] 512 killed in a WAR, compared to a 643 in L.A.

But we know what they are killing for in LA: Hoes, weed, and hoods. Why are we in Iraq again? oh thats right Oil! Maybe I should get a solar power car and go to Compton. :-)

Elonka wrote:
] Thrynn writes:
]
] Ok. I haven't talked about Iraq in a while so here's some
] interesting data to chew on:
]
] Murder numbers:
]
] ] [Chicago] ended 2002 with 646 murders, second to Los
] ] Angeles, which had 653. New York was third with 580.
]
] According to: http://lunaville.org/warcasualties/Summary.aspx
]
] The total number of U.S. soldier fatalities stands at 512.
] This is 11 months of data.
]
] 512 killed in a WAR, compared to a 643 in L.A.
]
] Just some food for thought.

Wow, what a bizarre and meaningless comparison.

This statistic looks quite a bit different when it is expressed as [number of deaths] / [number of people in the sample group].

jlang wrote:
] Wow, what a bizarre and meaningless comparison.

Thank you, Jacob, for bringing the voice of reason to this thread.

For everyone else, here is your reading assignment:

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0809058405/

Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences
by John Allen Paulos