Harper pulls the trigger on Registry

You know the Conservatives are doing more than just ending the registry for guns right? The debate has moved to the Government's plan to destroy the records. This has taken some of the attention away from the real meat of the legislation, that guns will be unregistered and some of them are sniper rifles. Rifles like the Ruger Mini-14 semi-automatic rifle.

This is the same rifle with a clip that holds 20 rounds used by the sniper in Norway this year to kill some 70 kids.

The Conservative bill the Ruger Mini-14, the .50-calibre sniper rifle known as the Steyr-Mannlicher HS .50 — a sniper rifle that can pierce light armour from a distance of up to 1.5 km — and the L115A3 Long Range Sniper Rifle, which can accurately hit a target 2 kilometres away will no longer require registration certificates.

Who the heck needs a rifle that can hit a target 2 kilometers away.  Why do people need a gun that can pierce Armour from 1.5 kilometers.  What, are bears now wearing flak jackets?  This rifle has only one purpose, to kill people. Currently you need to have it registered to own it.  After the Conservatives pass bill C19, no registration will be required.

I would expect we will see more of these guns sold in the months to come.  Canada will see a significant increase in sales of guns that are built to kill people.  No farmer or moose hunter needs one of these rifles to do the job.  Its over kill and likely to lead to more killing.

Canada has seen a large decrease in murder from guns since the registry was created.  We still have people that use illegal hand guns to kill.  For the most part its gang folks killing gang folks. Canada's restrictions on those guns have kept homicides down. You have to break to law to use them.

The sales of these aggressive weapons will increase soon.  We will also see a big rush to buy them in the months prior to the next election. The people that want these guns will fear an NDP government will bring back a long gun registry. They're right to worry.  An NDP majority will bring back a registry. A job that will be made that much more difficult as the Harper Conservatives intend to destroy all the records currently in the data bank.

One final note, the Conservatives with their majority have used closure to end debate on the bill.  Its now at committee.  I expect that once the witnesses are finished, the Conservatives will again use their majority to limit debate.  The gun law will be gone.  Welcome to the wild west.