blake murphy wrote:
>
> christ, do you want to live forever? what do you wear when you leave
> the house? there are meteorites everywhere.

I know of only one person being hit by a meteor,
and she lived. The risk of death appears to be
much less than one in a billion per century.

http://www.brainyhistory.com/events/...54_116289.html

What's the risk of death from food poisoning?
About 1 in 60,000 per year.

Quoting from
http://www.fda.gov/cvm/Guidance/Guide122.htm

"The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
has estimated that known food borne pathogens
account for 14 million illnesses, 60,000
hospitalizations and 1,800 deaths to humans
in the United States each year. Total food borne
illness from both known and unknown pathogens is
likely to be responsible for 76 million cases,
325,000 hospitalizations and 5,000 deaths
annually."

How does that compare with something everybody
knows is dangerous, like driving?

Quoting from
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines03/1127-03.htm

"'Here we are losing 43,000 people,' Mr. Mineta
said. 'If we had that many people die in aviation
accidents, we wouldn't have an airplane flying.
People wouldn't put up with it. They ought not
to put up with 43,000 uncles, aunts, mothers,
dads, brothers and friends whose lives are
snuffed out by traffic accidents.'

Food borne illness is about 9 times less likely
to kill you than driving, but driving is the
most dangerous thing most people do. For many
people, unsafe food handling is the second
most dangerous thing they do.