Gun Control Not Public Health

The New England Journal of Medicine keeps saying guns are a public health issue.  But do medical professionals really feel that way?   This informal poll says a lot of them don’t:

The responses from physicians who are registered members of the site was remarkbly evenly divided. Just over half (52%) said Yes, that gun control is a public health issue.

But for readers as a whole, it was another story — with 83% of the 2,023 respondents saying No. And as a further measure of interest in gun control, there were 36 comments posted with the poll. Some posters weighed in more than once to further the conversation.

This is a health care related site, so most of the folks reading could be expected to be health care professionals.

8 thoughts on “Gun Control Not Public Health”

  1. Of course if you ask someone who’s job is health related they’ll say X is a public health issue. It’s like asking a roofer if he thinks you need a new roof. Some will be honest with you, some will try to soak you for money, regardless if you need a roof or not.

    Either way, the 52% who said ‘yes’ are idiots, and I’d like to know who they are so I can avoid them for my medical care. As you and I (and most of you reading) both have multiple firearms in the house, we’re not suffering any ill medical effects from them, so a person’s health doesn’t suffer nor benefit from having a firearm nearby.

    And, I know it’s pedantic, but you could probably count the number of people who died from the gun itself on your hands and feet. Most of them were killed by the bullet or a knife attached to the end. If there were no ammunition in the world, nobody would “die from guns”.

  2. Soliciting opinions here; what do folks like better for referring to the New England Journal of Medicine types who answered “yes”–“Doctors for Defenselessness,” or “Doctors for Disarmament”?

  3. I have decided that swimming pools pose a public health risk. Too many people drowning & contracting nasty bacterial & fungal infections. Then there are those folks who won’t wait the requisite one-hour & then get sick.

    Help stop this backyard-menace NOW! It’s for the health of the children. ;)

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