Posted on 12/16/2018 7:05:58 AM PST by rellimpank
“Gun deaths in US reach highest level in nearly 40 years, CDC data reveal,” blared Thursday’s headline on CNN.com. A press release from Everytown for Gun Safety noted that “39,773 people were killed by gun violence in 2017 — approximately 1,100 more than were killed by motor vehicle accidents.”
The picture these announcements evoke is of mass shootings and random gun crimes that pose a mortal danger to every American. But that image is not quite accurate. The number of homicides actually declined last year — and is believed to have fallen again this year. Our streets have gotten safer.
So what gives? When gun control advocates cite “gun deaths,” they are not talking just about slayings of people by other people. Sixty percent of these deaths, it turns out, are not homicides but suicides. Most of the people who inflict fatal gunshot wounds harm only themselves.
“The rate of suicide in general increased from 2016 to 2017, and the increase was actually greater for the non-firearm suicide rate than for the firearm suicide rate,” Florida State University criminologist Gary Kleck tells me — “suggesting that something that affects suicide but is unrelated to firearms is responsible for the recent suicide increase.”
To lump suicides with homicides is to confuse the gun issue. The causes behind American murders explain very little about American suicides. Murder victims are disproportionately African-American. The suicide rate, by contrast, is three times higher among whites than blacks.
(Excerpt) Read more at madison.com ...
The simple explanation for rising suicide rates is our aging population. Years ago Time magazine did a major piece on “Death by Gun” during a set period; I read the back story on each death, tabulated the results, and analyzed them. Of course, Time had an anti-gun spin. Then as now, the majority were suicides. Of those, 95% were elderly men, with major health problems of their own or of their spouse. In many cases, elderly men killed their terminally ill wives, and then themselves. Next most numerous were what appeared to be criminals, shot by each other, by their intended victims, by the police, by gang rivals. Lots of girlfriends, wives, and exes are murdered. Some general murders, and victims shot during robberies. A few supposed accidents and the odd hired killing.
Great Clip,
Thanks!
The Japanese and Australian studies bear this out.
Another issue here is that most lethal suicides are performed by men between forty and 70. The gun is a method overwhelmingly employed by men.
We’ve got a nice big bridge One day, a guy was evidently walking to the center of the span, to jump, but chickened out, and dove in front of a semi-, instead.
I have a problem conflating people who don't want to die (murder victims) with people who want to die (suicides).
Japan has essentially no guns in civilian hands, and has a higher suicide rate than the US.
"...Europe, Japan, Russia, and many places where Gibbs are banned..."
Removing the suicide numbers, if the number of “gun deaths” is 90-95% criminals and gang bangers killing each other, I have no problem with it. But I have a feeling that 90-95% includes more than just a few innocents.
It might not be a valid assumption that if a gun wasn’t available, the individual would just have used another method...but I’d venture to say it will be true much of the time.
If that were so, then why does Japan, which has almost no guns in private hands, have a higher per capita suicide rate than the US. 14.3 vs 13.7.
The US is 34th in the world for suicides per capita with both Finland and Belgian (and Japan) ahead of us.
If someone wants to kill themselves, they’ll find a way. The female TV meteorologist who killed herself a few days ago, hanged herself.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_suicide_rate
IIRC homicides, as defined by the FBI, include all non suicide deaths to include legal use in self defense, police actions, negligent discharges, as well as murder.
p>I live next to a big railroad bridge. My first wife’s father helped build it. Over the years there have been a few suicides who jumped from it. All men, so far as I know, but no other common factors. I’m not suicidal, but if I were, that would probably be my choice.
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