Canada is not the most gun friendly nation on earth. Despite a long heritage of gun ownership until about the middle of the 2oth Century a succession of liberal governments have made handgun ownership almost impossible. Some police agencies even require their officers to leave their sidearms at the police station when they are off duty. That includes the RCMP.
From the mid 1990s until 2012 Canada also had a long gun registry. This law required the owners of all rifles and shotguns to register their guns with the government.
One of the effects of the burdensome requirements of the long gun registry was that a lot of stores stopped selling long guns. Which was probably one of the goals of the law in the first place.
Canadian Tire was one of those companies. In addition to tires, hence the name, Canadian Tire sells clothes, furniture, tools and other items. They used to sell long guns, but stopped several years ago.
In 2012, the long gun registry was scrapped. Years of cost overruns and unanswered questions about the usefullness of the registry led to the being repealed.
Which brings us to this,
Canadian Tire getting back into the firearm business in Nova Scotia
A Nova Scotia woman is worried about Canadian Tire getting back into the firearms business.
Pamela Harrison says having more guns available in the province will mean there’s a greater chance for people to be killed or hurt.
She says when a Canadian retail icon sells firearms, it sends the wrong message.
“What it is in some way saying [is], ‘Hey guys, come on, it’s OK to buy guns again,” said Harrison.
Harrison represents the Transition House of Nova Scotia, an association for member organizations who provide transitional services to women and their children who are experiencing violence and abuse.
Of course she’s worried about this. People such as Miss Harrison are always worried about something, especially something that people might enjoy doing and using responsibly. Of course there is no evidence that long guns in Canada are used in crime, but mere facts never stop worry warts like Miss Harrison from worrying.
The company says it is responding to demand from the local hunting community and it is dedicated to the safety and education of its customers.
As well, it says there are strict requirements for all store staff certified to sell firearms to obtain and maintain appropriate licensing and training. The stores are also required by law to ensure certain steps are taken before a firearm is sold to a consumer.
A for profit company responding to customer demand to introduce new products of services. Oh, the horror. Oh, the humanity.
Sadly, Canadian Tire doesn’t sell adult diapers. Which Miss Harrison might want to stock up on.