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>> Tucker: NOW THE FIRST PART
OF A SERIES YOU'LL SEE HER EVERY
WEDNESDAY IN THE MONTH OF MARCH,
FOCUSING ON MEN IN AMERICA.
THE SIGNS ARE EVERYWHERE.
IF YOU ARE A MIDDLE-AGED MAN,
YOU PROBABLY KNOW A PEER WHO HAS
KILLED THEMSELVES IN RECENT
YEARS.
AT LEAST ONE.
IF YOU'RE A PARENT, YOU MAY HAVE
NOTICED YOUR DAUGHTERS AND
FRIENDS SEEM A LITTLE MORE ON
THE BALL THAN YOUR SONS.
THEY GET BETTER GRADES, THEY
SMOKE WITH MUCH LESS TO
MARIJUANA, THEY SPEND LESS TIME
PLAYING VIDEO GAMES.
THEY GO TO MORE PRESTIGIOUS
COLLEGES.
IF YOU'RE AN EMPLOYER, YOU MAY
HAVE NOTICED THAT YOUR FEMALE
EMPLOYEES SHOW UP ON TIME, THE
YOUNG MEN OFTEN DON'T.
OF COURSE IF YOU LIVE IN THIS
COUNTRY, YOU'VE SEEN A
HORRIFYING SERIES OF MASS
SHOOTINGS, FAR MORE THAN WE EVER
HAVE.
WOMEN DIDN'T DO THAT.
IN EVERY CASE, THE SHOOTER WAS A
MAN.
SOMETHING OMINOUS IS HAPPENING
TO MEN IN AMERICA.
EVERYONE WHO PAYS ATTENTION
KNOWS THAT.
IT'S ON IS HOW RARELY YOU HEAR
ABOUT IT PUBLICLY ACKNOWLEDGED.
OUR LEADERS PLEDGED TO CREATE
MORE OPPORTUNITIES FOR WOMEN AND
GIRLS.
MEN DON'T NEED HELP.
THERE THE PATRIARCHY, THEY'RE
FINE, MORE THAN FINE.
ARE THEY FINE?
HERE ARE THE NUMBERS.
START WITH THE MOST BASIC,
LIFE-AND-DEATH PAIR THE AVERAGE
AMERICAN MEN WILL DIE FIVE YEARS
BEFORE THE AVERAGE AMERICAN
WOMAN.
ONE OF THE REASONS FOR THIS IS
ADDICTION.
MEN ARE MORE THAN TWICE AS
LIKELY AS WOMEN TO BECOME
ALCOHOLICS.
THERE ALSO TWICE AS LOCALLY TO
DIE OF A DRUG O.D.
IN NEW HAMPSHIRE, ONE OF THE
STATE'S HARDEST HIT BY THE
OPIOID CRISIS, 73% OF OVERDOSE
DEATHS WERE MEN.
THE SADDEST REASON FOR SHORTNESS
OF LIFE SPAN IS SUICIDE.
77% OF ALL SUICIDES IN AMERICA
ARE COMMITTED BY MEN.
THE OVERALL RATE IS INCREASING
AT A DRAMATIC PACE BETWEEN 1997
AND 2014, THERE WAS A 43% RISE
IN SUICIDE DEATHS AMONG
MIDDLE-AGED AMERICAN MEN.
THE RATES ARE HIGHEST AMONG
AMERICAN INDIAN AND WHITE MEN
WHO KILL THEMSELVES AT ABOUT TEN
TIMES THE RATE OF HISPANIC AND
BLACK WOMEN.
YOU OFTEN HEAR ABOUT AMERICA'S
INCARCERATION CRISIS.
THAT'S ALMOST EXCLUSIVELY A MALE
PROBLEM TOO.
ABOUT 98% OF INMATES ARE MEN.
THESE PROBLEMS ARE COMPLEX, BUT
WE KNOW THAT THEY START YOUNG.
RELATIVE TO GIRLS, BOYS ARE
FAILING IN SCHOOL.
MORE GIRLS THAN BOYS GRADUATE
HIGH SCHOOL CONSIDERABLY MORE GO
TO AND GRADUATE FROM COLLEGE.
SCHOOLS AT EVERY LEVEL, BOYS
ACCOUNT FOR THE OVERWHELMING
MAJORITY OF DISCIPLINE CASES PAI
MAJORITY OF DISCIPLINE CASES PAE
MAJORITY OF DISCIPLINE CASES PAD
MAJORITY OF DISCIPLINE CASES PAO
MAJORITY OF DISCIPLINE CASES PAE
MAJORITY OF DISCIPLINE CASES PAS
MAJORITY OF DISCIPLINE CASES PAU
MAJORITY OF DISCIPLINE CASES PAY
MAJORITY OF DISCIPLINE CASES PAF
MAJORITY OF DISCIPLINE CASES PAU
MAJORITY OF DISCIPLINE CASES PAD
THAT FULLY ONE AND FIVE
HIGH SCHOOL BOYS HAD BEEN
DIAGNOSED WITH SOME FORM OF
HYPERACTIVITY DISORDER, THAT'S
COMPARED WITH JUST ONE IN 11
GIRLS.
MANY OF THEM WERE MEDICATED FOR
IT.
THE LONG-TERM HEALTH EFFECTS OF
THOSE MEDICATIONS, NOT FULLY
UNDERSTOOD, BUT THEY DO APPEAR
TO INCLUDE DEPRESSION IN LATER
LIFE.
MEN AND GRADUATE SCHOOL, THERE
ARE THE MAJORITY OF DOCTORAL
DEGREES PRINT THERE NOW THE
MAJORITY OF NEW ENROLLEES AND
BOTH LAW AND MEDICAL SCHOOLS.
FOR MEN, THE CONSEQUENCES OF
FAILING IN SCHOOL ARE LONG-TERM
AND PROFOUND.
BETWEEN 1979 AND 2010, WORKING
AGE MEN WITH ONLY HIGH SCHOOL
DEGREES SAW THEIR REAL HOURLY
WAGES DROP ABOUT 20%.
OVER THE SAME.
MEH, HIGH SCHOOL EDUCATED WOMEN
SAW THEIR WAGES RISE, THE
DECLINE OF THE INDUSTRIAL
ECONOMY DISPROPORTIONATELY HURT
MEN.
THERE ARE NOW 7 MILLION WORKING
AGE MEN IN AMERICA WHO DON'T
WORK.
THEY DROPPED OUT OF THE LABOR
FORCE.
NEARLY HALF OF THEM TAKE PAIN
MEDICATION ON ANY GIVEN DAY.
THAT'S THE HIGHEST RATE IN THE
WORLD BY FAR.
FAR FEWER YOUNG MEN GET MARRIED
THEN JUST A FEW DECADES AGO AND
FEWER STAY MARRIED.
ABOUT ONE IN FIVE AMERICAN
CHILDREN LIVE NOW ONLY WITH
THEIR MOTHERS, THAT'S DOUBLE THE
RATE OF 1970.
MILLIONS MORE BOYS GROWING UP
WITHOUT FATHERS.
YOUNG ADULT MEN ARE MORE LIKELY
TO LIVE WITHOUT APPARENT THEM
THEY ARE WITH A SPOUSE OR
PARTNER.
THAT'S NOT THE CASE FOR YOUNG
WOMEN.
SINGLE WOMEN BY THEIR OWN HOMES
AND MORE THAN TWICE THE RATE OF
SINGLE MEN.
MORE WOMEN THAN MEN HAVE DRIVERS
LICENSES.
WHENEVER GENDER DIFFERENCES COME
UP IN PUBLIC DEBATE, WAGE GAP
COMES UP.
A WOMAN MAKES EVERY $0.70 FOR A
DOLLAR A MAN EARNS.
THAT'S A STATISTIC YOU'LL HEAR A
LOT.
PRESIDENTS HAVE REPEATED IT,
MANY CANDIDATES.
IT'S EVERYWHERE.
THAT NUMBER COMPARES ALL
AMERICAN MEN TO ALL AMERICAN
WOMEN ACROSS ALL PROFESSIONS.
NO SOCIAL SCIENTISTS WOULD
CONSIDER THAT A VALID OR
MEANINGFUL MEASURE.
THE NUMBER DOESN'T MEAN
ANYTHING, IT'S INTENTIONALLY
MISLEADING.
AS A TALKING POINT.
ONCE YOU COMPARE MEN AND WOMEN
WITH A SIMILAR EXPERIENCE
WORKING THE SAME HOURS AND
SIMILAR JOBS FOR THE SAME PERIOD
OF TIME, THAT'S THE ONLY WAY YOU
CAN MEASURE IT.
THAT GAP ALL THE DISAPPEARS.
IN FACT, IT MAY INVERT.
ONE STUDY USING CENSUS DATA FROM
THAT SINGLE WOMEN IN THEIR 20s
LIVING IN THE METROPOLITAN AREAS
NOW ARE AN 8% MORE ON AVERAGE
THAN THEIR MALE COUNTERPARTS.
BY THE WAY, THE MAJORITY OF
MANAGERS IN THE WORKPLACE ARE
NOT WOMEN.
WOMEN ON AVERAGE ARE SCORING
HIGHER ON ACCU TEST THAN MEN
EVEN PHYSICALLY, MEN ARE FALLING
BEHIND.
A RECENT STUDY FOUND THAT HALF
OF YOUNG MEN FAILED THE ARMY'S
ENTRY-LEVEL PHYSICAL FITNESS
EXAM DURING BASIC TRAINING.
70% OF AMERICAN MEN ARE NOW
OVERWEIGHT OR OBESE.
AS COMPARED TO 59% OF AMERICAN
WOMEN.
PERHAPS MOST BAFFLINGLY AND
TERRIFYINGLY, MEN ARE BECOMING
LESS MALE FUNDAMENTALLY,
MEASURABLY.
SPERM COUNTS HAVE PLUMMETED.
THEY'RE DOWN ALMOST 60% SINCE
THE 1970s.
SCIENTISTS DON'T KNOW WHY.
TESTOSTERONE LEVELS IN MEN HAVE
ALSO FALLEN PRECIPITOUSLY.
ONE STUDY FOUND THAT AVERAGE
LEVELS OF MALE TESTOSTERONE
DROPPED BY 1% EVERY YEAR AFTER
1987 AND IS NOT RELATED TO AGE.
IN OTHER WORDS, THE AVERAGE
40-YEAR-OLD MAN IN 2017 WOULD
HAVE TESTOSTERONE LEVELS READY%
LOWER THAN THE AVERAGE 40 GOLD
MAN IN 1987.
THERE'S NO UPSIDE TO THIS TREND.
LOWER TESTOSTERONE LEVELS IN MEN
ARE ASSOCIATED WITH DEPRESSION,
LETHARGY, WEIGHT GAIN, DECREASED
COGNITIVE ABILITY.
NOTHING LIKE THIS HAS EVER
HAPPENED TO A POPULATION THIS
YOU WOULD THINK WE WOULD WANT TO
KNOW EXACTLY WHY, WHAT'S GOING
ON, HOW CAN WE FIX IT?
YET THE MEDIA IGNORE THAT STORY.
IT'S CONSIDERED A FRINGE TOPIC
SOMEHOW.
NOR IS IT, BELIEVE IT OR NOT, A
PRIORITY IN SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH
ESTABLISHMENT.