Canada gun controls not working so well
The Jan. 21 letter from M. Van Breda (“Selling firearms like they are toys”) was interesting and informative in describing the stringent regulations in Canada to purchase and transport a firearm. So perhaps the writer can explain a few incidents in Canada.
Last year there was a fatal shooting of a Huron County OPP officer in Canada. On the day of the funeral, they were expecting 2,000 mourners — twice the population of where this police officer was laid to rest. Can you imagine that happening in a city with a population of just 1,000 and strict gun control? And that certainly wasn't the first officer who was killed in the line of duty in Canada by a criminal with a gun.
According to the Province newspaper in Canada, homicides involving handguns are on the rise. I was shocked to find that out, since Canada has such strict regulations involving purchasing a handgun. Here's another quote from the same paper: “the rate of homicides committed with handguns has more than doubled in the past 20 years.” Again, I was shocked by this knowledge of how well gun control is working in Canada.
How about the 25-year-old who obtained a semiautomatic rifle legally and shot 28 people attending classes, killing 14 of them in less than 20 minutes before turning the gun on himself in the land of “strict gun control.” And I think there was a fatal shooting at another school in Canada the same year with 14 women killed, and that is way more than the fatal injuries in Tucson.
How about the shooting of eight people at a Chinese restaurant in Vancouver in August of 2007? Share with the families of those victims who were just out for a bite to eat how Canada's “gun control” is working.
How about the family of the 18-year-old female that was killed in the Dawson College shooting in 2006. Hundreds of rounds were fired off, ultimately killing her and injuring dozens of others.
According to Inspector Mike Porteous, head of the major crimes unit in Vancouver, he doesn't see anything to turn this trend in the opposite direction other than to pass legislation for stiffer sentences for these types of crimes. Lax sentencing might explain why a man in Tennessee shot and killed a police officer and fled to Canada.
So while experience tells me not to fall for the “Canadian gun control,” I do know this: If anyone in Arizona had been exercising their right to bear arms at the tragic event in Tucson, perhaps even one life could have been saved and I say that would have been worth it.
When you come to our country, it would be nice for you understand the rights given to the citizens of the United States by our Constitution. If someone broke into my home to harm my family, I'm grateful the Second Amendment gives me the right to protect my family and household since nowhere in the world can there be police protection at every home or on every corner.
When you can show us how Canada's strict gun laws actually work, write another letter to the editor. But until that time, don't frown on our Second Amendment rights.
Gail Smith
Yuma
