Why Are We So Negative?

 Good Morning!  

But is it good? Let's look at our world through a prism of sorts and try to make sense of how we truly feel.

Living in America should be wonderful. But if you live in the New York metropolitan area, that sentiment is quickly swept away. We awaken to a negative world! The news is negative - you pick up the paper, flick on the radio, turn on the television. What do you learn about: inflation, war, panic, crime, domestic violence, hate crimes, murder, disease, homelessness, unemployment, and the list goes on! What is positive about the world that we live in? The news confirms nothing! Is there anything we can do to make things better? Your mind says no!

With so much negativity surrounding us, there should also be positivity.  After all, this is what America is about. Where is the can-do spirit that made America great?  Remember, a positive outlook guides our history. So how do we see positivity? Is it as obvious as studying history? Or what about religion? Can you change your outlook through faith? Can the belief in a higher power make you hope or even see a brighter future? That is what the three major religions want us to believe. Our religious systems call to a revision of our existence. They urge us to change the glass from half empty to half full. They stress to look at the beauty of the earth - a planet worth saving. There is a call to humanity, thoughts of innocence, and desire for a lasting peace. 

So let's take some statistics and put them into context. Is the world better now than it was twenty years ago? Is America better now? Or, was it better forty or fifty years ago? 

If we look at most of the statistics, I tend to think things are getting better. For example, the U.S. murder rate from 1990 to 2018 has gone down from over 9% of the total population to just under 5% of the total. However, it is not a straight downward trajectory. There are bumps along the way. 

Unfortunately, we think things are worse especially if we compare the 2018 rates to France, the U.K., Canada, Sweden and Finland which are all under 2%, or Germany, Japan, Norway, Spain, or Italy which are below 1%. Yet, the statistics inform us that the majority of the modernized world was always better than America. Should we keep comparing ourselves to the rest of the world - to get depressed or to strive to get better?

So, you might ask, if the news keeps promoting slashing on the subways, beatings on the streets, hit and runs, and random shootings, how can I be positive? Am I going to be sad and probably remain sad? How can one avoid depression?  Textbook depression often leads us to this concept of negativity. That there is nothing to look forward to. The future world lacks promise. 

To escape this anxiety and depression, we typically find sanctuary in legal and illegal drugs, alcohol and other substances. And just think weed in New Jersey was just legalized!  According to the ADAA over 18% of all Americans suffer from some type of anxiety disorder. Yet, only 36.9% of those affected are receiving any type of treatment. 

These statistics reinforce the obvious conclusion that Americans are frustrated and chemically dependent. But again this is not all Americans. So, are we convinced by what we see and hear, or by the actual data? Visually, what is happening in New York is happening in other parts of the nation as well. And that few of the depressed are receiving lasting support. 

Take homelessness, for example. Here too, American statistics seem high in contrast to many developed nations. Most major countries don't have homelessness in multiple cities. Yet, the United States is a leader in this category. The cities on the west coast (Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, Sacramento, LA, San Jose, and San Diego) have large pockets of visible homelessness, and there are some comparable others like Baltimore, Chicago and Denver, but New York City, with nearly 80,000, has the nation's and, most likely, the world's largest numerical homeless population. 

What I'm getting at is the stories and visuals. There is a power of illusion. The way that we process information and share information creates lasting impressions. Change, especially positive change, does not decrease the negative images.  Negative images tend to last forever. People still see New York City streets as filthy despite massive improvements over the last fifty years. The subways are almost graffiti-free, but they are depicted in the visual arts the way they looked in the 1980s and 1990s. Our minds are hard pressed to see a reality.

Consider this example and the results. America historically has the highest vehicular death figures in the world. Before the 1990s, over 700 pedestrians in New York City died yearly from encounters from motorized vehicles.  Hard work brought the figure to 381 in 2000.  In 2014, with the number still over 300, Mayor D' Blasio pledged safer streets by lowering the speed limit to 25 mph. Between 2014 and 2018 the numbers of injuries increased, but more importantly deaths decreased to 202. 

The one thing that no one talked about were the drivers. Where were New Yorkers rushing to, and why did New Yorkers continue to speed in spite of tickets? Did they lack compassion for the people they hit, injured and killed?  However, between 2018 and 2022, during a pandemic with fewer cars on the streets, the numbers of injuries and homicides increased but remained below the high water marks established earlier in the decade. So, was the "Vision Zero NYC" policy a success or a failure? 

At the same time versions of "Vision Zero" in Canada and Europe decreased both injuries and deaths.  The outstanding question must be is why can't particular concepts work with Americans?

Americans tend to reject the obvious. America is a multi-racial nation, but yet it suffers from various levels of hate crimes. Our laws against hate crimes are lax. This is a nation of immigrants, yet we have all types of reactions to people wanting to enter into the nation (legally and illegally). Instead of politicians constantly harping on people crossing the southern border, Americans should equally demand the facts those who come legally but stay illegally. The polls are in favor of making billionaires pay taxes and politicians give them tax breaks. Abortion is supported by the majority and yet the Supreme Court is willing to ban the practice. It is unclear how Americans see that 50% filled glass. Is our interpretation of the data leading to negative outlooks? We see the same types of statistics challenged by our actions in terms of getting COVID vaccinations, higher than normal rates of infection, numbers of hospitalizations and unusually high numbers of deaths. Why are Americans unable to process information like the rest of the world? Why are we so negative?

I will close with this key argument. The mindsets and behaviors that adults create have instilled cultures of negativity. Children have absorbed this negativity faster than adults have, and it has permeated every crevice of their lives. They display negative behavior in school, in interactions with their friends, on social media, and often at home.  Americans have formed a clouded environment that their children cannot overcome.  About 3.9% of all American children (3-19) are described as depressed. Teenage (15-19) suicide has increase 26% since 2013.  Nearly 19% of all high schoolers have considered committing suicide and 8.9% have actually attempted it. Suicide is the second cause of death for this age group. 

Most of the nations with high suicide rates are traditionally underdeveloped nations or nations controlled by dictatorships. America is an exception to the rule. There were 45,979 suicides in the United States in 2020. That is roughly 130 per day. The rates by age range only increase as people get older. If you combine the suicide rate 13.4% and the homicide rate 14.4% per 100,000 persons, America can seem a somewhat depressing place. We have an opportunity to change things. If not for ourselves, lets try for the younger generations!