in E News TEAM CSSA E-NEWS – November 03, 2013
| CANADIAN SHOOTING SPORTS ASSOCIATION / CANADIAN INSTITUTE FOR LEGISLATIVE ACTION
TEAM CSSA E-NEWS – November 03, 2013 ** Please share this E-news with your friends **
COMMENTARY: A CSSA OPEN LETTER TO PRIME MINISTER STEPHEN HARPER
Dear Prime Minister Harper:
We hope you enjoyed the Conservative Party of Canada convention in Calgary, despite the many contentious issues that have surfaced in recent weeks.
Any time a government’s integrity is called into question by the opposition parties, the media tend to exploit it and focus on the negative. We trust you can weather the storm and re-focus Canadians on what is important to our collective future.
Given the constant barrage of negative media lately, the Canadian Shooting Sports Association (CSSA) has a few suggestions that could help the Conservatives succeed in the looming October 2015 election. While we appreciate there are many spinning plates that the party must carefully monitor, we see an important opportunity here to increase the party’s national popularity.
As you know, millions of gun owners in Canada continue to live in the shadow of unfair firearms laws written by the former Liberal government. Sport shooters are frequently subjected to criminal charges under the Firearms Act for non-threatening “paper crimes.” A shrewd Liberal administration created Chief Firearms Offices (CFOs) that are neither political fish nor foul, since they don’t appear answerable to any level of government. The CFOs make up half-baked rules designed to intimidate firearms owners with the hope they will abandon their heritage sports out of sheer frustration. Tabling and passing legislation that sends the CFOs out to pasture is sure to garner the respect and support of law-abiding firearms owners from coast to coast.
Eliminating the UN Gun Marking scheme would also go a long way to capturing the firearms vote. The outrageous regulation was proposed to force all foreign firearms manufacturers to inscribe the year and country of destination on every gun coming into Canada. International manufacturers have noted they would simply remove Canada as a customer destination rather than comply. It would kill the multi-billion dollar annual sport shooting industry in Canada without preventing a single firearms crime. The entire exercise is moot, of course, since every firearm imported into Canada or manufactured here is already clearly etched with a unique serial number that identifies the firearm’s source and destination history. The elimination of the UN Gun Marking threat would restore a great deal of support within the Conservative family.
Prime Minister, perhaps you can detect that the “frustration campaign” against gun owners is taking its toll. A Postmedia story on November 1 noted that more Canadians donated money to the Liberals than Conservatives during the last six months. While the CPC raised more money due to larger individual donations, the Liberals received 38,000 donations compared with 30,000 for the Conservatives. The news story even suggests this could reveal a “possible change in the political landscape.” The CSSA has heard from thousands of firearms owners who have refused to donate to the CPC solely due to inaction on the gun file. The financial floodgates would soon open again if the CPC tables legislation that favours responsible gun ownership.
Even though the firearms community is very grateful for the elimination of the long-gun registry, the disappointment since that time is palpable. The corrective measures that the Firearms Act so badly requires are poised to restore the faith of millions of gun owners, most of whom are politically motivated voters. There is no need to fear a backlash from the anti-firearms groups, as there is copious supporting evidence available to prove the laws we want scrapped have absolutely no public safety benefits. If the anti-gun groups object, the CPC can prove them wrong by citing solid, statistical-based facts.
Firearms owners comprise a community of dedicated, safety-conscious Canadians who are committed to the heritage sports. If you show support for them, the CSSA predicts you and your government will reap the rewards in October 2015.
As you know, the CSSA is in constant contact with the capable policy staff in PMO, Public Safety, and the House of Commons. We are always willing to discuss how securing the future of firearms owners will secure the CPC’s future at the same time.
Sincerely,
The Canadian Shooting Sports Association
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COMMENTARY: SPEECH BY TONY BERNARDO AT THE UNITED NATIONS
The following speech was presented at the United Nations this week by Tony Bernardo, executive director of the Canadian Shooting Sports Association and the Canadian Institute for Legislative Action (CSSA/CILA). He was invited to address the UN General Assembly Sixty-eighth Session on October 29, 2013 regarding the UN Arms Trade Treaty. The speech supports Canada’s Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird’s decision to so far refrain from signing the treaty.
Mr. Chairman, I am Tony Bernardo, of the Canadian Shooting Sports Association. We are Canada’s principal shooting sports NGO, representing some 20,000 members who are lawful firearms owners and responsible Canadian citizens.
Canada has been unwilling to sign the Arms Trade Treaty due to the potential harm it could inflict on our country’s sovereignty through the amendment process. This is not detrimental to the rest of the world as Canada’s current arms controls far exceed the UN standard.
Some other Canadian NGOs, including Project Ploughshares, Amnesty Now and Oxfam Canada favour signing the ATT, but we suspect their interests are merely consistent with an ongoing agenda to eradicate private firearms ownership of any kind.
Our association commends Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird for having the foresight not to sign the ATT, and who is reflecting the views of our members and surely all Canadians who revere basic human rights.
Canada has extensive real-life experience with anti-gun laws forged by a former government to hobble lawful firearms owners. The ATT is more of the same and would unnecessarily rein in responsible sports shooters and collectors without laying a glove on criminals. Canada’s law books were co-opted with a Draconian mish-mash of bad legislation during the 1990s by groups that appear chillingly similar to those currently championing the ATT.
There is proof that virtually all anti-gun legislation in several countries has been a public safety failure. The Canadian government is in the process of modifying and repealing some of these junk laws that do public safety more harm than good.
We urge Canada to continue to refuse any notion that would force our country to adopt international legislation that could be detrimental to our lawful shooting sports industry and jeopardizes the personal freedom of all Canadians.
The ATT does nothing to enhance the safety of those who need it most, yet it does serve to undermine the signatories’ freedom to craft their own laws that would actually fight crime.
In closing, the Canadian Shooting Sports Association urges Minister Baird to stay the course and refuse to support any treaty that only pretends to address international violence.
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HELP SUPPORT THE GREAT WORK THE CSSA DOES TO PROTECT YOUR RIGHTS. DONATE HERE
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AND NOW FOR THE NEWS:
BREAKTHROUGH – CBC RUNS POSITIVE STORY ON FIREARMS COURSES: Firearms instructors are scrambling to cope with a sudden increase in demand for gun safety courses. Enrolment has jumped by more than 20 per cent in the past year as younger hunters and more women head into the woods and to shooting ranges.
The end of the federal long gun registry also plays a role in the upswing, says firearms instructor Bob Kierstead. He says the creation of the firearms registry by the federal government in 1993 turned young people away from hunting and the use of guns.
Peter Palmer of the Natural Resources department says the lowering of the hunting age to 12 years is one reason behind the increase in participation in gun safety courses. “The very, very restrictive legislation that came in on firearms in general, and that turned a lot of the young people away from it,” said Keirstead. “Too many hoops to jump through and they turned away from it. That was the big thing that we saw.”
Peter Palmer, the co-ordinator of hunter education courses for the Department of Natural Resources, says enrolment in courses increased 23 per cent after the long gun registry was abolished last year. Palmer says the lowering of the hunting age to 12 years from 14 years of age also played a role, along with new media portraying hunting in a positive light.
“With the media showing hunting in a very, very positive light, with Wild TV and, you know, outdoor shows, people are looking at hunting and saying, `You know, I haven’t done it in a while. I think I’m going to get back in it,'” said Palmer. “And they are benefiting from it as a family.”
Keirstead says he’s surprised and pleased to see more women signing up for firearms safety courses. “With our firearm courses, the percentage of female participation is increasing and for the first time in New Brunswick, we had an all-female firearm course,” said Keirstead. (CBC News — November 1, 2013)
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That works out to almost $300 per gun – or somewhat higher than the original estimate for processing a firearm registration of $4.60. Of those $300 gun registrations, Canada’s auditor general reported to parliament that much of the information was either duplicated or wrong in respect to basic information such as names and addresses. So it was decided that the sclerotic database needed to be improved. But it proved impossible to “improve” CFIS (the Canadian Firearms Information System). So CGI was hired to create an entirely new CFIS II, which would operate alongside CFIS I until the old system could be scrapped. CFIS II was supposed to go operational on January 9, 2003, but the January date got postponed to June, and 2003 to 2004, and $81 million was thrown at it before a new Conservative government scrapped the fiasco in 2007. Last year, the government of Ontario canceled another CGI registry that never saw the light of day – just for one disease, diabetes, and costing a mere $46 million… (By Richard Butrick — www.americanthinker.com — October 26, 2013)
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CABELA’S TO OPEN NUMBER FIVE IN CANADA: Cabela’s, the world’s largest retailer of hunting, fishing, camping and other outdoor merchandise, has announced plans to open its fifth Canadian store – and first in B.C. – in Nanaimo. The Sidney, Neb.-based giant plans to open in the fall of 2014 in the former Canadian Tire building at 6900 Island Highway in the Dickinson Crossing Shopping Centre. The company said in a statement Thursday the store is expected to employ 150 full-time, part-time and seasonal employees. Most will come from Nanaimo and the surrounding area. Construction in the 50,000-square-foot store is expected to begin next year.
“As Cabela’s Canada continues to expand, we knew British Columbia, and especially the Nanaimo area, would be a great fit for a Cabela’s retail location,” said Tommy Millner, Cabela’s chief executive officer. “The region is full of people who live the outdoor lifestyle and have supported Cabela’s through our catalogue and online for many years.” (The Times Colonist — October 24, 2013)
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INTERPOL ADVOCATES ARMING CIVILIANS: Interpol Secretary General Ronald Noble said today the U.S. and the rest of the democratic world is at a security crossroads in the wake of last month’s deadly al-Shabab attack at a shopping mall in Nairobi, Kenya – and suggested an answer could be in arming civilians. In an exclusive interview with ABC News, Noble said there are really only two choices for protecting open societies from attacks like the one on Westgate mall where so-called “soft targets” are hit: either create secure perimeters around the locations or allow civilians to carry their own guns to protect themselves. “Societies have to think about how they’re going to approach the problem,” Noble said. “One is to say we want an armed citizenry; you can see the reason for that. Another is to say the enclaves are so secure that in order to get into the soft target you’re going to have to pass through extraordinary security.” Noble’s comments came only moments after the official opening of the 82nd annual gathering of the Interpol’s governing body, the General Assembly. The session is being held in Cartagena, Colombia, and is being used to highlight strides over the last decade in Colombia’s battle against the notorious drug cartels that used to be the real power in the country. The secretary general, an American who previously headed up all law enforcement for the U.S. Treasury Department, told reporters during a brief news conference that the Westgate mall attack marks what has long been seen as “an evolution in terrorism.” Instead of targets like the Pentagon and World Trade Center that now have far more security since 9/11, attackers are focusing on sites with little security that attract large numbers of people. At least 67 were killed over a period of days at the Westgate mall, more than 60 of the dead were civilians. The Somalia-based al Qaeda-allied terror group al-Shabab claimed responsibility for the attack as it was ongoing but investigators are still trying to determine exactly who planned the strike, where they are and what is next for them. U.S. authorities in Uganda, fearing another similar incident in Africa, issued a warning late last week. (ABC News — October 21, 2013)
To read more: http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/exclusive-westgate-interpol-chief-ponders-armed-citizenry/story?id=20637341&singlePage=true
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DON’T FORGET TO ENTER THE CSSA GUN DRAW!
Win two rifles!
1. Winchester’s 1873 rifle was the “Rifle that Won the West.” It was chambered for new, more powerful cartridges like the .44-40 and the .45 Colt.
2. The new Uberti Silverboy is the ultimate small-bore lever-action rifle chambered in .22 LR. This is an all-original lever-action firearm, based on the classic styling of the old west lever gun. The Silverboy embodies the best features of the proven lever-gun design that goes back as far as the mid-1800s.
Be the proud new owner of these gorgeous new rifles. Donate $10 to the Canadian Shooting Sports Association and you get a free chance to win these great guns. Three chances for $20, ten for $50 and a $100 donation can get you 20 chances. As a special bonus, a $100 donor will also receive a free one-year gift CSSA membership. Keep it yourself or give it to a friend or family member for Christmas.
These rifles will find a new home at CSSA’s April 2014 AGM in the Niagara region. Help us continue to defend your sport, your guns and your rights. Your donation helps us to help you. To purchase tickets call the CSSA at 1-888-873-4339. Thanks!
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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: http://www.cdnshootingsports.org/membership.html —— To subscribe to the CSSA-CILA E-NEWS, send email to: [email protected] or visit http://lists.cssa-cila.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/cssa-cila-e-news. To unsubscribe send email to: [email protected] To change your address or manage your subscription options, visit: http://lists.cssa-cila.org/cgi-bin/mailman/options/cssa-cila-e-news ——- |