In 2011, Americans were more likely to die by being crushed by their own TV sets than at the hands of terrorists. (via Schneier)

  • http://www.flickr.com/photos/stefan_e_jones/ Stefan Jones

    How can we be sure that it isn’t terrorists who are pushing TV sets on top of American citizens? 

  • http://profiles.google.com/hyouko.kun Chris Drouin

    There’s some pretty major math failure in that article.  3 US citizens out of 978 kidnappings is a rate of 0.3%, not 0.003% (unless each kidnapping event involved an average of about a hundred hostages).  The statistic on those killed by terrorist attacks is similarly off.  Perhaps they learned how to calculate percentages from the cell phone carriers that thought that ’0.05 cents’ was the same as a nickel.

    (This is not to detract from the overall message here, which correctly indicates that you’re very unlikely to be killed or taken hostage by terrorists as a US citizen.)

  • Bearpaw01

    Obviously, this means we can’t let anyone board a plane if they’re carrying a TV set.

    I’m going to start a company that produces real-time TV detection systems and make a bundle selling them to Homeland Security.

  • http://profile.yahoo.com/PNB2FLA7L2I5L2XHHOEWT6GZ7U Art Deco

    Get it together, terrorists!

  • http://www.facebook.com/postelwait Cameron Postelwait

    huh? i’m confused because TV is a form of terrorism right?

    • digi_owl

      No, it is the holy box where the good people tell you what is right to think in the world. /s

  • Jellodyne

    Heavy old televisions hate our freedoms. We’re pretty sure we’ve located the real culprit behind all these deaths. It was the Higgs boson particles which allowed that furniture to be crushingly massive.

    • digi_owl

      !00″ Plasma, now with 0.1% less Higgs.

  • digi_owl

    I do wonder what the state by state distribution is on all this.

  • Brandon Wright

    This only begs the question of whether or not we need body scanners to detect rogue furniture, I mean, its furniture. Couldn’t we just simplify our search for terrorist furniture with a pat-down?

  • http://2012diaries.blogspot.com/ tristan eldritch

    What was Bill Bailey’s old gag?

    Bush: WE NEED TO STRIKE AT AL QAEDA’S HOME BASE.

    Bailey: YEAH, GET EM WHERE THEY BUY THEIR OUTDOOR FURNITURE!

  • https://launchpad.net/~zak-mckracken Zak McKracken

     Inconcievable why not more is being done to combat this! Every single casualty of furniture is one too many, and we must do all we can to prevent this! If spending 50 Zillion Dollars per year will reduce this by half a percent, then that is what it’s gonna take!

  • robdobbs

    In 2011, Americans were more likely to die by ANYTHING other than at the hands of a terrorist.
    Really, I’d like to know what’s less dangerous than a terrorist – statistically. 

  • babVU98i

    Ah yes, expect the Television Safety Administration soon to be legislated into existence to employ a bunch of rude goons who come into your house, xray you before you watch TV and seize your popcorn and soda. Drone strikes on Korean factories producing weapons of mass destruction to follow.

  • http://profiles.google.com/carboncow robert feller

    We’ll clearly we are not getting attacked by terrorists because of the trillions of dollars that Bush and the likes have protected us with, correct?

  • oakfurniturebuyer

    Simple solution – ban all televisions! We must be safe in our homes. As for cardboard furniture, quite a lot of it isn’t much stronger these days.