From: owner-can-firearms-digest@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca (Cdn-Firearms Digest) To: cdn-firearms-digest@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca Subject: Cdn-Firearms Digest V11 #12 Reply-To: cdn-firearms-digest@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca Sender: owner-can-firearms-digest@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca Errors-To: owner-can-firearms-digest@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca Precedence: normal Cdn-Firearms Digest Saturday, December 15 2007 Volume 11 : Number 012 In this issue: [UK] GUN VICTIMS TREBLE UNDER NEW LABOUR [LETTER] Why do so many resort to guns in domestics? Quebec ready to step in if feds dump gun registry, Charest says Plan to weaken gun registry denounced by De Sousas Quebec willing to go it alone if Ottawa scraps gun registry Kelowna cops seize cache of weapons "[US][COLUMN] Here's more proof that 'disarmed' and 'victim'..." CBC reporter fed questions to Liberal MP: Tories Man wounded in east-end shooting Two males wanted after robbery [COLUMN] Using business for social activism ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sat, 15 Dec 2007 15:37:03 -0500 (EST) From: Bruce Mills Subject: [UK] GUN VICTIMS TREBLE UNDER NEW LABOUR http://www.sundaymirror.co.uk/news/tm_objectid=17670386&method=full&siteid=62484&headline=gun-victims-treble-under-new-labour--name_page.html GUN VICTIMS TREBLE UNDER NEW LABOUR EXCLUSIVE By Vincent Moss 03/09/2006 THE number of people hurt or killed in firearms incidents in London rose to a record high of 1,221 last year, it has emerged. Home Secretary John Reid admitted the figure has more than trebled since Tony Blair came to power in 1997, when 401 people in the capital were shot. The new toll includes 38 deaths. Last night, the increase sparked demands for action. Liberal Democrat home affairs spokeswoman Lynne Featherstone said: "Many of these guns are being shipped in illegally from overseas. "We want the Government to set up a national border force and combine the police, customs and immigration." The Home Office said: "The Government is absolutely clear gun crime will not be tolerated." ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 15 Dec 2007 15:37:45 -0500 (EST) From: Bruce Mills Subject: [LETTER] Why do so many resort to guns in domestics? http://www.lfpress.com/newsstand/Opinion/Letters/ Why do so many resort to guns in domestics? Nov 12 First we have two police officers killed in a crime of passion, now a teacher and her ex-friend are killed in a love triangle. Why is there such a lack of respect for human life? It used to be that we as humans accepted the ups and downs of relationships gone bad and moved on. Now the answer for everyone's emotional problems seems to be solved at the end of a gun.Whatever happened to "thou shalt not kill?" It is a sorry and hateful society that we live in, one that is only going to get worse before it gets better. Guenter Draudt London http://www40.statcan.ca/l01/cst01/legal01.htm Homcides by method 2006 Knives 210 Guns 190 Beating 117 Strangle 48 Fire 12 Other 14 Unknown 14 ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 15 Dec 2007 15:38:36 -0500 (EST) From: Bruce Mills Subject: Quebec ready to step in if feds dump gun registry, Charest says http://www.recorder.ca/cp/National/071213/n1213218A.html Quebec ready to step in if feds dump gun registry, Charest says THE CANADIAN PRESS QUEBEC - Premier Jean Charest said Thursday Quebec is ready to step in if the federal government follows through on plans to scrap the gun registry. Charest made the comments after Lt.-Gov. Pierre Duchesne gave royal assent to provincial legislation which puts tougher restrictions on the transport and storage of firearms. The legislation has been dubbed Anastasia's Law, in honour of Anastasia De Sousa, an 18-year-old student who was killed in a rampage at Montreal's Dawson College in September 2006. Gunman Kimveer Gill killed himself after being cornered by police. Charest said Thursday that if the federal government scraps the gun registry, Ottawa should delegate its powers to the provinces. The registry was created after another Quebec school shooting - the massacre of 14 women at Ecole polytechnique in 1989. Quebec Justice Minister Jacques Dupuis will take the proposal to his counterparts at the next federal-provincial conference, Charest said. Charest said his first choice is to keep the gun registry as it is. "In the name of common sense - the registry exists," he said. "Why dismantle it?" He noted that police say the registry is vital to fighting crime and that Quebec would maintain it on its territory if the federal government dismantles it. Quebec is already negotiating with Ottawa concerning powers over weapons storage. Anastasia's Law puts tougher restrictions on applying for a gun permit and bans guns from schools. It also requires health professionals normally bound by confidentiality requirements to report people to police who they believe may possibly pose a threat. De Sousa's parents are also lobbying the federal government to maintain the federal gun registry. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 15 Dec 2007 15:39:25 -0500 (EST) From: Bruce Mills Subject: Plan to weaken gun registry denounced by De Sousas http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/news/story.html?id=608e5813-5cc9-482e-aa12-88ba5bfa6f14 Plan to weaken gun registry denounced by De Sousas MARIANNE WHITE, CanWest News Service Published: 7 hours ago The Quebec government and the family of Anastasia De Sousa - who was killed in the Dawson College rampage last year - criticized the federal government's plan yesterday to weaken Canada's firearms registry. Louise and Nelson De Sousa, parents of the 18-year-old student, praised Quebec's new piece of gun-control legislation, given royal assent yesterday 15 months after the deadly shooting. But they had no kind words for Ottawa yesterday. "We want the federal (government) to do something and make the law stricter. It's not normal that somebody can buy a gun and just walk around and shoot anybody," Louise said . "Disabling the gun registry is just a big step backwards. They say it cost a lot of money, but it's gonna cost a lot more if they just pull it out. And they have nothing else to back it up," Nelson said. The Harper government has not yet moved to scrap the program, but it made no secret of its opposition to the national firearms registry. Premier Jean Charest called again on the Conservatives to maintain the registry or, if they get rid of it, give the province the powers to manage it. He acknowledged that the latter would not be as good as a federal registry, but said it was better than having none. Police forces in Quebec have been pleading in favour of the registry for months. Quebec moved to restrict the use of firearms following the deadly shooting rampage at Dawson College in September last year. Anastasia De Sousa was killed and 20 people were injured before the attacker took his own life. Quebec's bill, called Anastasia's Law, will ban firearms from schools and day-care centres - except for authorized personnel such as police - and prevent anyone from carrying a firearm on public transit, including school buses. The law calls on professionals, such as doctors and psychologists, to report people with high-risk behaviour. Medical personnel will also have the obligation to report any firearm injury. The De Sousas said they were "proud and honoured" that the law bears their daughter's name and expressed hope that it might spare other families the heartache that they went through. Other measures in the bill include forcing those applying for a prohibited-firearm permit to go get it in person and provides additional resources for cyber surveillance. The law will be enforced by next September, at the latest, but the government could adopt a decree to move faster. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 15 Dec 2007 15:40:27 -0500 (EST) From: Bruce Mills Subject: Quebec willing to go it alone if Ottawa scraps gun registry http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20071214.QUEBECGUNS14/TPStory/National Quebec willing to go it alone if Ottawa scraps gun registry RHÉAL SÉGUIN December 14, 2007 QUEBEC -- Premier Jean Charest wants Ottawa to delegate powers and money to Quebec to maintain the gun registry in the province should the federal government move to abolish it. The province wants the right to enforce tougher controls over the transportation and storage of firearms. The two levels of government have held discussions and Quebec is waiting for an answer. "Our first option is that things remain as they are. If they don't, we feel that a delegation of powers to us would allow us to do here what we feel is right," Mr. Charest said yesterday. "They gave us an honest hearing. Our assessment is that they are giving it serious consideration." With a minority government in Ottawa, Mr. Charest said it was unlikely that the gun registry would be abolished. But he noted that this could change after the next election. Quebec has been a strong defender of the gun registry and is part of a coalition that has demanded that Ottawa keep it in place. "The money has been invested. It [the gun registry] is there. Our view is that it should remain where it is so that it could be used," Mr. Charest said. The Premier made the comments after a special ceremony where the so-called Anastasia Bill was signed into law. The law was named after Anastasia De Sousa who was killed in a hail of bullets at Montreal's Dawson College exactly 15 months ago yesterday. The gunman, Kimveer Gill, used a legally registered semi-automatic rifle during a rampage in which 19 others were injured. He practised his marksmanship regularly at a Montreal gun club. The bill sanctioned yesterday makes it tougher to own and handle restricted and prohibited firearms in Quebec. Individuals applying for a permit for such firearms will be required to inform police in person. The police will be given more resources to monitor websites to detect suspicious behaviour and illegal gun sales. Health professionals will also be authorized to inform police in certain circumstances if they come across suspicious individuals. Gun clubs will be required to keep a registry of all those who use their firing ranges. Ms. De Sousa's parents were on hand to witness the sanctioning of the bill and once again appealed to Prime Minister Stephen Harper to abandon his promise to abolish the gun registry. "It's not normal that anybody can buy a gun and walk around and shoot anybody," Louise De Sousa said yesterday. Her husband, Nelson, said common sense dictates that the gun registry should remain in place. " Disabling the gun registry is a big step backward. They say it cost a lot of money. Well it's going to cost a helluva a lot more to just pull it out," he said. "They want to go after the perpetrator after the fact. Well, we want to see some prevention, before something happens." ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 15 Dec 2007 15:41:59 -0500 (EST) From: Bruce Mills Subject: Kelowna cops seize cache of weapons http://www.canada.com/theprovince/news/story.html?id=a9c1f4e2-8db5-41d3-8141-590bd15f6000 Kelowna cops seize cache of weapons Cheryl Chan The Province Friday, December 14, 2007 RCMP have seized a cache of weapons, including two Tasers and a homemade pipe bomb, after a search of a Kelowna home in relation to Project DRILL, a major organized crime bust in Manitoba. A 29-year-old man, a 30-year- old woman and a two-year-old baby were at their home in the 800-block Big Rock Court when police executed the search warrant Wednesday. "The weapons included 15 handguns, two assault rifles . . . a shotgun, an Uzi-type hand-held, fully automatic pistol and two Tasers with 14 cartridges," said Kelowna RCMP Sgt. Neil Skippon. "The majority of these weapons were easily accessible within the home and fully loaded." The RCMP Explosive Disposal Unit was called in when the improvised pipe bomb was discovered in a hidden safe underneath the garage floor. A search of a 2007 Cadillac Escalade turned up five small single-shot handguns secreted in a professionally installed hydraulic compartment. A neighbour said she was not surprised to see police surround the house in a search that locked down the quiet cul-de-sac for the day. "They've been bad news since they moved in in early October," said the woman, who did not want to be identified. "I don't want to put my life at risk, but it has not been much fun." Mustapha El-Hafi and Shelley Miller are the registered owners of the house, which has an assessed 2007 value of $651,000. Charges are pending against the 29-year-old man found in the house and one other man. Police also arrested Lester Robert Jones, 35, at his Kelowna home and Donald Bryce Lyons, 34, in Vancouver. Lyons, a member of the Independent Soldiers gang, was charged and released pending trial next year, while Jones, a member of the Hells Angels, has been remanded to Winnipeg to face charges. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 15 Dec 2007 15:42:58 -0500 (EST) From: Bruce Mills Subject: "[US][COLUMN] Here's more proof that 'disarmed' and 'victim'..." Subject: "[US][COLUMN] Here's more proof that 'disarmed' and 'victim' are synonymous" http://pressherald.mainetoday.com/story.php?id=155166&ac=Phedi Here's more proof that 'disarmed' and 'victim' are synonymous When violence looms and every second counts, recall that the police are only minutes away. M.D. Harmon December 14, 2007 Portland (Maine) Herald Has anyone ever wondered why people with guns who have kissed sanity good-bye never take out their uncontrollable rage on the nearest police station? Nor do they drive off to the nearest Army base, shooting range or hunting club to vent their murderous frustration. It should only take a moment's thought to understand why: Those places have people who have relatively easy access to weapons themselves. It's one thing to be homicidal and suicidal, but it's quite another to consider that one's murderous intent could be brought to an untimely halt through the immediate application of superior firepower. However, there are places that draw these people like magnets, and they, too, are easy to locate: They are the places where the possession of firearms is forbidden, and that fact is widely advertised. Some of these places even go so far as to publicly display their vulnerability to mass murder through the posting of signs that say "No Guns Permitted" or "Gun-Free Zone." Virginia Tech was proud of its "gun-free" status, and boasted about how safe a place it was once it posted signs forbidding firearms on campus. Thirty-two people died there last April as the cost of that exercise in hubris and futility. Other places where firearms are typically banned are stores, including shopping malls, government buildings, including schools, and places of worship. We saw in the Columbine shootings how effective gun bans are for schools. And in Omaha last week, eight people died in a shopping mall before the shooter, cornered by police, killed himself. In Ogden, Utah, last February, a man killed five people in a mall before an armed off-duty police officer pinned him down until help could arrive. And just this past weekend, a disturbed youth who had posted violent diatribes against Christians on an Internet site killed two students at a Colorado missionary center. He later showed up at a church that had an association with the missionary group carrying multiple weapons and 1,000 rounds of ammunition. But because of the earlier shootings, the church had activated its voluntary security force, composed of members who had licenses to carry concealed weapons and the training to use them. The gunman killed two teenage girls in the church parking lot and wounded their father before he entered the church. But once he got inside, he was confronted by one of the church's volunteer guards, Jeanne Assam, a former police officer armed with a pistol. As witnesses described it, she advanced on the shooter yelling "Surrender," and when he raised his weapon, fired several shots, bringing him to the ground. Police reported that the badly wounded gunman then shot himself to death. Assam, dubbed "Dirty Harriet" by one writer, was credited by the church's pastor with having saved 50 to 100 lives. It's almost enough to make a fair-minded, thoughtful person conclude that armed, law-abiding citizens might have saved countless more lives at places like those listed above. But not in the view of the confiscation crowd. They point at the weapons the gunmen used and say that banning them would halt such shootings. Problem is, there's precious little evidence to support that view, and much to disprove it. Different parts of this country display disparities in rates of serious crimes. But that crime rate has been falling steadily for almost 20 years. While many factors undoubtedly contribute to that trend, including tougher sentencing laws, the ability of people to defend themselves also counts. The 40 states (including Maine) where concealed-carry permits are readily available to law-abiding people report on average a 22 percent lower violent crime rate, a 30 percent lower murder rate, a 46 percent lower robbery rate and a 12 percent lower aggravated assault rate than the 10 states where the possession of firearms by honest citizens is greatly restricted. As University of Tennessee law professor Glenn Reynolds (who blogs as "Instapundit") noted after the VT murders last spring, "People don't stop killers. People with guns do." He wrote, "Though press accounts downplayed it, the 2002 shooting at Appalachian Law School was stopped when a student retrieved a gun from his car and confronted the shooter. Likewise, Pearl, Miss., school shooter Luke Woodham was stopped when the school's vice principal took a .45 from his truck and ran to the scene." Police, he notes, can't be everywhere, and when they do arrive, it's usually too late for at least some victims. However, "one group of people is, by definition, always on the scene: the victims. (But) if they're armed, they may wind up not being victims at all." As the U.S. Supreme Court ponders whether the Second Amendment protects our right of self-defense with firearms, the actual case is being proved by people like Jeanne Assam. M.D. Harmon is an editorial writer. He can be contacted at: mharmon@pressherald.com ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 15 Dec 2007 15:43:47 -0500 (EST) From: Bruce Mills Subject: CBC reporter fed questions to Liberal MP: Tories http://www.thestar.com/News/Canada/article/285771 CBC reporter fed questions to Liberal MP: Tories OTTAWA – The CBC has started an internal investigation and possible disciplinary process after one of its parliamentary reporters suggested questions to a Liberal MP on the Commons ethics committee. The probe follows a formal complaint by the Conservative party. The complaint centres on claims that Liberal Pablo Rodriguez directed questions from the CBC to Brian Mulroney during a highly anticipated Commons committee hearing yesterday. CBC News says the reporter, who it did not name, "may have been in pursuit of a journalistically legitimate story." But the broadcaster says it was an "inappropriate way of going about it and as such inconsistent with our journalistic policies and practices." Rodriguez was accused of going on a "fishing expedition" by Tory MPs after he began questioning Mulroney about possible lobbying efforts on wireless regulation during a hearing into the decade-old Airbus affair. The Liberal party denies there was anything untoward, saying it gets "bombarded" daily with comments and ideas for questions from Canadians and from reporters. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 15 Dec 2007 15:44:34 -0500 (EST) From: Bruce Mills Subject: Man wounded in east-end shooting http://www.thestar.com/News/GTA/article/285699 Man wounded in east-end shooting Dec 14, 2007 02:53 PM Amy Fuller Staff Reporter One man is in serious condition at Sunnybrook Hospital after a shooting in the city’s east end this afternoon. Sgt. Sean Brosnan of 42 Division police said the shooting happened at 12:45 p.m. at a residence on Wilcox Creek Pathway, west of Littles Road Park in the area of Finch Ave. E. and Morningside Ave. Sgt. Brosnan could not confirm whether the victim’s injuries were life-threatening. No arrests have been made, and police have not yet identified the suspect. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 15 Dec 2007 15:45:25 -0500 (EST) From: Bruce Mills Subject: Two males wanted after robbery http://www.thestar.com/News/article/285674 Two males wanted after robbery Dec 14, 2007 01:34 PM Amy Fuller Staff Reporter Police are looking for two suspects after a woman on her way to work was robbed at gunpoint this morning at a subway station near Dufferin St. and Lawrence Ave. W. Sgt. Gorpal Sidhu of 13 Division police said two males approached the woman around 9:15 a.m., as she was walking north on a walkway that runs parallel to William R. Allen Rd., between Viewmount Ave. and Glencairn Ave. and close to the west side of Glencairn Subway. One male held what appeared to be a black handgun in his right hand as they took cash, credit cards and an iPod from the victim. "It looked like a handgun, but the woman said it could have been a fake gun or a toy gun," Sidhu said. The victim, 28, was not injured. Sidhu said the men fled on foot in an unknown direction. The first suspect, 16 or 17 years old, is 5 foot 3 with a slim build. He was wearing black clothing. The second suspect is 19 or 20, 6 feet and wearing a black jacket and black baseball cap. Anyone with information can call 13 Division police at 416-808-1300 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-8477. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 15 Dec 2007 15:46:40 -0500 (EST) From: Bruce Mills Subject: [COLUMN] Using business for social activism A little off-topic, but this seemed rather interesting in a "capitalism works" kind of way... http://www.thestar.com/comment/article/285470 Using business for social activism Dec 14, 2007 04:30 AM Carol Goar Long before social entrepreneurship had a name, Canadians were doing it. Our forefathers pioneered co-operative capitalism. They pooled their savings, their ideas and their skills to create new organizations that made money while improving life for everybody. They built co-operative dairies and cheese factories and fish processing plants. They set up credit unions and caisses populaires. They organized mutual insurance companies. By the 1950s, the Antigonish movement, born at St. Francis Xavier University in Nova Scotia, was known around the world for its blend of economic ingenuity and social activism. But sometime in the mid '80s, Canada lost its edge. Urbanization and market forces overtook these homegrown hybrids. They stopped innovating and hunkered down to survive. Many closed their doors. Twenty years later, the rest of the world has discovered social entrepreneurship. Now it's our turn to catch up. Britain has leapt ahead of us in creating and sustaining enterprises that use business principles to achieve social goals. There are 55,000 such ventures in the country. They revitalize rundown neighbourhoods, promote green technologies, build affordable housing and create opportunities for disadvantaged groups. The country's two main political parties are vying for the role of champion of the "Third Sector." Some of the brightest thinkers in the United States are launching innovative non-profit operations, with the backing of a new breed of venture philanthropists. They are convinced that social entrepreneurship has the power to foment change and build self-reliant communities. In Geneva, the Schwab Foundation, which founded the World Economic Forum in Davos 36 years ago, has set up a sister organization to build a global network of social entrepreneurs. It now encompasses 26 countries. Canada just became a member. Its official debut came last week at a summit on social entrepreneurship at the MaRS Centre. The highlight was the presentation of the Schwab Foundation's first Canadian Social Entrepreneur of the Year Award. The winner was Torontonian Geoff Cape, creator of Evergreen, an environmental organization that reclaims green space in urban settings. He is best known for transforming the Brick Works, a derelict industrial property in the Don Valley, into a 16.2-hectare cultural heritage site and nature preserve. "This summit represents a defining moment for the social entrepreneurship sector and its coming of age in Canada," said David Pecaut, a senior partner of Boston Consulting Group, who was instrumental in bringing Canada into the global network. Despite the air of celebration in the room, it was clear that Canada will have to work hard to reach the front ranks of the movement. On the positive side, we have a strong tradition of using commerce to solve social problems, a sturdy base of credit unions and co-operatives and a growing number of highly creative thinkers in the field. More than 80 candidates were considered for the inaugural Social Entrepreneur of the Year Award. On the negative side, we face some daunting impediments: Our governments more often stifle social entrepreneurship than promote it. Michael Labbé of Options for Homes, which builds and sells affordable housing to low-income families, says, "You're so far out of a bureaucrat's frame of reference that you have to twist your ideas to fit their programs." Our business leaders are only dimly aware of social entrepreneurship. They're not hostile to the concept, Pecaut says. They simply don't know what it is, how it works or why it matters. Our tax rules discourage donors from giving money to social enterprises. Any organization that makes a profit, even if the money is to be used for philanthropic purposes, does not qualify for charitable status. And our community of social entrepreneurs is small and widely scattered. "There's enormous promise here in Canada," said guest speaker Michele Giddens of Bridges Ventures in Britain. Her organization has invested more than $100 million in social enterprises in the past five years. Promise is good. Momentum would be better. Carol Goar's column appears Monday, Wednesday and Friday. ------------------------------ End of Cdn-Firearms Digest V11 #12 ********************************** Submissions: mailto:cdn-firearms-digest@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca Mailing List Commands: mailto:majordomo@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca Moderator's e-mail address: mailto:d.jordan@sasktel.net List owner: mailto:owner-cdn-firearms@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca FAQ list: http://www.magma.ca/~asd/cfd-faq1.html and http://teapot.usask.ca/cdn-firearms/Faq/cfd-faq1.html Web Site: http://teapot.usask.ca/cdn-firearms/homepage.html FTP Site: ftp://teapot.usask.ca/pub/cdn-firearms/ CFDigest Archives: http://www.sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca/~ab133/ or put the next command in an e-mail message and mailto:majordomo@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca get cdn-firearms-digest v04.n192 end (192 is the digest issue number and 04 is the volume) To unsubscribe from _all_ the lists, put the next five lines in a message and mailto:majordomo@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca unsubscribe cdn-firearms-digest unsubscribe cdn-firearms-alert unsubscribe cdn-firearms-chat unsubscribe cdn-firearms end (To subscribe, use "subscribe" instead of "unsubscribe".) 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