I love this country. I get a little teary when I first see the American flag flying after a trip abroad, or when “The Star-Spangled Banner” rings out over an Olympic podium or a baseball field. My U.S. passport is my most prized possession. I pay my taxes willingly as “the price one pays for freedom,” per Ben Franklin.
Still, some facts are hard for me to face:
• The U.S. has the shortest life expectancy of 21 developed nations – 77 years, compared with top-ranked Switzerland at 83 years (Town Crier, June 1).
• The U.S. has the highest infant mortality rate of the top eight developed nations –5.9/1,000, almost triple that of top-ranked Japan at 2 fatalities/1,000 (World Health Organization).
• The U.S. has the least-effective health-care system overall among 11 high-income countries, even though it spends the highest proportion of its gross domestic product – nearly 17% – on health care (based on percentage of population covered for core needs, life expectancy and infant mortality rates – World Health Organization).
• The U.S. has the highest level of income inequality of the seven G7 countries, outranked worldwide only by Russia, India and Brazil (BRINK News, Credit Suisse Global Wealth Databook). Income inequality in the U.S. is at its highest level in 50 years, and increasing (U.S. Census Bureau, 2018 figures).
And for me, the most troubling facts, because they hit close to home and seem so preventable:
• In the U.S., the No. 1 cause of death in those under age 18 is gunshot wounds.
• People living in a household with a gun owner are seven times as likely to be shot and killed as those in a gun-free home (Stanford University study of nearly 18 million Californians).
• Handguns were used in three out of four U.S. suicides in 2018 (Stanford University study).
• Since the Uvalde school massacre, there have been 33 more mass shootings in the U.S. (“Good Morning America”).
• Despite claims that better mental health care is the solution to gun violence, the amount the U.S. spends on mental health is only 5% of total health-care spending.
I’m waiting for legislators opposed to the Affordable Care Act to propose their modifications or improvements to the coverage.
I’m waiting for the State Legislature to provide funding for those small, local treatment centers that were supposed to be more effective than the state mental hospitals that were closed.
I’m waiting for those who claim mental disturbance is behind gun violence to explain why someone with a history of mental disturbance should be able to buy a gun anyway.
I’m waiting to see Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s proposed legislation for increased funding for mental health services.
I’ll probably be waiting for a long time to come. But the facts keep getting harder, and scarier.
Allyson Johnson is a longtime Los Altos resident. To read her blog, visit allysonjohnson.com.
