centers for Disease Control ‘National Health Interview Survey’ (published Sept. 2020).”
SOURCE:
U.S.government’s Center for Disease Control’s “National Health Interview Survey” for the second half of 2019:
www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nhis/earlyrelease/insur202009-508.pdf (released Sept. 2020)
[44] “Between February and May 2020, over 5.4 million lost health insurance due to losing their jobs.”
SOURCES:
(b) www.cbsnews.com/news/covid-pandemic-health-care-25-million-risk-losing-coronavirus/
(c) www.advisory.com/daily-briefing/2020/07/15/uninsured
(d) www.nytimes.com/2020/07/13/us/politics/coronavirus-health-insurance-trump.html
[45] “Nearly 12 million Americans lost health insurance between February and August 2020, per the Economic Policy Institute’s report dated 8/26/20 (which included employer, private, government, and family member coverage).”
SOURCES:
(b) https://files.epi.org/pdf/206003.pdf (Economic Policy Institute's report dated 8/26/20)
[46] “Many, many more millions are expected to lose coverage as the pandemic continues --but also after the disease has been contained, because of the expected long-term effects on the economy and business survival. Thus, Americans are increasingly advocating for Universal Healthcare.”
SOURCES:
(b) www.cbsnews.com/news/covid-pandemic-health-care-25-million-risk-losing-coronavirus/
(c) www.advisory.com/daily-briefing/2020/07/15/uninsured
(g) www.cbsnews.com/news/covid-pandemic-health-care-25-million-risk-losing-coronavirus/
(h) www.advisory.com/daily-briefing/2020/07/15/uninsured
(i) www.nytimes.com/2020/07/13/us/politics/coronavirus-health-insurance-trump.html
(k) www.axios.com/coronavirus-health-insurance-south-b6ddcea8-837d-42e6-ae2f-0370da0c1b4e.html
(l) www.trtworld.com/opinion/coronavirus-exposes-the-many-weaknesses-in-the-us-healthcare-system-35057
(m) https://medicalxpress.com/news/2020-09-uninsured-americans-skyrockets-covid-pandemic.html
[47] “The unaffordability of healthcare is another contributor to the USA having the world’s most deaths from COVID-19.”
SOURCES: see [46] above
[48] “Our government has covered certain COVID-19 related costs, but not treatment --which can cost in the tens of thousands of dollars.”
SOURCES: see [46] above
[49] “Healthcare cost in the USA is by far the highest in the world.”
SOURCES:
(a) www.statista.com/chart/8658/health-spending-per-capita/
(b) www.hsph.harvard.edu/news/hsph-in-the-news/the-most-expensive-health-care-system-in-the-world/
(c) www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/020915/what-country-spends-most-healthcare.asp
[50] “The USA also has the highest prescription drug cost in the world.”
SOURCES:
(b) www.vox.com/science-and-health/2016/11/30/12945756/prescription-drug-prices-explained
(c) www.consumerreports.org/drug-prices/the-shocking-rise-of-prescription-drug-prices
(d) http://theconversation.com/why-the-us-has-higher-drug-prices-than-other-countries-111256
(e) www.cbsnews.com/news/drug-prices-in-2019-are-surging-with-hikes-at-5-times-inflation/
(f) https://aspe.hhs.gov/system/files/pdf/187586/Drugspending.pdf [published by the Department of Health and Human services, a U.S. agency]
[51] “Americans pay on average nearly four times more for drugs than other countries – in some cases, 67 times more for the same drug.”
SOURCE:
U.S. Congress’s Ways & Means Committee report: U.S. vs. International Prescription Drug Prices (published Sept. 2019)
[52] “Even though the USA has by far the highest cost for healthcare in the world, the quality is not as good as many other developed countries. The predominant source for worldwide health statistics is the OECD [Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development]. For preventable deaths (ages 0-69), the USA ranked the 33rd worst out of the 39 developed countries most recently analyzed. For life expectancy, the USA only ranked the 17th highest out of 44 developed countries for 2019. For cancer, the USA had the 12th highest death rate (per capita) out of the 39 developed countries most recently analyzed. Most disappointingly, the USA had the 34th highest rate of infant mortality among the 44 developed countries for 2019. The infant mortality rate is often used as an indicator of the quality of healthcare in a country.”
SOURCES:
(a) https://data.oecd.org/healthstat/life-expectancy-at-birth.htm#indicator-chart
(b) https://data.oecd.org/healthstat/infant-mortality-rates.htm#indicator-chart
(c) https://data.oecd.org/healthstat/potential-years-of-life-lost.htm#indicator-chart
(d) https://data.oecd.org/healthstat/deaths-from-cancer.htm#indicator-chart
(f) www.americashealthrankings.org/explore/health-of-women-and-children/measure/IMR_MCH/state/ALL
(g) www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/issue-briefs/2020/jan/us-health-care-global-perspective-2019
(h) www.vox.com/2020/1/13/21055327/everybody-covered
[53] “Another measure used for comparing the healthcare of countries is the Bloomberg Healthiest Country Index, which ranked the USA’s health factors as 35th among 169 nations in its 2019 report.”
SOURCES:
(b) www.cbsnews.com/news/the-worlds-healthiest-countries-ranked/
[54] “The USA is the only industrialized nation in the world without Universal Healthcare.”
SOURCES:
(a) www.amsa.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/CaseForUHC.pdf
(b) https://bigthink.com/politics-current-affairs/almost-everybody-wants-universal-healthcare
(c) www.economist.com/special-report/2018/04/26/america-is-a-health-care-outlier-in-the-developed-world
(d) www.politifact.com/factchecks/2019/jun/21/mark-pocan/universal-health-care-diagnosis-mark/
(e) https://qz.com/1022831/why-doesnt-the-united-states-have-universal-health-care/
ADDITIONS TO THIS WEBSITE ARE COMING SOON! FACTS WILL BE PROVIDED ON RACE INEQUITY, IMMIGRATION, MASS INCARCERATION, GUN VIOLENCE, AND EDUCATION.