Well, for the sake of equity, here are some interesting statistics for Americans. It’s worth noting that an injury, as listed below, indicates that a trip to the ER was necessary. In the USA, for the year of 1992 (apparently the last time this data was collected):- Over 400,000 people suffered injuries involving “beds, mattresses or pillows” 50,000 were injured by “pens, pencils and other desk accessories” Over 400,000 were injured by “sofas and sofa beds” Almost 2 million injuries “relating to stairs, ramps and walkways” 46,022 people were injured by sound recording equipment, more than those injured by skateboards (44,068), trampolines (43,655), razors & razorblades (43,365) or saws and chainsaws (38,692) – Better watch out Jeff – your home studio could be more dangerous than you think! 30,274 injuries “relating to paper money and coins” 263,000 injuries from “ceilings, walls and inside panels” 31,000 injuries from “grooming devices” 142,000 injuries from “personal clothing” Source: Statistical Abstract for the United States - 1992, as described in “Notes from a Big Country” by Bill Bryson Taking it a little further, from “The Book of Risks” by Larry Laudan comes the following data: 40% of American’s keep guns in their homes. Statistically, the odds that a gun in the home will be used to shoot a member of the household are over 20 times greater than the odds of using it to shoot a criminal. If you ever get the chance, the Bill Bryson book is very entertaining – Bryson is an American who spent a long time living in the UK – “Notes..” is a series of articles he wrote for a UK newspaper after he had moved back, and provides an interesting, if stereotypical perspective on American life.
The very fact that that guy is wildly popular in the USA and widely ridiculed in Australia should give you an idea of who has the whacked out culture
