TeenScreen
In order to understand what is driving the push to “identify” teen-agers with suicidal tendencies, it is helpful to look at a little history. First, let’s ask the question: What diseases were the top killers of American 100 years ago; and what are the top killers now?
The US Mortality Data for 1908 show that these diseases were America’s top-ranked killers:
Typhoid fever, measles, scarlet fever, whooping cough, diphtheria, and tuberculosis
The top-ranked kilers of Americans in 2004 were:
Heart disease, cancer, stroke, chronic lower respiratory diseases, accidents, and diabetes
It is important to understand how these two groups of diseases differ from each other: the first group is made up entirely of infectious diseases; the second group is composed entirely of diseases brought on by lifestyle: diet, smoking, lack of exercise, etc.
Now, what has this got to do with TeenScreen? (to be continued)