I got this in my e-mail today. So I decided to respond....
Subject: Fw: Fwd: AMA vs NRA
The number of physicians in the US is 700,000. Accidental deaths caused by physicians per year is 120,000. Accidental deaths per physician is 0.171. (US Dept. of Health & Human Services)
The number of gun owners in the US is 80,000,000. The number of accidental gun deaths per year (all age groups) is 1,500.
The number of accidental deaths per gun owner is 0.0000188. Statistically, doctors are approximately 9,000 times more dangerous than gun owners.
FACT: NOT EVERYONE HAS A GUN, BUT ALMOST EVERYONE HAS AT LEAST ONE DOCTOR.
Please alert your friends to this alarming threat. We must ban doctors before this gets out of hand.
My response is below...
I don't normally do this because everyone knows forwards are just for fun and games, but it was so stupid I had to say something.
The major flaw in this e-mail is of course that most gun owners shoot about once a week, if that. My dad has a 3 guns (two shotguns one hand gun) and hasn't fired a shot since I was like 6 years old. There is also only one way to kill someone with a gun and thats shooting them. Meanwhile Doctors see hundreds of patients a day and most work 35 hour shifts. Add to that the virtually endless list of possible drug and allergy complications which no doctor can know unless you tell him what you're taking and what you're allergic too, and suddenly the 0.171% chance of your doctor killing you looks pretty damn good. They are 9,000 times more likely to accidently kill someone because they do their thing 9,000 times more often than gun owners do, probably more and there is a virtually endless list of ways something can go wrong. But the author of this e-mail conveniently left those variables out of the equation.
Because when you look at the big picture, even an idiot can see accidents by gun owners are going to be lower than that of accidents caused by Doctors, its like comparing accidents involving space craft with accidents involving SUVs. People should also consider the fact that you wouldn't be in an emergency room where a Doctor could accidently kill you unless you asked for his assistance, no one asks to be shot. But 7 years of medical school and who knows how many years of actual medical practice comes in handy when Bubba accidently shoots your brother/cousin/son.
Should we ban guns?
No but don't compare Doctors to Gun owners unless you're willing to require 7 years of schooling and a life time of continuing education for them as well.