America’s mass-incarceration problem
GenFKD’s Gabrielle Montes wrote an article this week on the United State’s disproportionate imprisonment rate. With more than 2.4 million Americans in prison, the U.S. has an incarceration rate of 755 per 100,000 citizens, about six times that of developed European nations. Illustrating the downfalls of the prison industrial complex, the article points out that a year in a California prison for one inmate costs the state $75,560, more than a year at any of the most expensive colleges in the U.S.
Skipping out on credit card payments
The Wall Street Journal published an article on the recent increase in late credit-card payments, focusing on how they incite anxiety about the U.S. economy worsening. Credit-card losses are currently mounting — the average net charge-off rate for large U.S. credit-card issuers increased to 3.29 percent, the highest level in four years.
In simple terms, this statistic means that people aren’t paying their credit-card bills. Some lenders point out that these losses are still historically low, and they’re significantly lower than the 2010 high of 10 percent. However, other bankers are saying that the string of losses in the industry indicate a deteriorating economic environment.
License and registration, please
New York City is now requiring licenses for paid dog-walkers, sparking a conversation about whether this measure is necessary. The Washington Examiner published an article on this, focusing on how these licenses can impact low-income workers.
Author Patrice Lee Onwuka points out that 56 percent of sharing-economy workers need an extra income source, such as dog walking, to pay their mortgage or rent. Though the license seems to be arbitrary and antiquated, dog walkers who don’t have a license will risk fines of more than $1,000. Onwuka points out that in requiring this license, the government is directly hurting the workers and communities that rely on these opportunities to survive.
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