OK Ladies & Gentlemen, as we approach the end of 2006 and the media prepares to bombard us with highlights and lowlights of the past 12 months, including their gleefully anticipated reporting of the 3,000th death in the War in Iraq, I feel compelled to remind you of a couple of things.
Fact, the US population crossed 300 million this year. You probably saw that statistic on the front page of your local
Fact, over 40,000 people lost their lives in automobile accidents since January 1st of this year.
Did you know about that annual tragedy?
Actually, the death rate has declined slightly from nearly 45,000 in the mid 1980’s due to the increased use of seatbelts, air bags, and increased drunken driving prevention efforts.
That's a rate of 1 person dead in and around autos for every 7,500 members of the US population.
Next, let me report that currently there are about 1.4 million Americans serving as Active Duty members of our Armed Forces today. About 1000 were killed in Iraq this year (including members of the Reserves and National Guard.)
I can't find the website, but I've read previously that more members of the military die each year in non-combat related and training accidents than in actual combat. You'll just have to take my word for that as I continue to look for the numbers and a link.
Any way, now here’s my point…
Since the start of the war in Iraq in March 2003 (46 months), using the above numbers it would be safe to say that over 153,000 people have died crashing things made by General Motors and the other auto manufacturers into each other and roadside trees.
ONE HUNDRED FIFTY THREE THOUSAND DEAD PEOPLE!!!
I have to ask, “Where’s the daily Associated Press front page Newspaper Stories on that little insignificant (apparently) statistic?”
Where’s the daily running total in the national newspapers?
Yes, I know that locally the more spectacular accidents and casualties are often reported, but I’m thinking about starting a website and attempting to consolidate the carnage on a daily national basis and selling the numbers to the media.
IF I could actually sell the results of my efforts, I doubt that it would end up anywhere but in the back pages of section B in the papers because the anti-war crowd all drive SUV’s and my hideous statistics don’t support their political agenda (except possibly that while killing the environment with SUV’s they ignore the enhanced occupant safety they provide.)
I’d probably starve to death trying to make a living doing that kind of stuff in the current political climate.
With a little more than 1 in every 214 people of the total population in the military, it’s really amazing to me that everyone is brainwashed into freaking out over the TRULY LOW LEVELS OF MILITARY CASUALTIES we’ve experienced thus far in our efforts.
Almost as many members of the military died IN ONE DAY during the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 than have died in the entire effort in Iraq.
A greater number of GI’s were killed in the invasion of Utah and Omaha Beaches in Normandy, but all the media can do today is scream “O MY GOD, ANOTHER DEAD SOLDIER…”
Get a GRIP, people.
As I've written at least a half dozen times before:
WAR INVOLVES BREAKING THINGS AND KILLING PEOPLE
Don't just read the headlines and first paragraph of the story each morning.
And for God's sake, read something and watch something other than just the
(And before you start commenting and e-mailing me with complaints, let me state that I consider the death of any human being, regardless of their station in life, to be a tragedy, but then again--better kill our country's enemies in their homes overseas than to have to fight them on my patio and in my front yard.)
You'll have to excuse me now, but I have to go clean my guns...
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Gosh, my math was off on my calculator, so the vehicular deaths is 1 in 7,500, not 1 in 75,000. I thought that sounded low but I was bleary eyed at that time of the morning and failed to check my calculations and transcription.
It also assists my argument that living in the modern world is inherently dangerous, because using that same mortality rate 200 out of our 1.5 million troops would have been killed stateside this year in auto accidents.
Where's the headlines about That?
See, EVEN WHEN I'M WRONG--I'M RIGHT!!
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