4.50pm

[Kang]

pushing them over the edge

pushing them over the edge.........hmmmmmmmm......me thinks this not be suicide but murder!! murder me thinks

at £10 a pop for a drink though, sounds like they'd be right at home in pacha or space

I paid £50 for a bottle of wine that I get in my local shop for £7 It is so very expensive there but a cool (excuse the pun) place to go to for a few days away.

 

[Barbie]

I paid £50 for a bottle of wine that I get in my local shop for £7 It is so very expensive there but a cool (excuse the pun) place to go to for a few days away.

One of the restaurants we went to the cheapest wines on the menu started at £50 and they were no different to a house wine in England

Did you go to the Blue Lagoon?? That was such a mad place, running around in a bikini in sub-zero temperatures

 

[Kang]

I paid £50 for a bottle of wine that I get in my local shop for £7 It is so very expensive there but a cool (excuse the pun) place to go to for a few days away.

One of the restaurants we went to the cheapest wines on the menu started at £50 and they were no different to a house wine in England

Did you go to the Blue Lagoon?? That was such a mad place, running around in a bikini in sub-zero temperatures

Yes, we went in the evening too! It was so black with hardly any light that you could just about see in front of you. Ben got out to take a picture and the water froze on his head He then preceeded to cover himself head to toe in the mineral goo from the bottom - hideous

 

[russ]

He then preceeded to cover himself head to toe in the mineral goo from his bottom - hideous

eugh

 

[jeembo]

The reduced amount of sunlight you get in far northern regions is known to cause a chemical imbalance in the brain which makes one more prone to depression and therefore suicide.

Which is why Vampires are generally pretty nuts and go about trying to eat people. FLipping weirdos!"

 

[DJ Soulman]

I've heard that there is somewhere up that area, that in summer, has a Midnight Marathon. Always fancied doing that rather than the London Marathon. Would be real weird.

 

[Morbyd]

I don't think Iceland actually rates that high in suicides. In some polls quite the opposite, ie. the happiest people in the world.

Turns out you are correct, Peps. Iceland isn't in the top 10. According to the World Health Organization, it's in 40th place as of 1999 (the last year when stats are available for everyone). Here's the top 10:

Country Males Females

Lithuania 73.7 13.7
Russia 72.9 13.7
Estonia 64.3 14.1
Latvia 59.5 11.8
Kazakhstan 51.9 9.5
Hungary 49.2 15.6
Belarus 48.7 9.6
Slovenia 48.0 13.9
Sri Lanka 44.7 16.6
Finland 38.7 10.7

Well, about half are far northern countries but others (Sri Lanka?) give you the impression there's a lot more factors at stake than lack of sunlight. Also, a majority are in the FSU or Eastern Europe, which points to the effects of economic and sociopolitical upheaval.

 

[Peppermint]

Maybe something to do with the slavic mentality? Melancholy and all that? Where it's more acceptable to drink lots of vodka than talk about emotions?

 

[jeembo]

I don't think Iceland actually rates that high in suicides. In some polls quite the opposite, ie. the happiest people in the world.

Turns out you are correct, Peps. Iceland isn't in the top 10. According to the World Health Organization, it's in 40th place as of 1999 (the last year when stats are available for everyone). Here's the top 10:

Country Males Females

Lithuania 73.7 13.7
Russia 72.9 13.7
Estonia 64.3 14.1
Latvia 59.5 11.8
Kazakhstan 51.9 9.5
Hungary 49.2 15.6
Belarus 48.7 9.6
Slovenia 48.0 13.9
Sri Lanka 44.7 16.6
Finland 38.7 10.7

Well, about half are far northern countries but others (Sri Lanka?) give you the impression there's a lot more factors at stake than lack of sunlight. Also, a majority are in the FSU or Eastern Europe, which points to the effects of economic and sociopolitical upheaval.

It would seem the change from Communism to Capitalism has been a major factor for a lot of those countries! At least they are ''free'' to kill themselves now!

Stirling in Scotland has one of the highest student suicide rates in Britain. I went there and realised why. It's a f*ckin Sh*thole!

 

[Morbyd]

Maybe something to do with the slavic mentality? Melancholy and all that? Where it's more acceptable to drink lots of vodka than talk about emotions?

Not true.. people here can be very emotional... they talk about the "Russian soul" and all that. The Slavic mentality is not suicide prone... in fact, quite the opposite. Also, Lithuianians, Estonians, Latvians and Kazakhs aren't Slavic. (Russians, Belarusians and Slovenians are, though)

I don't think people here get any drunker than people in the UK, from what I've seen.... though they do have a big problem with accidental alcohol-related deaths But that's not related to suicide.

I think anytime an entire system gets turned on its head, you have people that lose hope about their ability to cope with the changes or survive in the new environment. The dark cold winters certainly don't help you deal with it!

Why do you think Finland is ranked so high?

 

[Peppermint]

Why do you think Finland is ranked so high?

Well I think it's because of those things that I mentioned. Finns are very reserved and the general atmosphere here doesn't encourage to show emotions.