You’ve probably seen it by now. A chart, passed around on social media with the kind of grim satisfaction that only statistics can produce: more Europeans die each year from summer heat than Americans die from gun violence. The implication cuts both ways—Europe’s lack of air conditioning is deadlier than America’s lack of gun control—and it has been lighting up feeds across the political spectrum ever since.
Turns out, it’s mostly true. And this summer is making it impossible to ignore.
