Windsorites take on the abolition of the long gun registry?

[Lowell]

Watching the CBC Windsor news just now I am wondering what is your take, Southsiders, about the federal government's ending of the long gun registry and the destruction of registry records?

As you are rightfully proud of your now two year plus run of no murders do you think this will have any effect on that impressive tend short or long term?

This from CBC...

Since the introduction of stricter gun laws in 1991, there has been a 65 per cent reduction in homicides by long guns, Statistics Canada data shows. The reduction in homicides involving any type of firearm was 37 per cent.

Statistics Canada released a report on Oct. 26, 2011, on homicides in Canada in 2010. That year, there were 170 shooting homicides, about 32 per cent of all homicides. The total homicide rate fell to its lowest level since 1966 [[1.62 per 100,000 population).

From 1995, when the firearms registry became law, to 2010, there was a 41 per cent reduction in homicides by long guns.

During those years, the cost of establishing the registry was more than $1 billion. The Harper government campaigned on getting rid of the long-gun registry and now it says it also intends to destroy all the information about long-gun owners that has been collected.

Gun registry information is used by police across Canada more than 17,000 times per day.

[davewindsor]

Watching the CBC Windsor news just now I am wondering what is your take, Southsiders, about the federal government's ending of the long gun registry and the destruction of registry records?

As you are rightfully proud of your now two year plus run of no murders do you think this will have any effect on that impressive tend short or long term?

This from CBC...

Nothing will change statistically with regards to public safety IMO in WIndsor. None whatsoever.

First off, it's the long gun registry only. These are your normal run of the mill animal hunting rifles only. Single or semi-automatic. There's also a restriction on the size of clip if it's semi-automatic. Very rarely are these involved in a homicide, unless there's a hunting accident. You're also not allowed to store a loaded rifle in your car. They must be in the trunk in a rifle box under lock and key with a tigger lock. You can't hang it on the back windshield of your pickup truck. You also still need a Firearms acquisition permit to buy or own one, which requires a background check by the police and firearm safety course. Any history of mental illness or history of making threats against say your ex-wife and you lose it. There is no right to bear arms clause in the Canadian constitution. If the police think you're unfit to own a rifle, they can cancel your rifle permit.

We're also not talking about handguns. Handgun permits are really hard to get, you need to be a member of gun club and attend it regularly, and CCW permits are out of the question unless you're police or military. It has to be in a box under lock and key with a tigger lock with the bullets not in that box before it leaves the building.

This also doesn't cancel the mandatory minimum jail term sentence if you're caught using one in the commission of a crime. If you use a gun in a robbery, the mandatory minimum is 4 years. 5 years [[1st offence) if you're part of a criminal organization. 7 years second. I think this would lower gun crime in the US too. I think that mandatory minimum jail term sentences plays a huge role in whether a gun is used in a crime. Last I heard [[it was a number of years ago), in Switzerland, you're allowed to keep a machine gun in your closet to protect the country if there's ever an invasion, but they have the lowest firearm related homicide rate in the world because the minimum jail term term sentence was, I believe, something like 10 years if you use a firearm in a crime.

In sum, I think it will be business as usual in Windsor and gun crime next year will be just like last year.

[canuck]

davewindsor/ Last I heard [[it was a number of years ago), in Switzerland, you're allowed to keep a machine gun in your closet to protect the country if there's ever an invasion, but they have the lowest firearm related homicide rate in the world because the minimum jail term term sentence was, I believe, something like 10 years if you use a firearm in a crime.

davewindsor, it may have to do with the fact the swiss dont need to rob a bank, they already are the bank.