Deaths of Despair
Deaths of Despair
Junious Ricardo Stanton
“Declines in life expectancy at birth
were largely due to increases in mortality from unintentional injuries,
suicide, diabetes, and influenza and pneumonia. Interestingly, unintentional
injuries made the largest contribution. This is of interest since drug
overdoses are commonly categorized on death certificates as poisoning as the cause
of death, which is a form of unintentional injury.” US Life Expectancy Drops for Third Year
In A Row-What We Know and Don’t Know From The 2017 CDC Mortality Report https://healthmetrics.heart.org/us-life-expectancy-drops-for-third-year-in-a-row-what-we-know-and-dont-know-from-the-2017-cdc-mortality-report/
With the round the clock media focus
on the Meuller investigation into Russian collusion which every discerning
person in the US knew was bogus, the mind control apparatus glossed over the much
more relevant issue of declining life expectancy for Americans. This marks the
third year in a row US
Public health experts and people
familiar with this rend are calling this “deaths of despair”. I encourage you
to watch the HBO Documentary United
States of Stress that looks at this phenomenon specifically focusing on
white working class families. The theme is the impact and affects of stress on the
human body and the documentary pinpoints several factors they believe are
causing the high rates of suicide, drug and alcohol related deaths in America
During the program one
of the speakers says African-Americans have been experiencing this forever;
meaning the social pressures of living in an uncertain and hostile environment and
the sense of having no personal control over one’s life elevates stress levels
which trigger physiological reactions which over time damage the arteries and
organs in the body.
Looking at the data, health and
demographic experts saw an alarming pattern: most of these early death causes
could be eliminated. “The biggest factors behind the drop in life
expectancy among Americans over the last three years are drug overdoses and
suicides. In 2017, more than 70,000 Americans died from drug overdoses, and
approximately 45,000 people intentionally took their own lives. These deaths,
along with alcohol-related deaths, have been dubbed “deaths of despair” by
researchers Anne Case and Angus Deaton. The “despair” referred to by Case and
Deaton is largely economic, resulting from diminished job prospects and other
personal disappointments. As Case put it, “Your family life has fallen apart,
you don’t know your kids anymore, all the things you expected when you started
out your life just haven’t happened at all.”
As a result, people, usually but not always men, turn to
alcohol and drugs to ease their pain. An increasing number take their own lives.”
Breakpoint: The so called deaths of despair Why Americans are dying younger and
younger. http://www.breakpoint.org/2018/12/breakpoint-the-so-called-deaths-of-despair/
Again what
is alarming to these researchers and public health officials is that these “deaths
of despair” are happening to white people! When drugs were flooding our
communities the narrative was we are morally lax and their solution was a “War
on Drugs” featuring harsh sentencing for Blacks and lenient sentences for
whites. Now that whites are hooked and thrown off, the narrative is “we can’t
arrest our way out of this epidemic we need treatment and prevention”.
I wouldn't
wish drug addiction on anyone, neither suffering nor the loss of a loved one
prematurely due to maladaptive lifestyles and psychological pain, but let’s be honest;
there is something horribly wrong in America
People are seeing their lifestyle
and economic futures evaporate before their eyes and they don’t know what to
do. They see the 1% getting away with causing their pain and angst and nothing
is being done to help them. Banks and big industries are being bailed out, but
not them. Then they fall victim to political slogans and campaign rhetoric like
“Hope and Change” or “Make America Great Again”, yet no matter which party is
in office conditions don’t improve for the little guys!
Don’t allow
yourself to lose hope. Our ancestors endured much worse. Personal strength is a
choice. Optimism is a decision, no matter how bleak things look. Resilience and
fortitude are embedded deep within our souls waiting to be called up and used
at the appropriate and appointed times. Don’t allow appearances or circumstances
to undermine your sense of self, your optimism or your quality of life
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posted by Junious Ricardo Stanton @ 5:54 AM
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