And now for something completely different...Suici

[Van [down by the river]]

Smackie, why do you call my assertion that suicide is primarily the enclave of the wealthy a gross over generalization when your excellent following hypothesis supports my assertion?

[Sniper 1]

Suicide has nothing to do with your socio-economic status and everything to do with a chemical imbalance in your brain.

Your brain is entirely made up of chemicals called neurotransmitters. There are 200 different neurotransmitters but only four that control moods. One of these is called Serotonin.

Picture your mind looking like a bunch of little classrooms connected by hallways. The bell rings and class ends. All the neurotransmitters go into the hallway and into the next class. Just before the bell rings to start the class some of the Serotonin neurotransmitters go back out into the hallway (this phenomenon is called "re-uptake"). The door then closes.

Now the teacher cannot start the class because some of the students are missing and try as they might, they cannot re-enter the class with the door shut.

Thus the imbalance.

The most popular anti-depressants on the market fall under the category of SSRIs (selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors). They prevent the serotonin from leaving the classroom and thereby keep the proper balance.

I'm sorry for the sophomoric explanation but it's the only way I know to get the point across.

And by the way, I'm not offering this as my opinion here. This is all fact. Go look it up.

<font color="#330033" size="1">[ February 27, 2002 09:57 PM: Message edited by: Sniper 1 ]</font>

[Van [down by the river]]

Sniper, okay, using your hypothesis, then why do the comfortable and the wealthy seem to represent a disproportionately high % of people with the exact chemical imbalance of the brain necessary to drive one to suicide?

Is there some specific bad "suicide" agent in quality prime rib?

<font color="#330033" size="1">[ February 27, 2002 10:01 PM: Message edited by: Van ]</font>

[Sniper 1]

Van, I have no idea.

[IBystander]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size=2 face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:</font><table border="0" width="90%" bgcolor="#333333" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="0"><tr><td width="100%"><table border="0" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="2" bgcolor="#FF9900"><tr><td width="100%" bgcolor="#DDDDDD"><font size=2 face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Originally posted by Sniper 1:
Suicide has nothing to do with your socio-economic status and everything to do with a chemical imbalance in your brain.</font></td></tr></table></td></tr></table></BLOCKQUOTE>

And yet how is that 'imbalance' made in the first place, Sniper?

They can make a pill for anything, but those are bandaids...... if you have to keep taking the pill for the problem to be 'solved' then the problem hasn't been solved.

It's just been temporarily masked.

The body should be able to heal itself, be given a chance to heal properly... that's what it's there for. It won't net doctors and pharmacists the cash money keeping someone on drugs for the rest of their life would... but it would make for a healthier person.

[IBystander]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size=2 face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:</font><table border="0" width="90%" bgcolor="#333333" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="0"><tr><td width="100%"><table border="0" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="2" bgcolor="#FF9900"><tr><td width="100%" bgcolor="#DDDDDD"><font size=2 face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Originally posted by Sniper 1:
Van, I have no idea.</font></td></tr></table></td></tr></table></BLOCKQUOTE>


and yet that's exactly what you claimed, that you did have an idea... you had The Answer.

[Sniper 1]

The imbalance is genetic. You're born with it, it's just a matter of what triggers it, and when. In many cases it can be cured. Many people aren't on anti-depressants for more than a few months.

If someone does become clinically depressed however, there is a 70% chance it will happen to them again some day. If it happens twice the chance of reccurance is 100%.

<font color="#330033" size="1">[ February 27, 2002 10:13 PM: Message edited by: Sniper 1 ]</font>

[Sniper 1]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size=2 face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:</font><table border="0" width="90%" bgcolor="#333333" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="0"><tr><td width="100%"><table border="0" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="2" bgcolor="#FF9900"><tr><td width="100%" bgcolor="#DDDDDD"><font size=2 face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Originally posted by IBystander:



and yet that's exactly what you claimed, that you did have an idea... you had The Answer.</font></td></tr></table></td></tr></table></BLOCKQUOTE>

Not to his second question I didn't. What gave you that idea?

[Funkywhiteboy]

Suicide Is Painless
Theme From M*A*S*H*

Through early morning fog I see
Visions of the things to be,
The pains that are withheld for me,
I realize and I can see

[REFRAIN]
That suicide is painless
It brings on many changes
And I can take or leave it if I please

I try to find a way to make
All our little joys relate
Without that ever-present hate,
But now I know that it's too late, and...

[REFRAIN]

The game of life is hard to play,
I'm gonna lose it anyway
The losing card I'll someday lay,
So this is all I have to say...

[REFRAIN]

The only way to win is cheat,
And lay it down before I'm beat
And to another give my seat,
For that's the only painless feat...

[REFRAIN]

The sword of time will pierce our skins,
It doesn't hurt when it begins
But as it works its way on in,
The pain grows stronger, watch it grin. but...

[REFRAIN]

A brave man once requested me
to answer questions that are key
Is it to be or not to be?
And I replied "Oh, why ask me?"

[REFRAIN]

'Cause suicide is painless
It brings on many changes
And I can take or leave it if I please
...And you can do the same thing if you choose.

[Van [down by the river]]

Sniper, I've always heard it theorized that Sweden has such an inordinate amount of alcoholics and suicides because of the overly homogenous nature of their society combining with their cold weather to create a nation of bored, comfortable shut-ins who lack stimuli.

Ennui, being their national past time.

That would be a socio-economic rationale for suicide, with a bit of Willard Scott thrown in for good measure.

You're saying it's genetic. Maybe there's something bad in smoked fish and potato pancakes, that got into the Swedish gene pool a long time ago?