“After the United States, Canada is one of the largest owners of private guns in the developed world,” Canada’s National Post reports. “There’s about 31 guns for every 100 people, putting Canada in 12th place worldwide — and only three guns short of the rate of firearm ownership in war-torn Iraq.” Uh, good for them! “But compared to our American neighbours, Canadians are disproportionately skilled at keeping these guns from killing people.” Wait. What? Click here or on the image above for the video explanation. And the answer is . . .
“Pistols . . . come with their own strict set of rules. So there’s no Canadians stashing them in their purses or glove compartments . . . But perhaps most importantly Canadians generally don’t see guns as weapons . . . No more than five percent of Canadian gun owners say they keep a firearms around for protection. In the U.S., the rate is 60 percent. It’s a different gun culture around here.”
There’s a really stupid bit about open carrying long guns. More importantly, there’s no mention of the crucial differences in demographics separating The Land of the Free from our neighbors to the north. Does Canada have teeming metropolitan areas with gang bangers running amok? Well, kinda. Toronto suffers from gangs and — wouldn’t you know it — “gun violence.” cbc.ca:
Toronto police say there’s been a spike in gun violence this year (2015), with at least 95 people injured or killed by bullets in the city . . .
Police statistics show there have been 147 shootings so far this year, a number that’s already eclipsed the total from 2013 and 2014. In 2012, there were 155 shootings, a figure that will likely be surpassed as well.
So there is that. But let’s be honest. Comparing the U.S. and Canada is ridiculous on a whole lot of levels. Canada has a relatively homogenous culture and a lot less people spread over a huge area. I’m not sure about the relative percentage of sanctimonious gun grabbers who wouldn’t know individual liberty if it hit them in the head like a hockey puck, but I’m guessing it’s higher. Your thoughts?