A Good Argument Against Gun Control.

[AzRednek]

I've been trying to avoid the stress related to the election and politics but some how managed to cruise the net and wind up in the midst of a pro-gun blog. It is written by a medical Dr and full of fifty vent words but some good reading especially on the hypocracy of gun violence studies.

 

http://home.pacbell.net/rsdotson/guns/physiciansRkba.htm

[RGRWJB]

Say what you want to about the Republicans, but I will be very surprised if the Democrats do not try the Assault rifle ban again in the name of homeland security.

[Doble Troble]

That's really a nice piece of work. Thanks for pointing it out, Az.

 

Everything is about personal responsibility.

 

What can we do to hold this American value?

 

If we hold it, we'll remain strong.

[fritz]

It was a nice piece of work, but man I could have plowed 40 acres before I read it all.

 

Doctors have always been against guns. But in rural areas, or when the doktor from the big city is a hunter, he does not sign a petition against guns. He may be a surgeon, but he don't wanna cut his own throat.

 

Besides, gunshot wounds keep a lot of doktors in business. Kinda morbid thought, but true non the less. If I was a doktor and saw the endless flow of victims of gunshots coming to the ER, I would be against guns also.

 

Maybe.

 

fritz

[Doble Troble]

Um, fritz. The last doctors in our country who saw endless numbers of gunshot wounds have all retired now after their service in WWII and Korea - and there weren't too many of them then (not that VN or Iraq and the rest of the ME have been a piece of cake - now the civil war is one to talk about endless and overwhelming numbers of gunshot wounds - Miami is Disneyland in comparison - and that's where all the spinal cord research is due to a prevalence [but still relatively few] gunshot traumas]).

 

fritz, I'm one to respect my elders, but I must say that you put the "see" in cynical.

 

IT IS OUR DUTY to read and think about these issues. It does take effort and some time, but a hell of a lot less time and effort that it takes to headspace a new rifle.

 

If we don't take the time to think about issues related to our basic freedoms, we are setting ourselves up to lose them.

 

Here you have a group of dedicated citizens willing to work hard to think about and defend ideas that that are important to everone in this country (despite it causing problems with professional collegues), and the best response you have to offer is that it took too much time to read. Do you want them to try to sound-bite it for you and others like you with short attention spans? Don't you think that maybe a "Reader's Digest" version might be difficult to do given the significance of the issue? Should they try to reduce the significance of the problem so that you can more easily deal with it? Do you think that our Democracy would be best served by this type of approach (if so you REALLY should join the Democrats).

 

Freedom isn't free. It's expensive. The lion's share of the expense is paid in-terms of our involvement and time spent figuring-out what is right. The taxes we pay are also significant, but should pale in comparison to our thoughtfulness and participation. To the extent that this balance is altered, our country is weakened.

 

 

[fritz]

"Um, fritz. The last doctors in our country who saw endless numbers of gunshot wounds have all retired now after their service in WWII and Korea "

 

Sorry, I thought those fellow doktors listed on that long list were current practicing physicians. Guess they were all military doktors. My mistake.

 

Ask the doctors in the ER of Houston (the most dangerous city in the US) and the doctors in ERs around the country where the gunshot wounds they treat happened. It wasn't war casualities (unless you call the streets of the United States a war zone.)

 

Come to think of it, they are.

 

And I believe you misunderstood the post I made. But that's understandable, it was a rather long dissertation I was looking at. I probably misunderstood it.

 

My mistake.

 

fritz

[Horsefly]

Before my work issued uniforms,I had a Ruger belt buckle,and with every dentist visit,DOT physical,random drug test,and blood test,the doctors almost always ask straight out,Where do you hunt"? I had a neighbor that was a just out of med school doctor,and all he could think of was duck hunting.I get the impression they have no one to talk about hunting with awhile working.Good ol Texas Doctors will sew you up on Friday and go out and kill something Saturday morning.I imagine afterr being around sick folks 14-16 hours a day,setting in a deer blind alone in the woods can be sorta soothing.Jerry

[AzRednek]

A former co-worker's sister was a MD and did her internship in Chicago. She bombed out here in Phx first after losing big bucks trying a private practice. She spent about 90 days working here working in ER's then moved back to Chicago. She made more money in two shifts in Chicago than an entire week here in Phoenix. From what I was told apx half her Chicago patients were either gunshot wounds, HIV positive or both.

 

My Doctor is an avid shooter. The SHTF on one visit when I bought him some ammo. The nurse was going to call the cops. I bought in a bandoleer of Turk 8MM. When the nurse said in her broken english "what is this" I said "for Dr XXX" she said "are you angry at Dr XXX" when I erupted in laugher she ran out of the room repeating "dial 911 suicidal man".

 

[Doble Troble]

Guys, I'm trying really hard to find some reliable statistics about the incidence of firearms-related injuries. I'm having a difficult time doing this, but I'll keep trying.

 

I suspect that this difficulty is attributable to a low incidence of gunshot wounds. I can tell you that I have no problem finding statistics about the incidence of automobile-related injuries - this is a real danger in our society.

 

I lived in Los Angeles (even during the 1992 "riots"). I still don't personally know any civilian who has been wounded by a firearm. My mom was an E.R. nurse for 30 years. She saw a few gunshot wounds, but it was a special occaison.

 

The idea that its a "war zone" out there, even in urban areas, I suspect is pure fantasy.

 

But I'll keep working to try to find some reliable statistics so that you cynics can start worrying about something else.

 

And fritz, its difficult to believe that after even skimming the referenced article that you somehow came to the conclusion that "doktors" are "kept in business" by gunshot wounds. The entire point was that these events are exceedingly rare. If you're going to be critical of something, at least take the time to read it.

[fritz]

I'll try to do better in the future.

 

But I have come to be critical of everything I read, and about half of what I see.

 

fritz