WASHINGTON, DC - Don’t say you were not warned.
In 2020-21, we saw the extent to which the government would go to violate the Constitution and citizens’ liberty during the COVID pandemic. We also saw the extent some citizens would go to surrender their rights and liberty in the name of “public health.”
On Tuesday, U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy unilaterally declared gun violence in the United States as a “public health crisis,” while calling on Americans to work to prevent firearm-related deaths and related effects, in particular highlighting the effect on black Americans, Reuters reported.
“Today, for the first time in the history of our office, I am issuing a Surgeon General’s Advisory on firearm violence,” Murthy said in a video announcement. “It outlines the urgent threat firearm violence poses to the health and well-being of our country.
“As a doctor, I’ve seen the consequences of firearm violence up close and the lives of the patients that I cared for over the years,” Murthy continued. “These are moms and dads, sons and daughters, all of whom were robbed of their physical and mental health by senseless acts of violence.”
The announcement was the first ever advisory on gun violence and Murthy said the consequences of gun violence are “devastating and far-reaching” to the public’s well being while calling for more research funding, better mental health access and secure storage of firearms, which is already the law in a majority of states. Murthy did not mention lack of prosecution of criminals, nor those who are convicted in firearms crimes receiving light sentences by primarily liberal prosecutors and judges.
“Firearms violence is an urgent public health crisis that has led to loss of life, unimaginable pain, and profound grief for far too many Americans,” Murthy said in a statement.
Murthy said the toll of gun violence goes beyond the some 50,000 people per year he claims are killed in gun violence, but also impacts those who are shot and survive. He also noted that people who witness gun violence, lose family members, or who learn about it through the news can also be impacted.
According to Statista, 48,830 people died by firearms in 2021, an eight percent increase from 2020. In 2020, however, the so-called “summer of love” after the overdose death of George Floyd, firearm deaths jumped 13.8 percent from 2019. In 2022, the number of firearm deaths declined from 48,830 in 2021 to 48,204 in 2022, a 1% decrease. Suicides accounted for 56% of deaths related to firearms in 2022, according to the National Safety Council, while 1% were preventable/accidental.
The fact that over half of the firearm deaths in 2022 were suicide-related seems to indicate that “better mental health access” should be the government’s priority, not punishing lawful gun owners.
Mass shootings as defined by the FBI have increased, although the agency doesn’t take into account gang violence, which accounts for a significant number of those “mass shootings.” One need only look at any weekend in Chicago for proof.
The Gun Violence Archive defines a mass shooting as one that involves at least four victims, while the FBI uses three as the number. It is difficult to quantify the exact number of mass shootings since there isn’t a standard definition or statute that defines them.
Murthy told government-state television MSNBC that the latest effort is similar to other campaigns that targeted cigarettes and promoted the use of seatbelts.
“One of my goals here is to take out of the realm of politics and into the realm of public health,” he told the outlet.
The report recommends some hot-button issues such as expanded background checks and the infamous “assault weapons ban,” which have little chance of becoming law. Given the last couple of Supreme Court decisions on gun control, even if such a law were passed it would likely not stand constitutional muster.
Murthy has previously issued public health advisories on the harmful effects of social media to young people, and last week called for social media warning labels to protect young teens and children.
Gun Owners of America (GOAA) slammed Murthy's declaration:
Meanwhile, the National Rifle Association (NRA) slammed Murthy’s declaration, calling it an “extension of the Biden administration’s war on law-abiding gun owners.”
The National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) accused Murthy of “election year politicking masquerading in a white lab coat.”
“This is the very reason NSSF opposed his nomination and confirmation three years ago. Surgeon General Murthy’s bias toward gun control was evident when he previously served as the U.S. Surgeon General under President Barack Obama. Now it’s conveniently re-emerging just days before the first presidential debate and weeks before early voting opens for the Nov. 5. Presidential election.”
The NSSF accused Murthy of backtracking promises made during his 2021 Senate confirmation hearing, where he said he did “not intend to use my office as surgeon general as a bully pulpit on gun control.”
The gun rights group also said Muthy was using a fake talking point concerning firearm deaths of “children,” noting that even the far-left Washington Post had claimed it was false. This was where Murthy was including 18 and 19-year-olds in the definition of “children.” Murthy claimed that firearm deaths are the “leading cause” of deaths among children. When adjusting those numbers to include 17 and under, the definition of “child,” car accidents remain the leading cause of death.
“Surgeon General Murthy is a gun control advocate wearing a white lab coat. And he’s clearly doing the bidding of his boss in an election year for purely political reasons. Nothing can be more obvious, dishonest and disgraceful.”
Remember the late President Reagan’s famous words: “The nine most dangerous words in the English language: “I’m from the government and I’m here to help.”
Just like during COVID.
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