Public use? As in use in public spaces? Rooms with unclosed windows? Well sure, that's unsafe and you should tell your customers not to do it, but you'd be crazy to think that permission is what's stopping people from dangerously operating lasers these days.

And what about the bit where he says that it's "the wild west" (mythicized time when, in actuality, homicide rates were not really that high, especially for the time) or "mad max" (completely fictional Australian motor fantasy).

The things that actually prevent laser related injuries from being a common health problem are a) common knowledge about laser safety (usually explained thoroughly by manufacturers), and b) the relative obscurity and lack of particular interest in high powered laser devices.