Statistics

[Rail Driver]

I thought this was slightly humorous as well as being a relatively decent estimation...

a. The number of physicians in the US is 700,000.
b. Accidental deaths caused by Physicians per year is 120,000.
c. Accidental deaths per physician is 0.171. (US Dept. of Health & Human Services)

Then think about this:

a. The number of gun owners in the US is 80,000,000.
b. The number of accidental gun deaths per year (all age groups) is 1,500.
c. The number of accidental deaths per gun owner is .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.

 

[PotatoJudge]

I'm both. Look out!

This set of statistics has been posted a few times and the discussion always goes downhill fast.

I agree it is slightly humorous, but that's about all it's good for.

Those numbers make it look like a doctor kills someone every six years. Seems kind of high. Were they counting those guys operating out of storage buildings?

 

[nyrifleman]

I'll play:

There are approximately 26,000 yearly deliberate gun deaths (10,000 homicides and 16,000 suicides). That's 0.000325 gun deaths per gun owner.

Doctors are 526 times more dangerous than people intent on using guns for harming people!

 

[PotatoJudge]

There are approximately 26,000 yearly deliberate gun deaths (10,000 homicides and 16,000 suicides). That's 0.000325 gun deaths per gun owner.

I think a more interesting number would be the number of deliberate deaths caused by physicians.

I'd like to see the number of lives saved per physician versus lives saved per gun owner (using their gun). Let's look at this as a cost/benefit ratio.

 

[Echo9]

I thought this was slightly humorous as well as being a relatively decent estimation...

a. The number of physicians in the US is 700,000.
b. Accidental deaths caused by Physicians per year is 120,000.
c. Accidental deaths per physician is 0.171. (US Dept. of Health & Human Services)

Then think about this:

a. The number of gun owners in the US is 80,000,000.
b. The number of accidental gun deaths per year (all age groups) is 1,500.
c. The number of accidental deaths per gun owner is .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.

Where did you get 1,500? According to the CDC, the number of accidental gun deaths per year across all age groups from 2000 to 2007 never went above 802.

Accidental gun deaths from 2000 to 2007 average out to 720.375

 

[Oyeboten]

Some former heads of the CDC disclosed that in their opinion, iatrogenic deaths in the US were in the 700,000 - 800,000 per year range, with non-lethal but significant life-degrading and personal fortune draining screw-ups for the victims, being of course many times that.

 

[Double Naught Spy]

Okay, facts huh? Virtually every treatment of a patient by a physician is a health-affecting event (that is what the job involves). Very few discharges of firearms are meant in that manner.

So 120,000 deaths are by physicians? Where does that number come from? I am unable to find where they have determined the numbers of accidental deaths from doctors is that high. Maybe somebody else can. However, there are huge numbers of accidental deaths caused in the medical industry, but those include everything from nurses or techs mixing prescriptions to falls inside of hospitals, to a person having a food allergy and being given the wrong meal.

FACT: NOT EVERYONE HAS A GUN, BUT ALMOST EVERYONE HAS AT LEAST ONE DOCTOR.

Well not everyone has a doctor and unlike gun owners, there are very few of us who own our own doctors. I have 6. I have a truck doctor that is an old beater. It looks pretty rough, but for close range sorts of minor treatments, it is just fine. It isn't like I count on my truck doctor for doing brain surgery. Heck, I don't even remember when I lasted cleaned it, LOL! I have an antique doctor and then a family heirloom doctor that both just stay in the safe. Then I have my two daily carry doctors, a primary care(ry) and a backup for second opinions. And then I have my home emergency doctor that stays right next to the bed most of the time.

My biggest concern is that the doctors in the safe will start playing with my guns. I need another safe. I should know better than to store doctors and guns in the same safe, but I only have one safe.

 

[Blackbeard]

A certain Mark Twain quote about statistics comes to mind.

 

[Rail Driver]

Dang guys... Get the knots out of your panties... Can't take a little humor? Especially a little humor targeting anti-gun "statistical facts"?

Last time I post something for entertainment that I think is funny

As far as "decent estimate", I didn't do any in depth research to confirm or deny the "statistics" and perhaps I should've put the title in quotes, but you responders need to calm down a bit. No need to get all gung ho about it.

Now that this point has been illustrated (albeit unintentionally) I have only this to say: Instead of attacking a humorous anecdote, why don't you guys pool those funds and put out a commercial explaining how incorrect, misleading, and outdated the anti-gun commercials' statistics are?

 

[Manco]

Oh come on, 82% of all statistics are made up on the spot--73% of the population knows that!

 

[sonier]

and only 78% believe the statistics themselves

 

[Mal H]

Sorry, but this is quite old and has been posted a bunch of times:
http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=450848
http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=448818
http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=421663
http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=413637

... and there are many, many more.

Closed.