Hay hay hay
Well-known Member
In 2013 the national high school drop out rate for the USA was 22%, with a few states at over 30% drop out rate. Graduating from High School is more than just book learning. It means you can get out of bed in the morning, can follow direction, can stay out of trouble, and can live by the rules. Most of all, it means you can keep your eye on the goal; stay focused, and stick with it.
When I graduated from high school, 50 years ago, a guy could drop out and still get a good job in a factory and make a decent living. When I read the discussions on this forum about electricity, and gear ratios and PTO speed and weight distribution it is obvious that it takes a lot of book smarts, and learning to do what we all do, even as a hobby. The same is true in the factories that are left in America.
When we were having the banter the other day about hiring farm laborers, lots of folks said here that these workers needed a living wage, obviously true. But don’t forget, many still have the same attitude and work habits that likely caused their situation. Unfortunately, statistics prove that many dropouts will end up on welfare, or drugs or both. In fact: 75% of all USA crime is committed by drop-outs. By the time they wake up….if ever…...many will be permanently employable only in low skill jobs?
But there are fewer and fewer low skill jobs left.
In many peoples opinion, until we can solve this high school drop out problem, we will have a permanent group of citizens relying on the nation for support. The drop out rate and the unemployment rate generally go together. Inner-cities drop out rate 50%, unemployment rate 50%. Appalachia drop out rate 25%, unemployment rate 25%
Every citizen needs to understand that our high school graduation rate is only slightly better than it was 50 years ago, and todays drop-outs are a giant ongoing financial burden for this nation.
When I graduated from high school, 50 years ago, a guy could drop out and still get a good job in a factory and make a decent living. When I read the discussions on this forum about electricity, and gear ratios and PTO speed and weight distribution it is obvious that it takes a lot of book smarts, and learning to do what we all do, even as a hobby. The same is true in the factories that are left in America.
When we were having the banter the other day about hiring farm laborers, lots of folks said here that these workers needed a living wage, obviously true. But don’t forget, many still have the same attitude and work habits that likely caused their situation. Unfortunately, statistics prove that many dropouts will end up on welfare, or drugs or both. In fact: 75% of all USA crime is committed by drop-outs. By the time they wake up….if ever…...many will be permanently employable only in low skill jobs?
But there are fewer and fewer low skill jobs left.
In many peoples opinion, until we can solve this high school drop out problem, we will have a permanent group of citizens relying on the nation for support. The drop out rate and the unemployment rate generally go together. Inner-cities drop out rate 50%, unemployment rate 50%. Appalachia drop out rate 25%, unemployment rate 25%
Every citizen needs to understand that our high school graduation rate is only slightly better than it was 50 years ago, and todays drop-outs are a giant ongoing financial burden for this nation.