Canada blames U.S. for gun violence

[The Straight Story]

Canada blames U.S. for gun violence
Toronto shooting is latest death in a record year

TORONTO, Ontario (AP) -- Canadian officials, seeking to make sense of another fatal shooting in what has been a record year for gun-related deaths, said Tuesday that along with a host of social ills, part of the problem stemmed from what they said was the United States exporting its violence.

Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin and Toronto Mayor David Miller warned that Canada could become like the United States after gunfire erupted Monday on a busy street filled with holiday shoppers, killing a 15-year-old girl and wounding six bystanders -- the latest victims in a record surge in gun violence in Toronto.

The shooting stemmed from a dispute among a group of 10 to 15 youth, and the victim was a teenager out with a parent near a popular shopping mall, police said Tuesday.
< - snip - >

While many Canadians take pride in Canadian cities being less violent than their American counterparts, Toronto has seen 78 murders this year, including a record 52 gun-related deaths -- almost twice as many as last year.

http://edition.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/americas/12/27/canada.crime.ap/index.html

damn, they know my evil plan of mind control remotely from Ohio to make them more violent. Now what shall I do....

[NanceGreggs]

1. If I may?

I'm an American living in Toronto. The point Martin & Miller were making is that a vast number of handguns retrieved by police in Canada come from the US. It's not that the violence itself is emanating from across the border, but the means of engaging in that violence.

[The Straight Story]

5. Hmmmmm must be something in the guns

I guess maybe the criminals there decided, for some damn reason, not to obey the gun laws.

I would think it to be illegal to bring guns in, perhaps they should make more laws saying the same thing and it might work. They may also want to outlaw shooting of others while at it, as i am sure that will stop such things quickly.

some :sarcasm:

[NanceGreggs]

6. Of course it's illegal to bring guns over the border ...

... maybe I didn't make my point clear. The problem they're pointing to is the fact that it is so easy to procure a gun in the States, all one has to do is smuggle it over the border, or buy one from someone who has -- obviously more easily done than it should be, and that's a Canadian problem vis a vis tighter border security.

But if it were as difficult to get a gun in the States as it is here, there would be no point in going to the States to get one in the first place. Ergo, there would be less guns in Canada.

Maybe not the best comparison, but you know how this Admin is screaming its head off about US citizens buying prescription drugs from Canada. That's because there are gov't regulations here that limits the cost of prescription drugs, so they're much cheaper.

If prescription drugs cost the same in the US as they do here, no one in the States would go to the bother of coming here to buy them, or buy them from the on-line companies that purchase them here and re-sell them in the States.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not a gun control freak - I believe that law-abiding US (and Canadian) citizens should be allowed to own firearms. But as long as people can walk into gun shows and walk out with a gun, without the necessary checks, those guns will show up all over American cities and, by default, Canadian cities as well.

[applegrove]

7. There is gun culture that eminates from the USA. NRA thinking and

gang bang culture. Those are home grown. In your country.

[BushOut06]

2. Maybe it's time for Canada to build a fence along the border

You know, to keep those undesirable Americans out. Those damned Americans are crossing our borders, stealing our jobs, bringing their crime with them, etc.

[Viva_La_Revolution]

3. Glory be! The republicans are already on it!

Along with the wall they want to build on the Mexican border, they are "looking into" the feasibility of a wall on the Canadian border. yippie. I always wanted to live in a prison.

[politicaholic]

4. Ridiculous or true?

These types of guns being used aren't available in Canada so where else could this be coming from?

Sure, there is a gang problem and the Canadian government will address it, but assault rifles and semi-automatic hand guns come directly from the unregulated gunshows in Michigan and New York into the hands of Canadian teenagers.

Remember, who does the US blame for their drug problem? Certainly not the themselves.

Who do they blame for terrorism when the second and third worst terrorist attacks in US history came at the hands of Americans?

It's merely recognizing the source and coming up with solutions accordingly.

[applegrove]

8. Exactly. Also known as REALITY.