Upper Classes More Likely To Commit Suicide In A Recession

Newsweek:

Recent weeks have seen a spate of suicides by some of the most financially powerful people in the world. German billionaire industrialist Adolf Merckle lay down in front of a train after huge investment losses threatened his family's business empire. Chicago real-estate mogul Steven Good shot and killed himself in the driver's seat of his Jaguar after the property auction business turned sour. Rene-Thierry Magon de La Villehuchet lost $1.4 billion to Bernie Madoff, went to work, took sleeping pills and slit his wrist.

The deaths bring up two questions: Is this the start of a disturbing recession-induced trend? And will it spread to rank-and-file Americans? The answers to both questions are a matter of debate. New York Magazine this week questioned whether a suicide epidemic was really taking place on Wall Street. In the blogosphere, Greenspan's Body Count--named after the former Fed chief whom many people see as partly to blame for the current economic crisis--offers a macabre tally of people who killed themselves or close family members allegedly due to economic pressures (the current tally is up to 72).

Psychologists acknowledge that gloomy financial forecasts could well result in an increase in the number of suicides over the next year. "The suicide rate has already gone up, and my suspicion is that it will not go down," says Paula Clayton, director of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. "There are data to substantiate a relationship between unemployment and suicide."

Read the whole story: Newsweek

Comments

[BryantG]

Cool..How about we hike the death tax?

[dolphy]

That's what happens when money IS your god.

[getoffmedz]

There will be a few who cannot conceive of living day-to-day like an average income person and as a pathetic cry for attention may destroy themselves.

My advice: GROW UP!

[pewty]

Ive worked in mental health for 22 years and the most ridiculous and petty reason one could want to end thier life is over material things. There are MILLIONS of people who have NOTHING, and are born with chemical imbalances,yet they find the courage to go through each day and try to look forward to tomorrow. It is sickening to me to hear rich people whining because they are less rich, or maybe lost it all, but goddam them, they at least had The American Dream if only for a while. And this American Dream?--- I think the pursuit of it has changed many good people into evil and vile creatures that only crave more and more. It astounds me how little regard some people can have for other people in the pursuit to have a lot of green peices of paper.

[hypnotoad72]

Why do people turn to wanting excessive amounts of money? Were they abused as children, by peers, and think money is the only thing that keeps them happy?

Are you suggesting everyone should be poor, destitute, starving?

Context...

[Heavy]

I guess the rich could be classified as ridiculously petty and materialistic. Hard to feel sorry for them.

[USAneedsU]

These last three years have put me at my wits end. Between losing my career, home, car....its been tough. However, this experience is probably the best thing thats ever happened to me. I appreciate my days, my family and my husband more than ever. I take walks and just try to enjoy the moment. Its unfortunate that these folks can't cope and choose to end it. Life is so much more than status and money.

Buddist prayer has also helped.

" Success is going from failure to failure without losing your enthusiasm"-----Lincoln

[StephenJK]

Right here, right now. That's the only dance there is.

The past is there to show us our mistakes so that we may learn not to make them in the future. Each moment is an opportunity to discover something new, learn something new or just enjoy whatever it is before you. When you get caught up in the past or future is when you lose sight of the best things in life; right here, right now.

[wm1066]

These are the same people who told a company they had to fire loyal employees so Wall Street could still get their cut. I have no compassion for these people. Its the worker that has lost his job that deserves support.

[mexamerican]

aawwwwwww...some super rich aholes can't live w/out dough. eff 'em.

[hypnotoad72]

What if they're all faking their deaths?

[StephenJK]

Upper classes more likely to commit recession suicide:

Reason being, they are usually weak willed individuals and only have a mind for making money and enjoying their riches. When it flies out the window their mind goes with it because they think that's all there is to life. Especially the heirs. Their minds have been turned to jell-o because they've always had things handed to them on a silver platter and spoon fed with the finest silver. Too bad, maybe they should offer "Rich People in the Real World" courses at the local community colleges.

[TrueIndy08]

boo hoo....

my friend's husband just lost his job... he was an electrician... blue collar guy making about 45,000 a year supporting himself, a wife, and two kids(4 and 1)
their mortgage is behind, credit cards maxed out... but he is optimistic.... they still attend church, and they spend even more time together as a family!!!

So if us working class people can make do with what little we have..... these a s s hats can lose a couple million, and still live much better than we could ever imagine!!!!

I don't feel sorry for any of them

[hypnotoad72]

I envy him; his family.

When will she divorce him? That's another trend I have observed about human behavior...

[TrueIndy08]

these people suck.... these are the people who nothing about anything else besides making themselves richer....

they don't have God in their lives.... they don't care about anyone else... Money rules their world.... sorry, when it runs out, they are in BAD SHAPE

[brooklyncitizen]

Money.

It's truly great to have; the more abundance you have the more effective you can be in the world. It's great to cross that line from "getting by" to thriving and focusing on your dreams and through that giving by employing others, philanthropy, or time that you have since you are not out working two jobs to get by. It takes the edge off.

Having said that, everyone has their own threshold and understanding of "how much" money would make them happy. A friend is currently selling his 2.5M brownstone in an exclusive Bklyn neighborhood to move to a fancy condo designed by R Meir.Due to the tanking of the stock market he's lost a ton so will be settling for another multimillion dollar unit rather than the fancier one with the great views he'd wanted. I'm happy for him and he very much wants this new lifestyle.However this is not a headache I'd want to take on.

THe healthiest attitude is to see money as a tool not a status or validation of self-worth nor a threat....this crisis is bringing up a lot of emotional money issues .

[pokemon]

Formally Rich people need to ask their friends for a hand out, I am sure they will find tons of people willing to help in a time of need.

[brooklyncitizen]

you mean formerly rich people?

[Meesterclean]

It just goes to show you that the love of money is a m e n t a l illness.

[brooklyncitizen]

not necessarily...it just shows that people don't do well with change. we all want things to stay as is since they are familiar and especially when we are on top.

[TrueIndy08]

get real.... its money driving this.... not change

[Phil Waste]

You'll see my compassion after they jump, not before.

[larry278]

It is difficult to kill yourself by jumping from the window of your basment office or apartment. The USA has a lot of homeless people who live on the street. These people don't have a pot to use as a urinal or a window to throw it out, much less to jump out of now.
If you eat at a soup kitchen or stay at a homeless shelter, often an intake person & other employees recognize a client at risk for suicide by their speech or actions. That means that you get watched closely & an intervention or suicide prevention worker sees you. You get follow up visits or appointments with them. These workers are in the business of teaching you ways to cope with your situation. Sometimes you, somehow, learn to cope & to continue living.
There are cases when you get by passed by the system or you know how to avoid the system & you can quietly kill yourself in obscurity. A really determined person can succeed at suicide. Yes, a determined person can learn how to keep alive too. The suicide prevention workers & team catch the rest of us & turn us into survivors.
At one time, I worked on a suicide prevention team, I'm programmed to ask for help & to use any aid I get. It's one of those things which causes you to seek aid at once if you even think of suicide. If you don't check in, they seek & find