Some Numbers

Some curious numbers:

More civilians were killed in the first day of the bombing of Dresden than were killed in London during the entire Second World War.

Ownership of taxable brokerage accounts jumped 10 percentage points over the last five years, and checking, saving and CD accounts increased 9 percentage points, according to retail investor data firm

Hearts & Wallets. Meanwhile, ownership rates remained the same for employer-sponsored plans like a 401(k), but consumers were contributing less — a total decline of 5 percentage points.

Accounts with specialties, like Roth retirement plans (where money is taxed first, and then withdrawn “tax-free”) and 529 plans for higher education expenses, are also in demand, said Laura Varas, chief executive officer and founder of Hearts & Wallets.

Ownership of college savings plans increased from 8% to 11% over the last five years, though the amount of money in those plans dropped from 28% to 19%.

By choosing liquid assets, people are funding their emergency accounts more. About 40% of Americans (or 48.7 million) have three or more months of income saved in a checking, savings or CD account, and if taxable brokerage accounts are included, that number jumps to 49% (or 61.6 million) of U.S. households.

The University of Michigan currently employs a diversity staff of nearly 100 (91) full-time diversity administrators, officers, directors, vice-provosts, deans, consultants, specialists, investigators, managers, executive assistants, administrative assistants, analysts, and coordinators. The total employee compensation for this group tops $11 million per year. The Vice Provost for Equality and Inclusion and Chief Diversity Officer earns $395,550 per year.

For bachelor’s degrees in the US, the gender imbalance favoring women for degrees in health sciences (84.4%) is even greater than the gender imbalance favor men in engineering (80%).

Re: the AR-15 “assault rifle.” FBI statistics show rifles accounted for 368 of the 17,250 U.S. homicides in 2016.

More Americans were killed in workplace accidents in the U.S. in 2016 than have been killed in the entire Afghan War. 

Here are the ratios of government spending to GDP in some major economies:

Germany: 43.9% (2017)
Britain: 41.1% (2017)
Canada: 40.8% (2017)
Australia: 36.2% (2015)
Switzerland 34.0% (2015)


Government spending in the United States was last recorded at 37.8 percent of GDP in 2016 . Government Spending To GDP in the United States averaged 36.57 percent from 1970 until 2016, reaching an all time high of 43 percent in 2009 and a record low of 33 percent in 1973.