The writer of this article talks about some challenges that efforts at implementing gun control measures in Canada tend to face. He brings forth his main idea that Canada has got very strict gun laws as compared to those of the United States. He acknowledges this by giving a corresponding opinion from one respondent to his articles that confirm about the Acquiring a gun in Canada is no longer easy. He attributes this to the lessons that Canada gets from neighboring United States' public shooting incidents besides the Marc Lepine's incident in 1985 where the twenty five years old man killed fourteen women, wounded ten more and four men at the Montreal polytechnic.
Matteo believes that the direction taken by the Canadian government on gun control is detrimental because it has not made any positive difference beyond the vocalization aver the issue. Additionally, he pegs the delayed action on implementation of more stringent gun control measures to the will of a few adamant gun enthusiasts who are mostly manufacturers of guns and stakeholder in the gun business including shooting range owners. However, reactions to his sentiments and opinions apparently trigger many reactions from pro-gun ownership individuals. He confirms this by stating that after four years of publishing; his online opinion article titled "why Canada needs a handgun ban" was among the most read items at the time of writing the current article.
The writer shares an email that he received from an officer of the court of appeal who holds a similar opinion to his. The officer in his email affirms that the rules for acquisition of a gun are stringent carefully thought out. He further states that it is an expensive venture with much training to undertake. A prospecting gun owner has to undergo scrutiny with thorough background checks as part of the process.
The issue that the writer brings out through the email is that a criminal would never use legally obtained firearm and that the criminal act of an individual may result from different causes other than owning a gun as proponent of gun ownership would agree. However, he tells of the benefit of having stricter rules because of its direct relation to reduced crimes as observed in places with such an arrangement. He finds it worth noting that most of the guns used in crimes get stolen from legitimate owners.
On the other hand, illegal weapons that find their way into Canada because of trade also contribute to the menace. As such, the author reminds his audience that all those guns that come into Canada illegally also had their basis on some legality elsewhere. Therefore, controlling the influx of the hardware would eliminate such threat being that the laws would have it unbearable to break it. Moreover, he says that the society's concern has since shifted to social issues that could improve people's welfare, and he feels that Canada's government has made retrogressive steps in that light. In his opinion, Canada rolls back gun laws and does little to deter criminals using long jail sentences.
In comparing the Canadian situation to that of the United Sates, he gives an example of the Newton town shooting that saw had America's government call for tighter gun rules. He notes that, after the talk, the issue faded away, and things are back to normalcy. He observes that the gun business is a thriving one, and the political ranks have different opinions about it. He blames commerce for the stagnation in implementation of gun control measures In Canada. He accuses the Canadian government of secret attempts at buying time in actualizing gun control.
The article is by Enzo Di Matteo, who is a right-wing political columnist and senior editor for the NOW online magazine. The article is from the magazine's website dated 17 December 2012. The writer is a Belgian by birth, though he and his family moved to Canada when he was young and thus he has stayed and worked in Canada ever since. He writes about serious political issues that affect the Canadian society.
Ideologies relate to individuals' perceptions about certain issues. Some have their basis on the unwritten common expectations of all human beings. For example, the welfare of an individual is more often their primary concern, and they would expect the governments in place to provide the social services that include security. The other basic element of ideologies is the fact that human nature offers diversity whereby values are not universal for all people. The societies have different ways of operating, and some may be divided into opinions over the different values, whereas social beliefs guide such differences.
Additionally, sociopolitical and economic problems tend to have different causes, and some may stem from the systems of governance of the states themselves or from the weaknesses of some duty-bearers entrusted with running the systems on behalf of the people. In most cases, the social impacts in the society would depend on whether the citizens have the will and avenues to address the challenges.
However, as per research, the perpetrators of gun violence tend to have underlying issues that could include mental health conditions. The economic situation in Canada offers the opportunity for the gun trade being that it is capitalistic, and the gun business thrives at the expense of the safety of the larger society. For instance, the government comprises of sympathizers who advocate gun ownership; thus they curtail implementation of gun controls. The element of human nature appears when the writer states that a common refrain used by legislators opposed to gun regulation is that it is pointless because it would not discourage those responsible for the gun violence. They refer to these as the "criminal elements."
The writer passes the message that guns that are used illegally start out as legally issued firearms elsewhere and, therefore, the stricter the gun control measures, the better it will be for the society's safety.
Canadas Growing Gun Problem Article Reviews Examples
Type of paper: Article Review
Topic: Control, Law, Writing, Literature, Gun Control, Politics, Canada, Belief
Pages: 4
Words: 1000
Published: 03/06/2020
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