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Did you know? The “pro-life” party is also pro-suicide

Did you know? The “pro-life” party is also pro-suicide

Last updated on: May 2, 2023 at 9:54 pm by Kathryn Shihadah

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Did you know? The “pro-life” party is also pro-suicide 2023-05-02T21:54:09-04:00 Kathryn Shihadah

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Before we jump to our discussion of suicide, let’s admit one thing. It is impossible to rationalize the “pro-life” party’s worship of weapons. They know it and we know it. Every time there’s a mass murder, they scramble for a scapegoat. In Nashville TN, the problem was not guns but trans people. In Cleveland TX, the border with Mexico is to blame. In Mojave CA, it was drugs. Elsewhere, it’s black-on-black crime, or homosexuals, or mental illness. Never guns.

Because if a bad guy doesn’t have a gun, he will find another way to kill – kitchen knife, poisonous dart, boa constrictor. There are many options. So why take away guns?

There is one reason that I’ve never heard anyone talk about on the right or the left.

Suicide.

If you or someone you know is in crisis, please call or text 988, or visit 988lifeline.org/chat to chat with a counselor from the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, previously known as the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. The 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline provides 24/7, free, and confidential support to people in suicidal crisis or emotional distress anywhere in the US.

Staggering statistics

So far this year, the United States has seen 14,084 total gun deaths. 57 percent of those – 8,052 – were suicides.

Think about that: this year, over 8,000 families were devastated by the loss of a loved one who, in a moment of desperation, shot him or herself, most likely in the head, and died a gruesome death. And the year is not yet half over.

In 2021, there were over 26,000 gun suicides in the US.

Can we shrug this off by saying “if someone wants to commit suicide, and they don’t have a gun, they will find another way”?

NO, WE EMPHATICALLY CAN NOT.

Here’s why: only 4 percent of non-firearm suicide attempts result in death. A full 90 percent of gun suicide attempts result in death.

You know why: guns are usually lethal. Other suicide methods can often be reversed.

And here’s another compelling fact: the vast majority – 90 percent – of people who survive a suicide attempt will not go on to die by suicide. That is, they change their minds about dying.

Obviously, those who use a gun rarely have the opportunity to change their minds.

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Firearms in the home

Here’s a no-brainer: having access to a gun increases the risk of death by suicide – this includes the gun owner and his or her entire household.

Here’s another: people who live in states with high rates of household gun ownership are almost four times more likely to die by gun suicide than those in states with lower rates.

What does this mean?

Not everyone who tries to commit suicide really wants to die. Almost everyone who tries to commit suicide with a gun succeeds – whether they actually want to or not. Most people who fail to commit suicide have a change of heart and don’t try again.

We can help make more suicide attempts fail by reducing gun ownership.

What does this mean for Christians?

Jesus came that we might have life, and have it more abundantly (John 10:10, KJV). Guns came that we might have death, and have it more abundantly (NRA). Every year, thousands of Americans die by gun suicide, and we’ll never know how many of them really wanted to live.

If LIFE is a priority for you, for the sake of your loved ones (and mine), end your love affair with guns. You will be part of a movement to give thousands of people a second chance at life.

PS If you believe that anyone who commits suicide will go to hell (I’ve written about this elsewhere), then you really need to help end gun suicides! Eternal consequences, people.

Bonus statistics for your reading pleasure

According to data from the CDC, the following states had the highest firearm mortality rates per 100,000 in 2021 (red type indicates the state cast its electoral votes for Trump in 2020; blue type indicates the state cast its electoral votes for Biden):

Mississippi had a firearm mortality rate of 33.9, making it the state with the highest rate in 2021.
Louisiana had a firearm mortality rate of 29.1.
New Mexico had a firearm mortality rate of 27.8.
Alabama had a firearm mortality rate of 26.4.
Wyoming had a firearm mortality rate of 26.1.
Alaska had a firearm mortality rate of 25.2.
Montana had a firearm mortality rate of 25.1.
Arkansas had a firearm mortality rate of 23.3.
Missouri had a firearm mortality rate of 23.2.
Tennessee had a firearm mortality rate of 22.8.
South Carolina had a firearm mortality rate of 22.4.
Oklahoma had a firearm mortality rate of 21.2.
Georgia had a firearm mortality rate of 20.3.
Nevada had a firearm mortality rate of 19.8.
Indiana had a firearm mortality rate of 18.4.

The following states had the lowest firearm mortality rates:

Massachusetts has a firearm mortality rate of 3.4.
Hawaii has a firearm mortality rate of 4.8.
New Jersey has a firearm mortality rate of 5.2.
New York has a firearm mortality rate of 5.4.
Rhode Island has a firearm mortality rate of 5.6.
Connecticut has a firearm mortality rate of 6.7.
New Hampshire has a firearm mortality rate of 8.3.
California has a firearm mortality rate of 9.0.
Minnesota has a firearm mortality rate of 10.0.
Nebraska has a firearm mortality rate of 10.3.
Iowa has a firearm mortality rate of 11.2.
Washington has a firearm mortality rate of 11.2.
Vermont has a firearm mortality rate of 11.9.
Maine has a firearm mortality rate of 12.6.
Wisconsin has a firearm mortality rate of 13.5.

(If you are energized by challenges to the evangelical status quo like this, please subscribe to my newsletter! If you would like to comment on this post, please pop over to my Facebook page. All of my posts are there and open to constructive comment! I welcome your thoughts.)

MORE POSTS ON GUN VIOLENCE:

FEATURED IMAGE: “Gun Smoke Sepia” by Knowles Gallery is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

About Kathryn Shihadah

I was raised as a conservative Christian, and was perfectly content to stay that way – until the day my stable, predictable world was rocked. A curtain was pulled back on conservative Christianity, and instead of ignoring the ugliness I saw, I confronted it. I began to ask questions I never thought I’d ask, and found answers I’d never expected. Old things began to fall away, and – behold! – the new me has come. What a gift to be a new, still-evolving creation. I found out that it’s better to look at the world through Progressive Lenses, with Grace-Colored Glasses. You can read more about the author here.

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