A record 48,830 total gun deaths in 2021 reflected a 23% increase since 2019. An estimated 42,915 people died in motor vehicle fatalities in 2021 and that was a 16 year high according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Related, Sigmund Freud modified his theory after experiencing the mass destruction from World War I. Originally, he described aggression, death and man's dark side with sadomasochism . Then, because of WW1 , Freud added a death instinct in order to more fully describe man's evil. Henry A Murray , included in his model of man , the abasement need that depicted man’s masochism in mutilating the self and his need for aggression which described the need to attack, injure or kill another. Importantly, add Carl Jung’s brilliance with the collective unconscious to more fully understand man’s dark side . Incorporating aggression, sadomasochism , frustration , and the collective unconscious, this disquisition enlightens "why there is so much gun violence in our country?"
Variables of politics, education , income and life expectancy are significant and related to the “why?” Frustration leads to aggression that's directed toward self or towards another. Having, within capitalism has to do with a number of factors that include but not limited to health and level of education . Who is able to keep up with the Joneses and who is falling behind ? If not keeping up , as in health and/or income , then hostility surfaces based on “poor me “ ,“ I’m being left behind and replaced .“ These represent feelings and attitudes of envy, jealousy and hate. It’s easier, not to take responsibility for self , and instead blame as in scapegoating .
Politically , Fox News, social media etc evoke fear, hate and blame in order to bamboozle their supporters for power and control. . Blame Nancy Pelosi, Joe Biden, Antifa, Jews, Asians, Blacks, immigrants, etc. for the problems. Do not blame the out-of-control spending by the military that allows the military-industrial complex characters to amass greed, fortune and profits . CEOs of large corporations, oil companies, pharmaceuticals, food industry, etc. play a significant role in contributing to inflation. We know some of the players that are taking advantage of the income inequality in the country. Less than 1% of the population are doing just fine. Don't criticize capitalism or expect the elite to pay their share of taxes. The political chicanery provides a great job of masking the root causes, the pain ,the misery and instead focus on irrationality and illusions .Raising the debt limit, the non ethical behavior of supreme Court justices, Trump , Ukraine - Russia etc. fill the air, not the in depth causes .
Life expectancy and killing weapons are symptoms of disease and pertain to state political control with its various laws and regulations. For instance ,the 5 states with the lowest life expectancy :1. Mississippi -R 2. West Virginia - R 3. Louisiana- R 4. Alabama - R 5. Kentucky- R . 50 countries have surpassed us in life expectancy since the 1930’s. More die younger in states with conservative policies . Next, statistics regarding the number of gun deaths per 100,000. The 5 highest include: 1. Mississippi-R 2. Louisiana-R 3. New Mexico D 4. Alabama--R 5. Wyoming-R . The highest number of gun ownership per state per capita include: 1. Mississippi 95%--R 2. North Dakota 82%-R 3. South Dakota 74%.-R 4. New Jersey 68%-D 5. Iowa 61% -R. One poll had 67% that stated that the highest reason for gun ownership of guns was for protection ( an attempt to diminish fear and anxiety} . Purchase an assault weapon for sadistic destruction and killing. Who are you going to kill ?
A few socioeconomic statistics. New Mexico -D and Alaska -R have the lowest eighth grade reading scores. The 6 states with the lowest Pre-- K-12 rankings : 1. New Mexico-D 2 .Oklahoma-R 3. Arizona-R 4. Alaska -R 5. Nevada -D 6. West Virginia -R . States that have the lowest per capita income include the following: 1. Mississippi-R. 2. Arizona- R 3. New Mexico-D 4. West Virginia-R 5. Alabama-R . Political party control in 2021 includes these 5 Republican states: 1. Mississippi 2. Louisiana 3. Alabama 4. Wyoming 5. Arizona. Their life expectancy , gun death, wealth and educational level rankings suck.
Carl Jung 's analytic theory ,included a concept called the Collective Transpersonal Unconscious, which according to him ,was the most powerful and influential system within the psyche . It was like a museum of acquired characteristics incorporating the wisdom of the ages or a storehouse of latent memory traces inherited from man's ancestral past. The collective unconscious is the psychic residue of man's evolution. According to Jung, images, or archetypes are formed in man's deep unconscious. These idealized images play a role in character and personality development, which affects behavior determination. They can and do disrupt rational processes and distort reality. These images are predispositions to perceive the world in the unconscious, but do not appear frequently in thinking. For instance, the predisposition of good, supreme, powerful, humane, just , lovable “Ruler “ can be represented in Richard the Lion Heart or the predisposition of evil, aggressive, destructive , exploitive, sadistic, megalomaniac, hateful, despicable like Henry VIII or the hero demon like Hitler. These archaic aspects of life deep in the unconscious may engulf the life of an individual spirit in darkness and destruction. To deny the relevance of the deep unconscious can result in cases of mental illness.
Taking into account our history, Anglo-Saxons, Christians, Puritans arrived centuries ago. Arriving, they in due time, brought slaves, wiped out the Indians , discriminated against other religions, burned witches , rationalized manifest destiny ideology, established the KKK, had a Civil War , hated others etc . There is plenty of evil, power, demons, prejudice etc embedded in the collective unconscious of Wasp’s in our country.
In comparison, and taking into account Freud , Murray and Jung, Switzerland had a firearm death rate, total in 2017 of 214. The number of registered firearms in 2017 corresponds to around 10.3 registered guns per 100 residents. A sample of rational regulations include : The gun purchaser must obtain a weapon acquisition permit over the age of 18 , not have a criminal record with conviction for a violent crime etc. In order to purchase ammunition , must be over 18 years of age and a copy of the criminal record for three months, an individual who has not yet reached the age of 18 may freely acquire ammunition if used for shooting immediately and under supervision. Weapons must be kept in a safe place and protected from access by an authorized third person, loss of firearms must be reported to the police immediately. Further, the vast majority of firearm related deaths are suicide; gun crime is few and far between .
Switzerland's life expectancy is over 84 years of age; ranked 6th in the world's best countries for educational system; second in comfortable retirement; 8th in racial equality ; 6th in raising children; 2nd in starting a career, and 5th for females. Overall, Switzerland has low unemployment, skilled labor force with the highest gross domestic product per capita in the world. The country's strong economy is powered by low corporate tax rates, a highly developed service sector ,financial services and high-tech manufacturing industry. Their citizens have won more Nobel prizes, registered more patents per capita than many other nations and ranks number one compared to other countries on measures of adventure, agility, cultural influence, entrepreneurship, heritage, movers , open for business , power ,quality of life and social purpose.
Switzerland is one of the oldest surviving republics. Since 1848 ,industrialization has transformed the traditional agricultural economy. Swiss neutrality during the world wars and the success of the banking industry furthered the cause of Switzerland as one of the world's most stable economies. Prior, the French army invaded Switzerland and Napoleon and enemies fought numerous campaigns in Switzerland that ruined many localities . In 1814-15, The Congress of Vienna established Swiss independence when the European powers agreed to recognize permanent Swiss neutrality. However, Germany WW !! , considered invading Switzerland but never attacked Also, an attempt by Switzerland's small Nazi party to influence Switzerland politically failed miserably, largely due to Switzerland's multicultural heritage, a strong sense of national identity, a long tradition of democracy and civil liberties. And the Swiss press vigorously criticized the Third Reich. Switzerland joined the United Nations and their women gained the right to vote in 1971. Currently Switzerland is not a member state of the EU. In 2014 ,Swiss voters approved a referendum to reinstate quotas on immigration to Switzerland. Following the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Switzerland decided to adopt all EU sanctions against Russia . Switzerland participates in humanitarian missions and provides relief supplies to the Ukrainian population.
With limited knowledge about the history of Switzerland, I propose that the collective unconscious of Switzerland ‘s citizens is significantly different and less toxic; their level of fear ,anxiety ,and frustration is profoundly less when contrasted with that of many in the Republican controlled state . They are more secure , with their identity and well being. Yes, in their history, they have had death and destruction. However, there is no comparison, when it comes to the United States. Their economy is not based on economic slavery and they did not have a Civil War . They have no manifest destiny ideology; they, with Jung, Einstein , etc. have not engaged in two world wars, nor, with their intellectual brilliance, developed weapons of mass destruction. They do not have military bases all around the world , have an overdeveloped military budget with the same degree of economic inequality. They also don't kill their citizens. Furthermore, their citizens are skillful when it comes to shooting and they have actual rules, regulations and laws pertaining to firearms. Yes, they have mental health issues in the population and some commit suicide. Their educational system ranks above ours , with more equitable income and less frustration, hate and discrimination.
In summation, Homo sapiens began life helpless , fearful , anxious, insecure and dependent. Psychological needs vary in intensity and purpose like abasement , masochism , aggression or sadism within the development of character and personality . With interpersonal relations ,humans experience degrees of frustration resulting in aggression, sadism and masochism along with elements within the psyche of the collective unconscious. All the above are affected by many factors, including socioeconomic, religious, political , etc. within a culture, society or country. Our country's collective unconscious and idealized images , for many, are not congruent and contrary with the expectations within their reality of a limited education , diminishing middle class income , debt, poor health and a decreased life span. They are fearful , anxious, impotent and exhibit jealousy, envy and hate . Wasp power , prestige and possession eludes them along with their emasculated identity . They are fragile , alienated and covet to identify with power , prestige and security . Enter the Wasp Republicans , a tribe associated with supremacy, discrimination, exploitation , prejudice and hate. They preach being head of family, king of his castle, masculinity, male dominance, with a subservient wife and kids . The party resists change but not division, discrimination and hate. It fuels toxic messaging like make America great which means bring back slavery , with more prejudice and killing ; with its propaganda of lies as in Second Amendment nonsense -they are coming for you, they are going to take your gun etc . which is fear and anxiety based . As a result, the sickness and insanity of murder are expected to continue within our Republic. Yes, we are unfortunately number 1.
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Reference
Jung, C.C. The Integration of Personality.
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