Still the other America: The rise of poverty in the United States 2

Last year, almost to the day, I wrote a post on the latest census numbers with respect to the state of poverty in the U.S. -- you can find it here.

I quoted John Edwards: "America should be showing true leadership on the great moral issues of our time -- like poverty -- instead of allowing these situations to get worse."

I quoted Michael Harrington: "This suffering is such an abomination in a society where it is needless that anything that can be done should be done... In any case, and from any point of view, the moral obligation is plain: there must be a crusade against this poverty in our midst... How long shall we ignore this underdeveloped nation in our midst? How long shall we look the other way while our fellow human beings suffer? How long?"

How long? Well, the situation seems to be getting worse. Over at The Carpetbagger Report, our friend Steve Benen has a must-read post on the new census numbers. They paint a disturbing picture:

• In 2005, 46.6 million people were without health insurance coverage, up from 45.3 million people in 2004;
• The percentage of people without health insurance coverage increased from 15.6 percent in 2004 to 15.9 percent in 2005;
• The median earnings of men declined 1.8 percent to $41,386. The median earnings of women declined 1.3 percent to $31,858; and
• In 2005, 37.0 million people were in poverty, not statistically different from 2004.

37 million people, or 12.6 percent of the population, live in poverty. There is no crusade. There is no true leadership. There is only this appalling abomination as too many of us, too many of our leaders, continue to look the other way.