Monday, February 13, 2017

Press Innumeracy

Frequently, my limited store of patience is exhausted by the press and people.

One particular issue is Innumeracy.

Remember when we were told of the 250 fold increase in British queries "What is Brexit" after the referendum?

Rule one, ask the baseline.  Turns out the number of queries went from less than a couple dozen a week to a couple of couple hundred.

Here's another one Boris Johnson among record number to renounce American citizenship in 2016 , the increase is 26%.

If Obama was President, it would be blamed on the ACA by the reactionaries; as Trump is President, it is being blamed on .... Trumpness.  Seem a couple posted all about it....

The baseline problem, again.

You see, the total number of people renouncing citizenship is 5,411. 

The total number of people receiving US citizenship last year is approximately 750,000.

The rise in renunciations, which has been going on for the last few years, is primarily tax driven -- I seem to recall that Johnson was being dunned for a sale of London property.

The ratio between new citizens and renunications is aproximately .007.

And with me you get the baseline.



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