That was the year that was.
Canada – -(Ammoland.com)- Responsible firearms owners endured an emotional see-saw ride as we were used and abused by media, governments and anti-gun special interest groups.
It is to firearms owners’ credit that they doggedly continue to enjoy their heritage sports in the face of opposition.
Our detractors continue to try to break our collective will and force us quietly into the night, yet the escalating demand for shooting range time and space demonstrates we’ll have none of it. The Canadian firearms industry remains strong and vibrant, even as anti-gun advocates complain that no one should ever need to own more than one gun (and even that is too many).
It was a year ago on January 3 2013 that Ian Thomson was acquitted from charges for defending himself and his home by firing warning shots. At the end of January 2013 the CSSA asked firearms owners to support Sun News in the hope of keeping the scrappy broadcaster on the air. Sun News has been tenacious at showing the positive side of gun ownership and hit its stride this summer when police raided High River homes to confiscate guns.
On January 25 last year, the Canadian Shooting Sports Association announced its plans to take Ontario’s Chief Firearms Office to court for imposing artificial transport regulations for restricted and prohibited firearms. After spending tens of thousands of dollars while the legal system deliberated which court is responsible for the CFO, the CSSA is still waiting to state its case. A Call to Action from CSSA/CILA executive director Tony Bernardo is ongoing – all firearms owners have a stake in the CFO’s power play. Donations are still needed. You can help us help you here: https://store.cssa-cila.org/
In February, the CSSA issued a media release accusing the Quebec provincial government of maintaining its gun registry as a political ruse. We still believe the province is aware it cannot create its own registry because it would go broke and the federal data is so hopelessly outdated it is beyond useless (and always was). The CSSA’s Great Canadian Gun Registry Shuffle created during the summer of 2012 is proof that bad data can be made ever more corrupt. Quebec is running its tab up further by taking the issue to the Supreme Court of Canada. It has long been said that the people deserve the government they elect, and the CSSA continues to urge Quebec gun owners to hound their provincial representatives into admitting that a new registry is pure folly.
The Canadian Shooting Sports Association called for a new civilian federal tribunal to inject some reality into prohibited and restricted firearm classifications. To date, many guns have been banned because they somehow look more dangerous than others and of course, there is no such thing as good and bad guns – only the people who use them can dictate a good or bad outcome. Our organization also jumped in with both feet when the CFO tried to impose lock-and-key style trigger locks at the Calgary Gun Show last March. When the majority of the guns on display at the show were secured with plastic zip-ties, the CFO got the message and no charges were laid. The trigger lock nonsense is ongoing and CSSA is keeping an eye on CFOs across the country. For this and many other reasons, the CSSA advocated that the Chief Firearms Offices had long outlived their mandate and should be discontinued. We continue to make this point in Ottawa.
Many municipalities reported that a year after the firearms registry was scrapped, shootings were significantly reduced. Shooting incidents continue to plummet, which must come as a shock to anti-gun advocates who predicted that losing the registry would cause blood in the streets. As gun sales go way up across North America and beyond, crime is going way down. Last year we also saw media attention surrounding plastic 3D printer guns. Since all any firearm does is harness the laws of science, private citizens have been making their own guns for centuries.
Last summer, Global News continued its anti-gun campaign by trying to create public fear over gun law loopholes. On the positive side of the news, many M.P.s and Senators joined us for the 2nd Annual Parliamentary Outdoors Caucus Shooting Day at the Range on June 18. The event was co-sponsored by the Canadian Sporting Arms and Ammunition Association, the Canadian Shooting Sports Association, the Canadian Institute for Legislative Action, and the Stittsville Shooting Range.
Not long after the High River debacle, the CSSA warned the Harper government that it could get a rough ride at the polls in October 2015 if it continues to support legislation that criminalizes gun owners. More prognostication than threat, we explained that the firearms community is growing very restless due to government inaction. We suggested that if the Harper government plans to create fairer laws for responsible gun owners, it needs to act soon to allow legislation passage before the next election. Otherwise, many gun owners threaten to stay home on election day. We repeated our advice in an open letter to Prime Minister Harper in early November.
In October, Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird refused to sign the U.N. Arms Trade Treaty. The CSSA advised the Canadian government not to sign because it would not save lives and forfeit our ability to make our own rules at home, in effect allowing the U.N. to dictate laws to Canadians. Minister Baird has agreed with us so far and firearms owners across the country appreciate his stance.
In early December, the CSSA was pleased to help sponsor the Outdoors Caucus Association of Canada and the Fur Institute of Canada’s Inaugural Banquet and Live Auction held in Ottawa. The event was well attended by M.P.s and Senators, industry representatives and wildlife organizations and featured a fur fashion show, auction and great prizes.
By year-end 2013, there was more to celebrate when Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) provided new favourable regulations for the sale, transport and storage of propellant powders and ammunition. After eight years of working on new draft regulations to store and acquire handloading components and ammunition, Natural Resources Canada Minister Joe Oliver and departmental staff concluded that propellant powders and ammo are not a hazard, and have nothing to do with firearm safety.
The year 2013 was long on hard work for firearms advocacy and short on common sense in some government and media circles. The battles are difficult – but worth it. Thank you for your support.
Compliments of the Coalition for Gun Control web site, we believe it fitting to present here a compilation of anti-gun propaganda published during 2013. In reading many of these articles, it is evident that many so-called journalists refuse to let truth get in the way of peddling fear to the public.
As you can see, our work in 2014 is cut out for us all. We simply cut and pasted this compilation from https://guncontrol.ca/gun-
About:
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. Website www.cdnshootingsports.org