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Originally Posted by Nantoz
But consider this; Scandinavia is one of the most prosperous regions in the world, yet the suicide rate is on the top of the chart.
But suicide is quite unusal in a region like sub-Saharan Africa....
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Well, Africa tends to do better than Europe in those optimism polls, which is justified in the sense that Africa is much more likely to grow than Europe, as far as that's meaningful. And if you've got practical problems which occupy most of your waking energies, then you might not have much time to dedicate to existential despair.
Having said that, how reliable are statistics on suicide, internationally speaking? Lots of cultures seem to have taboos on suicide, but while hiding the cause of death in Europe might pose some difficulties that's probably less true in the Congo. Additionally, if we expanded suicide to include other forms of self-harm which can lead to death (e.g. drug abuse) then at least some people engaging in unprotected sex in sub-Saharan Africa do seem to be acting at least wrecklessly, if not suicidal.