2 ms·
The utter inanity of it all just hit me: news pieces are not for disseminating info, but for manipulating public perception. Suicide rates are up by around ~2.
by financltravsty 3y ago
The utter inanity of it all just hit me: news pieces are not for disseminating info, but for manipulating public perception.
Suicide rates are up by around ~2.6%. In 2021, 48,183 people were recorded to die from suicide. While in 2022 it was 49,449.
Meanwhile, ~650,000 people die each year in the U.S from heart disease. This is all considering that the U.S has 330 million people.
The rate of people that die from suicide each year is barely a single basis point in relation to the total population.
And now you have HN, where everyone mainlines these propaganda pieces everyday, for years on end. The amount of time I've wasted.
- hiddencost 3y ago??? You realize that for every person that commits suicide, there are many many more who attempt or almost attempt? It's a good proxy indicator, and one of many that are in trouble.
- financltravsty 3y agoYes, and? I'm of the opinion empathy and consideration is finite, so when you spread it to larger and larger collections of people it becomes too diffuse, and the ones most closest to us (friends, loved ones, people in the community, etc.) do not receive it sufficiently. Likewise, none of us are in any position to do anything at all about this issue, but armchair theorize and feel moved by it for a few minutes -- as well as have our perception of the world tilted negatively (for what purpose?). I should really go for a walk, instead of absorbing this junk food.