Category: Good Stuff

There’s somebody in the mainstream Canadian media who actually GETS IT!!

For years, various groups in this country (CanadaCarry.org is only one example) have been telling the hoplophobes that Canada is in dire need of becoming a “shall issue” jurisdiction. Not in some half-assed, who-you-know fashion, either: nation-wide. Either nobody’s been getting it, or the ones that are getting it just don’t have the balls to do anything about it.

Well, I’m tickled pink to tell you that Marty Gobin gets it, too. The proof is in today’s Windsor Star. Like I always do with really good stuff, I’m putting the whole damn thing here; before it expires on the paper’s site or disappears down some other internet black hole. Read on and enjoy (emphasis, links, pretty pics, etc. are mine; as usual):

Give Canadians right to use arms in self-defence

Marty Gobin, Special to The Windsor Star

Published: Wednesday, July 23, 2008

In a recent Windsor Star article (“Cops see spike in number of crime-fighting do-gooders,” June 25), it was reported that there has been a rise in private citizens defending themselves or others against criminals.

Whether it was a veterinarian fighting an armed robber off with a garbage can, or a bystander chasing a violent mugger who beat a man for his prescription medications, it is clear that Canadians are responsible enough to use defensive force in a reasonable and legal fashion.

That said, it’s time that Canadians be permitted to carry weapons for defence against criminals.

This wouldn’t be such a drastic change in law. It’s already legal under Section 34 of the Criminal Code for Canadians to use necessary force to protect their life, up to and including the use of deadly force.

It’s also legal to own a firearm.

Canada even has a permitting process in place for people to carry firearms at the discretion of their provincial Chief Firearms Officer (CFO). [But, unless the CFO is your drinking buddy, good f*&%ing luck getting one -Dennis]

The only thing Canada would have to do to enable Canadians to better protect themselves is change the issuing process for an Authorization to Carry (ATC) from “may-issue”– a permit issued at the discretion of the CFO –to “shall-issue,” a permit which must be issued to anybody who meets clearly defined, reasonable training and background check requirements.

Such a change in the ATC-issuing process would make it more accountable, in that the CFO would have no arbitrary authority to withhold or grant the right to defend oneself. That kind of authority should never be held by any one office.

The change would also ensure that every similarly qualified and screened Canadian has an equal right under the law to defend themselves, their families, and their neighbors, regardless of whether they have any political ties that would grease the wheels for a carry permit.

Now, some of the more sensationalist politicos out there may suggest that allowing Canadians the suitable means to defend themselves would result in shootouts every day in the streets at high noon. 🙄

This kind of Chicken Little approach to the right of one to preserve his or her own life has been proven wrong time and time again south of the border. Michigan switched from “may issue” to “shall issue” permits in 2002, and yet thousands of Canadians manage to travel across the border daily without witnessing any bloodshed.

Vermont, which has no laws regulating the possession or carrying of arms by non-criminal adults, has the third lowest violent crime rate per capita in the USA. (In fairness, that could be accredited to the similarly lax regulation of public nudity in the state combined with the aging baby boomer population scaring off all of the potential muggers.)

Overall, over thirty states have gone the route of shall-issue permits since the early nineties, and none have seen fit to go back to the days of may-issue. The U.S. experiment has shown that there would be no bloodbath resulting from Canadians being allowed to protect their lives.

Not only has there been no public safety crisis as the result of Americans being able to pack heat, but there have actually been numerous potentially large-scale massacres stopped in progress by those authorized to carry a weapon. [YO! Miller! Pay attention, dipshit! -Dennis]

In 2002, a shooter on a rampage at the Appalachian School of Law in Virginia was stopped after not one, but two students in different locations heard his shots and retrieved their weapons from their cars, returned, and placed him under arrest until the police arrived.

In February 2007, an off-duty out-of-area police officer who was carrying his weapon at the Trolley Square mall in Salt Lake City managed to keep an armed madman under fire until Salt Lake City police officers arrived to assist.

This last December, an armed man went to the New Life Church in Colorado after having left a suicide note saying he intended to kill as many people as possible.

He only managed to kill two people at the church before a parishioner shot him.

One can only imagine how these massacres would have turned out, if, like Canada, off-duty police and private citizens were not allowed to carry guns for self-defence. Certainly the murderers in each case, who were intent on committing capital crimes, would be unlikely to care whether or not any law forbade them from carrying a gun.

Both the American example and the recent case of Canadians defending themselves and others in a responsible fashion have proven that private citizens and should be trusted to carry arms without any resulting chaos.

Hopefully our legislators will, in the near future, acknowledge that Canadians have the right to defend themselves guaranteed by the Criminal Code, and modify our weapons laws so that we may have a realistic chance of exercising that right.

Marty Gobin is communications director, Ontario Libertarian Party Member, Canadian Shooting Sports Association in Whitby, Ont.

What a complete and utter crock of God damned bullshit! The Vancouver Sun had the story yesterday about 4 guys on their way to the range, minding their own business, and the abuse that they were subjected to, all in the name of our Great Anti-Gun Nanny State®.

This is a perfect example of just what the hell is wrong with all the anti-gun propaganda that proliferates throughout our country after too damned many years of meddling Letfbot rule in Ottawa and elsewhere. These guys did everything — EVERYTHING — by the book; right down to going along with the idiotic gun registry and taking more care than needed in transporting their firearms (see the photos below).

In spite of all this; what the hell happens? Some hoplophobic (son of a?) bitch sees a gun, shits his/her pants and, the next thing you know, four guys who were doing nothing but heading out for a nice, relaxing afternoon are staring down the business ends of a bunch of 12-gauges with a gaggle of jittery cops at the triggers. Just friggin’ wonderful, eh? Read the story (with my emphasis and commentary added) for yourself and then tell me: is this bullshit or is this bullshit:

VANCOUVER – Police seized five rifles and arrested four men Sunday in a dramatic takedown in the city’s West End after someone called 911 complaining about seeing a gun on the street.

Because, as any sane person knows, just seeing a firearm can sear the soul and damn you to the Eternal Hellfires of Redneckdomâ„¢. Save me, Mister Policeman! Save my little liberal eyeballs from being violated so! Shitskulls…

Police later determined, however, that the guns were legally registered to one of the arrested men and released the four.

The weapons will remain with police until it’s determined if charges are warranted under the Firearms Act.

Oh, gee whiz, will you lookit that? Everything’s in order. Well, screw you anyway; we’re still going to shit on your rights and keep your rightful property … because we can. Heil Chretien! Viva C-68! Move along comrades, nothing to see here…

The 11 a.m. incident on Haro Street, just east of Denman, shocked residents.

“It was a little freaky, I have to say,” said Paul Kay, a supervisor at a nearby confection shop who witnessed the scene.

During the incident, police, with shotguns drawn, pulled over a black four-door SUV and ordered the men inside the vehicle to come out.

Witness Jack Simpson said he saw two young men, both Caucasians in their mid to late 20s, being taken into custody.

Police also removed four weapons from the vehicle, as well as several black boxes, Simpson said. In a media statement issued shortly after 1 p.m., Vancouver police department spokeswoman Const. Jana McGuinness said the four arrested men were released pending further investigation.

Further investigation of WHAT?!?!??? A few guys on their way to shoot some paper and clays?? See some pics from the Sun for yourself (just click on any of ’em to get a better look):

And to think, it was supposed to be a nice fun day at the range…

Never mind that your paperwork’s in order, just get in the back and STFU

Looks like proper transport to me. Hell, the guy’s even got nicer cases than I do

Eek! A gun! Scary Scary Scary! Run away before it jumps up and shoots you!

Complete and utter bullshit. Gangbangers and assorted other scumbags routinely carry concealed and otherwise flout the law but would the cops take them down just for looking suspicious? HELL NO! It’s profiling if they’re not white. But hey, obey all the rules and try to be a law-abiding citizen and you risk getting shot by the cops.

Being the Leftbot patsies that they are, CTV puts an even worse spin on it:

The incident began when an “alert citizen” called police after the person saw two men standing at the rear of a vehicle on Haro Street, holding a long-barreled gun, said Vancouver Const. Jana McGuinness.

[…]

But after checking police found out that the guns were legally registered to one of the men.

That doesn’t mean that the men won’t be charged…

Hey, CTV: GO BUGGER YOURSELVES! Friggin’ moonbats… CP was just as bad:

Witness Walter Muller says he saw the guns on the sidewalk, and one looked like a machine gun.

Yeah, nice going assholes. Way to scare the shit outta the sheeple. Never mind that there wasn’t a single God damned automatic weapon there! Why let a little detail like that get in the way of the Great Glorious Gun Grabber Agenda®?

But the worst — the absolute worst — had to be The Province. Dripping with fearmongering goodness, it’s enough to make Landslide Annie reach for her vibrator…

“One of them looked like a machine-gun, and some of them had super scopes on them,” said West End resident Walter Muller. “The scary part is we could be caught in the crossfire.

Really, Walter? And just what kind of “machine gun” did it look like? And just WTF is a “super scope??” Why is this alleged media outlet quoting some dumbass who clearly doesn’t know his ass from a hole in the ground? Oh, but it gets better…

“With those weapons, serious things were going to happen.”

Like WHAT, you hoplophobic, agenda-driven son of a bitch?

Oh, wait, I get it now. How could I have missed it before? I must be getting old. I didn’t catch it at first but, now that I’ve had another look at all those photos, I see it plain as day:

They’re all white. With crewcuts or even (gasp!) shaved heads! And at least one of them even has tattoos!! Clearly, such men are the bane of civilization and we can never be too vigilant, whether it be in keeping an eye on them or just plain arbitrarily confiscating their stuff. After all, it’s not as if they have RIGHTS or anything.

When is this bullshit going to stop, you ask? Simple: when gun owners across the country finally stand up and shout, in one voice: “Enough! We are SICK and TIRED of being your God damned scapegoats! You want our guns? Well, SCREW YOU! ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒΕ!!”

Am I being radical? Am I being scary? Tough shit. We’ve been getting screwed in the arse by the do-nothings of this country — and for crimes we didn’t even commit!— for decades so that those parasitic bastards could give the illusion that they’re doing something to make us safe. I, for one, am nearing the end of my rope.

Every time some Leftbot special interest group holds a “protest rally” where the media outnumber the “protesters,” it’s national news and the Nanny State acolytes flock to it like maggots to a dead fish. What do you think would happen if just one percent of us were to hold a march, proudly displaying our guns? What would those totalitarian bastards do in the face of twenty thousand armed citizens?

Just wondering… 😉

It’s about God damned time!

Yes, it is. At long last, Steven Truscott — possibly the most well-known wrongly convicted person in Canadian history — is finally getting his due for what he went through. I’m not normally big on this kind of thing but, maybe because I grew up in Clinton, I’ve known about the Truscott case for most of my life, and I’ve always known that he was railroaded.

Nothing that was announced today is going to make up for the time he had taken away, or for his being sentenced to hang by the neck until he were dead at the age of only 14, but it’s better than nothing…

TORONTO — Steven Truscott, the youngest person in Canada to face the hangman’s noose is being compensated $6.5 million for his “miscarriage of justice.”

Ontario Attorney General Chris Bentley made the announcement this morning at Queens Park.

Truscott’s wife, Marlene, is also being compensated $100,000.

Truscott was only 14 when he was convicted in 1959 of murdering his 12-year-old classmate, Lynne Harper.

Both of them lived with their families at the Clinton airforce base, now known as Vanastra, in Huron County.

Truscott was sentenced to hang in Goderich in September, 1959. His case became a lightning rod in capital punishment debates that would follow.

There’s more:

Statement from Steven and Marlene Truscott: “This is a bittersweet moment for us. When we began this journey more than a decade ago, we thought only of exonerating Steven – the possibility of compensation never entered our minds. Although we are grateful for the freedom and stability this award will provide, we are also painfully aware that no amount of money could ever truly compensate Steven for the terror of being sentenced to hang at the age of 14, the loss of his youth, or the stigma of living for almost 50 years as a convicted murderer.

“We have had an opportunity to read Justice Robins’ report, and are very pleased with his findings and their acceptance by the government. This is the final and long-awaited step in recognizing Steve’s innocence. We are especially appreciative of Justice Robins’ finding that: It was the state, through the operation of the criminal justice system, that inflicted the harm on Mr. Truscott. We are all dependent upon the proper functioning of the criminal justice system and we must all share the burden of its errors. Through no fault of his own, Mr. Truscott suffered as a result of one of those errors. His loss should be borne by the community as a whole, and not by Mr. Truscott alone. The state has a moral obligation – an obligation that springs from a sense of justice and equity – to provide some redress to Mr. Truscott. The public’s interest in the proper administration of justice – and, indeed, the public’s conscience – demand that a payment be made.

“We wish to thank Justice Robins for his recommendations, Attorney General Chris Bentley for accepting and acting on them so promptly, and Guelph MPP Liz Sandals for her support both within and outside the legislature. We are grateful to the lawyers who represented us in this final phase and made submissions on our behalf to Justice Robins: Hersh Wolch, Marlys Edwardh, Adriel Weaver, and Jenny Friedland. We also thank the AIDWYC lawyers who represented Steven on the application to the Minister of Justice and the reference to the Court of Appeal: James Lockyer, Philip Campbell, Marlys Edwardh, Hersh Wolch, and Jenny Friedland. All of our lawyers brought great commitment and creativity to a series of very difficult tasks, and we know we would not be here today without each of their efforts. The staff at AIDWYC, especially Win Wahrer, were always present behind the scenes, and while their work was perhaps less visible, it was no less important. We would also like to take this opportunity to thank former Justice Minister Irwin Cotler for his decision to refer the case to the Court of Appeal, without which none of this would be possible.

“On a more personal note, we wish to thank our children, Lesley, Ryan and Devon, for their unwavering support. They stood by us when we made the difficult decision to re-open the case, and have continued to do so despite the stress and loss of privacy that have resulted. We also wish to thank the thousands of Canadians – and individuals around the world – who have expressed their support over the years. Your care and kindness have sustained us through some very difficult times, and we are thrilled to be sharing this good news with you today.

“We know that many of you will be eager to convey your congratulations, but right now we need some quiet time to absorb this news and to reflect with our friends and family on everything we’ve been through. We will not be giving any interviews or further statements to the media at this time. We have always appreciated your respect for our privacy, and trust it will continue. We would ask that any further inquiries be directed to our lawyers…

Contrasts are amazing things. They’re good things, too. They enlighten us to the things that are both wrong and right about who and what we are. They are not things to be ignored.

Take, for example, two women who have lost sons in war. Such a loss is tragic by any measure but how we deal with it… well, that is another matter, isn’t it?

The Yanks have that Sheehan bitch; we have Maureen Eykelenboom…

“Canadians need to wake up and realize who they have in their military,” she said. The soldiers she meets “feel they can make a difference, and they are making a difference, and we need to show them that respect, and as a country we need to support them in their missions.”

You’ll notice that she didn’t add that “by bringing them home” bullshit line. Gawd damn, I LOVE this country… Last word:

The military lawyers said it wouldn’t be acceptable for civilians to raise money and partner soldiers to carry out humanitarian assistance, but just-retired Chief of Defense Staff Gen. Rick Hillier told them to make it happen anyway. The Assistance to Afghanistan Trust Fund was established in 2006 and part of it is made up of donations from the Boomer’s Legacy Fund created a year ago. This week, Maureen Eykelenboom presented the latest $80,000 cheque to Canada’s Joint Task Force Kandahar.

… who thinks that Marc Patterson is one impressive sonuvabitch.

Some of you out there might remember Marc from the last time that I wrote about him. For those of you that don’t, here it is in a nutshell:

Marc was out on a camping trip with his wife and kids. They brought a friend of the family along; 12-year old Colton Reeb. Colton was on his way to the thundershack one evening when he ran into a cougar. The kind that doesn’t wear lipstick. According to what was on the CBC website at the time, “Colton Reeb was bitten on the head, face, neck and upper chest before a family friend wrestled the big cat off the boy, but his parents told CBC News on Thursday evening their son is resting and in good condition.”

That’s right: “wrestled the big cat off the boy.” Now THAT, ladies and gentlemen, is how you define “balls.”

Well, it looks like I’m not the only one that thinks Marc is the kind of guy I wouldn’t mind buying a round or three for. It turns out that Marc’s getting himself a Carnegie medal for heroism! Canoe had the story today:

That’s when the 45-year-old decided to place the cougar in a choke hold, throttling the animal until it was forced to release Colton, who ran to safety. The cougar shook free and turned on Patterson, snarling at him and preparing to pounce.

Instead, the animal ran off when Patterson started growling back […]

Like any 13-year-old boy, Colton Reeb displays his scars like war medals, the proud evidence of his life-or-death battle with a hungry cougar last summer.

And now the man who made sure Colton didn’t become a fast supper for the massive cat will have his own prestigious decoration to show for the scrap in the forest near Kamloops — a Carnegie medal for heroism.

“When I heard about it, I thought, wow, that’s pretty sweet — I’d like to win one of those someday,” said Colton, who ended up with 300 stitches after being mauled by the mountain lion.

“I’d like to win one of those someday.” Dontcha just love kids? 😀

I wonder what Marc has to say about all this?

“Am I a hero? Well, my wife keeps calling me one and when your wife says you’re a hero, I guess you must be.”

Contrary to what the gun-grabbers will tell you, going out to the range and spending a day eating through a box or twelve of ammo is actually relaxing, enjoyable, and downright fun. And sometimes, part of that fun is introducing someone to the sport who’s never tried it before. So, with that in mind, my buddy and I, along with his girlfriend, hit the range the other weekend. Neither one of them had fired anything before. Ever. Malcolm had shot a pellet gun when he was a kid, but Bonnie hadn’t even done that.

That’s right: me, two noobs, one beat-up old Cooey, half a brick of .22, and an afternoon to kill. Three people with a deadly weapon and over 200 rounds of ammunition. And guess what? Nobody got shot, nobody got robbed, no drug deals went bad, no liberals exploded (bit of a pity, that one), nobody hopped into a bell tower… nothing. We even left that place cleaner than when we found it. Bonnie got a little sunburnt, though.

Did ya hear that, mister so-called “Mayor of The Arsehole Of The Universe?” People went to a shooting range and NOTHING BAD HAPPENED!

And yup, it was fun! (BTW: It wasn’t my camera, so I have no bloody idea what was up with the date display function…) (more…)