MuskegMan;
Good morning, though edging rapidly towards afternoon, I hope that you're all getting a decent spring in your part of SE Alaska.
For sure if one would listen to our legacy media, there are only 6 firearms owners left in Canada, of which 2 are near death and the others on trial awaiting jail time for some heinous crime against humanity.
That said, according to the data I can dig up, somewhere around 4 million Canadians hold a PAL - Possession & Acquisition License. We have about 40 million in total population so roughly 10% of the population.
Best estimates in the US show between 35% and 45% of the population own firearms.
They, that is to say the feds and polling companies all like to make what they believe are "educated guesses" as to just how many firearms are up here, but the true fact is nobody has a foggy clue because up until the early '80's it was easier to obtain a long gun - rifle or shotgun, not legal handgun - up here than stateside.
As we all know firearms, if maintained properly, have a very long shelf life, which compounds the problem "they" have in attempting to quantify what's out there.
The folks who are partially or mostly First Nations, so Inuit, Metis included in that, still have constitutional rights to hunt and fish and it is my opinion they are among the highest percentile of firearms owners here. For sure though my experience with those groups is mostly western Canada and I need to clarify that.
While the gun shows typically have a fair number of my fellow boomers present, there are a whole lot of folks there who are the age of our children and frankly could theoretically be our grandchildren's age.
Here in BC, we've seen a huge rise in the number of female shooters and hunters. I base that on teaching the BC Hunter Safety course and observations at the local shoots and gun show.
Then too, it does my heart good to see a lot of the younger set getting into shooting and firearm ownership for their own reasons.
For instance when I heard that one of our neighbors here in the group of small acreages we live in had taken the PAL course along with his wife, I asked if he was going to get into hunting or thought they'd focus on sport shooting.
His reply, "Well Dwayne, it seemed to me more and more like the government in Ottawa didn't want me to have a firearm, so I thought, I better get some!"
Of course I chuckled, tapped him on the arm like us old guys do and said, "Welcome to the family man!"..
Anyways sir, for sure "they" would like us firearm owners to dry up and blow away in a stiff wind and many of us wish the same outcome for the folks who wish that upon us.
Lastly, it goes without saying that whenever a government makes laws, it must by necessity have the ability to enforce them.
As well, there is an implied social contract between the government and the governed that they'll both act in good faith towards each other.
If either party acts in such a manner that if found too offensive, historically there has been a trend for the governed to begin to ignore the law.
Having contacts in active and retired LEO up here, I'd make an educated guess that if the number of smuggled in firearms was known, it'd make a few of "them" suffer a case of the vapors to say the least.
None of that should be taken for my endorsement in any way of people knowingly breaking the law, that'd be a crazy stance to take in the format where statements live longer than a finely made Mauser 71/84 - which sold in untold numbers for $5 Canadian back when.
Anyways if you stuck with me this far in, thanks for doing so.
As always that's just one semi-old Canuck's views on the matter and nothing more.
All the best.
Dwayne
