Liberals’ gun ban targets law-abiding firearm owners

An open letter to MP Maryam Monsef: I am extremely disappointed in the stand your Liberal government has taken regarding gun issues.

It is absolutely ridiculous to even think for a moment that criminals will take any notice of this action to restrict certain firearms.

Criminals by their very nature do not abide by laws, so passing a law to restrict certain firearms will do nothing to protect the general public.

Legal, law-abiding gun owners are used as the whipping post for irrational kneejerk decisions made by governments that are trying to curry public favour in the midst of a crisis over which they have no control.

But this same government must be seen in the public eye, as having taken desperate measures to curb a situation that has grown out of control, caused not by legal, law-abiding, fully registered and certified firearms owners, but by a government that has failed to curtail illegal importation of guns at the border, failed to institute a policy that curtails or monitors multiple purchases and sales, failed at monitoring or dealing with mental issues, failed at developing programs that will encourage young people not to participate in gangs and gun violence.

But they have introduced a program that will target people who already own firearms, and they know who we are, because we are already registered with your government. We have purchased licences, we belong to legitimate gun clubs, we fill out forms to transport a firearm, we fill out forms to purchase ammunition, we have passed strict tests to obtain a licence, we adhere to ALL the rules for buying or selling a firearm, we respect firearms for what they are, and what they can do, we should not be penalized for the criminal actions of any individual who has no regard for public safety or the laws of this country.

I respectfully request that you bring this letter to the attention of the members of Parliament, regarding the proposed changes to Bill-C-71.

Les Brittan, Peterborough