CNN's bad statistics

[_Res Ipsa]

Res Ipsa, how do we end the misogyny and patriarchy?

How did you get there from the opinion piece?

[Guest]

For example, she argues that women have a lower status in the workforce by comparing the average compensation is women to men. You accuse her of being misleading, citing only comparison of women and men in the same jobs. But you never explain why the statistic you selected is better than the one the author did. If I were the author, I’d argue that she’s talking about status, and her statistic captures the fact that women are more likely to work in low status jobs.

What is the solution? Should we force women to get tough and dangerous jobs? Should coal miners get paid the minimum wage? I think the so-called gender wage gap will end in the near future because more women are graduating from college. In 10 years women will make more than men. Men Are Finished. https://www.intelligencesquaredus.org/d ... e-finished

[_DoubtingThomas]

Res Ipsa?

Yes? You’re just doing the same thing: citing different statistics without explaining why yours are more relevant to the ones in the opinion piece. That gives me nothing to actually respond to.

On a more workaday level, according to World Bank data cited by TheGlobalEconomy.com the US ranks an unimpressive 76th out of 180 countries worldwide for female labor force participation. American women, particularly women of color, continue to earn a fraction of the dollar that white men do -- 63 cents for black women; 55 for Native women; 54 for Latinas. Even worse, we are 104th out of 193 countries ranked for female political participation (beaten out by Namibia, Burundi, and Belarus, among others).

How is the above relevant?

[_Res Ipsa]

For example, she argues that women have a lower status in the workforce by comparing the average compensation is women to men. You accuse her of being misleading, citing only comparison of women and men in the same jobs. But you never explain why the statistic you selected is better than the one the author did. If I were the author, I’d argue that she’s talking about status, and her statistic captures the fact that women are more likely to work in low status jobs.

What is the solution? Should we force women to get tough and dangerous jobs? Should coal miners get paid the minimum wage? I think the so-called gender wage gap will end in the near future because more women are graduating from college. In 10 years women will make more than men. Men Are Finished. https://www.intelligencesquaredus.org/d ... e-finished

Wait, women have earned less than men for hundreds of years. They weren’t “finished.” Why would men be “finished” if the average woman earned more than the average man?

Why are you asking me for a solution? The author of the opinion piece didn’t ask me for one. The economic information was a sub argument to an opinion about sex.

[_Res Ipsa]

On a more workaday level, according to World Bank data cited by TheGlobalEconomy.com the US ranks an unimpressive 76th out of 180 countries worldwide for female labor force participation. American women, particularly women of color, continue to earn a fraction of the dollar that white men do -- 63 cents for black women; 55 for Native women; 54 for Latinas. Even worse, we are 104th out of 193 countries ranked for female political participation (beaten out by Namibia, Burundi, and Belarus, among others).

How is the above relevant?

She’s arguing that sex and status are linked: sex is male centric because women have lower status than men. The first stat shows that US women have a lower rate of participation in the work force than those in many other countries. The tacit part of her argument is that employment is a source of status. The lower pay is a combination of unequal pay for the same work or disproportionate presence in lower paying jobs. The unstated part of the argument is that money earned is a measure of status. Finally, the political participation statistic is the percentage of women in the national legislature. Again, the argument assumes political power gives one status.