Further Speculations on White Mortality

by Russ Douthat

NOVEMBER 12, 2015 12:55 PM

http://douthat.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/11/12/speculations-on-white-mortality/?comments#permid=16650339

Having lived in Europe for many years (Switzerland, Germany and France) I can't escape the feeling that the root cause fir the spike in death among whites is the sense of hope- and helplessness that has settled on large parts of the former middle class in America, brought on by what we are told is the "new normal" - stagnant growth, actually declining income among the middle class - without, contrary to the European model, a solid and dependable social safety net for guaranteed heath care and guaranteed minimum income. It is difficult to explain to Americans the deep sense of security one feels, especially for families, by knowing that heath care is always available, no matter what.
The reason this seems to have less of an impact on non-whites is that African-American and Hispanic minorities were already accustomed to this pervasive malaise from generations of living with it.
Why are women seemingly more affected? Possibly because more woman, especially among lower income groups, have become the primary supporters, so they are feeling the brunt of this new economic reality in the US.