Death By The Numbers

For some reason, mortality struck me as a subject for a post and a little research brought to light some amazing facts and numbers. Bear with me for a bit.

Death comes to everyone. Someone you know will die. Check that, EVERYONE you know will die, including you and me.

- How many Americans die every year? Over 2,420,000.* Of that number, roughly 40% die suddenly. To put that in perspective, 2,600 Americans woke up yesterday expecting to live for a long time to come, but today, they have passed away.

- How do people die?
Heart disease is America’s No 1 killer, taking one life every 35 seconds. Cancer causes one death every 56 seconds. There are other reasons, daily:

In a hospital: 250 die from a medical error, procedure or a lethal infection.
Transport: 119 die in a vehicle accident (all types.)
Poisoning: 53 are accidentally poisoned.
At home: 49 are killed in an accident at home.
Falls: 47 are killed in a fall every day
Homicide: 44 are murdered every day
Drowning: 9 people are drowned every day
All the above are DAILY!
* Source: National Vital Statistics Report, 2006.

- According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, more than three million men, women, and children died on America's roads and highways in the Twentieth Century. Five times as many Americans were killed on our highways as were killed in all the wars ever fought, ever since the US Constitution was ratified. For the past two decades, an average of 40,000 people died on America’s roadways. When ranked by specific ages, motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for ages 3 to 6 and 8 to 34.

In 2006, 42,642 people died on America's roadways, 13,478 in alcohol-related crashes. California, Florida and Texas lead the way in state fatality tolls, averaging almost 3,700 victims per year between them. Also, in 2006, it was reported that 1.2 MILLION people lost their lives on highways Worldwide.

Wars and Massacres* play their part as well. Some of the numbers of history are amazing. Here are but a few:

- Leningrad, World War II (900 Days: 8 Sept. 1941-27 Jan. 1944) 850,000 Total number of soldiers and civilians who perished: 1.6M-2.0M ( or approx. 2,300/day.)
- Somme, World War I (1 July-18 Nov. 1916): 306,000 with 20,000 killed on the first day.
- Kuwait, Gulf War (24-27 Feb. 1991): 1,500-9,500 Iraqi soldiers killed in country; The US lost 147 killed in battle and the British lost 47 soldiers.
- D-Day (6 June, 1944) alone: 2,500 Allied KIA, including 1,465 USA and 340 Canadian soldiers.
- Iraq War 4,070 US KIA as of Apr. 2008. (Unofficial.)


Massacres
- Auschwitz, Poland 1,200,000-1,500,000 victims, of which 800,000-1,100,000 were Jews
- Manila, Philippines (massacre of civilians by Japanese: Nov. 1944-Feb. 1945): 100.000 men, women and children.
- Hiroshima, Japan (nuclear strike by US: 6 Aug. 1945): 92,000 souls.
- 9/11/2001: Total: 3,018, not incl. 19 hijackers on 4 planes
*Source: Twentieth Century Atlas - Casualty Statistics - Battles and Massacres

Natural disasters also happen world wide, bringing unimaginable statistics with them, the Myanamar (Burma) Cyclone disaster of this week included.

Politicians lament, reporters accuse, blogger's write and people cry out for change, but do you know what?

Death happens. History records. Survivors mourn. Life goes on.

That is the Big Picture as I see it. Except for a Biblical few, everyone who has ever lived on this Rock has died. Everyone that lives today and will live tomorrow, will die. For those who believe in the Rapture, those numbers might change, but for the most part, you can count on death. It is a sure thing.

The moral? Kiss and hug your loved one when you leave for the day. Don't go to sleep with an issue unresolved between you and another. If you are of Faith, understand what Eternity means. If you are of Faith, there is nothing to fear except maybe, the means of what is coming.

Romans 6:23 sums it up for me - (CEV) Sin pays off with death. But God's gift is eternal life given by Jesus Christ our Lord.