Men Have It Worse Than Women In Modern America.

Framework This debate needs to focus on modern america, as per the resolution, and must determine whether men or women “have it worse” in the status quo. Thus, we need to look toward on balance how different factors ie economics, violence, etc. affects the population of each gender. C1: Financial status and health Women have the short end of the stick in terms of their finances. In fact, The Kaiser Family Foundation shows that in all states except Oregon, women represent more of the impoverished population than men, or in a few states, equal representation. Overall, 14% of women are impoverished, as opposed to 10% of men (1). The Associated Press-NORC (University of Chicago) Center for Public Affairs Research published an article furthering this point in July of 2016, where it cites the National Institute on Retirement Security and shows that women are 80% more likely than men to be impoverished after the age of 65 despite typically earning less money before they receive their social security checks or retiring, 50% of women are dependant on their social security checks as their biggest source of income, and 14% less likely to say that they will qualify for a pension (2). The article continues, explaining that because women typically take on caregiving responsibilities, they receive lower wages from part-time jobs, creating a wage gap between women and men. The Pew Research Center looks estimates the gap to be 17 cents less per dollar for a women (11). This doesn’t even mention the inflating cost of medical attention for all ages that women have to deal with while earning less money. Pricewaterhousecoopers, one of the biggest auditors worldwide, analyzes the Bureau of Labor Statistics data to find that in 2017, medical inflation will grow 6.5%, the same as last year, while CPI (the general inflation rate of products,) is at 1% (3) (4). Since businesses offer health care plans and need to cover business expenses while still maintaining a profit, businesses then have to make more revenue despite low prices for their goods, while being able to cover inflating medical costs. Businesses shift the cost to the employee as the price increases by the aforementioned 6.5%. Women, who make less money, would not be able to swallow the increase in price as much as men, and thus, are more vulnerable to medical expenses that are necessary. C2: Sexual violence Gender related violence is common, and mostly against women. The National Sexual Violence Resource Center reports that over 90% of sexual violence victims, be it rape or harassment are female (5). What’s more, the plight of those who are sexually harassed goes unnoticed by the majority of law enforcement who are supposed to protect people. The Rape, Abuse, and Incest Network shows that out of 1,000 rapes reported, only 6 will ever be prosecuted in the US, and is thus one of the least prosecuted crimes of all time (6). The problem grows ten-fold when one realizes the effects that the victim is forced to deal with. A study from the University of Alberta in 2006 shows that over ½ of rape victims suffer from some form of PTSD, which symptoms include chronic depression, suicidal thoughts, and panic attacks. These symptoms have real effects on health, with many victims lacking the will to live after sexual violence occurs. RRS Online cites information from the Medical University of South Carolina, showing that women who are raped are 13x as likely to commit suicide as compared to non-crime victims (9). Since, yet again, I proved that this disproportionately affects women, we see that a vote in the negation is warranted. R1: Suicide The suicide rate has always been high for men, and while it does not seem to be going down anytime soon, when the topic specifies “modern america,” one would expect to be debating issues that directly correlate with the modern world. A Colorado State University report from 1998 shows that this problem existed back then in much of the Western world despite more women attempting suicide, but are more likely to fail in their attempts. Men, on the other hand, are more likely to die from suicide than women but experience less mental health problems and are less likely to express desire to commit suicide (10). R2: Impact My opponent gives no evidence in regards to rights being granted to women translating to less rights for women. Men typically have had their rights throughout the ages in the US despite women being granted suffrage, or the ACA getting rid of the practice of gender rating, (intentionally giving women higher costing health plans.) 1. (http://tinyurl.com...) 2. (http://tinyurl.com...) 3. (http://tinyurl.com...) 4. (http://tinyurl.com...) 5. (http://tinyurl.com...)6. (http://tinyurl.com...) 7. (http://tinyurl.com...) 8. (http://tinyurl.com...) 9. (http://tinyurl.com...) 10. (http://tinyurl.com...)11. (http://tinyurl.com...)