1. Civilisation des Etats-Unis-11 Social Ills
Prof. Sämi Ludwig
Université de Haute Alsace
Mulhouse (France)

2. Prof. Sämi Ludwig Université de Haute Alsace Mulhouse (France) 1 Crime and Violence  pioneer past, Indian wars, slavery, Civil War, gangs  repressive, stiff jail sentences A. Mixed Assessment homicides per 10’000 people (1.1 in Europe) : more Americans shot to death at home than in the entire Vietnam War. - carjacking (rental cars!), urban violence - schools with metal detectors, passes for hall (surveillance) B. Organized Crime - Mafia during Prohibition and against Mussolini - Columbian and Asian drug cartels  illegal profits!

3. Prof. Sämi Ludwig Université de Haute Alsace Mulhouse (France) A
Prof. Sämi Ludwig Université de Haute Alsace Mulhouse (France) A. Fighting Crime: Gun Control & Death Penalty - 2nd Amendment = “right to bear arms”  NRA (National Rifle Association) Brady Act: wait 5 days, open market Death penalty not enforced in all states  FL, OK, TX = third of all executions - appeals, many years in “death row”  CA: 724 inmates, only 13 executed since  moratorium in IL - also legal for minors and mentally handicapped - innocence proven by DNA testing

5. Prof. Sämi Ludwig Université de Haute Alsace Mulhouse (France) - many minority Americans e.g., CA: more black in prison than in college - costly “prison-industrial complex” (= corporations). D. Increased Repression  elect sheriffs and judges! 2 million Americans behind bars = 8x rate in France! - more money on jail construction and welfare programs! - CA “three strikes law” = life sentence  half the inmates ate African Americans 1980s NYC Mayor Rudolph Giuliani’s “zero tolerance” - chain gangs, military discipline AZ Sheriff Aparicio’s pink underwear - paranoia, gated communities, video surveillance

7. Prof. Sämi Ludwig Université de Haute Alsace Mulhouse (France) 2
Prof. Sämi Ludwig Université de Haute Alsace Mulhouse (France) 2. Drugs  highest rate of consumption in world s hippies experiment with marijuana, LSD - GIs (General Infantry) smoke in Vietnam - fear of “crack babies” 1973 DEA (Drug Enforcement Administration)  repression, Medellin Cartel influence of foreign policy in Latin America?  not public health issue but crime! Detoxification not paid by insurance - marijuana for medical purposes (prescriptions) - legalized in UT, WA, …

8. Prof. Sämi Ludwig Université de Haute Alsace Mulhouse (France) Alcohol - Prohibition ( ) - drinking age 21  drinking and driving! - College spring break (Fort Lauderdale, FL)  “binge drinking” - AA (Alcoholics Anonymous) - Native Americans on reservations 3. Racism - very race-conscious = “racialist”  legacy of slavery, “Jim Crow” laws KKK (Ku Klux Klan) founded after Civil War = invisible empire against Koons, Kikes, Katholics today: sponsor Highway cleaning by chain gangs (!)

9. Prof. Sämi Ludwig Université de Haute Alsace Mulhouse (France) 4
Prof. Sämi Ludwig Université de Haute Alsace Mulhouse (France) 4. Poverty twice as high as OECD average: 12% under poverty line = $23’000 per family of four  9.8% white, 27.6% black, 25.3% Hispanics, 12.3% Asians - only 40-50% profit from Medicaid - “working poor” nor poor enough to get benefits!  from minimum wage to “living wage”?  homeless people (charities, food)  subprime crisis, volatile real estate prices! - feminization of poverty - Deep South (e.g. Hurricane Katrina), MI, AL, Appalachians

11. Prof. Sämi Ludwig Université de Haute Alsace Mulhouse (France) 5
Prof. Sämi Ludwig Université de Haute Alsace Mulhouse (France) 5. Obesity doubled in last 20 years! (“Look!”)  poor, less educated, South Reasons? - food is cheap and 24h available  in France? Europe? - eating habits, TV, etc. “super-size it” - save on PE (physical education) classes Result: - heart diseases, stroke, diabetes - $117 health costs!