There is always a need for skepticism with these lists as the methodology and motive can be suspect. However, this list is based on per capita murder rates, and Kingston fares surprisingly well. I would be interested to see how the per capita rate changes when factoring in St. James and St. Catherine, where the murder rates are considerably higher.

In any case, Kingston takes the 33rd spot in the World Atlas list, out of fifty cities. Where are the Middle Eastern cities? It seems to include only the Americas, with the exception of South Africa. Venezuela, Honduras and El Salvador take the top three spots, respectively. St. Louis, Baltimore, Detroit and New Orleans represent the U.S.

This list is timely, considering my post yesterday about CNN anchor Ashley Banfield’s comment that Jamaica is “extraordinarily violent.”

Many commentators stated that the violence is restricted to those associated with crime. But then, illustrating what a paradoxical nation Jamaica is, along comes a story about a young woman taken from a party, raped and murdered in a rural parish.