Team CSSA E-NEWS – March 26, 2015
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COMMENTARY – HARPER’S FUROR
It’s fascinating to watch the firestorm over Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s recent comments about rural Canadian gun owners at the annual convention of the Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities.
“My wife’s from a rural area and obviously gun ownership wasn’t just for the farm, but was for a certain level of security when you’re a ways away from immediate police assistance,” said the Prime Minister.
Stephen Harper simply stated the obvious; obvious to his audience at least, if not the mainstream media.
The national press went into spin-dry hysteria, claiming that Harper advocated vigilante justice and said Harper wanted to turn us into “gun-toting Americans.”
The Edmonton Journal editorial board wrote:
“[I]t is perfectly reasonable to worry about the minuscule chance of a home invasion in which police response times would be inadequate — but foolishly unreasonable to worry about the chance of accidents, poor storage and theft, and about the occasional soul who only appears ‘law abiding’ until he starts blasting away.”
If the Edmonton Journal editorial board is to be believed, Canada’s most trustworthy citizens, licensed firearms owners, are clearly only one bad moment away from being killers. As to backing up their position with facts? Why bother since “everyone knows” it’s true.
Except that it’s not true. Canada’s legitimate firearms owners are statistically the safest people in our country; only one-third as likely to commit a violent act as a citizen that doesn’t own firearms and only half as likely as a police officer. That reality doesn’t fit in the “unicorn world” of the editorial board at the Edmonton Journal though, so they content themselves with smugly vilifying honest Canadian citizens as “killers-in-waiting.”
The Edmonton Journal’s open-minded editorial opens with: “Someday, it will be a matter of gobsmacking astonishment that people were still allowed to own guns in the early 21st century.”
The gun owner slamfest continues with Wendy Cukier, president of the Coalition for Gun Control. She claimed: “The suggestion that rural people have firearms in case the police cannot reach them in time is not really consistent with Canadian law on lawful use of force but smacks of American arming for self protection.”
Apparently Ms. Cukier has never read the Criminal Code of Canada.
Then former Solicitor General Wayne Easter went even further down the waterslide stating: “Someone who hears that might say, ‘Well, I don’t need to lock my gun up. I need to have it close at hand so that if somebody sets foot on my property and I think they are trespassing,’ away we go.”
Ludicrous. Every breathless, self-righteous, spin-drenched word. Harper did not say that at all, and for the Edmonton Journal to intimate he did is not merely over-the-top spin: It’s a lie.
Reality check: Rural Canadians face situations city dwellers don’t have to deal with. Bears, coyotes, rabid and/or feral animals all pose dangers. Farmers need the ability to quickly and humanely put down domestic animals that are sick, lame or loco. The police certainly can’t help, even if they were willing to drive out to deal with a pesky predator and fill out the mountain of paperwork that discharging a police firearm entails.
The Firearms Act even deals with this specific circumstance because police response times to rural homes are measured in half-hour blocks, not minutes. Moreover, if grave danger presents itself in Canada’s remote areas, it is unreasonable to expect police to be able to do much more than draw chalk lines. That’s certainly no slam on our dedicated police officers. It is simply a reality in our vast (and mostly empty) land.
CSSA ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING – SATURDAY, MAY 30, 2015 – OTTAWA CONFERENCE AND EVENT CENTRE, 200 COVENTRY ROAD. AGM from 10 a.m. to noon. Afternoon seminars from 1 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. featuring world-renowned firearms researcher, Dr. Gary Mauser will discuss the latest and greatest statistical trends in the firearms world; Natural Resource Director-General Patrick O’Neill will share his vast knowledge on the Explosives Act’s hand-loading and ammunition regulations; and CSSA Life Member, Keith Beasley of the hugely popular television show “Canada in the Rough” will discuss public relations and the image of firearms owners. Members may register for these seminars at info@cssa-cila.org.
Lastly, the evening of May 30 brings a very special “Stick to your Guns” dinner. Recognizing the unprecedented achievements of retiring Member of Parliament Garry Breitkreuz, this STYG Dinner is themed as a “thank you” to the best friend Canadian gun owners ever had. There will be many special guests, fabulous food, exciting draws, raffles and auctions, and a good time guaranteed to all. Tickets are $69.95 each and a table of eight is $499.95.
A block of rooms is now available at the Hampton Inn Ottawa, 100 Coventry Road, attached to the Ottawa Conference and Convention Centre. Reference group name: Canadian Shooting Sports Association; group Code 2438; group number: CSS. Room rates: $136 single or $146 double occupancy plus applicable fees and taxes. Reserve before April 25 and save!
“Allan Rock said he came to Ottawa with the belief that only the police and military should have firearms. I believe that firearms ownership is a right, but a right that comes with responsibilities.” – The Honourable Steven Blaney, Minister of Public Safety
HELP SUPPORT THE GREAT WORK THE CSSA DOES TO PROTECT YOUR RIGHTS. DONATE HERE
A.A.C.C.A. CALGARY GUN SHOW – APRIL 3 AND 4, 2015 – CALGARY, ALBERTA. Easter Weekend at the BMO Centre, Stampede Grounds, 1410 Olympic Way SE. Friday 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Saturday 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission $10. Ladies and children 12 and under with an adult are free. For Calgary show information, please contact Nicole at aacca.arms.show@gmail.com.
OPEN HOUSE – KINCARDINE NIMROD CLUB – SATURDAY, JUNE 13, 2015 – KINCARDINE, ONTARIO. Located at 2334 Concession #12, Huron-Kinloss (Aintree Road) east of Lake Range Road (south end of Kincardine) just down from the golf course. 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Enjoy a barbecue prepared by the local 4-H Club. Watch demonstrations of cowboy action and soldiers from 1812. Try your hand at various rifles, black powder guns and handguns under the direct supervision of qualified members. Young, old and in between, including ladies, are welcome. Come out and see what we are all about!
IT’S FINALLY HERE – THE 3RD ANNUAL WOMEN’S OUTDOOR WORKSHOP (WOW) – JUNE 20, 2015 – BLENHEIM, ONTARIO. Located at the Rondeau Rod & Gun Club, 10260 Campbell Line. AVOID THE INTIMIDATION AND FRUSTRATION OF LEARNING ON YOUR OWN! Courses Offered: Archery, ATV’S, Compass Orienteering, Duck/Turkey Calling, Gun Cleaning, Handgun Target Shooting, Leave No Trace, Reloading, .22. Entry fee is $75. Pig Roast is $5 for WOW participants; $10 for guests. Pre-registration is required. Registration deadline is May 30, 2015. For registration and information, please email: womensoutdoorworkshop@gmail.com or visit us at the club on Wednesdays from 6-10 p.m. Find us on Facebook!
COMMENTARY #4 – RCMP HIGH RIVER REPORT (By Dennis R. Young | Canada Free Press | March 24, 2015)
Open letter to Alberta Justice Minister Jonathan Denis
When did you know the RCMP were kicking in doors in High River, why didn’t you stop it before it got out of hand and why did your government defend the RCMP’s actions?
Dear Minister Denis:
I want to thank you for taking the time to write on January 28, 2015 responding to my two previous letters dated September 30, 2014 and January 2, 2015.
Your letter stated: “The Province of Alberta, as a contracting partner for the services of the RCMP, have worked with the CRCC (Civilian Review and Complaints Commission for the RCMP), as the federally legislated oversight body, to ensure sufficient accountability to Alberta and its citizens results from this independent review.” [Emphasis added]
Sadly, the RCMP Complaints Commission’s High River report did not “ensure sufficient accountability to Alberta and its citizens” – not even close. The Commission’s investigative mandate was about the seizing of guns and; therefore, their terms of reference was much too narrow to address the overarching reason why guns ended up being seized at all. Why were the RCMP allowed to enter any homes in High River let alone 4,666 homes (on at least two occasions)?
Now that the RCMP Public Complaint’s Commission has published their long-awaited report on the High River Gun Grab on February 12, 2015, I am hoping that you will now be free to answer the questions I asked in my previous correspondence and the new questions the RCMP Complaints Commission’s report raises for the Government of Alberta.
See the rest: http://canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/70655
CANADA IN THE ROUGH – POST RUT WHITETAILS
This week on Canada in the Rough, Kevin Beasley is in his home Province of Ontario pursuing mature whitetails. This hunt takes place in late November and early December when the whitetail rut has subsided. Kevin hunts long and hard. After a few encounters and some heart break, he is finally rewarded for his efforts.
See the teaser: http://www.canadaintherough.com/post-rut-whitetails/
Canada in the Rough can be found on OLN, WILD TV, and CHEX. For a full schedule, visit: http://www.canadaintherough.com/schedules/
ANTI-GUN HYSTERICS SHOOTING BLANKS (By Lorne Gunter | QMI Agency | March 21, 2015)
The hysterical elite reaction to Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s recent statement about guns, self-defence and rural homes has demonstrated once again just how anti-gun are Canada’s liberal policy and opinion makers.
It has also shown just how detached these smug, we-know- better-than-you types truly are — detached from the facts and detached from the reality of daily life.
It has been obvious for several years that those who run Canada’s lenient criminal justice system hate — hate! — the idea of ordinary citizens owning guns; and hate even more the idea of citizens using those guns to defend their loved ones, themselves or their property.
Time after time over the past decade, when a regular Canadian has used a legally owned firearm to ward off an attack, that citizen has ended up being charged with greater crimes than his attacker.
Talk about a system that has its priorities screwed up.
Law-abiding gun owners are routinely treated as greater threats to public safety than repeat offenders with long rap sheets.
Don’t believe me? Just ask David Chen, Ian Thomson, Brian Knight, Joe Singleton and a host of others.
Each of them used a weapon to fend off an attacker or intruder, and each ended up facing longer jail time than the criminal who threatened him.
But the already hysterically anti-gun, anti-self-defence legal and media establishments in this country switched into hyperdrive when Harper told a convention of Saskatchewan rural leaders last week that in rural areas, “Gun ownership (isn’t) just for the farm, it (is) also for a certain level of security when you’re a ways away from police.”
That’s not an ideological rant, it’s a statement of fact.
If you live 20, 30 or more minutes from the nearest police station, you might need to have a gun around if you, your family or your home are attacked.
Urban academics, reporters and lawyers immediately sprang into outraged mode.
Many insisted the PM was promoting vigilantism.
Such allegations merely revealed how clueless those making them are about self-defence.
Vigilantism is taking the law into one’s own hands.
Exacting vengeance
It involves seeing a crime going untreated by police and the courts, hunting down the perpetrators and exacting vengeance.
When a criminal enters your home or property with the intent to do you harm, you have an ancient right to defend yourself, including whatever force is required. You didn’t go looking for the criminal, he came looking for you.
Then there were critics who insisted Canada has no legal tradition for armed self-defence. We may not have an equivalent of the Americans’ Second Amendment in our Constitution, but we inherited our right to own weapons for self-defence from the British, where the legal precedents go back 1,300 years.
There was even a law on the books in Upper Canada requiring every man age 15 to 60 to own “a good and sufficient musket, fusil rifle or gun” for self-defence and for use in the militia.
But the most ridiculous suggestion (and the one farthest removed from the real world) came from two University of Ottawa professors, Irvin Waller and Michael Kempa. (Not surprisingly, Kempa is seeking a Liberal nomination for this fall’s federal election.)
The pair actually suggested (this wasn’t meant as a joke), “developing crime and violence reduction programs” in rural communities and providing “non-violent conflict resolution training in schools.”
They may as well be saying, “Oh, excuse me, Mr. Burglar, before you shoot me, might I suggest you read this helpful brochure entitled ‘With our words, not our fists.’ Then perhaps you will join me at the local high school for their new conflict-resolution workshop. My treat!”
Ironically, Profs. Waller and Kempa (the Liberal MP wannabe) accused Harper of being the “elitist.”
See the story: http://www.torontosun.com/2015/03/20/anti-gun-hysterics-shooting-blanks
HUNTER HARASSMENT BILL C-655 TO PROTECT HUNTERS, ANGLER AND TRAPPERS (By Gord Ellis | CBC News | March 19, 2015)
A private members before the House of Commons could make it illegal to harass hunters and anglers.
Bill C-655 would amend the Criminal Code and make it an offence to interfere with anyone lawfully fishing, hunting, sport shooting or trapping.
Hunter harassment is an increasing concern, according to Phil Morlock, the environmental affairs for Shimano Canada, a company that makes outdoor recreation supplies.
“With new technology, there are already several examples that we have become aware of where drones are being used to harrass deer hunters in tree stands and other people that are involved in hunting activities,” Morlock said.
The bill was introduced by Conservative MP Garry Breitkreuz from Saskatchewan, who is also a founding member of the Parliamentary Outdoors Caucus.
The group is made up of 123 MPs and senators from all four parties who have an interest in outdoor activities, including Thunder Bay-Superior North MP Bruce Hyer, a Green Party member, who has already pledged his support of the bill.
Hear the interview: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/thunder-bay/hunter-harrassment-bill-c-655-to-protect-hunters-angler-and-trappers-1.3000255
GUN BILL SHOW DOWN AT THE U.S. SENATE IN THE NEXT 72 HOURS (Gun Owners of America | Ammoland.com | March 25, 2015)
Washington, DC – Within the next 72 hours, gun owners should expect votes in the U.S. Senate on: Outlawing ATF bullet bans; Concealed Carry Reciprocity; Prohibiting Senate anti-gun amendments.
We expect more gun-related showdowns in the next 72 hours than in the next 9 months combined. At least 5 gun-related amendments are expected on the Budget Resolution — a once-a-year vehicle that gives senators an opportunity to get hundreds of votes on any issue they choose.
And at least five senators have chosen to get votes on guns. We have already told you about the Crapo amendment to shut down Operation Choke Point — which has been used by Eric Holder to try to financially strangle the gun industry.
But there are other amendments as well:
An amendment by Senator Jim Inhofe (R-OK) and David Vitter (R-LA) to prohibit ATF from banning bullets — in the way it tried to do with AR-15 ammunition;
Another amendment by Senator Inhofe to block any and all funding for the implementation of the UN Arms Trade Treaty;
An amendment by Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) to prohibit any more anti-gun amendments in the Senate — be they semi-auto bans, magazine bans, universal gun registries, etc. — unless anti-gunners get more Senate votes than they will ever conceivably be able to achieve;
And there is an amendment to prohibit the ATF from copying 4473’s and using them to compile a national gun registry; and another one to push national concealed carry reciprocity — in a way that allows residents of “constitutional carry” states to carry without asking “May I?” from the government first.
It is critically important that you chime in with respect to all of these amendments.
One final point: If you read the amendments, they are filled with “budgety” language about “reserve funds,” and so forth. But the important thing to know is that this is an exercise in freezing in pro-gun votes. We killed UN Arms Trade Treaty with a budget amendment like these. And, once we freeze in our headcounts, we can stick these same amendments onto the non-filibusterable reconciliation bill — or on the appropriations bills when they begin to move in a couple of months.
But if you hate bullet bans — or if you like national concealed carry reciprocity — or if you want to permanently preclude anti-gun amendments in the Senate — now is the time to make your voice heard.
About: Gun Owners of America (GOA) is a non-profit lobbying organization formed in 1975 to preserve and defend the Second Amendment rights of gun owners.
See the story: http://www.ammoland.com/2015/03/gun-bill-show-down-at-the-u-s-senate-in-the-next-72-hours/#axzz3VRZKeUbN
THANKS FOR YOUR SUPPORT!
The CSSA is the voice of the sport shooter and firearms enthusiast in Canada. Our national membership supports and promotes Canada’s firearms heritage, traditional target shooting competition, modern action shooting sports, hunting, and archery. We support and sponsor competitions and youth programs that promote these Canadian heritage activities.
To join or donate to the CSSA, visit: https://cssa-cila.org
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