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I agree with you generally… but in this specific case, do regions with very strong and effective gun control have dramatically lower suicide rates than the US?

by geebee 12y ago

I agree with you generally… but in this specific case, do regions with very strong and effective gun control have dramatically lower suicide rates than the US? My understanding is that suicide rates in Europe aren't dramatically lower, though they do appear to be a bit lower in western europe and higher in eastern… I can't tell if this might be handgun related, is the delta large enough? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_suicide_rate http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_suicide_ra... I don't have any information on the suicide rates by gun in each country, though it would be useful information from a public health standpoint (especially if, as you pointed out, the accessibility could be reduced).

danielweber 12y ago
Just eyeballing, I see a handful of strongly liberal European countries above the US, and a bunch that are just below the US. But this is a tough thing to compare, as you note. Suicide rate is encompassing a whole bunch of things. I'm tempted to compare against Canada, where the suicide rate is only less by 1 per 100,000 people per year, but I have no idea if I'm picking that out fairly. http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/86/9/07-043489.pdf http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/86/9/07-043489.pdf suggests that the US is the only country where firearm is the preferred method of suicide. A bit morbid to read but there you go.
sosuke 12y ago
Japan is an excellent example, even the police don't often carry guns if I remember correctly.