3 Letters: Flawed defence of the gun registry
Date: Jul 25, 2006 8:51 AM
PUBLICATION: National Post
DATE: 2006.07.25
EDITION: Toronto
SECTION: Letters
PAGE: A17
SOURCE: National Post

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Flawed defence of the gun registry

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Wendy Cukier has a very selective view of the facts regarding gun
control. In fact, violent crime is on the rise in Canada, just as it is
in Britain, where handguns have been banned. Meanwhile, in the United
States, where many citizens can now carry concealed weapons, violent
crime is on the decrease. What a surprise; criminals fear being shot
more than being caught. Though she may not like it, legally owned guns
save lives. Far from banning them, the government should begin providing
courses and subsidies for the ownership of private firearms.

Frank Hilliard, Grand Forks, B.C.

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Ms. Cukier’s argument is weakened by the fact that she does not concern
herself with criminal firearm use, but directs her gaze only at the
“culpability” of responsible owners. Responsible firearm owners are
schooled in their proper use and potential for harm and their legal
responsibilities of ownership, and they are further vetted to ensure
good character before a licence is issued. Clearly, one should focus
resources upon the persons who are most likely to use a weapon rather
than attempt to list each and every gun, rock and pointy stick that
might be used as a weapon. Ms. Cukier’s quixotic approach of tracking
every firearm is so fraught with difficulties as to be laughable. The
unfortunate truth is that until the courts increase the penalties for
firearm-related crimes, there will be a high demand for illicit weapons,
and no end to the violence. If Ms. Cukier still requires a registry,
then it should at least be a useful one. Given that over 70% of violent
criminals had been previously convicted of a violent crime, why not
simply register the felons, rather than the shotguns of law-abiding duck
hunters?

Robert S. Sciuk, Oshawa, Ont.
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Re: In Defence Of The Gun Registry, letter to the editor, July 24.

Wendy Cukier, the head of the Coalition for Gun Control and a professor
of information technology at Ryerson University, questions the Post’s
use of statistics. However, her own statistics are, at best, misleading.
The drop in firearms deaths from 1991 to 1995 predates the passage of
Bill C-68. In fact, the current firearms laws were not fully implemented
until 2001. Ms. Cukier likes to focus on the unfortunate murders of
people like Jane Creba and the killing of police officers, but she
chooses to ignore the more numerous victims of stabbings and beatings. I
guess there’s just no money in calling for a knife registry.

Rafael Gomez, Guelph, Ont.

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