What makes you think "the high suicide rates and sever depression that are characteristic of gay men and women. " Wont still be there if gay marriage is legalized?

People kill themselves for all sorts of reasons, gay and straight alike.

Just because gay marriage would be legalized doesn't mean that "the high suicide rates and sever depression that are characteristic of gay men and women. " will change.

Quote:

The World Health Organization estimates that in the year 2000 approximately one million people will die from suicide. A global mortality rate of 16 per 100,000. One death every 40 seconds.

The WHO further reports that:

In the last 45 years suicide rates have increased by 60% worldwide. Suicide is now among the three leading causes of death among those aged 15-44 (both sexes). Suicide attempts are up to 20 times more frequent than completed suicides.

Although suicide rates have traditionally been highest among elderly males, rates among young people have been increasing to such an extent that they are now the group at highest risk in a third of all countries.

Mental disorders (particularly depression and substance abuse) are associated with more than 90% of all cases of suicide. However, suicide results from many complex socio-cultural factors and is more likely to occur during periods of socioeconomic, family and individual crisis (e.g. loss of a loved one, employment, honour).




Quote:

§ Over 30,000 people in the United States kill themselves every year.



§ Currently, suicide is the 11th leading cause of death in the U.S.



§ A person dies by suicide about every eighteen minutes in the U.S. An attempt is estimated to be made once every minute.



§ Ninety percent of all people who die by suicide have a diagnosable psychiatric disorder at the time of their death.



§ There are more than four male suicides for every female suicide, but twice as many females as males attempt suicide.



§ Every day, approximately 80 Americans take their own life, and 1,500 more attempt to do so.

YOUTH


§ Suicide is the fifth leading cause of death among all those 5–14 years old.



§ Suicide is the third leading cause of death among all those 15–24 years old.



§ The suicide rate for white males aged 15–24 has tripled since 1950, while for white females it has more than doubled.



§ Between 1980–1996, the suicide rate for African-American males aged 15–19 has also doubled.



§ Risk factors for suicide among the young include suicidal thoughts, psychiatric disorders (such as depression, impulsive aggressive behavior, bipolar disorder, certain anxiety disorders), drug and/or alcohol abuse and previous suicide attempts, with the risk increased if there is situational stress and access to firearms.



OLDER PEOPLE


§ The suicide rates for men rise with age, most significantly after age 65.



§ White men over 50 who make up less than a quarter of the population are responsible for almost 40 percent of all suicides.



§ The suicide rates for women peak between the ages of 45–64 years old, and do so again after age 75.



§ Most elderly patients who complete suicide see their physicians within a few months of their death and more than a third within the week of their suicide.



§ Eight to 20 percent of older Americans and up to 37 percent in primary care settings experience symptoms of depression.



§ Risk factors for suicide among the elderly include the presence of a mental illness — especially depression and alcohol abuse; the presence of a physical illness; social isolation — especially being widowed in males; and the availability of firearms in the home.



DEPRESSION


§ Over 60 percent of all people who die by suicide suffer from major depression. If one includes alcoholics who are depressed,
this figure rises to over 75 percent.



§ Depression affects nearly 10 percent of Americans ages 18 and over in a given year, or more than 19 million people.



§ More Americans suffer from depression than coronary heart disease (7 million), cancer (6 million) and AIDS (200,000) combined.



§ About 15 percent of the population will suffer from clinical depression at some time during their lifetime. Thirty percent of all clinically depressed patients attempt suicide; half of them ultimately succeed.



§ Depression is among the most treatable of psychiatric illnesses. Some estimates suggest that between 80 percent and 90 percent of people with depression respond positively to treatment, and almost all patients gain some relief from their symptoms. But first, depression has to be recognized.



ALCOHOL AND SUICIDE


§ Ninety-six percent of alcoholics who die by suicide continue their substance abuse up to the end of their lives.



§ Alcoholism is a factor in about 30 percent of all completed suicides.



§ Approximately 7 percent of those with alcohol dependence will die by suicide.



§ Click here to read an article about alcoholism and suicide risk.





And before you even TRY to call me anything, I got those #s fom http://www.afsp.org/index-1.htm

It's a rented tux ok? I'm not going comando in another man's fatigues.