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Gun registry is about people’s rights as well

Re: Neighbours evacuated due to Departure Bay incident, Dec. 22.

To the Editor,

Re: Neighbours evacuated due to Departure Bay incident, Dec. 22.

It deserves a mention that the RCMP and Emergency Response Team that attended to the incident in Departure Bay used tact and skill to defuse a delicate situation.

The RCMP knew there were weapons in the home and when contact could not be made with the occupant, a decision was made to evacuate a few neighbours. This was wise.

Thankfully, the RCMP persuaded the man to exit the home peacefully and a bigger incident was averted.

The bigger issue here is that the long-gun registry, which Prime Minister Stephen Harper is scrapping, would have been very useful and beneficial information for the RCMP.

Knowing that there are weapons in the home of law abiding citizens is an important aspect of law enforcement.

We are all faced with the pressures of a fast moving society, high unemployment and a faltering economy which can lead to law abiding citizens to have momentary breakdowns.

In times like this, having information at hand for the RCMP will help to minimize the incident.

But now Harper is throwing this registry down the drain because a minority of Canadians are too lazy to get off of their butts and mail in a registration form.

They argue that the registry will not get the guns out of the hands of the criminals. So then the reverse is also true, they want to be unregistered, just like the criminals.

Arguing that the cost is too high makes no sense. They register their vehicles, trailers and trail cats, but have no complaints about those costs.

Costs of the registry and that criminals can still have guns is a red herring argument that citizens should call them out on. It’s their laziness and a contempt for law and order that is the sole reason.

Congratulations to the RCMP for their skill in handling this situation and a big raspberry to the long-gun owners and the Conservatives, whose narrow-minded vision will eventually make it harder for law enforcement to be as successful in incidents like this.

Klaus Nenn

Nanaimo