So the Race is On

Well, seems that the US of A Presidential election, the day that has been in the news for so long, is finally here, and as we all know it’s Hilary Clinton v Donald Trump. It also seems to me that at this current time the eyes of the world are on the US election  situation, and holding its collective breath as it awaits the outcome–Clinton or Trump? Trump or Clinton?

Heard the renowned political commenter Laurie Oakes on the television news last night. He more or less implied that the outcome of this race is anybody’s guess, and he said: “My guess is Hilary  Clinton. But I fear Donald Trump.” Personally, I do not dare to put a bet on one or the other for fear I’d lose my money.  But from what I’ve heard they are taking bets on the potential outcome in America.  There are only two possible outcomes–Clinton, or Trump–and whichever way you look at it, or try to predict what either of these hopefuls would be like as the US President, would still only be a bit of a guess–maybe a fairly educated one in some instances, but a guess nevertheless.

Without a doubt America does indeed play a big part in the world; in one way or another, it has a very strong pull on so very many other countries in the world, and it is also seen as the leader of the western world. Speaking as an ordinary Australian citizen who has been reared on a political system that uses mandatory voting (a system which, in the best interests of the general population, gives everyone a voice, and allows the people to cast a vote for the government of their choice), I see the American political system as being a bit of a mad, unnecessarily prolonged process.  One of the things that seems to me to be totally whacky with the American system  is, that, for an election event that appears to be so important to world trade economy (and hence to America) and world politics (and again, hence to America), voting is not mandatory in the United States of America. How can it possibly be in the best interests of the general population of America if voting is not mandatory? Not everyone would get a voice, and the outcome of any presidential election would therefore be based on only the voices of the relatively few citizens who do cast a vote. In a country that prides itself as being the home of democracy, is that democracy?

It has also been reported by the Australian media in today’s news, that in numerous places throughout America there are various problems with some of the electoral polling stations. In many instances, the queues of people waiting to cast their ballot are so long that voters stand in line for hours. Would it be any wonder if some people, the old or infirm, say,  just gave up and didn’t vote at all? Given that the queues are so very lengthy, the other danger is that the polling booths may close before some people get a chance to cast their vote. How democratic is that?

America boasts a simply huge population  of roughly about 324 million people. So, given that the Trump v Clinton business seems to have raised so very many hackles between the for and against on both the Republican side and the Democrat side, and given that the suitability of the two presidential hopefuls has been so hotly debated elsewhere, and given that it has been said that a great many Americans went to the polls early and pre-voted, I was rather surprised when I heard on the 8 a.m. radio news this morning that only a very small number of Americans who are eligible to vote had actually cast their votes so far.

According to the information given by wikipedia (a site which we academics know never to cite or otherwise admit to viewing since it is unsupported and therefore untrustworthy, but which most of us do nevertheless look at on occasion),  the United States of America is:

a country of 50 states plus a federal district, five major self-governing territories, and various possessions. The 48 contiguous states and federal district are in central North America between Canada and Mexico, with the state of Alaska in the north-western part of North America and the state of Hawaii comprising an archipelago in the mid-Pacific. The territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. At 3.8 million square miles and with over 324 million people, the United States is the world’s third-largest country by total area and the third-most populous. It is one of the world’s most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, the product of large-scale immigration from many other countries…. [1]

On the net, I came across the  Worldometer, which gives the following information on the population number for the United States of America:

As of 1 January 2016, the population of United States of America (USA) was estimated to be 323 025 335 people. This is an increase of 0.75 % (2 414 202 people) compared to population of 320 611 133 the year before. In 2015 the natural increase was positive, as the number of births exceeded the number of deaths by 1 397 865. Due to external migration, the population increased by 1 016 337. The sex ratio of the total population was 0.975 (975 males per 1 000 females) which is lower than global sex ratio. The global sex ratio in the world was approximately 1 016 males to 1 000 females as of 2015. See also map of the world by sex ratio of total population.

Below are the key figures for United States of America (USA) population in 2015:

• 4 039 700 live births
• 2 641 836 deaths
• Natural increase: 1 397 865 people
• Net migration: 1 016 337 people
• 159 469 031 males as of 31 December 2015
• 163 556 304 females as of 31 December 2015

During 2016 United States of America (USA) population is projected to increased by 2 432 381 people and reach 325 457 716 in the beginning of 2017. The natural increase is expected to be positive, as [projection studies indicate that] the number of births will exceed the number of deaths by 1 408 390. If external migration will remain on the previous year level, the population will be increased by 1 023 990 due to the migration reasons. It means that the number of people who move into United States of America (USA) (to which they are not native) in order to settle there as permanent residents (immigrants) will prevail over the number of people who leave the country to settle permanently in another country (emigrants).

Population dynamics in 2016: According to our estimations, daily change rates of United States of America (USA) population in 2016 will be the following:

• 11 151 live births average per day (464.63 in a hour)
• 7 292 deaths average per day (303.85 in a hour)
• 2 805 immigrants average per day (116.89 in a hour)

The population of United States of America (USA) will be increased by 6 664 persons daily in 2016. [2]

Being an Australian who lives in Australia (a country which many older Australians and some others fear is edging towards becoming a little too overcrowded), I thought it might be rather interesting to  compare the statistics given for America to those given for Australia. So I had a another look on the web, and found some information gathered by the Australian Government 2016 Census. I also had a look at the Population Clock from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, a project based on the estimated resident population in Australia at 31 March, 2016 [3]:

As of January 2016, the population of Australia was estimated to be 24 168 303 people. This is an increase of 1.57% (372 640 people) compared to a population of 23 795 663 the year before [2015].  In 2015 the natural increase was positive, as the number of births exceeded the number of deaths by 161 573. Due to external migration, the population increased by 211 068.

Below are the key figures for Australia population in 2015:

• 321 003 live births
• 159 431 deaths
• Natural increase: 161 573 people
• Net migration: 211 068 people
• 12 045 541 males as of 31 December 2015
• 12 122 762 females as of 31 December 2015

During 2016 Australia population is projected to increased by 378 476 people and reach 24 546 779 in the beginning of 2017. The natural increase is expected to be positive, as the number of births will exceed the number of deaths by 164 103. If external migration will remain on the previous year level, the population will be increased by 214 373 due to the migration reasons. It means that the number of people who move into Australia (to which they are not native) in order to settle there as permanent residents (immigrants) will prevail over the number of people who leave the country to settle permanently in another country (emigrants).

Population dynamics in 2016: According to our estimations, daily change rates of Australia population in 2016 will be the following:

• 893 live births average per day (37.22 in a hour)
• 444 deaths average per day (18.48 in a hour)
• 587 immigrants average per day (24.47 in a hour)

The population of Australia will be increased by 1 037 persons daily in 2016.

Population clock: On 9 November 2016 at 09:19:48 AM (Canberra time), the resident population of Australia is projected to be 24,266,812.  This projection is based on the estimated resident population at 31 March 2016 and assumes growth since then of:

• one birth every 1 minute and 44 seconds,
• one death every 3 minutes and 20 seconds,
• a net gain of one international migration every 2 minutes and 32 seconds, leading to
• an overall total population increase of one person every 1 minute and 29 seconds.

These assumptions are consistent with figures released in Australian Demographic Statistics, March Quarter 2016 (cat. no. 3101.0).  [3]

In comparing the population of America to other countries in the world I also had a look at the world population graph on the Worldometer <http://www.worldometers.info/world-population/>  [4]. I found an interactive graph that was extremely interesting and also more than a little frightening. I will not go further into this now, but leave it to those who may be interested to have a look at the website themselves.

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Works cited: 

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States

[2] U. S. Population (2016) – Worldometers  http://www.worldometers.info/world-population/us-population 

The current population of the United States of America is … Population of the United States (2016 and … 2016) chart plots the total population count as of …

<http://www.worldometers.info/world-population/us-population/&gt;

[3] Population clock – Australian Bureau of Statistics <www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/94713ad445ff1425ca25682000192af2…>  <http://www.abs.gov.au/websitedbs/d3310114.nsf/home/population%20pyramid%20preview&gt; <40.nsf/94713ad445ff1425ca25682000192af2/1647509ef7e25faaca2568a900154b63>

[4]  World Population Clock: 7.5 Billion People (2016 … http://www.worldometers.info/world-population Video embedded　· World population live counter with data sheets, … Urban Population; 2016: 7,432,663,275: 1.13 %: 83,191,176: 29.9: 2.5: 57: … in the United States … <http://www.worldometers.info/world-population/&gt;