(목요모임) [31 Jan 2019]Thursday meeting topic

[susanna]

[Editorial] Highest suicide rate

Suicide prevention efforts lacking

The latest OECD Health Statistics held dismal news for Korea. The country’s suicide rate stood at the top among the 25 of the 34 Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development member states for which figures were available.

The average suicide rate among the 25 countries stood at 11.9 persons per 100,000. At 29.1 persons per 100, 000, the suicide rate in Korea was more than double the average OECD figure for 2012. In fact, the country has topped the list since 2003 when the suicide rate reached 28.1 persons per 100,000, peaking at 33.8 in 2009.

Korea’s suicide rate first spiked in 1998 when it reached 21.7 persons per 100,000, as the country struggled with the Asian financial crisis of 1997. In 1995, the suicide rate had stood at 12.7 persons per 100,000, about the OECD average.

It is easy to blame the still high suicide rate on the continued aftermath of the financial crisis. However, economic difficulties alone do not sufficiently explain the high rate of suicide -- there are countries with lower gross domestic products that have much lower suicide rates. Nor can the phenomenon be dismissed as a matter of personal problems, attributing the high suicide rate to the preval‎‎‎ence of untreated depression.

Perhaps an explanation for the high rate of suicide can be found in the contradictions of Korean society. Despite its phenomenal economic development in the last 60 years or so, Korea suffers from a growing income gap and social immobility.

The worsening income disparity means a greater sense of alienation and comparative sense of loss. In a close-knit society such as Korea, such disparity is felt with great immediacy. This year’s biennial OECD report on well-being shows Korea ranking nearly at the bottom in health status, work-life balance and subjective assessment of well-being categories.

Korea also scores at the top when it comes to elderly poverty. The youth happiness index, on the other hand, ranks at the bottom. Not surprisingly, Korea ranked at the top for suicide rate among the elderly population in OECD countries. Meanwhile, suicide is the No. 1 cause of death among young adults here.

Overall, it appears that Korea as a nation is not a happy one.

Ultimately, people’s quality of life must be improved to create a happier nation. In the meantime, the government should focus on preventing suicides. Japan, which had similarly suffered from a high suicide rate, turned the tide in 2010 through active government intervention. It passed a law on suicide prevention in 2006 and spends 300 billion won ($255 million) a year toward that end. Japan’s suicide rate in this year’s OECD report stands at 18.7 persons per 100,000.

The Korean government instituted the first five-year plan for suicide prevention in 2004 but has not implemented a new plan since the second five-year plan expired in 2013. The annual budget for suicide prevention stands at a mere 8 billion won. There is much room for improvement in the government’s efforts to prevent suicide.

1. Is the suicide rate in your country high?

2. Why do people commit suicide?

3. When you feel depressed, sad or lonely, How do you overcome that overwhelming feeling?

4. Have you ever contemplated suicide?

5. What would you do if your friend started talking about suicide?

6. How do you cope with the death of someone special?

7. Is committing suicide one of the most selfish acts a person can do?

8. What kind of people are more likely to commit suicide?

9. Thomas S. Szasz said: "Suicide is a fundamental human right. This does not mean that it is morally desirable. It only means that society does not have the moral right to interfere." Do you agree?

10. What do you think would happen if there were no death for human beings?

11. What kind of funeral arrangements would you make for yourself if you knew you were dying?

reference: The Korea Herald

60 is the new middle age, not 50

For the past 100 years, people believed middle age to be around 50 years old. This is when we start to grow 'old'. However, new research says we have to change this. A study from the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIAS) in Austria and Stony Brook University in New York says middle age now starts at 60 or even 65, or older. Why? The biggest reason is that we are living longer. We are also healthier, we have better diets, we exercise more and we have more money to live a nicer lifestyle. The IIAS said: "Since life expectancies have increased over the past several decades, and are continuing to increase, people once considered 'old' should actually be viewed as more middle aged."

The study was not a worldwide one so perhaps not everyone in all countries can say they are middle aged when they are 65. The researchers looked at populations in 39 European countries, so this is good news for Europeans. Britain's National Health Service warned against looking at this study and believing it to be 100 per cent true. It said the researchers did not look at things which could reduce life expectancy: "We don't know whether, for example, they factored in the possible impact of being unable to treat infections because of rising antibiotic resistance, or the increased numbers of people with diabetes due to obesity." It recommended healthy living, eating and exercise as a way to live longer.

http://www.breakingnewsenglish.com/1504/150419-middle-age.html#ixzz3bIIwBH2K

1. What is the best age to be – 20, 30, 40 or 50?

2. How old do you want to live to be?

3. Which 'old' people do you know who are not really old?

4. Should older people not dye their hair or wear young fashion?

5. What do you think your life expectancy might be?

[diana]

안녕하세요~ 오랜만에 참석하려고 하는데, 장소가 변경된 것 같네요.. 오늘 모임 장소는 파리바케트인가요?

[주영이]

네 맞습니다. 시간은 8시 중문 파리바게트 입니다.

[diana]

감사합니다~ 저녁에 뵙겠습니다~