# 29 Oct 2003, 10:16AM: Stupid?:
The new Smithsonian has an article about Sylvia Plath. Slate also features a Plath article, and The Economics of Suicide:
Come on, media. People's lives are hard enough without you all yelling, "Jump!"
Why should suicide be an economic boon? Once you attempt suicide you suddenly have access to lots of resources—medical care, psychiatric attention, familial love and concern—that were previously expensive or unavailable. Doubters may ask why the depressed don't seek out resources earlier. But studies have demonstrated that psychological and familial resources become "cheaper" after a suicide attempt: It is difficult to find free medical care when you are sad, but once you try to kill yourself, it's forced on you.