VOICE OF THE PEOPLE

AMMO REQUIRES PERMIT

If people are inclined to commit offences with a firearm, they require two things: A working firearm and the ammunition that goes with it. Either of these items on their own is much like having a pocket full of rocks or a big stick.

Both items are legally unattainable without a firearms licence. Now, if you can legally purchase such items, then you must possess a firearms licence and therefore know that it is unlawful for you to provide either item to unlicensed persons. There should now be no surprise to you that if you make a choice to illegally supply a person with these items and they then go on to commit firearm-related crimes that come to the attention of police, the police are going to be charging you with these offences.

For the police to ignore this fact goes against the entire rationale for having a firearm licensing system in the first place.

This is nothing like handing someone a pen who then goes on to poke out someone's eye, as had been suggested in a letter (“Ammo charges bogus,” Dec. 12) on these pages. Pens are legal to possess by anyone. Firearms and ammunition are not and for good reason, as we all observed this past spring.

The victims (and potential victims) of gun violence will thank the police for doing their job.

Rj Walton, Antigonish

SYMBOLIC GESTURE

Hard on the heels of The Chronicle Herald's recent editorials on both climate change action and inaction has come the federal Liberals' announcement of a new carbon tax, which will be most obvious at the gas pump.

Climate change is a difficult matter for politicians to deal with because of the nature of public opinion which, as I see it, comprises four groups.

At one extreme, there are those who deny its existence, and on the other extreme those who believe that draconic measures must be implemented immediately.

A third body of opinion is of the view that, while something important is happening, much of the science and the solutions are questionable and those persons are therefore sceptical about policy initiatives.

The fourth group, which surely amounts to the great majority, would wish that some serious measures should be taken, provided that they don't go so far as to inconvenience themselves personally.

The Liberal carbon policy neatly addresses this conundrum, in that while something is being seen to be done, the rebates mean that there is no dent in the voter's pocketbook. It must be said that this is essentially a symbolic gesture, as gasoline demand is largely inelastic, and with Canada having less than one half of one per cent of the world's population, any reduction in carbon emissions will be imperceptible on the global scale.

Andrew Davis, Chester Basin

DISCONNECTED

We are subscribed to Eastlink's Rural Wireless Internet. The substandard service we did have went out on Friday, Dec. 11, and as of 6:00 a.m. on Sunday, Dec. 13, we still had no internet.

Repeated phone calls got the response: “we are working on it.” Requests for an estimate of service resumption got the same answer. Requests for a credit for the down time got referrals to their business office.

This service was installed with a massive input of cash from our provincial government. Surely they should have some level of accountability.

We can't wait for our fibre op to arrive!

Gary Henderson, East Dalhousie