Age and violence stats

Gerhard Kessell-Haak (gerhard_kessell-haak@mail.tait.co.nz)
Tue, 30 Jun 1998 17:19:10 +1200


>>> Max More <more@extropy.org> 30/June/1998 03:47pm >>>
>I believe that older people tend to commit fewer violent crimes (and not
>just those who are in hospital beds). If true, this might be turned into a
>cultural-effects argument in favor of extending our lifespans. If violent
>crime primarily comes from youngsters, the more older people there are
>and the lower the birth rate, the lower the level of violent crime that we
>should expect.

Your belief is bolstered by fact. I remember reading a SA article several
years ago that linked the number of teenagers (as a percentage of
population) with the rise and fall in the incidence of violent crime in the
US. Unfortunately, I don't remember which issue it was in; you could try
a search on their web-site though.