COMMENTARY – IT’S TIME TO PROTECT LEGAL SHOOTING ACTIVITIES
Recently, a foolish anti-hunting protester in Australia was injured after wading into the water in front of duck hunters in the middle of an active hunt. Curiously, despite the Darwinian nature of the incident, it made international news. Along with a large number of fellow anti-duck hunting protestors, this woman wanted to “save” the downed ducks in the water. She felt that placing herself into the middle of a duck hunt was a smart thing to do.
It wasn’t. A young hunter going after a low-flying bird took a shot and some of the pellets hit the individual in the face, drawing blood – but thankfully, not seriously wounding the woman.
While this incident happened in Australia, the same interference with lawful hunting activities has happened here in Canada as well.
This past October Rob Seal and Kyle Dittmer were hunting geese on private property in Ontario. A woman confronted the two hunters and scared off all the geese by honking her vehicle’s horn and yelling at the two men. That wasn’t enough, however. When the men didn’t leave the private land where they were hunting legally, she came back and photographed them and their vehicle licence plates – even grabbed the cell phone Rob Seal was using to video record her antics.
In Ontario this harassment is a crime.
The Ontario Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act section 13.1 states:
13.(1) A person shall not interfere with lawful hunting, trapping or fishing by,
(a) tampering with traps, nets, bait, firearms or any other thing used for hunting, trapping or fishing;
(b) placing himself or herself in a position, for the purpose of interfering, that hinders or prevents hunting, trapping or fishing; or
(c) engaging in an activity, for the purpose of interfering, that disturbs or is likely to disturb wildlife or fish.
Fines for violating this section of provincial law range from a warning up to $25,000 and a year in jail.
A news report stated a resident had been charged with violating this Act, saying:
“Hunting is a legal activity and it’s highly regulated, more than a lot of activities, in the province of Ontario and people should be aware of that. The reason it’s highly regulated is to make it safe and humane for those animals and I don’t believe that’s always fully understood,” said Russell Brandon, the Aylmer-area enforcement manager for the Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR).
While interfering with lawful hunting is a provincial crime in Ontario, it is not against the law in many other parts of Canada.
Interfering with Hunting, Trapping, Fishing or Sport Shooting
Garry Breitkreuz, federal M.P. for Yorkton-Melville, Saskatchewan, aims to change that with his Private Member’s Bill C-655, An Act to Amend the Criminal Code (Interfering with Hunting, Trapping, Fishing or Sport Shooting). If passed into law, it would be a federal crime to interfere with these lawful activities, essentially taking the Ontario provincial statute and making it federal law under the Criminal Code of Canada.
Penalties under this proposed law would include a maximum fine of $25,000 and/ or a prison term of up to one year.
Please contact your elected representatives and urge them to vote YES on Bill C-655. Canada’s heritage activities deserve the dignity of legal protection.
Commons Sense Firearms Licensing Act
Bill C-42 has cleared the committee phase in the House of Commons and Third Reading is expected within the next few weeks – then it’s off to the Senate. It is interesting to note that no journalists were present during the committee hearings, and only a very few publications ran a pathetically misinformed piece written by Heidi Rathjen. Ms. Rathjen and her cohort, Wendy Cukier, both testified to the Standing Committee on the first day of witness testimony. However, not even the most hallucinatory of M.P.s could understand if they were actually talking about Bill C-42, or some figment of their imagination. Clearly, the Coalition for Gun Control has lost its edge and its interest. They had no idea what they were talking about. That fact was not lost – even upon those M.P.s that support ninny gun control.
Also of interest, veteran Liberal M.P., the Hon. Wayne Easter, expressed his support several times for the establishment of a Firearms Experts Classification Committee. Terrific, we agree! Now that everyone thinks it’s a good idea (except perhaps the N.D.P.), the birth of this essential tribunal should be easy.
Petition on High River Gun Grab
CSSA firebrand Dennis Young has developed a petition regarding the High River Gun Seizure and subsequent RCMP cover-up. The petition demands a judicial inquiry from the Province of Alberta. Dennis writes, ” … just think how you would feel if the police, without lawful authority, had kicked in your front door, had tracked mud through your home, searched your home from top to bottom (without warrant) including your bedroom closets and if it had been your valuable firearms that they seized and threw into a dinghy.”
You can sign this petition here:
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COMING VERY SOON –
THE 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.
HOTEL ROOMS AVAILABLE AT THE HAMPTON INN OTTAWA, 100 COVENTRY ROAD, ATTACHED TO THE OTTAWA CONFERENCE AND CONVENTION CENTRE. FOR RESERVATIONS, CALL 613-741-2300.
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“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
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CALL A JUDICIAL INQUIRY INTO THE HIGH RIVER FORCED ENTRIES – SIGN THE PETITION TO THE PREMIER OF ALBERTA! (By Dennis Young | Canadian Firearms Digest | April 30, 2015)
I need your help to get it off the ground. Will you take a minute to consider signing this important petition?
Here’s the link: http://www.change.org/p/premier-of-alberta-call-a-judicial-inquiry-into-the-high-river-forced-entries
Why a judicial inquiry is needed for High River: On February 12, 2015, the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission for the RCMP released their long-awaited report of their investigation of the RCMP’s actions during and following the emergency flooding in the Town of High River, Alberta between June 20, 2013 to July 13, 2013. The Commission’s investigation examined the RCMP’s forced entries of “more than 754 homes”, their unwarranted search of 4,666 homes (most on at least two occasions), damage complaints filed by more than 1,900 home owners, the RCMP’s seizure of more than 600 firearms and the seizure and destruction of approximately 7,500 pounds (between 400,000 and 450,000 rounds) of ammunition.
The RCMP Complaint Commission’s report starts with such lofty aims and ambitions by quoting British statesman William Pitt from his speech to the House of Commons in 1763: “The poorest man may in his cottage bid defiance to all the forces of the Crown. It may be frail, its roof may shake; the wind may blow through it; the storms may enter, the rain may enter — but the King of England cannot enter; all his forces dare not cross the threshold of the ruined tenement.” Sadly, the report documented what we already knew: how the Queen’s forces, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, did cross the thresholds of 4,666 High River homes, by kicking in doors, searching homes and seizing private property without warrant.
The report tries to justify the RCMP’s actions in High River, overlooking the Alberta Emergency Management Act’s plain requirements for the delegation of authority for unwarranted searches of buildings (which was clearly not followed), omitting or distorting important details, contradicting past public statements and documents; and, holding no one to account for systematic, organized egregious violations of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, Alberta Bill of Rights and offences under Criminal Code and the RCMP Act.
This is a story of police, bureaucratic and ministerial misconduct and cover-up that belongs in the third world, not in Canada. The entire story needs to be dragged out into the sunlight and those who were responsible need to be held accountable. We need an independent public inquiry if we are to have any hope of correcting this gross abuse of power. We believe a judicial inquiry will reveal the entire story as well as those responsible; in the same manner as the Braidwood Inquiry revealed the truth about the death of Robert Dziekanski and those who lied to cover it up. (Please read my letter to the Premier below).
SO MANY QUESTIONS LEFT UNANSWERED BY HIGH RIVER INVESTIGATION
http://canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/70833
I encourage you to also write a letter to the Premier of Alberta. Here is a copy of my letter.
LETTER TO THE PREMIER OF ALBERTA
Office of the Premier premier@gov.ab.ca
Dear Premier:
Please call a judicial inquiry to examine all the issues and claims related to the High River forced entries, unwarranted searches, seizures of private property and damages caused to High River homes by police overreach and bureaucratic mistakes during the flood of 2013. A telephone poll taken after the RCMP Complaints Commission’s High River report was released, showed that sixty-seven percent of the people in High River thought the RCMP’s actions were not “appropriate” contrary to the report’s findings. Fifty-three percent of High River residents polled last August indicated they would be prepared to refuse an evacuation order in the event of another emergency.
A judicial inquiry is needed to fully restore the trust of the residents of High River and to reassure all Canadians that their rights and their homes will be protected in any future emergency. Lack of a full scale judicial examination of the events in High River casts a negative shadow on the many thousands of dedicated RCMP members who serve and protect us and maintain our rights every day in thousands of communities all across Canada. We look forward to your response.
Sincerely,
Dennis R. Young
Airdrie, Alberta
E-mail addresses for your letters:
Premier of Alberta premier@gov.ab.ca
Alberta Minister of Justice and Solicitor General ministryofjustice@gov.ab.ca
Prime Minister of Canada PM@pm.gc.ca
Minister of Public Safety ministerpublicsafety@ps-sp.gc.ca
Minister of Justice and Attorney General mcu@justice.gc.ca
Minister of National Defence dnd_mdn@forces.gc.ca
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NEW SHOOTING RANGE – NORTH THOMPSON FISH & GAME CLUB SOCIETY – KAMLOOPS, B.C. Located at KM 6 on Westsyde/Gorman Lake Road. Annual Membership: $50.
The scope of range activities include:
- Short and long distance rifle ranges: 100 to 1,000 yards
- Small bore and handguns including IPSC, cowboy action and general target shooting
- Black powder targeting
- Shot guns and sporting clays
- Charging bear attack targets
Range facilities to include, but not limited to:
- Sea-cans for secure storage
- Shooting line shelters
- Target holders and shooting benches
- Clubhouse
- Parking areas – personal vehicles and rough camping spots
- Freshwater supply
- Picnic tables and fire pits
- Necessary fencing and gates
- Security equipment, locked gates, trail cams, signs and notices
- Outhouses
For more information, contact George McKnight at 250-852-0595
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CANADA IN THE ROUGH – BIG BEARS WITH THE BOW
This weekend, Keith and Kevin Beasley will be hunting with Muskeg Country Outfitters in Manitoba, Canada! Manitoba has a very healthy bear population and a great number of beautiful colour phase bears too! Keith and Kevin will be hunting with their Elite bows and hoping to have some up close encounters with some giant bears!
See the teaser: http://www.canadaintherough.com/big-bears-with-the-bow/
Canada in the Rough can be found on OLN, WILD TV, and CHEX. For a full schedule, visit: http://www.canadaintherough.com/schedules/
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RATHJEN SPEAKS: OTTAWA SHOULD HOLD FIRE ON ITS PROPOSED NEW FIREARMS LICENSING LAW (by HEIDI RATHJEN | SPECIAL TO MONTREAL GAZETTE | May 6, 2015)
This week, the federal standing committee on public safety is wrapping up hearings into Bill C‑42, the ironically named Common Sense Firearms Licensing Act. The bill would loosen controls on possession permits, assault weapons and the transportation of handguns.
Among the many troubling changes C-42 seeks to introduce, one seemingly innocuous measure deserves special scrutiny. The legislation would open the door to regulations that limit the discretionary powers of chief firearms officers (CFOs), the provincial public servants who decide whether or not to issue a variety of licences and authorizations and on what conditions. As it stands now, before a licence is issued, a CFO may require a medical report stating that the former mental illness of an applicant has been successfully treated. Or he or she may require that a gun business reconfigure its service counter to make sure the display is at a safe distance from the public.
Given that the Conservative government has presented the bill as a way to rein in the “broad and often arbitrary discretionary authority” of “unelected bureaucrats,” and that it follows complaints from the gun lobby regarding CFO decisions, Canadians have reason to worry about what the regulations would look like. If the Harper government seeks to tie the hands of CFOs at the behest of the gun lobby, this would not be the first time.
Records of the commercial sale of guns, for example, were kept in Canada, largely without controversy, starting in 1979. Because the 1995 law required that all inventory and transactions be captured in a centralized registry, the obligation for gun businesses to maintain such records was removed from the law. CFOs nevertheless continued to attach record-keeping requirements as a condition of licensing these stores.
But following the abolition of the long-gun registry, gun owners’ groups started complaining about these sales records. Evidently they weren’t satisfied with a return to mere 1979 levels of oversight. Sure enough, shortly thereafter the Conservatives passed regulations prohibiting CFOs from requiring any records concerning long guns, in spite of being warned by CFOs that it could result “in more firearms being sold by businesses to criminals and unlicensed persons.”
Or take gun shows. Up until 2012, all gun sales at these events were recorded on the national registry — a process that involved the automatic verification of a buyer’s licence. But with the registry gone, gone too was any way to ensure that the many sales at these massive events were legal. To compensate this loss of oversight, CFOs called on the government to enforce existing gun-show regulations that, at the very least, would allow them to ensure minimum safety standards.
This eminently reasonable request was met with loud complaints from gun owners’ groups, and so the government axed the regulations, even though an RCMP report warned that as a result “gun shows may become a focal point for the purchase and subsequent stockpiling of non-restricted firearms for criminal use,” just as such events fuel the black market in the U.S.
The discretionary power of CFOs in doling out licences is a key tool in ensuring the safe sale and use of guns. It should not be curbed to serve political purposes. Such a move would place partisan politics over good governance, ideology over expertise and the interests of the gun lobby over public safety.
This and every other measure in Bill C-42 should be thoroughly examined and publicly debated before the bill proceeds any further.
Heidi Rathjen has been an advocate for gun control since witnessing (sic) the 1989 massacre of 14 women at École Polytechnique, where she was an engineering student. She’s a spokesperson for PolySeSouvient (or PolyRemembers).
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COLORADO CAMPUS CARRY: 12 YEARS, NO MASS SHOOTINGS, NO CRIMES BY PERMIT HOLDERS (By AWR Hawkins | Breitbart News Network | April 20, 2015)
On April 20, The Washington Post ran a column showing that campus carry has been the law of the land in Colorado since 2003, and the results have not been anything like those currently fighting against campus carry claim it should be.
There have been no mass shootings and, apart from one incident in which a gun was accidentally discharged by a Colorado University employee, there have been no crimes by permit holders.
No one was injured in the accidental discharge, and the employee was fired.
The success of campus carry in Colorado is especially good news for women, who are able to level the playing field by being armed and better able to defend their dignity when under sexual attack.
WaPo explains:
The U.S. Census Bureau conducts in-person interviews with several thousand persons annually, for the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS). In 1992-2002, over 2,000 of the persons interviewed disclosed they had been raped or sexually assaulted. Of them, only 26 volunteered that they used a weapon to resist.
In none of those 26 cases was the rape completed; in none of the cases did the victim suffer additional injury after she deployed her weapon.
So, in the 26 assaults in which a woman had access to a weapon, she was able to stop the rape and was not further assaulted.
Moreover, WaPo expounded on the NCVS results by including an in-depth study by Florida State University criminologist Gary Kleck.
Kleck “conducted a much broader examination of NCVS data. Analyzing a data set of 27,595 attempted violent crimes and 16 types of protective actions, Kleck found that resisting with a gun greatly lowered the risk of the victim being injured, or of the crime being completed.”
This is one hundred and eighty degrees from what campus carry opponents want us to believe.
For example, on February 24, MSNBC published an op-ed in which Shannon Watts of Moms Demand Action claimed passing legislation to allow women to be armed on campus for self-defense could open the door for more people to “perpetrate sexual assault” against women on campuses.
And four days later, Salon magazine published a piece in which they published figures from Everytown for Gun Safety suggesting women will be in even greater danger if the gun-free zones are eradicated.
But neither the NCVS, nor Kleck’s scholarly work, nor Colorado’s 12-year example support these claims.
Instead, the NCVS and Kleck show that guns in the hands of law-abiding women allow those women to stop a sexual assault in its tracks, and Colorado’s campus carry experience shows concealed carry permit holders simply aren’t those committing crimes on campuses.
See the story: http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2015/04/20/colorado-campus-carry-12-years-no-mass-shootings-no-crimes-by-permit-holders/
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9TH ANNUAL PRINCE GEORGE ROD & GUN CLUB – MAY 9-10, 2015 – PRINCE GEORGE, B.C. Gun, Knife, Archery & Sporting Goods. Prince George Coliseum, 888 Dominion Street. Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Admission is $5 per person. Accompanied children 12 and under are FREE. Table rental is $35 per 8-foot table. For more information, please contact Don at info@pgrgclub.ca or 250-613-0151.
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2015 DON MOORE MEMORIAL PISTOL MATCHES – MAY 16-17, 2015 – CRPTC (CONNAUGHT) RANGES – WEST OF SHIRLEY’S BAY, ONTARIO. ISSF Events: Standard Pistol; Center Fire Pistol; Sport Pistol; Free Pistol & Air Pistol* PPC Events: PPC (Police Pistol Combat) 1500, Snub Nose Match & Slug Gun Match CDN Events: CDN 1800; 9mm Service Pistol* For more information phone 613-596-5062 or cell 613-864-5062. Send entry form to: Ed Stevens, 2650B Moncton Road, Ottawa, ON K2B 7W1. Email: stevense@rogers.com. Fax: 613-829-9733. Or register online at: www.targetscores.com
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5TH ANNUAL KOOTENAY GUN SHOW – MAY 23 AND 24, 2015 – CRANBROOK, B.C. Located at the Cranbrook Curling Club, 1812, 2nd Street North, Cranbrook. Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Admission is $5 per person over 12 years of age. For more information, please contact Rick Grant at 250-427-0158 or Duncan Waugh at 250-422-3469, or you can email kootenaygunshow@hotmail.com.
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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/membership/
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CANADIAN SHOOTING SPORTS ASSOCIATION | CANADIAN INSTITUTE FOR LEGISLATIVE ACTION
116 Galaxy Boulevard, Etobicoke ON M9W 4Y6
Phone: 416-679-9959 | Fax: 416-679-9910
Toll Free: 1-888-873-4339
