And if you disagree vehemently, you’ll soon find that supporting the 1st Amendment in defense of mental disorders is itself a mental disorder. QED.
Dr. Stephen Hargarten of the Research Center at the Medical College of Wisconsin claims : “What I’m struggling with is: Is this the new social norm? This is what we’re going to have to live with if we have more personal access to firearms. We have a public health issue to discuss. Do we wait for the next outbreak or is there something we can do to prevent it.”
Hargarten supports the limiting of access to all firearms in his advocacy with the Firearms Injury Center at the Medical College in Wisconsin which is funded by a US government grant to lobby taxpayers into believing that removing the 2nd Amendment will stop gun violence.
[…]
An estimated 260 to 300 million firearms are owned by American civilians which equals 1/3 of US households. While gun-related deaths are not raising according to police records, the fear-mongering continues as a supposed trend with no justification.
[…]
More mainstream support for mixing gun control with pharmaceuticals come from Paul Barrett who has authored a book that coincidentally claims that current gun laws are ineffective and need to be stricter to prevent more deaths. Barrett says: “Criminologists have studied it, and the consensus is that those laws simply did not have a statistically meaningful effect on crime rates.” He also feels that the mainstream media focus on the shootings themselves ignore the actual problem which is actually a “social problem” which is subverted by “the overall gun homicide rate.”
Daniel Webster, co-director of the anti-firearm John Hopkins Center for Gun Policy and Research, asserts that “gun ownership—a precursor to gun violence—can spread ‘much like an infectious disease” and wants healthcare professionals to have influence over whether or not American citizens are legally allowed to possess firearms. Webster would like to see Obamacare have ultimate control of the classification of mental states with regard to purchasing and obtaining FBI clearance for a gun.
As Obama has done in the past, an executive order could be signed to force the issue through compliance with Obamacare restrictions on those deemed mentally defective and unable to own firearms. As with the mandate through EO on religious institutions to provide birth control, Obama’s executive power can again be abused to ensure his bidding is done – like any good Fascist Dictator would do.
The blurring of the line between Liberal Democrats and covert Socialists is confusing the perception of the 2nd Amendment in the social meme being purveyed by the mainstream media. By aligning Constitutional authority with the convoluted power grabs of the Obama administration, our Republic for the people and by the people is quickly descending into a control grid of which there is no escape.
Ordinarily, I might conclude this to be a bit of pro-gun fear mongering. But given the number of “studies” we’ve seen over the past dozen or so years — roundly criticized by serious scientists though they’ve been — that have made the argument for either 1) conservative 2) religious belief 3) a desire to shrink government 3) an anti-illegal immigration stance 4) climate “denialism” 5) proponent of traditional marriage as either mental disorders or “hate,” I’m not so quick to dismiss these kinds of dot-connectings.
The Left has used the academy to give leftist assumptions the cover of intellectual rigor — that is, they’ve succeeded in politicizing epistemology itself to aid in their ideological political aims.
It has used “science” to push the idea that scientific “consensus” is the same as established fact — demonizing those who pressure that consensus in a way that turns the very idea of scientific inquiry on its head.
So it is hardly a stretch to believe that using “academic” “scientists” in the field of medicine to push a political agenda whose long term effect would be to greatly increase the power and control of the government over its increasingly de-individualized subjects.
Meaning, while this may well be a bit of pro-gun fear mongering, it is certainly not presented without cause.
John Hopkins Center for Gun Policy and Research
Affiliated with Johns Hopkins or a fake out of some kind?
Related, I think, at the root at least, because it is at the root.
Academics have always thought they should be in charge. They fancy themselves philosophers, and who was it that first posited the philosopher-king?
Too much tenure, not enough hemlock.
That is a way to get around the 2nd amendment, make wanting a gun a mental disorder and then you disqualify yourself to be able to purchase a firearm when you fill out the paper work.
Jeez I wish we could read Plato. But it isn’t to be.
Socrates was accused of corrupting the youth, but it’s the faux philosophers who want to be kings that actually are corrupting the youth, the middle-aged and the old.
And the contempt for the Constitution of the Republic – what are we to make of that? An illness? Or just par for the course?
Comte endorses an instituted rule of philosophers as an actuality when he founds scientific political positivism (so he thinks, but he too couldn’t read Plato). That is no less than the rule of experts the progressives propound today.
But. We should no more follow his bad reading than we should follow the bad reading of Popper, say. However, that isn’t to say that I don’t recognize the false reading of Plato is perfectly established. Because it is.
Here’s a thought: Daddies don’t let your babies grow up to be gangbangers.
If there are no gangbangers, where are we supposed to buy our firepower after it becomes a mental illness?
Say, if guns are outlawed only outlaws will have guns! I’ve heard that somewhere.
Let’s face it: people who get paid to think without regard to worthwhile results, are an endemic plague on civilization — because only civilized societies have the resources to do such a stupid thing. It’s how you get things like History being a godlike intelligent force, or democracy being the end result of rule by a secretive cabal of thugs with names like Lenin and Stalin.
They are like the inherent flaws in a living organism that ensure it will eventually die, but in this case the “organism” is a civilization.
heh
I’m currently transcribing Leo Strauss’ 1960 UChicago class on Aristotle’s Politics, in which Aristotle makes the point that political philosophy is practically coeval with democracy, is born in it, caused by it, demanded by it, even, because of the decay democracy makes of itself. Reason stumbles and lurches to recover, so to speak. Has been ever since.
But given the number of “studies” we’ve seen over the past dozen or so years — roundly criticized by serious scientists though they’ve been — that have made the argument for either 1) conservative 2) religious belief 3) a desire to shrink government 3) an anti-illegal immigration stance 4) climate “denialism” 5) proponent of traditional marriage as either mental disorders or “hate,” I’m not so quick to dismiss these kinds of dot-connectings.
Lysenkoism makes a roaring comeback.
The anti-homeschooling blather is starting to acquire similar characteristics. [Rimshot!]
Working backward from a conclusion and forcing bits and pieces into the mold to make it fit?
Science!
Welcome to my world Jeff. This is why I started becoming a gun blogger. Up until I went to get my CCW, I had *no idea* how bad it had gotten. Hell, I was surprised to find out I had to beg the state for permission to carry a gun. It never registered in my brain that I’d have to, and when I saw the hoops put in the way to prevent me from doing so, I got active.
They cannot win on the facts, and this passage is clear in indicating that
“An estimated 260 to 300 million firearms are owned by American civilians which equals 1/3 of US households. While gun-related deaths are not raising according to police records, ….”
Got that? Nothing is happening. Crime rates going down? We can ignore that. Facts showing more guns does not equate to more crime? Who cares?
They will continue trying every angle, especially one that appeals to the authority of doctors because even nominally intelligent people tend to not want to question medical experts.
well, good news! Got a call today. Was approved for my CCW.
Wife is still waiting. The little would-be terrorist.
[…] Protein Wisdom commenter McGehee: Academics have always thought they should be in charge. They fancy themselves philosophers, and who was it that first posited the philosopher-king? […]
Related: Chicago has a mental illness epidemic. Surely stricter gun laws would fix that.
Of course it’s not like the Progressive Left has any history of doing this kind of thing. Right? Right??
It would be nice if a doctor, making an extraordinary and not very credible claim, and trying to lend clinical weight to his politics would be held responsible for it. A doctor who is a shameless fucking liar, and wants to exercise the unsubstantiated but unquestioned power of a witch finder, and the self derived restrictive power of a razor wire fence to forbid people their own judgement where he disagrees with it needs to be out of the the medical advice business. Fake doctors, or deluded asshole doctors, who want to preach rather than carefully exercise the objectivity required for a medical vocation, are worthless.
Or worse, as Hippocrates knew. Such a doctor undermines the trustworthiness of all doctors.
What was Galen’s take on it?
Or am I thinking of Seneca?
Galen was, I believe, the Roman physician generally said to have made the first systematic study of human anatomy. Seneca didn’t have much to do with medicine.
Do they really think calling people with guns crazy is a wise tactic?
Methinks there is very little wisdom on the left in the first place.
It’s a variant on the Randian “make everyone a criminal to control them” gambit. If the legislative process won’t give you what you want, and the executive won’t mandate it, and the courts won’t legislate from the bench for you, you take what authorities you can get – celebrities, doctors, etc.
Do they really think calling people with guns crazy is a wise tactic?
h8ters didn’t fit into the slot
The problem with this is that calling the majority crazy never ultimately works. You can call them sinners and such, but the majority is always the only valid baseline from which issues like sanity and deviancy can be measured.
The 80% never much gives a shit who 20% of the population thinks must be insane. They know better.
I am one of you! I am sane!
If you sat them down and pressed the issue, I have no doubt that these same psychologists would declare that there is nothing pathological whatsoever with removing one’s penis on the belief that one was meant to be a she.
You hear about the policy of doctors performing voluntary non-necessary amputations as a means of bringing comfort and happiness to people who just really don’t like having all their limbs? Alien limb disorder I think it’s called?
Wanting to defend the right to own a gun is nuts. Wanting to allow people to have their limbs safely removed by surgeons for psych reasons related to comfort is fine and reasonable.
Hey now. Not all we shrinks are cranks or quacks.
Stop it or I’ll start with the lawyer jokes.
I’m not exactly going to don my armor and joust on behalf of lawyers.
Alec is a lawyer. *jab* *jab*
Guns are not the disease, large urban areas are. Remove a handful of key large urban centers from the data, and the rest of the nation is about as peaceful as some quaint 1950’s Norman Rockwell white picket fence small town in Vermont was.
Perhaps you all aren’t aware of the addition to the normal new patient form currently being used in many settings.
This form (while possibly setup to root out or allow an at risk or actual target of physical abuse to self report while their abuser is present) has many intrusive and unrelated (unless the visit is the result of physical abuse or mental illness in the family setting) questions.
Some of which pertain to the presence of weapons in the home.
These become part of a patient’s official record and under the ACA, those records will be digitized and available to all Federal Agencies.
I wrote it was not pertinent to my visit and was none of their business. On later thought, I realized that I should have outright lied.
I offer this information so that others can be prepared and act accordingly.
They ARE trying to make the 2nd amendment a physical and mental health concern.
I recently saw how an ex-soldier was forcibly detained and put into a mental institution due to his comments on his Facebook page. Some parts were reportedly on a private section where they could not be seen by the public. So how did the authorities know about them?
Many States allow involuntary commitment if approved by a health care professional (psychiatric or not) so be aware that there are risks to disclosing one’s inner thoughts to your physician.
P.S. your children may be receiving forms such as this and may not think to tell you about them. So the first you hear about it is when the police come to your door to confiscate your weapons because little susie was told that guns are bad and she was scared because mommy and daddy have guns all over the place.
Think it can’t happen? You’re not paying attention.
Another sick old lady and a sick sheriffs deputy to boot! Sad! Can’t they help these people?
http://www.ncgunblog.com/2012/08/19/another-robbery-foiled-by-a-little-old-lady/
@jcw46
I’ve noticed the “do you have any firearms in your home?” question on the intake forms at the doctor’s office lately. That question never used to be on there. I lied outright, and my wife also does. When we have kids, we’ll have to hide the guns until they’re old enough to understand to lie about them as well…
We talked about it and came to the same conclusion. They’re going to try to use doctors to track/take away guns.
How long do you think it will be before someone gets their kids taken away by CPS because they have guns in the house?
jcw46 —
I just heard about that from Barrett Brown, of all people, who emailed me demanding to know why I wasn’t “covering the story.” Two answers: 1) didn’t know about it, and 2) I’m not a journalist.
But I plan on highlighting it today.
If I emailed you demanding to know why you weren’t covering other important stories, like perhaps the recent adventures of a certain dolphin or Shannon Elizabeth’s talents, would you highlight those?
Dance, monkey, dance!
Doctors AND schools…
http://www.theblaze.com/stories/the-university-of-colo-is-segregating-students-based-on-gun-permits-do-you-think-it-should-poll/