Publication: Canada Free Press
Date: 2005.09.09
Byline: Arthur Weinreb, Associate Editor
Section: Editorial

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Going after law abiding citizens

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Ever since the recent outbreak of gun violence in Toronto, the Toronto Police Force, the City of Toronto and the provincial government have started to get tough. Unfortunately, while the gangbangers are shooting it out almost unimpeded, the police and politicos have decided to get tough with the law abiding citizens of Toronto.

At least it’s some comfort to know that the federal government has not joined the fray. You can’t say they haven’t done their bit by creating the federal gun registry; that billion dollar boondoggle that hasn’t seemed to have put a dent in the number of bad guys that have guns. But the feds are not likely to become further involved as they prefer to do what they do best — defend the status quo.

Going after the good guys in Toronto started when Mayor David Miller came up with perhaps one of the silliest suggestions that has ever been made by any Toronto mayor; quite an accomplishment considering that Mel Lastman once held occupied that office. Miller stated that no one in Toronto needs a gun so they should all be stored in one central facility. The fact that thugs could break into such a facility and steal enough weapons to supply an army (a real army, not what Canada calls one) ever occurred to the left’s extremely fair haired boy.

The most egregious example of going after people who have not broken the law occurred when Toronto Police Sgt. Rob Hargan openly bragged to the media about how he seized a young person’s t shirt. The offending shirt had a picture of a handgun and was accompanied by the words, "Rule no. 1 — be armed". As disgusting as the t shirt might be, it is not illegal. The cop was not only proud about seizing the lawful property of a Toronto resident but he threatened that anyone seen wearing such a shirt would be "hassled" by the police. Someone in Chief Billy Blair’s force noticed that this would be a tad illegal and publicly backtracked.

We don’t know anything about the person who was wearing the shirt

but it’s a good bet he wasn’t black. Stopping and seizing legal property from a young black male would be racial profiling and that’s a no-no. Cops like Hargan, who love to throw their weight around and then boast about it should be given radar guns and permanently stationed at radar traps on Richmond Street East on Sunday mornings. But, the way the force is heading under Blair he’ll probably become a deputy chief in charge of basketball court contruction.

The Ontario government has promised to put more police on the street. Since that would involve keeping a promise; something that is foreign to the McGuinty Liberals, they have now come up with another way to "fight crime". The province are going to create a gun amnesty which as we all know will see the shooters run to turn their guns in. What was really scary was Toronto Police Chief Bill Blair’s response to the amnesty was that he didn’t expect any criminals to turn their guns in but it would be worth it if law abiding people turned their guns in; there would be fewer guns for the criminals to steal. Perhaps we should all surrender our TVs, jewellry and other valuables and reduce the number of break ins. And we should have an amnesty for t shirts that offend the politically correct politicians and police brass.

Another provincial proposal is to beef up enforcement at gun shops to make sure that these stores are safely storing their merchandise. Once again time, money and resources are being put into going after law abiding people. If the city, province, and the now overly politically correct police force spent as much energy into going after those who are responsible for the carnage on our streets as they do seizing t shirts and inspecting legal businesses, Toronto might just end up being a safer city. If people, many of them totally innocent bystanders weren’t getting wounded and killed, the entire approach to fighting crime in this city would be laughable.

Until the bad guys start shooting up the areas where David Miller, Dalton McGuinty and Bill Blair live, don’t expect to see much progress in ending the wave of violence.


Arthur Weinreb is an author, columnist and Associate Editor of Canada Free Press. His work as appeared on Newsmax.com, Men's News Daily, the Drudge Report, Foxnews.com and The Rant. He can be reached at letters@canadafreepress.com