^^^ actually, if you check the study's footnotes, 13% of American children WERE born 'poor' in the 1960's and 1970's - the baseline period for the study. That compares to recent statistics showing that some 45+% of American children are now being born to parents eligible for Medicaid ... which by definition means that 45%+ of todays American children are being born 'poor'. See
http://publichealth.gwu.edu/content/...-united-states . There are myriad reasons for this change ... from a redefinition of the gov't's official definition of 'poor', to 40 years worth of 'poor' foreigners immigrating into the USA, to a gradual decline in 'middle class' births as more and more wives embarked on careers or full time jobs over the last 40 years, to a gradual increase in births to 'poor' single mothers over the last 40 years.
This is the part of the 'equation' which we're unlikely to ever see accurate statistics for. Also, as I stated earlier, there is nothing 'stupid' whatsoever for a single mom with one child deciding to have two more children !!! Under present social welfare benefit formulas, this is a very sound business decision which provides much in the way of additional 'benefits' in exchange for little in the way of additional 'costs' to the single mother.
And as Kellydancer points out, there is another 'equation' to be considered ... which revolves around the 'equivalent cash value' of social welfare benefits, and a comparison of actual 'standard of living' versus a simple comparison of dollars earned. On that basis, a single mother with three children collecting all of the available social welfare benefits mentioned above is likely to be able to achieve a 'standard of living' that would otherwise require a $30,000+ per year cash income level. Again, there is nothing 'stupid' whatsoever about a decision to avoid taking an ( on the books ) job which provides zero net improvement in actual 'standard of living' for herself or her children.
Arguably, in today's culture, it is the single mothers who decide to take ( on the books ) jobs which disqualify them from social welfare benefit eligibility ... while not actually earning the $30,000+ per year necessary to provide a 'standard of living' equal to that which is available via social welfare benefits ... who are actually being 'stupid'. Obviously, such a viewpoint 'flies in the face' of many traditional American paradigms, but today's realities are what they are.
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