According to the National Vital Statistics Report issued by the U.S. Center for Disease Control, over thirty-two thousand people in America were killed in 2011 by firearms. During that same year, a report issued by the U.S. Department of Justice indicated that 73,883 Americans suffered non-fatal injuries caused by firearms. With car safety rising and gun violence escalating, it's been predicted that by 2015, firearm fatalities in America will surpass traffic fatalities for the first time in our nation's history.
How long can we tolerate sticking our heads in the sand and pretending that firearm violence is not a public health issue, when billions of dollars are spent treating injuries caused by firearms and billions more are spent dealing with the aftermath? To put this matter in perspective, the American Cancer Society estimated that 39,520 women in America died of breast cancer in 2011, and today we're in the midst of a nationwide pink campaign to raise hundreds of millions of dollars to support research to fight that deadly disease. How much does our federal government spend to study gun violence as a public health issue? Zilch! That's right, zilch!
In fact, ever since John Hinckley attempted to assassinate President Reagan and the Brady gun bill gained national attraction, gun rights advocates in Congress have silently inserted provisions in virtually every spending bill prohibiting any agency of the federal government from funding research on gun violence as a public health issue. Talk about ignorance in action! It's time we Americans put an end to Congressional-mandated stupidity and start seeking answers to tough questions regarding gun violence. For thirty-two thousand Americans, their lives may very well depend on it.
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