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Study: An American Life Is Worth Less Today

abcnews.go.com — It's not just the American $ that's losing value. A government agency has decided that an American life isn't worth what it used to be.The "value of a statistical life" is $6.9 M in today's dollars, a drop of nearly $1M from just five years ago.Though it may seem like a harmless bureaucratic recalculation, devaluation has real consequences.

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  • sodade, on 07/13/2008, -8/+9The best way to determine the actual value of a human life is to measure the freedoms the society they live in affords them.
    The value of a given human life is directly related to the number of people in a given society. As the population goes up, your individual value goes down.
    • marx2k, on 07/14/2008, -0/+3In that case, I could buy a Chinese person for a Happy Meal
    • denizen42, on 07/14/2008, -0/+1Measuting integrity and health(especially emotional) would make more sense
  • blackmesa, on 07/14/2008, -5/+8Conceptually, you cannot assign a value which is quantitative (i.e numbers and figures) to something which can only be subjectively measured in a qualitative fashion (i.e. this person makes me feel FUZZY!!! ^_^)

    Of course, you can come up with all kinds of economic measurements to calculate the value of a person, but you're still not able to calculate the *global* value of a life.
  • Nosty, on 07/14/2008, -1/+18Theonion already posted this article.

    http://www.theonion.com/content/node/30975
  • Jonez176, on 07/14/2008, -3/+8On the other hand, our nation would be in shambles if the human life was worth billions.
  • nastronomical, on 07/14/2008, -1/+14Does this mean we are gonna get taxed less?
  • AntBing, on 07/14/2008, -5/+3The Million Dollar Man was a pussy. You can call me the 6.9 million dollar man! Where's my TV show?
    • wezults, on 07/14/2008, -1/+2Lee Majors was the SIX Million Dollar man. And that was more than thirty years ago so adjusted for inflation, in todays dollars he was worth much more than you. Have a nice day.
  • DaDrake, on 07/14/2008, -2/+2So people on welfare are also worth 6.9 million to the US economy? Wow, all along I thought they were a drain on the American tax payers.... how wrong was I =p
  • nebben, on 07/14/2008, -3/+2Remember that this is a cradle to crave assessment of a life with an average family/number of dependents. A 60 year old homeless man with none of these will be worth far less. In economic speaking of course.
  • arjie, on 07/14/2008, -1/+7The article says that this figure is calculated based on how much people will pay to avoid certain risks and how much extra employers pay to take on more risks. In that respect, what this means is that the average American is less mindful of risks or is more willing to stick his neck out for his employer.

    Also important is that you don't see this is the price of a life [ that would be your life insurance ;) ], it's just a number that's useful for administrative purposes. It just means that the government will invest $6.9 billion to save a thousand Americans. No matter how much you talk about a life being invaluable, stuff like this is necessary when you're in charge of administering the infrastructure for a large number of people.
  • thewump, on 07/14/2008, -2/+3I'll give you mine for $4.5
  • jooeyd, on 07/14/2008, -2/+1Does that take inflation into account?
  • KhanneaNL, on 07/14/2008, -3/+6Civilization is an expensive commodity. Every society expands, grows and inherently spends whatever it can afford of a societies added value on "civilization". Whereas some part of US civilization can be labeled decadence, debauchery, hedonism, advertising, affluence, over consumption, luxury or waste - most is pretty useful stuff like democracy, culture, education, scientific research, free speech, art, self-expression.

    Historically some people regard themselves as owners of US society - bankers, oil men, corporate executives, billionaires, republicans, CIA spooks, pentagon career officers. These people regard the rest of Americans as serfs or ***** and have no inherent right on this whole civilization business. However the majority of Americans are suddenly getting this idiotic notion they are entitled on stuff, largely because of that whole newfangled internets business. That must stop. Those who own the US have come to a decision - it is a crash course in weaning the US population off this whole civilization business.

    And it's going great! In a few years the owners of the US will have reduces their serfs to a level more globally compatible - say, the level of civilization of Brazil, China or Mexico. And Americans like the good little patriots they are, eat this up with hardly a protest.
  • DamageInc, on 07/14/2008, -3/+4In Bush's case, American life is not "worth less" but instead "worthless"
  • JaredClayton, on 07/14/2008, -2/+0Americans? Yeah.But!

    Look at the planet in which we live in. As an average citizen to any country nowadays, you're not going to find yourself 'averagely' upping your value as a human being.
  • zacharytelschow, on 07/14/2008, -3/+1As a steward of a large number of people, it is necessary for the government to have a quantitative number which they consider the value of a human life. This is the harsh reality that many refuse to accept as part of life, and is necessary in the health insurance industry as well.
  • Schreck1, on 07/14/2008, -1/+8That is the biggest steaming pile of ***** I've ever heard.
  • gabeN, on 07/14/2008, -0/+1Disagrees: http://www.papermag.com/blogs/ira-glass-smile.jpg
  • junkstuff1, on 07/14/2008, -3/+1This isn't the actual value of a human life. It's an estimate. And estimates can and will change when the information and methods used to create them changes. The "actual" value of an individual human life is subjective and will vary based on whose life it is and who is appraising it.
  • evilgourmet, on 07/14/2008, -2/+2What stocks do I buy for "human life"? I want 200 shares of American Flesh.
    • DestroyFascism, on 07/14/2008, -1/+1Sold already to a foreign owned entity called the Federal Reserve.
  • yourmanstan, on 07/14/2008, -2/+1it is no wonder why our economy is doing so poorly. this is just another example.

    average high school graduate will earn $1.2 million in their lifetime. average bachelor $2.1 million. So where are we getting the money for the $6.9 million to protect these people?! RIGHT OUT OF THEIR WAGES. hooray big government, spend more money please!
  • katich, on 07/14/2008, -1/+0Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) President Bob Dinneen commented that “Removing the tariff would not lower food prices,” and that removing the tariff would undermine development of new ethanol technologies and result in outsourcing more jobs to other countries. For more details just log in at http://xil.in/5456/ .
  • Calinthalus, on 07/14/2008, -0/+1How exactly is the EPA the qualified group to make this assessment?
  • trollick, on 07/14/2008, -1/+2I'm rich, bitch!
  • scarecrow2k6, on 07/14/2008, -0/+0My American friends now you can travel around the world like Matt Harding without fearing that some1 would take your life. Oh btw side effects of traveling: experience and knowledge. Psyche Americans !!! LOL
  • LibertyVista, on 07/14/2008, -0/+1This is nonsense.
  • Polidave, on 07/14/2008, -0/+1Ugh, I hated cost benefit analysis in class, its how you choose whether to implement plan A or B, and it kinda was demoralizing to see that everything is calculated to dollars and then figured, whatever costs less will end up being the one chosen, yea.
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