Poll: Even city governments do not have the right to ban guns according to most Americans

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Philadelphia ranks seventh amongst U.S. cities in violent crimes and eleventh in murder rate. Many residents point to an excess of firearms as playing a major role in the criminal activity and general dangers of living within the borders of the nation’s sixth largest city. Yet when it comes to gun control the latest sentiments from adults across America are that city governments do not have the right to ban handguns.

69% of American adults say cities do not have the right to prohibit their citizens from owning handguns. Just 25% believe city governments do have that right.

This recent survey compliments of Rasmussen Reports has been conducted during the midst of a Supreme Court case and decision as to whether the city of Chicago has the right to ban handguns. The Windy City’s murder rate ranks fifteenth in the country but the chances that the law will be upheld by the nation’s highest court might be slim. In June of 2008 the Supreme Court overturned a similar law in Washington D.C. that banned handguns. The ruling came in spite of the city’s long standing notoriety as one as the most violent in the country. In 2008 Washington ranked fifth in murder and sixth in robbery rate.

Americans are united behind their support for the rights guaranteed by the constitution in the second amendment across virtually all demographic lines. Seven in ten believe the constitution grants the average American citizen the right to own a gun. Just 14% do not believe in the constitutionality of that right with another 16% remaining uncertain. Clear majorities of U.S. citizens in groupings divided by age, gender, race and political affiliation support the basic freedom to own firearms.

One area where Americans are divided is on the topic of stricter gun laws. 49% believe current laws are about right but a sizable number of citizens (42%) say tougher anti-gun laws are needed to combat crime. Women and younger adults are more likely to support stricter gun laws then men and those over the age of thirty. By political party 65% of Democrats favor a stronger clamp down. Correspondingly 65% of Republicans disagree with a majority of unaffiliated voters (52%) also taking a more hands-off approach to the issue.

Americans are also closely divided in terms of gun ownership. 44% claim either they or someone in their home owns a gun against 48% say there are no guns where they live. With gun sales on the rise in recent years 57% of adults claim a fear of increased government restriction, perhaps coinciding with Democratic President Barack Obama entering office, as the primary reason for the increase. 23% meanwhile claim it was in response to the fear of increasing crime rates.

Those crime rates continue to grip many of the nation’s largest cities. Below are the ten highest ranked American cities with at least 250,000 residents in four different crime categories;

Total Violent Crime: 1) St. Louis, 2) Oakland, 3) Memphis, 4) Detroit, 5) Baltimore, 6) Stockton, 7) Philadelphia, 8) Cleveland, 9) Nashville, 10) Atlanta

Murder-Rate: 1) New Orleans, 2) St. Louis, 3) Baltimore, 4) Detroit, 5) Washington, DC, 6) Oakland, 7) Kansas City, 8) Newark, 9) Cleveland, 10) Pittsburgh, *11) Philadelphia

Robbery-Rate: 1) Cleveland, 2) Oakland, 3) St. Louis, 4) Cincinnati, 5) Memphis, 6) Washington, DC, 7) Detroit, 8) Philadelphia, 9) Baltimore, 10) Atlanta

Forcible Rape: 1) Cleveland, 2) Minneapolis, 3) Anchorage, 4) Colorado Springs, 5) Oakland, 6) Columbus, 7) Cincinnati, 8) Wichita, 9) Philadelphia, 10) Albuquerque

Camden, New Jersey and Wilmington, Delaware rank first and second in total violent crime for cities with populations between 60,000 and 100,000. They also rank first and second in the number of robberies, first and fourth in murders and Camden ranks tenth in rapes. The city of Chester meanwhile fell under 40,000 in population over a decade ago. If it did still exceed that total and could qualify among cities in the 40,000 to 60,000 population category however Chester would rank first in murder-rate, second in violent crimes and fourth in robberies.

PHOTO CREDIT: ASSOCIATED PRESS / Haraz N. Ghanbari

Study: Philadelphia is least healthy in state, but "well-being" exceeds other cities nationwide

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Philadelphia might be feeling ill over a new study that places it as the least healthy county in Pennsylvania. As the largest county and city in Pennsylvania with an estimated population of over 1.54-million, Philadelphia ranked 67th out of 67 counties in the Keystone State in terms of health.

The study which examines over 3,000 counties nationwide on factors such as crime, education, obesity and air pollution was conducted by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the University Of Wisconsin’s Population Health Institute.

In an article published yesterday by Don Sapatkin from the Philadelphia Inquirer the health-factors being discussed combine 23-measures in four separate categories. Smoking and diet, access to insurance and diabetes screening, income and crime, air pollution and healthy eating along with other physical and socio-economic factors were taken into consideration. Sapatkin points out the relationships are similar from state to state. In New York for instance the Bronx borough ranked last whereas more affluent counties such as Nassau and Westchester were near the top. In New Jersey the wealthy northern counties are in better shape than poorer central and southern locations like Cumberland and Camden counties.

The latest round of bad press is another punch in the gut to Philadelphians but nothing they haven’t sustained before. Much was made out of Philly being dubbed most obese city in American at the beginning of the decade by Men’s Fitness magazine. It dropped to fourth on the list by 2003 behind Houston, Chicago and Detroit.

For Pennsylvania healthy and unhealthy counties are spread across the state almost at random. Places lacking overall health do seem to appear most frequently in larger more congested urban areas and rural counties where access is harder to come by. Better health is more likely sustained in wealthier suburban areas that often border large cities. This is certainly the case in the Philadelphia-area. Although bordering Delaware County ranks near the middle of the pack (36th), three other surrounding counties of Philly; Chester (1st), Montgomery (5th) and Bucks (7th) all place at or near the top of the list in Pennsylvania.

Aside from Philadelphia most of the lowest ranked counties in Pennsylvania can found in the northeastern and western parts of the state. Allegheny County, home to the city of Pittsburgh and the second largest in the state, ranks a modest 49th. Many of the surrounding areas to the north and south of Allegheny however place near the bottom of the list. Healthiest counties meanwhile are dispersed throughout the state. Other than the Philadelphia-region however the middle of Pennsylvania is tops in health. Centre County home to Penn State University ranks second and bordering Union and Snyder counties rank third and fourth respectively. The state of Delaware has just three counties but New Castle which is part of the greater region of Philadelphia is ranked healthiest.

While not overly impressive the news for Philadelphia is better according the results of a Gallup survey released earlier this week. In it Gallup ranks the 52-largest metropolitan areas in the country in terms of “well-being”. Six categories were taken into consideration; life evaluation, emotional health, work environment, physical health, healthy behavior and basic access. Individual states were also assessed through the process of over 350,000 interviews from the beginning to end of 2009.

The Philadelphia-region rank is 33rd out of 52 markets and the state of Pennsylvania comes in at 30th place out of 50. With an overall well-being index score of 65.4 the Keystone State ranks one-spot behind New Jersey (65.6) and eight places in front of Delaware (64.7). The national index of 65.9 for 2009 was unchanged from last year meaning both Philadelphia (65.8) and Pennsylvania (65.4) rank slightly below average according to the Gallup survey and study. The Keystone State did make a modest improvement of half a point year over year.

The five states with the highest well-being index were Hawaii, Utah, Minnesota, Minnesota and Iowa. The bottom of the list was rounded out by Nevada followed by Ohio, Arkansas, Kentucky and West Virginia in last.

Hawaii’s positive reputation is not limited to its status as merely a great tourist destination. The Aloha State ranks first in life evaluation, emotional heath and physical health. West Virginia brings up the bottom of the list in all three of those categories. Vermont is tops in having the healthiest behavior, Utah has the best work environment and Minnesota is number-one in basic access. Kentucky, Delaware and Mississippi are worst in each of those respective categories. Pennsylvania’s best category is basic access ranking fourteenth and its worst is a 40th placement in life evaluation.

The best metros on the Gallup list of well-being were San Jose, CA, Washington DC, Raleigh, NC, Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN and San Francisco/Oakland, CA. The five worst on the list of 52 are Louisville, KY, Tampa/St. Petersburg, FL, Jacksonville, FL, Providence, RI and Las Vegas, NV. At number-33 the Philadelphia-region ranked ahead of other notable markets such as New York, NY, Pittsburgh, PA, New Orleans, LA, Detroit, MI and Miami/Fort Lauderdale, FL.

Minneapolis/St. Paul ranked first in both emotional health and basic access with Providence and Las Vegas the worst in those two respective categories. San Jose was tops in the similar categories of physical health and healthy behavior with Buffalo, NY and Louisville at the bottom of those lists. Washington, DC meanwhile scored highest in life evaluation and Raleigh topped the list for best working environment. Last in those two categories were the Tampa-area and Cleveland, OH.

PHOTO CREDIT: ASSOCIATED PRESS / MATT ROURKE

Poll: Mayor Nutter's approval rating at 53%, but Philadelphians are racially divided on the topic

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A new public opinion poll finds Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter surviving through a tough economic year to score a majority of approval from the city’s residents.

The poll commissioned by the Pew Charitable Trusts’ Philadelphia Research Initiative (PRI) surveyed 1,602 Philadelphians and pegs the Mayor’s approval rating at 53% with just 32% disapproving of his job performance. Nutter’s current rating comes halfway through his four-year term as city mayor and is an improvement from the 47-39% approval to disapproval margin he received in April of last year. Additionally twice as many city residents have a favorable (60%) than negative (30%) impression of Nutter.

However PRI also finds a racial divide in the city on the topic of Mayor Nutter. While 65% of Philadelphia’s white residents approve of the job he is doing, only 43% of the black citizenry agrees. Hispanics approve of the mayor by a margin of 55-24%. According to Census Bureau estimates for 2008 black residents (43.2%) outnumber whites (41%) in Philadelphia. The Hispanic/Latino population of any race meanwhile numbers 11.5%. Also according to revised census figures the city has experienced its first population growth since 1950 and could be as high as 1,562,461 residents as of 2009.

College graduates (62%), elders over the age of 65 (65%) and those with higher incomes (62%) are most likely to approve of Mayor Nutter’s job performance. By neighborhood Nutter is strongest where the white population is most dominant, including Northeast Philadelphia where 59% give him high marks. Not surprisingly he struggles more in traditionally black neighborhoods like those found in North Philly (42%).

“Obviously, I’m pleased with the direction, but more
pleased that the public is demonstrating an understanding of what kind of
challenges we’re facing.” – Mayor Nutter / Philadelphia Daily News

The prolonged budget crisis is the top concern for Nutter in dealing with the perceptions of voters. Nearly as many (46%) lack confidence in his ability to handle budget concerns as those who are confident (47%). On his decision to hike the city sales tax by one-percentage point Nutter receives the approval of 47% of Philadelphians but an additional 49% are against the increase. Nutter’s overall budget cuts have, fortunately for him, not been problematic for most city residents with 62% claiming to have witnessed no change in the quality of services.

Nutter defeated Republican Al Taubenberger in November of 2007 securing over 83% of the vote in Philadelphia to succeed John Street as city mayor. 83% was also the popular vote won by Barack Obama in the 2008 Presidential Election, a record for a Democrat in Philadelphia. Currently over 78% of the city is registered Democrat and a Republican has not served as mayor since the end of Bernard Samuel’s record length term expired in 1952.

Just as they were according to the last PRI survey from a year ago Philadelphians are almost evenly split on the topic of taxes and city services. 41% would prefer to see more services at the expensive of higher taxes while 43% favor the tradeoff of lower taxes and fewer city services. Table gambling is also a topic of interest with Philadelphia’s first slots parlor due to open its doors on the Delaware River waterfront in Fishtown and a second location proposal currently in the works. 54% of city residents favor table gambling legislation in their city against just 32% opposed and another 14% remaining uncertain.

Half samples were used when asking Philadelphians about specific features and services within their city. 58% of responders give good or excellent grades to the quality of library services in their area but only 28% said the same about programs for teenagers and the quality of street repair and maintenance – the latter issue a much talked about concern through what has been a particularly rough winter season.

By a 45-32% margin a plurality of polled residents approve of senior citizen programs and facilities. With Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey winning the approval of nearly seven in ten Philadelphians (69%), more consider the city’s overall police protection to be good or excellent (52%) than fair or poor (45%). An additional 59% like the general appearance of their neighborhood but an even number give low and high marks (48%) regarding park, playgrounds and recreational facilities. Better than two-thirds of the city (68%) approves of their trash collection and 58% rate the availability of health care services as good or excellent.

In spite of constant internal struggles within SEPTA 65% of Philadelphians think the city’s public transportation system is running efficiently as a whole. Fire protection, lastly, is the most approved of service in the city with 78% of residents giving it high marks.

PHOTO CREDIT: ASSOCIATED PRESS / Charles Dharapak

Polling health care reform - a dodgy proposition

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Earlier this month when 800 registered voters were asked the question of whether they’d support or oppose enacting a major overhaul of the U.S. health care system, by a margin of 62-28% the answer was a resounding yes.

Those were the results from a recent Diageo/Hotline poll, and they are positioned quite nicely for those proponents of full-scale heath care reform. Of those “yes” responses an additional 94% feel it is at least “somewhat” important that the government pass major reform legislation before the end of this year. Numbers such as these seem to point to an ever-growing majority of American voters who are seeking a change in our culture of medical care.

Now what exactly do these numbers mean, and how much stock should we place on polling an issue such as health care? An issue with complexities and variables that beg of thoughtful discussion over a series of often narrow and tapered questions.

Major policy initiatives often sink or swim based on public perception. There is yet another culture war brewing and both sides are gearing up their data and rhetoric for battle. So far it is the Obama administration that appears to have the upper hand. Never mind the President’s built-in advantages compliments of a sweeping November mandate and control of congress. Health care reform is a fight for the hearts and minds of the American people.

Charismatic leader of the free world in public but a shrewd pragmatist behind closed doors, President Obama knows as well as anyone when gains with the electorate are available for the taking. Looking further down the list of questions from this Diageo/Hotline poll we find some other interesting results. By a margin of 65-21% responders said they would be more likely to vote for a candidate in the 2010 midterms who supported health care cost controlling legislation.

More illuminating still was a question asking whether you would support taxing benefits in order to pay for the cost of expanding coverage. 68% were opposed to such a measure. President Obama recently backed off a campaign promise to tax such benefits received from health insurance plans. Could the overwhelming majority of the public siding against such a proposal be reason for the President’s switch? Don't bet against it.

The heated discussion involving health care reform is of particular importance to many Pennsylvanians. A week and a half ago KYW 1060’s Steve Tawa reported on Senator Bob Casey in a roundtable discussion at the College of Physicians in Philadelphia. The Democratic Senator is heeding President Obama’s concern on the issue. Casey commented that he was “alarmed” at findings from a recent Families USA survey that claimed 27.3% of Pennsylvanians under the age of 65 are uninsured.

Rallies orchestrated in the Philadelphia area by organizations such as Health Care for All Philadelphia stress the importance of the issue. Like many others their push is for a “privately financed, single payer health insurance plan.” Health Care for All Philadelphia supports the Family and Business Health Security Act (HB 1660 and SB 400) while claiming that all other bills and measures have served as little more than a band aid on failed insurance system.

Still there are many not onboard with the rallying cries. Leading voices from the political right are looking to strengthen the Republican Party’s position against Obama’s big government practices by offering a dose of straight talk. 990AM conservative columnist Wayne Winegarden acknowledged that while the state of health care is of concern, the Obama plan is not a solution. In addition to criticizing the President’s plan for tax increases Winegarden states that “the experience of countries with single payer systems is not encouraging. Health care costs are contained under single payer systems only by compromising the quality of health care services, denying patients the services they need or want, and forcing patients to endure possibly life threatening lines and delays.”

But it’s the American Medical Association, quarter of a million members strong, that is perhaps best positioned for a fight. Columnist Robert Pear of the New York Times wrote that the A.M.A. has made general statements in the past of how health care ought to be provided through private markets as they are currently. He elaborates on the far more pointed attacks the association is levying against the Obama plan of late however. “The A.M.A. does not believe that creating a public health insurance option for non-disabled individuals under age 65 is the best way to expand health insurance coverage and lower costs. The introduction of a new public plan threatens to restrict patient choice by driving out private insurers, which currently provide coverage for nearly 70% of Americans.”

Siding with both views are the results from a nearly three-month old CNN poll reviewed by their Deputy Political Director Paul Steinhauser. More than 80% of the 1,019 polled claimed to be satisfied with the quality of health care they receive and three-quarters are happy with their overall coverage. However, when asked about the cost of health care more than 75% say they are dissatisfied.

When Americans say they support health care reform, that doesn't mean they want
to lose their own coverage or give up their own doctor. That's something that
the Clinton White House didn't realize in 1993. – CNN Polling Director / Keating
Holland

Herein lie the complexities of polling on an issue such as health care reform. Pollsters like Diageo/Hotline while responsible in their presentation fall short of capturing the full scope of positions and range of opinions regarding this hot-buttoned issue. What side of the fence does public opinion sit on regarding health care reform? The answer is subject to change depending on who is asking the questions and which side is winning the PR war.