Posted on 04/06/2013 3:51:16 AM PDT by Lowell1775
snip---------------- With few exceptions, states with the highest rates of gun ownership -- for example, Alaska, Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, Alabama, and West Virginia -- also tended to have the highest suicide rates. These states were also carried overwhelmingly by George Bush in the 2000 presidential election.
snip-------------------- "In states with a higher percentage of the population that belong to a church, it is plausible that religious views and doctrine about suicide are well-known through sacred texts, theology or sermons, and adherents may be less likely to commit suicide."
snip--------------------- The sociologist said that although policies aimed at seriously regulating firearm ownership would reduce individual suicides, such policies are likely to fail not because they do not work, but because many Americans remain opposed to meaningful gun control, arguing that they have a constitutional right to bear arms. "Even modest efforts to reform gun laws are typically met with vehement opposition. There are also millions of Americans who continue to believe that keeping a gun at home protects them against intruders, even though research shows that when a gun is used in the home, it is often against household members in the commission of homicides or suicides," Kposowa said. "Adding to the widespread misinformation about guns is that powerful pro-gun lobby groups, especially the National Rifle Association, seem to have a stranglehold on legislators and U.S. policy, and a politician who calls for gun control may be targeted for removal from office in a future election by a gun lobby," he added. Although total suicide rates in the U.S. are not much higher than in other Western countries, without changes in gun-ownership policies "the United States is poised to remain a very armed and potentially dangerous nation for its inhabitants for years to come."
(Excerpt) Read more at sciencedaily.com ...
And you know what comes after that.
Imagine the bottom cartoon aimed against blacks or Hispanics. The "cartoonist" would be fired and exiled. But white conservative Christians are fair game for the liberal hate campaign, getting their base ready for pogroms or worse.
Seriously? I could have sworn that the mere presence of a firearm was all it took to make the final push. They have such hypnotic powers that it’s almost as if they really were alive and not inanimate objects. (sarc switch off) After doing a quick scan of the article, I found the old “you are at a higher risk with a gun in the house” crap in there. As well as blaming the NRA for all the social ills of the country so in the end, just your usual University of kalifornia Riverside researcher who spent a certain amount of tax dollars to tell us..........nothing.
The U.S. ranks 34th in the world in sucide rate per 100k. There’s quite a few socialist or severe gun restriction countries ahead of the U.S. Bogus study. Like if someone wanted to commit suicide, they’d only do it with a gun. Complete and utter bovine excrement.
An excellent reply Arliss. Until I read the article I thought Colorado was determined to be somewhere between California and New York as the least free States go and anything but conservative. Our new State Advertisement ought show two homosexuals dressed as they would for a formal church wedding with shackles on and rainblow baloons—and a lot of drugs —needles and pot.Colorful Colorado.
theme song for M A S H. Even though I have guns I have no intention of allowing the enemy claim I committed suicide with any of them. If I decide I am ready to check out early—there are plastic bags and duct tape— overpasses -and moderate traffic—a river— and that splendid place called Cold shivers point on the Colorado National Monument,not to forget kitchen knives, plenty of available gasoline and bic lighters to flick—one would have to bee pretty knee-jerk desperate or just plain brain-dead to choose suicide by firearm.
Damn straight! Give these pukes from "Science Daily" something to think about while they spew their propaganda.
“What has everyone got against suicide?”
Progressives have nothing against suicide, as long as it is government sanctioned and carried out under the supervision of a government licensed professional.
It is suicide outside of government control that they do not like.
One only has to look at the Soviet Union to understand that mindset completely.
You check out on THEIR schedule, not YOURS.
They OWN you, dontcha know...
They should ban carrots.
Every single person who has eaten a carrot has died.....eventually.
The left favors suicide last I checked.
They just don’t like the competition. Surprised they didn’t call them scabs.
The Colorado I knew in the 60’s/70’s was very conservative.
So sad. Let the liberals move in and they take over and destroy freedom wherever they find it.
PS: My tag is Arlis with one “s”. I think “Arliss” was a TV show on some weird cable network - didn’t have it, didn’t watch it.....no relation....
You should check out this monograph by Jon J. Ray. I think you would find it interesting, given you tag line:
http://tongue-tied2.blogspot.com/2006/06/what-appears-below-is-attempt-to.html
Jon J. Ray is a brilliant Australian academic and businessman, now retired.
Good point. Progressives fight to legalize "physician assisted suicide" but consider suicide without the assistance of a physician to be some kind of terrible problem. But they both end up with the exact same result.
First, many of the deaths described as due to guns are, in fact, suicides. Accidental deaths due to guns, in contrast, are rare. And, homicides appears not correlated with guns, meaning that as many homicides are deterred by guns as are facilitated by guns. So, at least the debate is getting focused on facts.
Second, the overall suicide rate in the U.S. is not bad compared to other advanced democratic countries. While we might be able to do something about lowering the rate, suicide prevention is as much a problem in western European countries that do not have guns as it is in this country. And, it could be that by taking away guns and in other ways becoming like western European countries, we have no impact on suicide.
Now, third, there is a correlation between the presence of guns and suicide within the U.S. The explanation for this correlation is that suicide, esp. among younger people, is impulsive; and, in a moment of weakness, easy access to a gun can result in a suicide. Further, if the suicide had not occurred, suicide might be avoided (as opposed to merely postponed), due to the individual seeking help, or being subject to an intervention.
If we can deal with the access to guns of the mentally ill, while preserving our freedom, we might be able to actually lower suicide rates (and also lower the number of mass murder events).
To a liberal, point #3 says take freedom away from everybody so that those among us who are vulnerable will not feel “singled out.”
To a conservative, point #3 says we - as parents, teachers, family physicians and mental health professionals - should be on guard for indications of mental illness, and willing and able to intervene upon probable cause.
As conservatives, we would have to balance 4th Amendment provisions for privacy and 5th Amendment provisions for due process. We could not just order drone strikes, or confiscate guns, or compile a “national data base.” Of course, this means we, as conservatives, wouldn’t claim that we could prevent every mentally ill mass murder event or every suicide.
On the other hand, we would have a society in which being free made life worth living. Not a society of slaves. And, few people would seek relief from slavery through alcoholism, drugs, suicide, and other socially-irresponiable and self-destructive behaviors.
The actual numbers are dramatic. Take Connecticut, for instance. The Washington Post lists 134 black homicide victims per million residents vs. 6 white homicide victims per million residents.
Trying to conflate suicides with homicides is a tactic that the left will use to claim that firearms are dangerous to everybody, even the people in rural areas who have lots of guns and very limited gun regulations but very low crime rates. They are already doing so, using statistics that include suicide rates to justify magazine restrictions and bans on semi-automatic weapons, as if either topic had anything to do with suicide rates.
This is just a typical study that really is more a study in the prevalence of bad studies. There are any number of factors that contribute to suicide. One big one is divorce. Children of divorced parents are several times over more likely to consider suicide. West Virginia has a fairly depressed economy which I’m sure contributes. I know of two suicides personally. One lady committed suicide right after being served divorce papers another overdosed on pills due to a complicated relationship I believe with a married man. Neither used guns.
Lets get real though the primary contributors to suicide are substance abuse and mental disorder. People use poisoning and hanging that when taken together are the preferred method of suicide for nearly as many as are guns and women are more likely to use those methods than guns. This whole study is really just a deflection from the individuals because suicide is something that doesn’t arise from the gun it is something that arises in an individual.
The number of suicides in 2012 were somewhere around 36k which is fairly small and historically the death rate due to suicide has decreased since 1950 though it has increased since 2000 and it jumped substantially in 2012. There are several surveys that suggest gun ownership is in a 30 year decline even though gun sales are up. I’m not sure I can trust surveys because I don’t know how readily people would be to answer honestly on the question of owning a gun.
The substance abuse angle should be particularly of interest with the push to legalize more recreational drugs. This has been shown to contribute to suicidal thoughts significantly. Also if we look at other countries where guns are not readily available the suicide rate is not markedly different. The rate for the UK in was 11.8 and the US 12.0 and Cuba was 12.3 and anti gun France a whopping 15.0. So this is clearly a stupid study trying to make a link that just isn’t there.
Not only that, it shows the absurdity that strict guns laws would have a substantive effect on suicide rates. Someone can just suck down a bottle of pills instead, a lot less messy.
Exactly correct.
None of the gun laws proposed would make the slightest difference in Suicide rates.
More background checks? No effect.
Magazine bans? Suicides do not require more than one shot.
Modern Sporting Rifle bans? See above.
The only thing that might actually have an effect on *gun suicides* not the overall rate, is massive gun confiscations, which is what the “progressives” all claim is something they would never do...
So, either they are lying, stupid, or ignorant, or some combination of all three. The left is very good at deceiving itself.
Well thank God he left GA off the list. We are now free to bitterly cling to our guns, religion and Lithium. :-)
Thanks for that link...I will check it out.
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