(Originally published in the Merritt News)
© By Othmar Vohringer
Last week’s Merritt News poll “Should the long-gun registry be scrapped?” showed an overwhelming 84% in favour of scrapping the registry. Newspaper, Internet and even government polls across Canada showed similar results. The people of Canada, and by no means all of them firearm owners, have spoken. They want the tax money wasting and useless registry gone.
As can be expected the NDP and the Liberal party ignored the voice of the people and instead voted to keep the registry. It tells you something about these two parties that they had to crack the whip to get all their MP’s to vote accordingly. There are still a few misinformed that believe the gun registry actually serves a purpose. Maybe, if someone could persuade criminals and lunatics to obey the law and register guns. But as long as only law-abiding citizens obey the law it amounts to the equivalent of Merritt wanting to control the stray cat problem by neutering veterinarians rather than the cats.
A few days ago someone said to me “I do not understand the big deal about the gun registry. Cars need to be registered too.” That may be so but you do not have to provide written testimonials from neighbours, relatives and employers. You’re not subject to house searches without warrant. If you’re a day late to re-register your car the police will not confiscate it. If you go through a divorce, are facing financial problems or dealing with any number of other problems that could put a temporary damper on your chipper mood, you do not have to worry that your car will be impounded for “safekeeping”, and yet cars are responsible for killing and injuring many more people by drivers breaking the law or driving recklessly than guns ever will.
Pro-gun registry advocates say that the gun registry is an important tool for the police to check who owns a firearm. This is one of the big myths about the registry. Frontline police officers will tell you that if they have to attend a situation they do so fully prepared to be met with violence. Makes common sense too. What good is it to check a registry that only lists law-abiding people?
With the “whipped” vote to keep the gun registry the NDP and the Liberals have betrayed their constituents. They have ignored all the facts and the public’s overwhelming support of scrapping the long gun registry. Instead they agreed that it perfectly acceptable to keep wasting millions on taxpayers money on a half baked law that is neither workable and an infringement on the constitution. They blatantly overlooked the fact that the long gun registry has neither saved lives nor enhanced public safety. Do we really want a party, like the NDP or Liberals, who ignore the people’s wishes as well as the facts- a party that supports wasting money and the harassment of law-abiding people to govern Canada in the near future? I sincerely hope not.
This blog post has been brought to you by Othmar Vohringer Outdoors
Tags: Gun Control, Canada, Firearms, Long Gun Registry
4 comments:
There is another part of the gun registry that I want to see fixed. When they came out with the registry, they also abolished the FAC that you could simple get by getting a criminal check done. Now they want you to take a dang course at your expense before you can get it. There should have at least been a grandfather clause in there to cover us who have in the past (45 years ago) taken our hunting course already.
My guns got registered OK, but I am still rebelling against this stupid gun course and do not have a permit to buy a new gun.
In other words, the government seems to trust me with the guns I have, but will not allow me to buy a new one, if that makes any sense.
Get rid of the stupid, useless registry, and everything that was implemented into it .
I was with them all the way up to the compulsory gun lock-up , but after that, they lost me.
Wow, Othmar. I guess it is pretty much the same in Canada and the US.
Your lawmakers ignored the majority vote when it comes to firearm registry, and our lawmakers ignored the majority vote when it came to Health Care.
I remember when government actually served the people they represent. Maybe one of these days we'll get back to that.
Buckee - Personally I find nothing wrong with a firearm safety course as a mandatory prerequisite to own or purchase a firearm. A course makes a prospective firearm owner familiar with the safe handling of a firearm which in my opinion is important if we want responsible firearm owners on the streets.
I do not know how familiar you are with the firearm act but there is a "grandfathering" clause in the act. The grandfathering clause pertains to guns that you have inherited. If you have made a firearm safety course in the past (45 years ago) and you still have the card that proves that fact -which you should have - then you do not need to take the course again.
The gun registry was a very bad idea, a political quick fix for a problem that didn't exist, and I wanted to see it gone. But hunting and gun safety courses must continue because not all hunters and firearm owners have been as fortunate as I am and grown up in the hunting/firearm owner community.
-ov-
Simply Outdoors. Whenever the people let their guard down the governments take advantage of it.
While the majority of the people are against the gun registry or in America against the Health Care, you will find very few people willing to stand up and fight what is right. Most people are perfectly content complaining and then quickly add that "somebody should do something about it.", yet these same people have never time to get involved, and this is the root of the problem. Complacency is an evil monster that will rob people of their freedoms and rights.
-ov-
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