I thought these might be of interest to some of you. I particularly like the second one.
From National Post
Canada touts gun registry in all nations: Not deterred by problems at
home
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UNITED NATIONS - A United Nations conference on gun control yesterday
saw Canada call for an accelerated global effort to track small arms
throughout the world, despite massive problems completing its own
national gun registry.
"Marking and tracing, record-keeping ... and collection and destruction
of small arms" is the responsibility of all governments if they are to
conform to UN goals to reduce the number of hand-held weapons in the
world, Robert McDougall, a Foreign Affairs official heading the Canadian
delegation, told the conference.
Mr. McDougall also signalled Canada favours greater international
efforts at restricting gun ownership.
Domestically, the federal government's attempts to register guns have
been costly, controversial and, according to critics, largely
ineffective.
One of Canada's leading critics of the program will address the UN
conference tomorrow to warn that Canada's losses will be just a drop in
the bucket compared to the worldwide cost of a similar gun control
program.
"This hasn't worked in Canada, a developed country with a lot of
resources, so similar gun control programs will be even more expensive
in less developed parts of the world," said Tony Bernardo, executive
director of the Canadian Institute for Legislative Action, which fears a
gun registry is a first step to banning gun ownership by civilians in
Canada.
As a deadline for Canadians to register guns passed last week, those
opposed to the registry said the number of weapons not declared runs
into the millions.
Opposition critics also pointed out the Liberal government's original
estimate of US$2-million for the cost of its gun registry program will
be surpassed 500 times over once all guns are registered.
They based the extent of the overrun on figures from Canada's
Auditor-General, whose December, 2002, report said the program would
eventually cost taxpayers $1-billion.
The week-long conference opened yesterday to take stock of progress in
curbing the spread and use of illegal small weapons in line with a plan
of action drawn up at the first international meeting on the subject two
years ago.
A leading international activist group in favour of strict global gun
control said in a report released yesterday Canada has been among the
leading countries pushing for strict implementation of the plan.
"Canada has taken a leading role in tackling issues relating to [small
arms] proliferation and misuse, and in particular has been supporting a
ban on the transfer of military weapons to [non-governmental groups],"
said the report, compiled by the International Action Network on Small
Arms (IANSA).
A gun-tracking system devised by the RCMP has been "particularly
helpful" for countries in Latin America seeking to trace illicit
weapons, explained Owen Greene, a director of peace studies at Bradford
University in England.
"They have helped with providing software for computer programs that
trace these weapons, and basically facilitated regional information
exchange," he said.
Presented at the 2001 conference, the system involves marking guns at
the point of manufacture so they can be traced if ever discovered in the
hands of arms traffickers or rebel groups.The aim is to locate the guns
the moment they enter the illicit market.
Canada has also helped Bulgaria and Romania place greater control over
arms exports, and spent $15-million on initiatives to reduce the number
of weapons in West Africa, where hundreds of thousands of people have
died in regional wars waged by rebels whose main weapons are light
automatic rifles.
The United Nations estimates small arms kill 500,000 people annually. A
second biennial meeting will take place in 2005 and a review conference
will be held in 2006.
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found this in the toronto sun
NOT COINCIDENTALLY, on July 1, Canada Day, Bill C-68, The Firearms Act, went into effect. Millions of innocent gun owners became instant criminals for doing nothing.
There are seven million gun owners and 21 million firearms in Canada, according to reliable surveys. When rates of gun owner compliance with licensing and registration were abysmal, federal bureaucrats conjured up a flawed telephone survey that deflated those numbers.
For years, gun owners had been instructed in Canada Firearms Safety Course manuals, not to reveal to strangers on the phone, if they were firearms owners. Nor were they to divulge the types of guns they possessed. That would invite theft and home invasions.
Regardless, Justice officials contradicted their own advice and conducted such a phone survey. Not surprisingly, they claimed a reduced total of 2.38 million gun owners and six million firearms. Thus, anti-gun forces could now boast inflated levels of success, where none really existed.
A mathematically challenged cabinet minister touted 90% compliance. In truth, 1.9 million already licensed gun owners represent only 25% compliance. The error rate on licensing forms is 71%.
In truth, 7.9 million already registered firearms out of 21 million represent only 34% compliance. The error rate on gun registration forms is 132% according to Alliance MP Gary Breitkreuz.
Understandably, such massive non-compliance and such gross error rates make the gun registry unreliable and useless to police. The incompetents who promised a $2-million registry and delivered a $1-billion boondoggle are duping us again.
