Ducking Bullets & Responsibility: "Canada blames U.S. for gun violence"

From CNN.com yesterday Canada blames U.S. for gun violence.

"It's a sign that the lack of gun laws in the U.S. is allowing guns to flood across the border that are literally being used to kill people in the streets of Toronto," Miller said.

Miller said Toronto, a city of nearly three million, is still very safe compared to most American cities, but the illegal flow of weapons from the United States is causing the noticeable rise in gun violence.

"The U.S. is exporting its problem of violence to the streets of Toronto," he said.

First, let's get one thing straight: Not all Canadians blame the United States for the recent gun violence in Toronto. Weak-kneed, spaghetti-spined Canadian politicians with their gag-reflex response to duck any and all negative responsibility may believe this. I, for one, blame the criminal who pulled the trigger. If any further blame need be cast, I cast it upon Canada's judges, those out-of-touch, rarified, philosopher-kings-of-the-bench who dispense feather-duster-spankings to criminals who come before them.

Toronto mayor David Miller says "... the lack of gun laws in the U.S. is allowing guns to flood across the border that are literally being used to kill people in the streets of Toronto..." If I'm not mistaken, the United States is not responsible for what comes in to Canada. Canada Customs and Canadian Border Services are responsible for that. The Canadian border is staffed with Canadian authorities. Whatever may be coming into our country -- be it ham sandwiches or hand grenades -- our people are allowing them in. If anything, maybe these services and agencies need more funding, more training, better facilities.

But more to the point -- what would make a criminal so brazenly act out his inferiority complex on a Toronto street with a hand gun? My opinion is that a complete lack of consequences is to blame for that. Sometimes I speed while driving my car. Do I do this because I'm a criminal who hates law and order? No. I do it sometimes because I think I can get away with it. And I do. Criminals in Canada know they face nothing worse than a stern finger-wagging-talking-to when brought before a justice. There are no consequences for breaking the law in Canada, and therefore criminals become more brazen and violent.

Paul Martin's myopic solution is to punish responsible firearms owners by banning guns or setting up an overpriced registration system. Responsible firearms owners are not the people committing these crimes in Canada. Why is it so difficult in Canadian life for the actual culprits of crime to be blamed for their deeds? Gang members are to blame in this instance. Crack down on gangs, not responsible citizens who follow the rules of firearm ownership. More to the point, crack down on Canadian judges.

America has its problems, but David Miller and Paul Martin are showing why they should hold positions of leadership by engaging in the usual shell-game of blame. Canada has suffered long enough under unimaginative, character-deficient, corrupt dodgers of responsibility. Problems are not solved by dodging blame, but by bringing wrongdoers to justice. Canadian judges consistently prove themselves unwilling or unable to protect Canadians from criminals. Canada not only needs responsive politicians, but responsive judges who share our values and who will act decisively and responsibly when violent criminals are brought before them. The rallying cry of the 1992 Los Angeles riots, "No justice, no peace," applies to Canadian jurisprudence. We won't see any peace in Canada until our judges begin meting out justice.