The 2010 Vermont suicide rate was significantly higher
than the U.S. death rate (15.7 versus 12.1 per 100,000).
Gun deaths vs. car deaths
According to a study released this week by the Violence Policy Center in Washington D.C., Vermont had 78 gun deaths in 2011, compared to 54 fatal car accidents as reported by the Governor's Highway Safety Program.
Same in Oregon. Suicides are significantly higher than the overall U.S. rate here, with shootings the primary cause, and shooting deaths now outpace auto deaths here.
ReplyDeleteThere are quite a number of "gun states" that fit this profile, an increasing number in fact. But Vermont has the distinction of being continually held up as some kind of gun paradise, so it's especially ironical there.
DeleteSuicide rates don't seem to follow any trend or correlation in regards to gun laws. For example, Texas, an admittedly gun friendly state has a much lower suicide rate than either Oregon or Vermont.
ReplyDeleteThis suggests that the biggest bang for the buck, (no pun intended) would be to focus on mental health issues. The CDC data for the year used in the suicide study shows 70 gun deaths total, 66 of which were suicides. When the numbers get really low, the CDC doesn't list numbers, and they give no numbers for unintentional gun deaths and homicides, however, FBI data for the same year shows 2 gun homicides.
Good idea. Democrats have been trying to get Republicans to put up more money for mental health problems ever since Reagan threw the mentally ill out in the streets.
Deletess, like many aspects of the gun debate, we're not saying gun availability is the only factor. But it is a significant and concrete one, about which more could be done.
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