Friday, February 17, 2006

Pop Gun

When governments are unable or unwilling to solve difficult problems, they take symbolic measures instead that give the appearance of doing something:

Toronto area mayors are being asked to endorse a ban on kids possessing toy guns in public.

Scugog Mayor Marilyn Pearce is leading the plan to prohibit anyone under 18 from having toy guns in public spaces. Her community was the first in Ontario to enact the ban in Jan. 2006.

Mayors and regional chairs from the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and Hamilton will meet in Keswick, Ont., Friday to discuss the ban.

"I am hoping all of the municipalities in the GTA will come on board on this initiative to get toy guns off the streets," Pearce said.

"It is really about protecting children and I don't know how anyone can have an issue with that.

Pearce is concerned that toy guns that look like the real thing might put children at risk of a police officer shooting first and asking questions later.


Is there any evidence that police have turned, or will turn, trigger-happy at the sight of a young boy with a toy gun?

Is there any evidence that playing with toy guns leads to gun crime?

Don't parents teach their children any more about the difference between toy guns and real guns? They did about hunting rifles and BB guns when I was a boy. But then, I grew up in the country, where people do not have the urban sophisticate's primitive fear of firearms as talismans capable of turning peaceful citizens into savage killers just by looking at them.

This isn't about protecting children but about protecting rear ends. Not one life will be saved, but the politicians can assure themselves that they've done something.

Source: CTV

4 comments:

EUGENE PLAWIUK said...

I too found this hilarious, an overreation. Though the incidence of children killed because of toy guns is serious.And its not their fault... See my blog for my comment on this; A New Gun Registry...And hey I grew up in an urban environment with BB and pellet guns.

Anonymous said...

The ban isn't worth the paper it's written on, they simply don't have the authority. What a moron. These imbeciles can't keep property taxes down but they can thingk up hairbrained stunts like this.

Unknown said...

I'm not one for banning things, as once you start - where do you stop? On the other hand, as an adult who, as a child, used to play with toy guns like most other kids in my neigbourhood, I think parents shouldn't let their kids play with them. Most children who play with these "toys" aren't pretending to be hunting or doing something innocent like target shooting - they are pretending to shoot each other. Whether or not there is evidence to link toy gun play with adult violence (which I think is possible, although unlikely) I still don't think kids should be encouraged to play with toys that glorify death and destruction - this includes things like tanks, bombers, etc. It's up to parents to exercise good judgement. Too bad the politicos are trying to score points on a generally apathetic public.

OMMAG said...

Have you ever heard the term " Stuck On Stupid" ?
Here is an example.