The USA isn't safe

An article written by Rachel Dicker over at US News and World Report caught my eye, it was titled
10 Safest Countries, Ranked by Perception:

"According to data from the 2016 Best Countries rankings- a characterizations of 60 countries based on a survey of more than 16,000 people from four regions- Denmark is perceived to be the safest country in the world."

She goes on to say:

"The United States comes in 20th on the Best Countries ranking of safe countries, perhaps because the U.S. is beset by high rates of gun deaths, as well as mass incarceration and high military spending."

Here is the "safest countries in the world"  ranked by perception. I emphasized her use of the word because this entire article is conjecture. Ms. Dicker, and US News is not using any guideline to validate her assumption, and this "perception" can be taken apart quite easily.  I have also included their populations:

       Country                  Population      

1. Denmark  -          5,690,750             
2. Sweden -             9,851,852            
3. Canada -            36,286,378
4. New Zealand -    4,565,185
5. Netherlands -    16,979,729
6. Austria -              8,569,633
7. Australia           24,309,330
8. Luxembourg -        576,243
9. Germany -        80,682,351
10. Ireland -              4,713,993 

Consider that the populations of California (37,253,956) and Texas (25,145,561) = 62,399,517, which is larger than all these countries with the exception of Germany. In fact, if you removed Germany from the equation, these two state would be among the largest on the list.

Let us look at some of the actual crime statistics of these countries compared to the U.S.: (I will note, the data that I am using ends at 2010)

Rape:                                       Amount

#6 Sweden                                 (63.5)
#11 Australia                             (28.6) 
#14 United States                     (27.3)
#16 New Zealand                      (25.8)
#21 Ireland                                (10.7)
#22 Austria                                (10.4)
#24 Germany                               (9.4)
#25 Netherlands                           (9.2)



Assault Rate:                            Amount:

#6 Sweden                                  (845.2)
#7 New Zealand                         (839.4)
#10 Canada                                 (737.5)
#12 Germany                              (619.9)
#16 Austria                                 (440.3)
#22 Netherlands                         (351.8)
#26 Luxemborg                          (296.5)
    United States                         (242.3)
#45 Ireland                                  (93.9)

Total Crimes per 1,000               Amount

#2 Sweden                                     (138.35)
#5 New Zealand                            (108.2)
#8 Denmark                                   (91.34)
#9 Netherlands                               (88.11)
#10 Canada                                    (80.25)
#11 Germany                                  (78.89)
#13 Austria                                     (68.35)
#16 Luxembourg                            (58.38)
#22 United States                          (41.29)
#40 Ireland                                     (20.67)


The point behind all these statistics is that the United States is not only safer than the majority of these countries in some categories (Total Crimes per 100,000 & Assault Rates) but if you take into account the size of most of these countries, they are not very safe at all per 1,000 residents at all. That makes a big difference when 5 of these populations are equal to or smaller than New York City (8,550,405).

Next, I have a disdain for this prevailing notion that the United States is epicenter of gun violence in the world. Despite what you have been told, gun homicides have remained steady after a sharp decline in the 90's,  yet the public is unaware according to Pew Research in October of last year.

"Between 1993 and 200, the gun homicide rate dropped by half, from 7.0 homicides to 3.8 homicides per 100,000 people. From 2009 to 2014, the most recent year data are available, the number of gun homicides has hovered around 11,000 and 12,000 per year."

continuing:

"Despite national attention on the issue of firearm violence, most Americans are unaware that gun crime is lower today than it was two decades ago. According to a new Pew Research Center survey, today 56% of Americans believe gun crimes is higher than 20 years ago."

 Why is this the case? Simple, articles such as this by Ms. Dicker. What military spending has to do with a country being perceived as safe? Is the United States Mayberry? No it is not. However, it is not deserving of the reputation as a dangerous place. The fact that is just not true:

 This decline in gun violence is part of an overall decline in violent crime. According to the FBI's data, the national rate of violent crime has decreased 49% since its apex in 1991. America has become a much less violent place. 

 Why does this bother me? What does this have to do with Emergency Management? Well perception is reality, and this perception shapes government policy. If people like Ms. Dicker continue to perpetuate the idea we are a dangerous society, the public will demand changes that are not necessary. That, in turn will take away time and resources from more pressing issues.


Good Luck and Good Hunting