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I'm really not sure how I feel about these things. On one hand, these are great escapades, and they result in fantastic pictures. I do like seeing "forbidden an

I'm really not sure how I feel about these things. On one hand, these are great escapades, and they result in fantastic pictures. I do like seeing "forbidden and forgotten areas". On the other hand, I would never want to encourage anyone to do something like this. It's illegal for a reason. The reason is not just your own safety. If he had fallen on to the road side of the bridge, not only would he die, but he would risk the safety of others driving across the bridge. Even in the best-case where he doesn't hit a vehicle or cause an accident, the morning commute is screwed up because of what on the surface appears to be another suicide.

DanBC 13y ago
People committing suicide would tend to jump off the bridge into the water? There are, very roughly, one person committing suicide per fortnight from the Goldengate Bridge. One idea to slow down that number o fdeaths is to install a big net. It'll hurt when people land on it, and that might be enough to snap them out of the impulsive decision to end their lives. The net would cost about $45m. Some people might feel that spending the money on mental health services and suicide prevention services would be a better investment. (http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/26/us/26bcjames.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0 http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/26/us/26bcjames.html?pagewant...) Superficially it's obvious why Fresno CA has such a high suicide rate (14.8 per 100,000) - low employment, high crime, staggering drug (especially meth) addiction. But Sacramento CA has higher rates of suicide (22.7 per 100,000), and it's not as easy to work out why.
- themstheones 13y ago
  I've seen an interesting television program about meth production. It's called "Breaking Bad." If anyone has an interest in the industry I suggest checking it out.
- WestCoastJustin 13y ago
  I read something about How The Mapo Bridge In South Korea Has Stopped People Committing Suicide [1]. They basically have illuminated signs that say encouraging things to people who are thinking about jumping. Dropped the suicide rate by 77%. [1] http://www.sickchirpse.com/mapo-bridge-suicide/ http://www.sickchirpse.com/mapo-bridge-suicide/
- ryguytilidie 13y ago
  I'm genuinely curious how a net to go under the bridge would cost $45m. How?
  - lostlogin 13y ago
    I've only been there once, but I'm picking that harsh weather, height and the need for attachment points outside the existing bridge make it expensive. I'm not at all surprised that it is expensive, but I am that it hasn't been done yet.
    - timr 13y ago
      A primary complaint, believe it or not, is that the net would hurt the aesthetics of the bridge. People have been pushing for a net for years, but a variety of (lame) excuses keep conspiring against it. The reality is that there's no really good reason to keep from doing it...just a lot of little bad ones that seem to win.
      - sneak 13y ago
        How about "it's not society's job to keep people (even insane ones) from doing what they want with their own bodies"? You can take this to apply to everything from the inside of one's uterus to hurling oneself off a bridge.
        lostlogin 13y ago
        It is societies job to look after everyone, especially the unwell. I do recall there being a handrail, so someone believes in some safety.
        sneak 13y ago
        Handrails are to prevent accidents by people not trying to hurl themselves off. You are confusing safety with coercion.
- hnriot 13y ago
  not sure what this had to do the parent comment, but if there's a net, people will find other ways. It's like making prostitution illegal, did it really cut down on the number of people having sex? Of course not.
  - scott_s 13y ago
    From what I have heard and read (see the Freakanomics podcast I link to in this thread), suicide is seen among those that study it as having a large impulse component.
  - omegaham 13y ago
    As said by Scott, suicide is very rarely a well thought-out action. It's something that is decided on a whim and often passes just as quickly. Drug companies in Britain experimented by putting pills in blister packs instead of bottles and found out that suicide rates dropped dramatically. Apparently, the amount of time it took to pull each individual pill out of the blister pack was enough to make people think about what they're doing. The same thing applies with bridges. There have been many efforts to put signs up and obstructive railings in place. They won't deter a really determined person, but they do the next best thing - the people who aren't sure are shown that it's a decision rather than a done deal. And that's what they need at that moment in time.
    - shabble 13y ago
      I'd never considered blister packs as an impulse control measure before; I had assumed it was for ease of dosing/packaging, and perhaps longer shelf-life (The US approach of (until relatively recent automation improvements) manually counting pills into a bottle always struck me as inefficient). A short transcript[1] from the podcast agrees though, and there's a currently previous[2] and ongoing[3] research into packaging/impulsivity. There's some other research as well that shows that restricting pack size of OTC paracetamol/acetaminophen reduces suicides, too[4] [1] http://www.freakonomics.com/2011/05/17/why-cant-you-buy-a-big-bottle-of-headache-pills-in-england/ http://www.freakonomics.com/2011/05/17/why-cant-you-buy-a-bi... [2] http://oai.dtic.mil/oai/oai?verb=getRecord&metadataPrefix=html&identifier=ADA551051 http://oai.dtic.mil/oai/oai?verb=getRecord&metadataPrefix=ht... [3] http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT01118208 http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT01118208 [4] http://www.plosmedicine.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pmed.0040152 http://www.plosmedicine.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fj...
- malandrew 13y ago
  I'm actually really curious if anyone has done some sort of study into the relationship between Maslow's hierarchy of needs and suicide. I honestly wouldn't be surprised if suicide rates go up as you go up the pyramid because you're afforded more time for existential thought.
  - scott_s 13y ago
    Freakanomics did a good podcast on suicide. This question was addressed at least a little, by talking about the apparent rareness of suicide in some cultures: http://www.freakonomics.com/2011/08/31/new-freakonomics-radio-podcast-the-suicide-paradox/ http://www.freakonomics.com/2011/08/31/new-freakonomics-radi... Some Googling turned up this study, http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16420711 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16420711, "The association between suicide and the socio-economic characteristics of geographical areas: a systematic review". At first I thought their conclusions were clear, but I find I have difficulty understanding subsequent sentences with respect to each other. I'm afraid I would need to read the whole paper to understand exactly what their conclusions are.
brianmwaters 13y ago
Actually, they were using shock-absorbing lanyards, so, assuming they were using then correctly, a fall would result in a deployed shock pack and a dangling climber. Rescue from that position is another matter, and they don't say anything about that. That being said, I think the author mentions carrying their camera and tripod by hand on the way down, which is a huge no-no. A drop could in serious damage or death as you mentioned.
katbyte 13y ago
I personally climb bridges (in fact suspensions just like this) and other structures for photography now and then, and i would never do what they did without a harness and safety system preventing me, or any of my gear, from falling. Unfortunately not everyone is safe about it, things from his post: > A slip of the foot could result in certain death. But We rolled the dice – flipped the coin. > Needing to get above the streetlights and not having time for fall protection I reminded myself to fall to the left should I slip. > https://farm6.static.flickr.com/5209/5315871803_95f74f1027_b.jpg https://farm6.static.flickr.com/5209/5315871803_95f74f1027_b... Scream "this is some young kid who probably should not be doing this". Safety should always be the most important thing when doing anything like that.
- qqg3 13y ago
  Did you read onwards? He clipped himself in with safety lanyards once he was above the level of the streetlights...
  - sliverstorm 13y ago
    "Safety lanyards" could be anything, and there's a whole lot of personal anchors that people think will protect them, but actually won't. The problem being that even in a short fall, your body will generate pretty amazing forces on static equipment. Black Diamond did a great article about it, though they are going through some growing pains right now with a new website. The article was, "Daisy Chain Dangers"
    - sc00ter 13y ago
      "I hooked up [two] my shock absorbing lanyards" You really didn't read it, did you?
      - sliverstorm 13y ago
        "shock absorbing lanyards" could be anything, and there's a whole lot of personal anchors that people think will protect them, but actually won't. Better?
sneak 13y ago
> It's illegal for a reason. Thou shalt remember the 11th commandment and keep it wholly.

DanBC 13y ago

People committing suicide would tend to jump off the bridge into the water? There are, very roughly, one person committing suicide per fortnight from the Goldengate Bridge. One idea to slow down that number o fdeaths is to install a big net. It'll hurt when people land on it, and that might be enough to snap them out of the impulsive decision to end their lives. The net would cost about $45m. Some people might feel that spending the money on mental health services and suicide prevention services would be a better investment. (http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/26/us/26bcjames.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0 http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/26/us/26bcjames.html?pagewant...) Superficially it's obvious why Fresno CA has such a high suicide rate (14.8 per 100,000) - low employment, high crime, staggering drug (especially meth) addiction. But Sacramento CA has higher rates of suicide (22.7 per 100,000), and it's not as easy to work out why.

themstheones 13y ago
I've seen an interesting television program about meth production. It's called "Breaking Bad." If anyone has an interest in the industry I suggest checking it out.
WestCoastJustin 13y ago
I read something about How The Mapo Bridge In South Korea Has Stopped People Committing Suicide [1]. They basically have illuminated signs that say encouraging things to people who are thinking about jumping. Dropped the suicide rate by 77%. [1] http://www.sickchirpse.com/mapo-bridge-suicide/ http://www.sickchirpse.com/mapo-bridge-suicide/
ryguytilidie 13y ago
I'm genuinely curious how a net to go under the bridge would cost $45m. How?
- lostlogin 13y ago
  I've only been there once, but I'm picking that harsh weather, height and the need for attachment points outside the existing bridge make it expensive. I'm not at all surprised that it is expensive, but I am that it hasn't been done yet.
  - timr 13y ago
    A primary complaint, believe it or not, is that the net would hurt the aesthetics of the bridge. People have been pushing for a net for years, but a variety of (lame) excuses keep conspiring against it. The reality is that there's no really good reason to keep from doing it...just a lot of little bad ones that seem to win.
    - sneak 13y ago
      How about "it's not society's job to keep people (even insane ones) from doing what they want with their own bodies"? You can take this to apply to everything from the inside of one's uterus to hurling oneself off a bridge.
      - lostlogin 13y ago
        It is societies job to look after everyone, especially the unwell. I do recall there being a handrail, so someone believes in some safety.
        sneak 13y ago
        Handrails are to prevent accidents by people not trying to hurl themselves off. You are confusing safety with coercion.
hnriot 13y ago
not sure what this had to do the parent comment, but if there's a net, people will find other ways. It's like making prostitution illegal, did it really cut down on the number of people having sex? Of course not.
- scott_s 13y ago
  From what I have heard and read (see the Freakanomics podcast I link to in this thread), suicide is seen among those that study it as having a large impulse component.
- omegaham 13y ago
  As said by Scott, suicide is very rarely a well thought-out action. It's something that is decided on a whim and often passes just as quickly. Drug companies in Britain experimented by putting pills in blister packs instead of bottles and found out that suicide rates dropped dramatically. Apparently, the amount of time it took to pull each individual pill out of the blister pack was enough to make people think about what they're doing. The same thing applies with bridges. There have been many efforts to put signs up and obstructive railings in place. They won't deter a really determined person, but they do the next best thing - the people who aren't sure are shown that it's a decision rather than a done deal. And that's what they need at that moment in time.
  - shabble 13y ago
    I'd never considered blister packs as an impulse control measure before; I had assumed it was for ease of dosing/packaging, and perhaps longer shelf-life (The US approach of (until relatively recent automation improvements) manually counting pills into a bottle always struck me as inefficient). A short transcript[1] from the podcast agrees though, and there's a currently previous[2] and ongoing[3] research into packaging/impulsivity. There's some other research as well that shows that restricting pack size of OTC paracetamol/acetaminophen reduces suicides, too[4] [1] http://www.freakonomics.com/2011/05/17/why-cant-you-buy-a-big-bottle-of-headache-pills-in-england/ http://www.freakonomics.com/2011/05/17/why-cant-you-buy-a-bi... [2] http://oai.dtic.mil/oai/oai?verb=getRecord&metadataPrefix=html&identifier=ADA551051 http://oai.dtic.mil/oai/oai?verb=getRecord&metadataPrefix=ht... [3] http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT01118208 http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT01118208 [4] http://www.plosmedicine.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pmed.0040152 http://www.plosmedicine.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fj...
malandrew 13y ago
I'm actually really curious if anyone has done some sort of study into the relationship between Maslow's hierarchy of needs and suicide. I honestly wouldn't be surprised if suicide rates go up as you go up the pyramid because you're afforded more time for existential thought.
- scott_s 13y ago
  Freakanomics did a good podcast on suicide. This question was addressed at least a little, by talking about the apparent rareness of suicide in some cultures: http://www.freakonomics.com/2011/08/31/new-freakonomics-radio-podcast-the-suicide-paradox/ http://www.freakonomics.com/2011/08/31/new-freakonomics-radi... Some Googling turned up this study, http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16420711 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16420711, "The association between suicide and the socio-economic characteristics of geographical areas: a systematic review". At first I thought their conclusions were clear, but I find I have difficulty understanding subsequent sentences with respect to each other. I'm afraid I would need to read the whole paper to understand exactly what their conclusions are.

brianmwaters 13y ago

Actually, they were using shock-absorbing lanyards, so, assuming they were using then correctly, a fall would result in a deployed shock pack and a dangling climber. Rescue from that position is another matter, and they don't say anything about that. That being said, I think the author mentions carrying their camera and tripod by hand on the way down, which is a huge no-no. A drop could in serious damage or death as you mentioned.

katbyte 13y ago

I personally climb bridges (in fact suspensions just like this) and other structures for photography now and then, and i would never do what they did without a harness and safety system preventing me, or any of my gear, from falling. Unfortunately not everyone is safe about it, things from his post: > A slip of the foot could result in certain death. But We rolled the dice – flipped the coin. > Needing to get above the streetlights and not having time for fall protection I reminded myself to fall to the left should I slip. > https://farm6.static.flickr.com/5209/5315871803_95f74f1027_b.jpg https://farm6.static.flickr.com/5209/5315871803_95f74f1027_b... Scream "this is some young kid who probably should not be doing this". Safety should always be the most important thing when doing anything like that.

qqg3 13y ago
Did you read onwards? He clipped himself in with safety lanyards once he was above the level of the streetlights...
- sliverstorm 13y ago
  "Safety lanyards" could be anything, and there's a whole lot of personal anchors that people think will protect them, but actually won't. The problem being that even in a short fall, your body will generate pretty amazing forces on static equipment. Black Diamond did a great article about it, though they are going through some growing pains right now with a new website. The article was, "Daisy Chain Dangers"
  - sc00ter 13y ago
    "I hooked up [two] my shock absorbing lanyards" You really didn't read it, did you?
    - sliverstorm 13y ago
      "shock absorbing lanyards" could be anything, and there's a whole lot of personal anchors that people think will protect them, but actually won't. Better?

sneak 13y ago

> It's illegal for a reason. Thou shalt remember the 11th commandment and keep it wholly.