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by FullMtlAlcoholc 3301 days ago
> . But people see a headline about a dozen suicides at Foxconn and think it's a crisis, because math is hard.

Although you're being dismissive, your math and intuition is a bit off. Workplace suicides are rare in places like the US and make up approximately 1% of all suicides. That one company has a number of suicides all at one facility known to have poor working conditions does indicate a trend. So, it's not 13 out of 1.3 million, it's 13 out of 230000-450000 (estimates). Not only that, but the company adapted by implementing suicide prevention measures.

You also neglect to mention that around 150 people at Foxconn threatened to commit mass suicide in protest of the working conditions.

If there were a rash of suicides at Ohio State University and they all were freshmen or transfer students, and they all jumped from buildings, that would indicate an alarming trend, not some statistical anomaly.

Math isn't hard. We would expect the suicides to be more random. Also, and I'm just speculating, it's not crazy to think some others were covered up.

> Spreading a lot of ridiculous nonsense about how these people are worse than animals is just that, ridiculous.

I'm not the OP and that is a bad comparison. Treated worse than dogs is perhaps a better one.

> So I call bullshit on your claims that the poor are breeding super-diseases.

I wouldn't call it complete bullshit. Poor people in India who bathe in the open sewer known as Ganges, one of the most if not the most heavily polluted waterways, is a recipe for breeding a super disease. Though, this is caused by lack of education, it is not entirely, completely disconnected from poor wages.

> We can all agree that capitalism has some bad aspects and maybe the governments in these countries should be doing more to help.

Yes, we agree. We tolerate the profit off of human misery and suffering. Progress has almost always been driven by misery and suffering. And we are all responsible for it.

2 comments

> Workplace suicides are rare in places like the US and make up approximately 1% of all suicides.

This might be true, but Foxconn employees mostly live at their workplace, so all suicides of Foxconn employees are technically «workplace suicides». That doesn't really tell us a whole lot though.

I think only 25% live in dormitories where the suicides took place. I seriously have doubts that Foxconn/China aren't playing down and under-reporting this. Also, as mentioned, the company enacted a sweeping suicide prevention program, including taking measures such as installing nets in places to prevent jumpers from killing themselves.
How is that a bad thing? Most people who attempt suicide and survive say they regret the attempt.

In the US it's not fashionable to kill yourself at work, but people jump from bridges a lot, so lots of bridges have safety nets. They don't just delay suicides, they outright save lives.

It's not a bad thing at all. I'm sorry if I gave that impression, but it's another reason why simply looking at 13 out of 1 million as the suicide rate isn't quite right
>Poor people in India who bathe in the open sewer known as Ganges, one of the most if not the most heavily polluted waterways, is a recipe for breeding a super disease.

Cholera, to be specific

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cholera#History