Susan became the head of the Department of Communicable Diseases at the Texas Department of Health in the early 2000’s. Both of us had thought of Communicable Diseases as virtually interchangeable with Infectious Diseases. They were things like Smallpox, Chicken pox, Measels, Mumps, Rubella, HIV, Hepatitis, and Herpes viruses; as well as spirochetes and rickettsia like Syphilis, Rocky Mtn Spotted Fever, Typhus and others; and bacterial and mycobacterial illnesses like tuberculosis, pneumococcal pneumonia, and many more.
It turns out that beyond infectious and parasitic diseases which are indeed communicable, there are non-infectious diseases that spread in a similar fashion. Diabetes, obesity, tobacco-related illnesses, alcohol-related illness and damage from other substance-dependencies behave like communicable diseases. The behaviors which lead to each of these spread from one individual to his or her immediate contacts. That is, we share behaviors much as we share infectious pathogens – among those who are our close contacts. Parents, children, siblings, spouses, workmates, and so on – we all influence one another. In the age of mass media, social media and a 24-hour news cycle, even complete strangers can influence us – infecting us, as it were.
So, it should come as no surprise that suicide and random acts of mass violence also behave like communicable diseases. Here’s an example of that idea. The notion that Congress would pass a law making it illegal for the CDC to study gun violence is a crass and ludicrous act of political subservience to the gun lobby. There is no clearer statement that political campaign contributions are more important to our politicians than the lives of our children or the public’s health and well-being.
Think about that next time some political jerk-off is pledging his/her undying felty to the 2nd Amendment.