A Little Perspective on Gun Violence
El Paso and Dayton. Two more shootings where a cowardly nut with a semi-automatic gun attacked innocent people in a business and public gathering. Police responded within minutes. One gunman dead, one arrested.
And almost as fast came the non-stop news and the politicians. These two tragedies dominated the airtime on Fox News, and one Democratic candidate blamed Trump for them.
I tuned in to “Sunday Morning” on CBS and of course, the headline was these shootings and their first cover story was about doctors who treat gun injuries and have to tell loved ones the patient is dead. A comment was almost glossed over: “Some of these doctors are gun owners.”
Within this cover story were statistics about gun violence in America. Yeah I know, we are a Fox News affiliate, but I will give credit where due to CBS News and “Sunday Morning” for providing the numbers.
“It may surprise you to know….” the correspondent started.
60% of gun deaths are from suicide.
38% are from homicides.
1% from accidents.
Less than 1% of the gun deaths are from mass shootings. - CDC / Congressional Research Service
These stats do not and should not dampen the seriousness of mass shootings, and I respect the doctors’ concerns and their stand. These stats show the larger picture of gun violence and the scope of issues to address.
This same Sunday I went shooting lever-action rifles with my Dad and the local gun club, a sporting match at metal targets. Afterward, over iced tea and lemonade, one man rhetorically asked, “How many were shot in Chicago the same weekend these mass shootings happened?”