"Cultural Continuity" and Suicide

[Guest Kenneth]

I caught the last few minutes of The Agenda tonight and some guy gave this spiel about Amerindian suicide rates being linked to "cultural continuity" - ie., the less continuity there was, the higher the suicide rate among that group. Given that with the four or five decades of multiculturalism and post-colonialism one would think that suicide would be increasing among whites - and apparently it is...

The trend was most pronounced among white men and women in that age group. Their suicide rate jumped 40 per cent between 1999 and 2010.

But the rates in younger and older people did not change. And there was little change among middle-aged blacks, Hispanics and most other racial and ethnic groups.

Read more: http://www.theprovince.com/news/Suicide+rate+middle+aged+Americans+jumps+whites/8327509/story.html#ixzz2Sl7gZME5

Edited May 9, 2013 by Kenneth

[kimmy]

I'm skeptical of the idea about aboriginal suicide rates being linked to "cultural continuity". I think the issue is not so much that "they lost their culture", but rather that "they lost their culture and replaced it with a dismal lifestyle".

As for suicides jumping sharply among middle-aged white people between 1999 and 2010... do you think that Canadian life changed so much in that span that it caused a spike in suicide rates? Or do you think their might be other factors, like financial stress resulting from the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression?

-k

[bush_cheney2004]

....As for suicides jumping sharply among middle-aged white people between 1999 and 2010... do you think that Canadian life changed so much in that span that it caused a spike in suicide rates? Or do you think their might be other factors, like financial stress resulting from the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression?

This has been discussed before in another thread. Like those great Scandinavian nations where life is paradise and suicide rates high, maybe Canadians are so happy they just kill themselves ?

http://healthland.time.com/2011/04/25/why-the-happiest-states-have-the-highest-suicide-rates/

[Canuckistani]

Seems Americuns kill themselves more frequently than any Scandinavian country except Finl

Suicides per 100,000 people per year[1]
Rank Country Male Female Average Year
1 Greenland 108.1 2010[4]
2 South Korea 31.7 2011
3 Lithuania 31.6 2011
4 Guyana (more info) 26.4 2006
5 Kazakhstan (more info) 25.6 2008
6 Belarus[7][8] 22.9 2011
7 China[9] (more info) 22.23 2011
8 Slovenia21.8 2011
9 Hungary[11] 21.7 2009
10 Japan (more info)[12] 21.7 2012
11 Sri Lanka[13](more info) 21.6 1996
12 Ukraine (more info) 21.2 2009
13 Russia[14] (more info) 20.2 2012
14 Croatia[15] 19.7 2002
15 Serbia and Montenegro 19.5 2006
16 Latvia 18.2 2010 [16]
17 Moldova 17.4 2008
18 Belgium 17 2009
19 Finland] 16.8 2010
20 Uruguay 15.8 2004
21 South Africa 15.4 2005
22 Poland 15.4 2010
23 Estonia 14.8 2010 [20]
24 France 14.7 2010 [21]
25 Suriname 14.4 2005
26 Bosnia and Herzegovina 13.3 2011
27 New Zealand[23] 13.2 2008
28 Austria 12.8 2009
29 Czech Republic 12.8 2010
30 Cuba 12.3 2008
31 Bulgaria 12.3 2008
32 Romania 12.0 2009
33 United States 12.0 2009
34 Sweden 11.9 2009
35 Norway 11.9 2011
36 Ireland[25] 11.4 2011
37 United Kingdom 11.8 2011[26]
38 Portugal[11] 11.5 2011[27]
39 Canada 11.5 2009[28]

40 Denmark 11.3 2010

Edited May 11, 2013 by Canuckistani

[bush_cheney2004]

Seems Americuns kill themselves more frequently than any Scandinavian country except Finl

Seems Kanaydiuns do too. They are just happier than a pig in mud.

Edited May 11, 2013 by bush_cheney2004

[Canuckistani]

I know, we do it tooooooooooooooooooooooooooo. And as usual we beat you. And the Scandihoovians, except for those happy Danes. Who also beat you.

[bush_cheney2004]

I know, we do it tooooooooooooooooooooooooooo. And as usual we beat you. And the Scandihoovians, except for those happy Danes. Who also beat you.

No worries...just returning the favor.

[Canuckistani]

But not addressing your claim that Scandinavians are so damn unhappy in their socialist paradise they kill themselves in extraordinary amounts is just a crock.

[bush_cheney2004]

But not addressing your claim that Scandinavians are so damn unhappy in their socialist paradise they kill themselves in extraordinary amounts is just a crock.

This has already been discussed at length, including Finland as an "outlier". My claim is that they are so "damn happy", not "unhappy". The actual reasons remain unclear.

[Canuckistani]

Your claim was suicide rates are high. Yet they are lower than in that bastion of freedom and the pursuit of happiness. Guess if you're always chasing it you don't actually stop to enjoy it.

[bush_cheney2004]

Your claim was suicide rates are high. Yet they are lower than in that bastion of freedom and the pursuit of happiness. Guess if you're always chasing it you don't actually stop to enjoy it.

Rates are high...especially in Finland. I am not the only one to made this observation. Maybe once they find "happiness", there's not much else to live for.

So it's off to Valhalla !

[Canuckistani]

Finland, as you say is the outlier. Rates are higher in Ameriduh. Guess there's not much to live for there, either. Or your whole argument is a crock.

[bush_cheney2004]

Finland, as you say is the outlier. Rates are higher in Ameriduh. Guess there's not much to live for there, either. Or your whole argument is a crock.

It's not "my argument", despite your feeble attempts to make it so. "Ameriduh" has lower rates than paradise Finland.

[August1991]

Despite being occupied by Islamic Turks for five centuries, the Bulgarian language still exists. Despite a few decades of Soviet Communism, the Bulgarian Orthodox Church still exists.

Why?

[RB]

Even though I know sucide is rampant in Guyana I am still shocked of the #4 on the suicide list. They had a negative population growth rate at some point. The Amerindians live along the rivers and in the interior and could very well be the lost people, well, at least someone is tallying some numbers. I wouldn't be shocked if those numbers are much higher. Politics and government has a lot to do with the depressed state of the people until some recent changes.