People are afraid of flying and terrorism and when in reality the dangerous part of the trip is the car ride to the airport.
And the most dangerous place of all is your dinner table!
Here are some statistics of risk factors. These are for "the average American," but I assume they'd be similar for citizens of other countries (except for the gunshot wound, of course—because of the insane number of firearms in the USA).
Basically what they show is that if you're afraid of dying from the most publicized incidents (terrorists, earthquakes, etc.), you should give up flying in airplanes, swimming, boating, walking on city streets, working, skiing, being in snowy or stormy places, and most especially driving or riding in cars, because those activities are riskier—in the case of car travel far riskier—than being anywhere near terrorists or earthquake zones.
And enjoying an unhealthy modern lifestyle, with little physical activity and meals rich in unhealthy salt, sugar, carbs and fats, is far far more risky than anything else!
Your chance of dying from these causes is...
Heart disease Cancer Gunshot wound Car accident HIV/AIDS A fall Skin cancer Pedestrian accident Injury at work Motorcycle accident Influenza Drowning Bicycle accident Boating accident Smallpox vaccination Lightning Bus accident Train accident Earthquake Skiing or snowboarding Avalanche Airline accident Terrorist attack Dog attack Flood Amusement park ride Malaria Shark attack | 1 in 300 1 in 509 1 in 9450 1 in 18,800 1 in 19,400 1 in 20,700 1 in 37,900 1 in 45,200 1 in 47,600 1 in 118,000 1 in 159,000 1 in 225,000 1 in 341,000 1 in 402,000 1 in 750,000 1 in 4,260,000 1 in 4,400,000 1 in 5,050,000 1 in 5,930,000 1 in 6,330,000 1 in 8,140,000 1 in 8,450,000 1 in 9,270,000 1 in 10,900,000 1 in 18,200,000 1 in 70,000,000 1 in 93,800,000 1 in 94,900,000 |
Travel Safety |