While there is some correlation of murder rates and GDP, it's rather noisy: https://wernerantweiler.ca/blog/2017-10-04-a.pdf

The GINI seems to be a somewhat better fit: https://i.imgur.com/vYSsLMw.png

I am not convinced by the gini fit. There must be something else. Apart from that: because of not keeping up with stats, i always thought that south africa has the most murder per capita (apart from war zones). What has happened: Jamaica is almost double. Did SA get better or did central america take a significant slide downwards?

Well the victim's business was in developing countries. Perhaps his killer or killers were based there too.

This sounds a bit extreme. Which ones are the “outside of developed countries” and how many of them require walking around in body armor everywhere?

This has been the norm growing up in the Philippines. We lived in a gilded fortress and we're not drug dealers. We learn about the dangers of being kidnapped before we enter grade school. I can go on, but it's not much different from life in many parts of South America, Africa, and South & South East Asia. You're not required to wear body armor, but seeing that there are armed guards posted outside of a KFC with body armor and either an assault rifle or shotgun; it's not a terrible idea either.

Yes, it's very different from the sheltered life of a developed country.

I happened to be next to a store in Central Mexico when an armored cash pickup truck showed up. It was a MUCH more intense scene than the pickups I've seen in the states. There were multiple guards in the parking lot, guns drawn, that looked very alert; they weren't just going through the motions.

Nothing happened and the stop was done in a couple minutes, but it reminded me of how different the daily lives of those guards must be from any job I've ever worked.

I find it concerning that so few people are aware of the differences between their middle or upper class lives in the US and the average life for a citizen in less privileged places. To many, the thought of carrying a weapon or wearing armor to protect yourself is insane. And then there's the ones who have seen what the world can throw at you buying ar-15s and plate carriers and being villainized for it.

The diversity of human experience is truly staggering.

Hey I think you may have meant respond to another comment. In case you did mean to respond to the comment I put up: I totally agree that there are places that are "very different from the sheltered life of a developed country". I've been to India a few times and have seen a wide range of places in terms of both landscape and wealth.

The purpose of my previous comment is that, depending on how we define "developed" (which is very blurry! Think about the range of wealth within the US or India for example), it's not the case that you need to walk around with body armor everywhere in each country that's not "developed". The parent comment I responded to seemed to imply that "wear body armor and stay in window-less houses" == "life outside of developed countries".

See parent comments/thread for more context. If you see a mistake or if I misunderstood something, please feel free to point it out.

I meant to respond to you.

He’s kind of exaggerating, and but not totally. When I said that my family and friends lived in fortresses, it’s along those same lines. While the house is somewhat normal aside from the iron window gates (it was not windowless), the outer structure is not. The outer fence is a large tall concrete wall, with metal gates which are sometimes automatic. The top of the wall is lined with a combination of wire, metal spikes, and broken glass. Every household is fully armed. Some families even have security guards both onsite and as an escort. Some families have a perimeter of fences.

Even with all that, someone who worked for one of our family friends got his face blown off by simply answering the gate. It’s hard not to be paranoid if you ever live in one of those places. After moving to the US decades ago, one of the luxuries I really enjoyed was being able to walk in most places without the need for an armed escort or concealed firearms. Feeling relatively safe in a non-fortified home is also nice. I didn’t realize it was the norm in the developed world outside of movies

Ah I see. I just realized that being able to safely walk around my neighborhood is something I took for granted; I didn’t give much thought to safety til your comment. That’s something to be grateful for and I’ll keep that in mind on my next walk.

Thank you for sharing