They’re treated like an embarrassment to the image of grownup life as mature and serene, whose only vexation is the misbehaviors of their kids.Ī third problem is that interest groups are relentlessly exploitative, trumpeting without evidence that failing to implement their policy agenda will result in teenagers killing themselves. When have you seen any media stories, White House or agency conferences, or interest-group press campaigns featuring teenagers who suffer the suicide or drug-abuse death of a parent or nearby adult? Those who claim such great concern for youth show no sympathy for that kind of suicidal teen, or even recognize his/her existence. Yet, the fact that many more thousands of teenagers suffer the suicide of a parent than the other way around, causing great distress to the children and teens left behind and upping their own suicidality, seems of zero concern. Suicide has risen fastest (up a startling 55% by rate over the last two decades) among the most privileged demographic, non-Latino Whites in their late 40s and 50s, which is also the fastest-growing population for drug abuse, crime, and imprisonment. Today, the suicide risk for middle-aged adults has leaped to triple that of high-school youth. Two decades ago, the average parent-aged adult was around twice as likely to commit suicide as their teen aged 13-18. Teenagers are not the cause it’s their parents. Over the last 20 years, America’s suicide rate has increased by 9% as other forms of death have fallen. And, to stop the rampant exaggeration and lying about what we call “teen suicide” and to recognize that the most crucial factors promoting suicide are imposed on young people from the outside. Just the opposite: the point is to marshal the best information instead of the inflammatory, self-serving junk so many agencies and interests peddle through a compliant media. The point here is not to diminish the tragedy of a suicide, nor to disparage valuable efforts to prevent suicide. The largest, best study of 2,881 young gay men found that it wasn’t bullying, but parents’ addiction and histories of childhood abuse, that were the main contributors to their suicidal feelings – clearly a disappointing finding gay advocates and political leaders systematically ignore. Second, no one (beyond a few unquoted researchers and storefront programs) seems honestly interested in why a small number of young people commit suicide. That consistent reality is hard for those who misrepresent teenagers as succumbing to their own teenaged irrationality to explain. They also obscure the vital truth that populations (i.e., white males) and locales (i.e., intermountain states) with high adult suicide rates also have high teen suicide rates. It seems like officials, interests, and the media are collaborating to convince teenagers that suicide is normative for their age, when the reality is diametrically the opposite. That is, compared to adults, teenagers are uniquely disinclined to commit suicide. In contrast, among an equivalent population age 40-49 (their parents), 7,533 (1 in 5,600) committed suicide.Īn adult of age to be parent to a teenager is more than twice as likely to commit suicide as an older teen age 15-19, and nearly 10 times more likely to commit suicide than a younger teen age 10-14.
The latest Centers for Disease Control figures show that of the nation’s 41,800,000 teenagers, 2,143 (1 in every 19,500) committed suicide or died from an undetermined cause likely to have been suicide in 2013, slightly over 5% of the nation’s total suicides (from popular representations, you’d think it was 95%).
The failure of authorities to adopt an interest group’s agenda.Peer bullying, especially cyberbullying, both depicted as nonexistent in adulthood (which is why “ it gets better”).The “teenage brain,” which is irrational, impulsive, over-dramatic, and self-destructive.If you follow the major-media/political discussion, you “know” teenagers commit suicide in huge numbers for only three reasons: Do leaders and interests really care about “teen suicide” - or just how they can use it?
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