Did Parliament Shooting Change Canada's Gun Control Debate?

[flamin lib]

"With little fanfare, critics, led by conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper, have been pushing back against the (gun) rules, which they say are unnecessarily cumbersome and costly . . ."

Since 1989 when 28 people were killed with a mini 14 rifle (military style semi auto with extended magazine) Canada has had some pretty strict regulations on guns and the people who buy them. To begin, there are no semi auto guns allowed in civilian hands, long guns or pistols. You must have a license to buy, undergo background check including interviews with friends, significant others past and present and local law enforcement. The conservatives were set to roll a lot of that back until the shootings at the Tomb of the Unknown and Parliament reminded lawmakers of why they have such rules to start with. Besides when the gun is pointed at YOU the perspective changes.

The conservatives cite three reasons for the rollback: the cost, the large inventory or illegal guns from the US make the gun registry useless (translation: criminals will get guns anyway) and “No methodologically sound study has found any important effect on homicide, suicide or violent crime rates from Canadian gun laws".

Any of that sound familiar?

All that said, the gun death rate in Canada from handguns is .3 per 100,000 and in the US it is 1.7 per 100,000. Overall gun deaths are 1.97 in Canada and 10.3 in the US per 100,000.

Of course the gunners will claim that NBC news is a wholly owned subsidiary of Bloomberg and therefore not relevant. Besides one of the guys over there has READ EVERY SINGLE STUDY INCLUDING THE CANADIAN STUDY AND DEBUNKED IT!

[jimmy the one]

1. pseudo - science in canada

FL's source: The conservatives cite three reasons for the rollback: the cost, the large inventory or illegal guns from the US make the gun registry useless and “No methodologically sound study has found any important effect on homicide, suicide or violent crime rates from Canadian gun laws".

Just was posting on this on rkba board, relevant. First, there was a homicide/suicide study done in Canada by a 'gunnut' named langmann, which found gun control had, surprise surprise, no affect on homicide rates:

oct 2011: “No significant beneficial associations between firearms legislation and homicide or spousal homicide rates were found,” reads the abstract on the study, written by Caillin Langmann,.. himself a vocal foe of gun-control measures who has argued instead for enhanced social programs to combat the causes of gun violence. http://news.nationalpost.com/2011/10/05/gun-control-homicide-rates-not-linked-study/

.... noted Dr. Langmann’s history of advocating against gun legislation. In 2010, he took a stand against a {physicians} resolution in support of the registry. “The gun registry has hurt and killed people,” wrote Dr. Langmann in a widely circulated May 2010 letter. Dr. Langmann’s Facebook page also notes his membership in the online groups for the National Rifle Association and “Against the Gun Registry.”

BUT: A Université de Montrèal study published in the Canadian Journal of Criminology and Justice similarly examined Canadian firearms homicide rates since 1974. The study also factored in external influences such as immigrant populations, the proportion of young men between the ages of 15 and 24 and the per-capita consumption of beer. That study, however, found that Canadian gun legislation was responsible for 5% to 10% drops in firearms homicides.

AND: Mr. Langmann’s study also does not cover suicide, which accounts for nearly 3/4 of all firearms-related deaths in Canada... a Quebec Institute of Health study found that male suicide rates declined notably following the introduction of firearms legislation. http://news.nationalpost.com/2011/10/05/gun-control-homicide-rates-not-linked-study/