NOTE:
A version of this editorial also appeared in The Winnipeg Sun under the
title: "WHO'S THE CRIMINAL?"
PUBLICATION: The Ottawa Sun
EDITION: Final
SECTION: Comment
PAGE: 14
BYLINE: OTTAWA SUN
COLUMN: Editorial
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GUNNING FOR YOU
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It's
now official: Canada's new gun registry, which was supposed to crack down on the
criminal use of firearms, has instead created an entirely new brand of
criminals.
They
are the owners of an estimated 1.6 million shotguns and rifles which, according
to authorities, have yet to be included on the national gun registry now that
the period of grace has passed for Canadians to abide by the new rules on
ownership.
We're
not exactly sure how many Canadians are now considered lawbreakers simply
because grandpa's old shotgun isn't listed on the official gun registry, but
suffice it to say a lot of once law-abiding citizens have become possible felons
facing fines or even jail terms thanks to a short-sighted arbitrary law.
Now
that the gun registry is fully in force and all amnesties have been exhausted,
let's ask a few questions:
1.
How many criminals do you think met this week's deadline to register their
weapons?
2.
The registry was originally estimated to cost $2 million. Instead, according to
the auditor general, it will now cost in excess of $1 billion. Who is the real
criminal here?
3.
How many police officers could have been employed to crack down on illegal gun
use had the government not wasted the $1 billion forcing law-abiding citizens to
register their guns?
4.
Is Canada a more law-abiding society because an estimated 200,000 Canadians are
now considered criminals because they didn't file a piece of paper?
5.
Do you feel any safer now that Farmer Jones has registered the old .303 he uses
to keep gophers off his pasture?
The
answer to any of these questions reveals exactly why the gun registry should be
dismantled. It won't be, of course, because the Liberals have invested a lot of
political capital to remind Canadians that every responsible gun owner is a
potential criminal. To abandon the policy would be to admit that a billion tax
dollars were wasted hunting down the wrong people. Truth is, the gun registry
didn't remove a single weapon from the hands of a real criminal.