Jackie answers “Bryson asserts on page 86 that "Each year,...”

Angela asked this question about I'm a Stranger Here Myself: Notes on Returning to America After Twenty Years Away:

Bryson asserts on page 86 that "Each year, 40,000 Americans die from gunshot wounds, the great majority of them by accident." I'm no expert on statistics, but according to the basic Google search I just did, 62% of American gun deaths are suicides, 35% are homicides, and the remaining 3% are accidental. Last time I checked, 3% did not qualify as a "great majority." Why did this kind of error go to print unchecked?

Jackie I'm shocked that THIS caught your attention but the part where he reports a barber suggested "reattaching" some hair--which happens much earlier in th…moreI'm shocked that THIS caught your attention but the part where he reports a barber suggested "reattaching" some hair--which happens much earlier in the book--didn't. Bryson is serving up his impressions, not iron-clad investigatory reporting.

He may also consider suicides as tragic accidents, given that many who survive suicide attempts regret them in the moment of the attempt.(less)

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I'm a Stranger Here Myself

by Bill Bryson

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