Slashdot Mirror
US Suicide Rate Surges To Highest Level In Almost Three Decades, Says Report (bbc.com)
An anonymous reader quotes a report from BBC: The suicide rate in the U.S. has surged to its highest level in almost three decades, according to a new report from the CDC. There was no explanation for the rise but some experts have pointed to increased abuse of prescription opiates and the financial downturn that began in 2008 as likely factors. The report did not break down the suicides by education level or income, but previous studies found rising suicide rates among white people without university degrees. CDC reported on Friday that suicides have increased in the US to a rate of 13 per 100,000 people, the highest since 1986. The overall suicide rate rose by 24% from 1999 to 2014, according to the CDC. However, the rate increased 43% among white men ages 45 to 64 and 63% for women in the same age-range. In 2014, more than 14,000 middle-aged white people killed themselves. That figure is double the combined suicides total for all blacks, Hispanics, Asians, Pacific Islanders, American Indians, and Alaska Natives. The suicide rate only declined for only two groups: black men and all people over 75.
With the press, political garbage, continued military actions, bad economy and the apparent focus on material wealth- who would expect a different outcome?
People need stability, security, and community to really thrive. This country has not promoted those values.
This shouldn't be framed as a political or religious problem- it's a lack of decency. It means that as individuals we've simply stopped caring. Societies rise and fall based on how people treat others on a daily basis. We treat each other badly. Some people will decide to leave. Some will take their lives. Some just take it. Those who complain are called whiners.
You can in fact beat a person to the point where they prefer death. The beatings in the USA are done by a million paper cuts.
Another consultant who stuck it out.
"We are the Priests, of the Temples of Syrinx..."
...should probably include a hotline number.
some experts have pointed to increased abuse of prescription opiates
That is a symptom, not the cause.
Seven puppies were harmed during the making of this post.
There's a reason it's the "highest suicide rate in three decades". It's most definitely thanks to Reaganomics and the trickle-down legacy, where the futures of middle and working class people trickled right down the drain.
The decline of labor unions meant that working people had less power in the meta-transaction of labor v capital. After decades of the middle and working classes gaining power, suddenly watching that power being taken away by orange-haired frauds like Ronald Reagan has taken the heart out of those people. They're working as hard as ever, and watching as the pensions of their parents turn into their own 401k bucket of nothing.
In ten years, we're going to see that generation (and the next) reach old age with nothing but their social security checks to live on. That's when we're either going to see the suicide rate skyrocket or we'll come to learn as a society that we've allowed stage 4 capitalism to run us off the rails.
You are welcome on my lawn.