State of the Armed Union

by Craig Klugman, Ph.D

In the first 274 days of 2015, there were 294 mass shootings (yes, that is more than 1 per day). As a nation, there were over 39,000 gun incidents leading to 10,104 deaths and 20,544 injuries so far in 2015.

For points of comparison

• From 2004-2014, there were 303 American deaths worldwide due to terrorism and 320,523 firearm related deaths.
• In 2013, 145,700 died of measles worldwide.
• In the US in 2013, over 11,000 people died of stomach cancer.
• In the US in 2013, over 9,500 newborns died from malformations, deformations, and chromosomal abnormalities. The US has one of the highest infant mortality rates in the industrialized world.
• In 2014, 2 people died in the U.S. of Ebola
• In 2015 so far, 11,297 people have died of Ebola worldwide

When we hear that 11,000 people have died in one year of Ebola, infant mortality, stomach cancer, and terrorism, there is a huge public health and national security effort to combat each and every situation through research, screenings, and efforts that often limit individual liberty. But when 10,000 people per year die of gunshots, the response is silence, prayer, or calls for more guns.

What can we do to change this state of armed affairs?

• Recognize and state clearly that gun violence is a public health issue.
• Petition Congress to reverse the ban on CDC research on gun violence that was passed (again) in July 2015.
• Petition Congress to pass the proposal (rejected in 2013) that would prohibit anyone on the National Instant Background Check System from buying a gun.
• Close the loop on background checks at gun shows.
• Petition the IRS to rethink the NRA’s tax exempt status. Ask Congress to pass a law that forbids any organization that harms human health from receiving tax breaks paid for by the people it harms.
• Petition our state legislatures to overturn laws that make it a crime for doctors to ask about guns in the home
• Vote only for candidates that reject money from the National Rifle Association (reject any candidate with an NRA rating of A or B)
• Believe the facts: Countries with high gun ownership are less safe
• Believe the facts: Owning a gun increases your chances of being shot
• Believe the facts: Gun violence is a health disparity–those of lower socioeconomic status are 18 times more likely to be shot. Support efforts that decrease wealth and health disparities.
• Support raising the age for a gun license. Studies show that deaths from guns peak at age 19. If the age was raised from 18 to 21, there might be fewer deaths.
• Although the U.S. Supreme Court, in DC v Heller ruled that one could have a gun for personal defense in the home, Jackson v. San Francisco saw the Court let stand a city law requiring guns to be in a locked container or disabled with a trigger lock. The Second Amendment is not an unlimited right to own and use guns. All rights have limits.
• Although studies have found no link between video games and violent behavior, the US likes its death and violence. While watching The Martian, I had to sit through 8 previews, 7 of which were for movies about death, crime, and murder. In a recent entertainment magazine giving a list of the top 10 books to look forward to in the fall, all 10 were about death, crime, terrorism, and murder. Violence in films has tripled over 18 years. Without child instruction and explanation of context of violence in these filsm, seeing such violence normalized may make it more acceptable. As the defense states, perhaps these films are simply giving people what they want, but that also indicates our love of violence which in itself may be a problem.

Much has been written on this blog about guns as a public health issue and as a medical issue. You can read them here and here. For a reality check, I offer a list of all mass shootings in 2015 as the state of our armed union.