Never tell me the odds.

[walldude]

"Sir, the odds of successfully attacking an Imperial Star Destroyer head on are 783 to 1!" "NEVER TELL ME THE ODDS"

Ok so how much danger are we really in. We are spending billions of dollars. We are destroying countless lives. We are killing children in the name of our "safety". We are fighting the "terrorists" over there because we are in danger over here.
Putting aside the fact that 9/11 was avoidable, that we knew it was coming and the Bush administration chose to ignore the PDB that explained that terrorists wanted to hijack an airplane and crash it into the WTC, and putting aside the fact that judging from the "Christmas attack" that the terrorists are total dolts and morons, kind of like our religious nuts, just what are the odds of me getting killed by a terrorist? These numbers were compiled from data at the CDC and the National Safety council and are a few years old...

So here are your "odds" of dying in a lifetime by:

1 in 55,928 of death by lightening
1 in 20,605 in your clothes igniting
1 in 10,455 of dying in your bathtub
1 in 10,010 by falling from a ladder or scaffolding
1 in 9,396 due to excessive heat
1 in 8,389 due to excessive cold
1 in 7,972 in a drowning accident
1 in 6,842 in a railway accident.
1 in 81 in an auto accident
1 in 197 of dying in a homicide
1 in 299 of dying in an assault from a firearm
1 in 5,330 of dying in an assault by hanging or strangulation


Now, what are you odds of dying from a terrorist attack?

1 in 88,000 of a terrorist attack overall.
1 in 1,500,00 of a terrorist-caused shopping mall disaster assuming one such incident a week and you shop two hours a week
1 in 55,000,000 in a terrorist-caused plane disaster assuming one such incident a month and you fly once a month ( 1 )

Yes, keep telling me how it's necessary to fight them over there. Keep telling me I need to be worried about a terrorist who in his suicide bombing attempt FORGOT THE FUCKING DETONATOR. Keep telling me about those horrible Taliban children who are.. what? Waiting outside my door to shoot me? Gimme a fucking break. Are we so afraid of our own shadows that we will kill children who are being armed because their country is under occupation?
Until we stop lying to ourselves, until we admit that terrorists aren't attacking us because we are Democratic and free, but because we are invading their lands, trying to steal their resources, and taking sides in land battles that have nothing to do with national security and everything to do with mythological religious wars, we will never be free from terrorism.

As it stands you have a better chance of being struck by fucking lightening than you do being killed by a terrorist.

[tekisui]

1. That is another reason why these attempts should be dealt with

as criminal activities and not as acts of war.

[villager]

6. +1

n/t

[Subdivisions]

2. K&R. n/t

[NutmegYankee]

3. It's the psychological effect.

People do not get frightened while driving despite the shear awesome physics of an auto accident. They feel in control.

Terrorism on the other hand makes people feel not in control, and that is what scares people.

[walldude]

4. Yeah but that doesn't apply to getting hit by lightening..

no control there, but we aren't spending billions trying to change the weather. (although there are probably some conspiracists who will tell you different :) )

This is my point. This is fear without a basis in reality. It's a game played by politicians and the military industrial complex to keep us stupid and cowering. And judging from that poll saying 60% of the people want to torture someone for information even though it's well known that torture is the least effective way to get reliable information, things aren't getting any better.

[NutmegYankee]

8. Lightning is the "it won't happen to me" game

I understand your point clearly. It's a rational approach the very low risk of terrorism. The problem is that people generally are not rational despite our thoughts to the contrary.

[hfojvt]

5. lightn up, Francis

you know that people are not rational.

The DC sniper was less dangerous than typical DC traffic, but the first one made people stay home in fear and the second one doesn't. Go figure.

[walldude]

7. Then they better get rational...

And I was nice and light on a Sunday.. till I came to DU. As usual.

[EFerrari]

9. Thank you.

:thumbsup:

[iamjoy]

10. Let's Have A War on Lightning!

It would make only slightly less sense than a war on terror, eh?

[That Is Quite Enough]

11. No kidding. Thanks for the statistics.

[panader0]

12. Okay, I've fallen from ladders and from scaffolding

I've very nearly drowned a few times (in big surf). One or two car wrecks. Does this mean I'm going to live to a ripe old age?

[Blue Owl]

13. But the TV told me to be afraid

No need for rational calmness -- just mad panic whenever the caveman shakes his rattle!