NOTE TO MEDIA: DESPITE HORROR, AMERICANS ARE SAFER
NOTE TO MEDIA: DESPITE HORROR, AMERICANS ARE SAFER
By: David Harsanyi
Listening to the crush of media coverage and the sickening politicization of the murders in Colorado, we should not let it escape our attention that despite all the violence and sadness brought on by this event — I lived in Denver for years, and I’ve taken my children to the Aurora theater, so I get it — most of us live in a far safer place than our parents.
All day, I’ve watched television pundits talk about the country as if we were saturated in non-stop violence. The simple fact is that over the past decades we have become a more peaceful place. Steven Pinker’s fascinating book “The Better Angels of Our Nature: Why Violence Has Declined” is a macro view of this historical worldwide trend, but during my lifetime, crime rates and gun violence have fallen – dramatically.
According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, in 1994, the United States hit an ugly peak with 13,981 murders by hand gun. By 2005, the last year the study is available on the site, the number was 8,478. Death by other guns also decreased from 3,094 to 2,868 during that time.
In 2010 there were 14,748 “murder and nonnegligent manslaughters” in the United States. That’s the lowest number since 1969. Even during this recession, crime has kept falling for the most part, and baffling experts.
Nothing can stop a sick person bent on murder. But all the scaremongering about guns and crime doesn’t reflect reality.
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Interesting Pics 2012
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Jer's Photo of the Day
Photos and Photo Art by Sebastianjer
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Election 2012
Since April I have been tracking "Likely Voter" polls in the states that could possibly be in play in November. These are not polls of just "registered voters" but only those of "likely Voters" which are generally accepted to be the most accurate. As we get closer to the election most polling outfits will begin to poll only "likely voters" at present only a few do now. I will post the most recent of these LV polls as I find them. A (+) represents Obama is up a (-) represents that Romney is up in that state according to the most recent LV poll.
FL -3/OH +2/ PA +4/ IA +1/ NC -3/ VA +1/ AZ -13/ CO +1/ NV +6/ MO -7/ NH +4/ MI +1/
MN NA/ WI +8/ ME +14/ OR NA/ NJ NA/ NM +11/ GA +12/ SC NA/ IN NA/
BOLD are changes since 6/27 and direction of change for Obama (>)up (<) down since last poll
IA >
NH >
MI >
WI >
GA New
ME New
NM Bew
FL <
CO <
VA <
OH
NV <
States where over 50% of voters would vote for President Obama in the above polling data:
PA <
NM 51%
States 45% or below for Obama
FL 45%
OH
IA 45%
NC 44%
VA
AZ 41%
MO 42%
GA 40%
CO 45%
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TODAY'S QUOTE
“As all of his big government spending programs fail to restore jobs and growth, he seems to be retreating into a statist vision of government direction and control of a free society that looks backward to the failed ideologies of the 20th century.”
Paul Ryan
Reader Comments
Page: 1 — Blog Index
Thinking your going to reduce violent crimes by disarming a law abiding public is ludicrous.
Trying to understand "why" James Holmes committed this act is no different than a Mother murdering her children or a rabid dog attacking children in a playground.
The media doesn't like conclusions like "A psychopath murdered 12 people and wounded 50 others last night in a theater...End of story".
The reasons why Holmes or any other psychopaths decide to commit such acts can not be grasped by thinking like yourself and trying to somehow place yourself in their shoes. That doesn't work. You're not a psychopath.
All we can do is hope we never meet one.
Not everything has an answer.
But, that's not how the Media works.
The media doesn't like conclusions like "A psychopath murdered 12 people and wounded 50 others last night in a theater...End of story".
The reasons why Holmes or any other psychopaths decide to commit such acts can not be grasped by thinking like yourself and trying to somehow place yourself in their shoes. That doesn't work. You're not a psychopath.
All we can do is hope we never meet one.
Not everything has an answer."
On this, Shep, we agree.
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