There were
525 pregnancy-related deaths in the year 1999 in the United States.
There were
1,765 deaths in the year 2000 due to influenza in the United States.
There were
4,487 deaths in the year 2000 due to asthma in the United States.
There were
43,354 accidental motor vehicle deaths in the year 2000 in the United States.
There were
63,548 deaths in the year 2000 due to pneumonia in the United States.
There were
69,301 deaths in the year 2000 due to diabetes in the United States.
There were
167,661 deaths in the year 2000 due to stroke in the United States.
There were
553,091 deaths in the year 2000 due to cancer in the United States.
There were
710,760 deaths in the year 2000 due to heart disease in the United States.
There have been
28 deaths to date due to SARS in Canada.
These readily available numbers give us cause to wonder if the hysteria over the SARS situation in Canada isn't a bit overblown.
posted by Kirsten at 12:23 PM
The funny thing is that I forgot to write about something good today which was actually the reason why I bothered to log in to post in the first place.
I would like to extend a warm welcome to Three Points Fire District Station 91 which will be opening on Sierrita Mountain Road this Saturday. With fire season already started and controlled burns scheduled in the Buenos Aries National Wildlife Refuge just a bit south of us, I will be very happy to have you as neighbors.
If we could trade every four of the law enforcement creeps (Border Patrol, sheriff's department, etc.) that skulk around the area for just one firefighter, I'd be even happier. Message to law enforcement in my area: you people need to seriously consider a refresher driving course. Tailgating at 50+ mph, parking in the middle of the road when you could have just as easily pulled off onto the shoulder, nearly turning out into oncoming traffic, etc. is dangerous. Please keep in mind that while you are given excessive power by the state, even the state does not have the power to resurrect you.
posted by Kirsten at 12:42 PM
I occasionally have to go crawl under a rock and hide for a while from the awful things I am witnessing around me day by day. When I come out, things are not usually much better, but at least I have had some time away from them.
This time I found the following:
Wendy McElroy posted a link on
her blog which sheds further light on the United States government’s true intentions in Iraq. The
article begins, “In proposing a U.N. Security Council resolution on sanctions, the United States and Britain for the first time refer to themselves as "occupying powers'' rather than "liberating forces'' in Iraq."
Another disturbing article (thanks again to Wendy) details the ordeal of two high school students who were turned in to the Secret Service by their teacher for remarks made about the president during a classroom discussion. They were grilled at length without legal counsel and without having access to their parents.
And
Claire Wolfe posted on
her blog a link to an article on an Orwellian consumer goods tracking system called
AutoID. Says the article of the new system, “The ultimate goal is for Auto-ID to create a "physically linked world" in which every item on the planet is numbered, identified, catalogued, and tracked. And the technology exists to make this a reality.”
And if that isn’t enough, I would like to raise a cry against this
travesty of justice. OREO LOVERS OF THE WORLD UNITE! Dear god, is nothing sacred?
The next time I crawl under a rock, I'll have to remember to cache an ample supplie of Oreos. Double stuff. Definitely double stuff.
posted by Kirsten at 12:30 PM 