I was fascinated to see this article regarding a pedestrian airbag in the new Volvo V40. We are all aware of the appalling road safety statistics for pedestrians – around 15% of Australia’s road toll each year is contributed by pedestrians, and two thirds of these fatalities are caused by impact with a vehicle. A […]
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The NRA’s war on gun science
The central public policy question — does gun control save lives? — is impossible to answer without solid research. But there has been much less research in the US since 1996 as a result of the gun lobby’s success in denying federal funds for scientific research into gun violence. In spite of the courageous stand […]
The magical land of NRAnia
I may soon have to apologize for the number of blogs related to the gun control issue in the U.S., but its importance cannot be underestimated and just now there seems to be a lot to report. So bear with me. What you will see below was sent by a colleague who prefaced the link […]
TV coverage from Australia of McClure Opinion piece
I previously mentioned the Opinion piece by Rod McClure from Monash, Australia and excerpted parts of it. What I later discovered is that it prompted an excellent segment of TV coverage on ABC, one of Australia’s leading channels. It makes all the right points and Rod does a fine job of putting forward the key […]
Solariums in the spotlight again
Over recent years, the non-therapeutic use of solariums has become increasingly controversial around the world, and in some instances has sparked strong reactions from their proponents within the tanning industry in particular. One such controversy is happening in the United States at the moment, with the pro-solarium organisation American Suntanning Association ready to take the next step […]
Mother Jones to assemble “Craziest anti-Obama Gun Reactions”
The link to the website below will take you into the world of the most extreme (and seemingly wackiest) of the opposition to the measures under consideration to prevent further gun massacres. If they were not so grim they would be truly funny. Actually, I admit I find them scary. This is a sample; not […]
Grim dashboard video of crashes
This link to a fascinating and grim video was sent to me by Peter Jacobsen showing what motorists see of crashes using dashboard-mounted cameras. Many of the scenes are motorists crossing the centerline into the path of oncoming vehicles. Peter writes: “I’m a fan of Vision Zero, and that approach calls for installing raised center […]
Firearm death in US cities – a global perspective
The Atlantic Cities blog has an interesting analysis of firearm homicide rates in US cities compared to the firearm homicide rate of nations traditionally described as “violent.” Results are presented as a graphic. I was stunned by the observation that “if New Orleans was a country,” it would have the second highest firearm death rate in the world. […]
The true ‘cost’ of violence against women
The enormous ‘cost’ of violence against women living in a dozen latin American and Caribbean countries has been revealed in a report produced by the Pan American Health Organization/ World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO), in collaboration with the U. S. Centers for Diseease Control and Prevention (CDC), released earlier this month (see link below). The immense physical, […]
Big killers overshadow injury
Lesley Day sent me this report of an opinion piece written by Rod McClure, director of the Monash Injury Research Institute and printed in The Sidney Morning Herald,one of the leading newspapers in Australia. It notes that the four top-ranked conditions that killed Australians in 2010 were heart disease, cancer, lung disease and injuries but […]