In a world of limited resources, governments must prioritize how to spend money. Ten million dollars spent on a tank, is ten million not spent on say, medical care. As a result of buying the tank, people who might have otherwise received a heart transplant will die instead.
In order to make comparisons between different courses of actions, governments assign a financial value to human life. (See the article below for different methods of doing so.)
Suppose that we assign an average value of $10,000,000 to a human life.
By that metric, Guantanamo Bay has cost the equivalent of 700 lives over its lifespan.
At a cost of $6 trillion, the wars in the Middle East have cost the equivalent of 600,000 lives.
By comparison, the 911 attacks killed 2,977 people.
Has there ever been a more highly leveraged attack in human history?
"One way to calculate the value of a human life is to look at how much more money a worker earns for doing a risky job. Suppose working in a coal mine pays $10,000 a year more than working a safer desk job, and that coal miners have a 1% greater chance of dying on the job.
Some economists would conclude that this trade-off suggests people value a human life at $1 million. They assume the increased cost of working as a coal miner (which, on average, is $1 million multiplied by 1%, or $10,000) is reflected in increased pay.
Another method is based on our behavior. How much will we pay for safety features such as bicycle helmets or antilock brakes? When we have the choice to drive faster, even at an increased risk of death, how much faster do we go?
In 1987, when the U.S. government permitted states to raise the speed limit from 55 to 65 miles per hour, many states did so, and drivers saved time by driving about two miles per hour faster on average.
However, fatality rates rose by about one-third. Overall, people in the United States saved about 125,000 hours of driving per lost life. At average wages, the trade-off between the time savings and the increased risk of fatalities suggested that state decision-makers were putting the value of a human life at about $1.5 million.
...
As of 2011, the Environmental Protection Agency set the value of a human life at $9.1 million. Meanwhile, the Food and Drug Administration put it at $7.9 million — and the Department of Transportation figure was around $6 million. Are any of these the right answer?"
https://www.theglobalist.com/the-cost-of-a-human-life-statistically-speaking/
In order to make comparisons between different courses of actions, governments assign a financial value to human life. (See the article below for different methods of doing so.)
Suppose that we assign an average value of $10,000,000 to a human life.
By that metric, Guantanamo Bay has cost the equivalent of 700 lives over its lifespan.
At a cost of $6 trillion, the wars in the Middle East have cost the equivalent of 600,000 lives.
By comparison, the 911 attacks killed 2,977 people.
Has there ever been a more highly leveraged attack in human history?
"One way to calculate the value of a human life is to look at how much more money a worker earns for doing a risky job. Suppose working in a coal mine pays $10,000 a year more than working a safer desk job, and that coal miners have a 1% greater chance of dying on the job.
Some economists would conclude that this trade-off suggests people value a human life at $1 million. They assume the increased cost of working as a coal miner (which, on average, is $1 million multiplied by 1%, or $10,000) is reflected in increased pay.
Another method is based on our behavior. How much will we pay for safety features such as bicycle helmets or antilock brakes? When we have the choice to drive faster, even at an increased risk of death, how much faster do we go?
In 1987, when the U.S. government permitted states to raise the speed limit from 55 to 65 miles per hour, many states did so, and drivers saved time by driving about two miles per hour faster on average.
However, fatality rates rose by about one-third. Overall, people in the United States saved about 125,000 hours of driving per lost life. At average wages, the trade-off between the time savings and the increased risk of fatalities suggested that state decision-makers were putting the value of a human life at about $1.5 million.
...
As of 2011, the Environmental Protection Agency set the value of a human life at $9.1 million. Meanwhile, the Food and Drug Administration put it at $7.9 million — and the Department of Transportation figure was around $6 million. Are any of these the right answer?"
https://www.theglobalist.com/the-cost-of-a-human-life-statistically-speaking/