Recent Media Letters...
PUBLICATION: The Toronto Sun , December 29, 2006
SECTION: Editorial/Opinion
PAGE: 24
COLUMN: Letter of the Day
Our right to self defence
Re "Defending the use of guns" (Letters, Dec. 27): The stats used in
Brad Lemee's letter came from Stats Canada and the FBI. (See garrybreitkreuz.com/publications/2005/608.htm).
The USA had its worst crime problem in 1991.
That year they saw all rates of crime at their highest. Most Canadians do not realize that over the last 15 years the U.S. murder rate has been cut in half and all rates of crime plummeted to the current 30 year low. Canada, on the other hand, has seen a rise in violent crime, including murder.
The anti-gun crowd does not want Canadians to know that during this time period, the number of States that passed some type of concealed carry law almost doubled to 48 and the number of legally owned firearms increased by 70 million.
The UK tried the opposite approach, banning most kinds of guns and now, according to the UN, Wales and England are the two most dangerous industrialized countries. They have the highest rates of victimization -- meaning you are more likely to be raped, robbed or assaulted there than in any industrialized country.
Jamaica banned all guns from its civilians in 1970. After that all of its crime rates increased and now it has the third-highest murder rate in the world. According to Amnesty International, 3/4's of those murders are committed with a gun.
It is unjust to say that we have the right to self defence and not allow us the means to defend ourselves. It is for that reason that the right to self defence in Canada is illusory. In a free country, citizens should have the right to protect themselves -- and that shouldn't be dependent on whether or not their neighbours approve.
J. G., Wellesley
Editor's comment:(Interesting. We wonder what the anti-gun lobby will have to say about the statistics you mention)
_________________________________________
Nanaimo News Bulletin December 30, 2006.
To the Editor,
Re: Something completely un-Christmas, Dec. 23.
How can allowing law-abiding citizens to carry weapons push the pendulum to swinging too far the other way?
Should only law-breakers and criminals carry weapons, concealed or otherwise?
There have been far too many instances in my life where carrying a gun would have protected me from being beaten, being raped, being gang-banged.
No cop can be in a position to protect me, nor anyone else, for 24 hours a day.
And whether you realize it or not, the justice system has become the “justice industry”, doing little if anything to ensure the protection of John and Mary Doe, or their children, from criminals and law-breakers.
Give me a gun and perhaps I’ll feel safe going out to my job at night. There was a time I did.
Give me a gun and perhaps I’ll feel safe going out into the woods for a walk. Give me a gun and perhaps I’ll believe that I live in a free and moral society. There was a time I did those, too.
I’m sure there are many nice young men around. Sincerely, I hope so, because I have to hope so. But my own experience has been quite different.
I don’t want to kill anyone or hurt anyone. But I don’t ever again want to be, nor have anyone else be, in any of the situations that have occurred in my past. Some of them have taken 45 years to begin healing.
No, Mr. Wright, you are wrong. Give me a gun.
D.N., Nanaimo
SECTION: Editorial/Opinion
PAGE: 24
COLUMN: Letter of the Day
Our right to self defence
Re "Defending the use of guns" (Letters, Dec. 27): The stats used in
Brad Lemee's letter came from Stats Canada and the FBI. (See garrybreitkreuz.com/publications/2005/608.htm).
The USA had its worst crime problem in 1991.
That year they saw all rates of crime at their highest. Most Canadians do not realize that over the last 15 years the U.S. murder rate has been cut in half and all rates of crime plummeted to the current 30 year low. Canada, on the other hand, has seen a rise in violent crime, including murder.
The anti-gun crowd does not want Canadians to know that during this time period, the number of States that passed some type of concealed carry law almost doubled to 48 and the number of legally owned firearms increased by 70 million.
The UK tried the opposite approach, banning most kinds of guns and now, according to the UN, Wales and England are the two most dangerous industrialized countries. They have the highest rates of victimization -- meaning you are more likely to be raped, robbed or assaulted there than in any industrialized country.
Jamaica banned all guns from its civilians in 1970. After that all of its crime rates increased and now it has the third-highest murder rate in the world. According to Amnesty International, 3/4's of those murders are committed with a gun.
It is unjust to say that we have the right to self defence and not allow us the means to defend ourselves. It is for that reason that the right to self defence in Canada is illusory. In a free country, citizens should have the right to protect themselves -- and that shouldn't be dependent on whether or not their neighbours approve.
J. G., Wellesley
Editor's comment:(Interesting. We wonder what the anti-gun lobby will have to say about the statistics you mention)
_________________________________________
Nanaimo News Bulletin December 30, 2006.
To the Editor,
Re: Something completely un-Christmas, Dec. 23.
How can allowing law-abiding citizens to carry weapons push the pendulum to swinging too far the other way?
Should only law-breakers and criminals carry weapons, concealed or otherwise?
There have been far too many instances in my life where carrying a gun would have protected me from being beaten, being raped, being gang-banged.
No cop can be in a position to protect me, nor anyone else, for 24 hours a day.
And whether you realize it or not, the justice system has become the “justice industry”, doing little if anything to ensure the protection of John and Mary Doe, or their children, from criminals and law-breakers.
Give me a gun and perhaps I’ll feel safe going out to my job at night. There was a time I did.
Give me a gun and perhaps I’ll feel safe going out into the woods for a walk. Give me a gun and perhaps I’ll believe that I live in a free and moral society. There was a time I did those, too.
I’m sure there are many nice young men around. Sincerely, I hope so, because I have to hope so. But my own experience has been quite different.
I don’t want to kill anyone or hurt anyone. But I don’t ever again want to be, nor have anyone else be, in any of the situations that have occurred in my past. Some of them have taken 45 years to begin healing.
No, Mr. Wright, you are wrong. Give me a gun.
D.N., Nanaimo
posted by Stephen at 3:44 AM
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