Moore and more on guns

It was with great interest that I read the interview with Michael Moore in your last issue [“Up in arms,” October 10], in which he talks about Bowling for Columbine and the gun-centric culture of the United States. I have been a big fan of his for years (especially TV Nation). Having lived there myself for a time, I find that he’s always been one of the few Americans who’s able to see his own country with enough distance to have insight into it. For his efforts, he often gets tagged with labels that would dismiss him as a left-wing nut or an unpatriotic freak!

It’s true that it’s easy to write off the America Moore presents as a society so sick that it’s beyond help, especially when you’ve got organizations like the NRA flexing so much muscle. With the latest outbreak of gun-related violence in Washington, maybe the mass of U.S. citizens will finally wake up and smell the coffee. I don’t mean to be crass about it, but this sniper terrorizing the population could be a poster child for the gun control movement.

As Moore suggests, the root causes of America’s problem run very deep. Just the stark contrast between the incidence of violent crimes in that country and in Canada is a testament to that. We can feel proud of that even if we don’t fully understand all the murky reasons for the differences between us.

However, we don’t even need to compare Canada’s statistics with the extreme situation in the States to see the benefits of tougher gun control. Our rate of homicides with rifles and shotguns hasn’t been this low in 25 years, and the number of robberies committed with these weapons has been reduced dramatically too. Some people might say it’s too early to establish a certain cause and effect relationship between the numbers, but it seems clear, to me at least, that this is a direct result of stricter legislation on firearms.

Maybe, for once, Americans can look north of the border for inspiration» it certainly can’t hurt.

» Dan Clark

Way to go, Michael Moore, for looking American gun culture in the face. And here’s another chance for us relatively peaceful Canadians to toot our own collective horn.

There are over 11,000 violent murders in the U.S. every year compared to an average of 172 north of the border. This can most certainly be attributed to our tougher gun-control laws. As mentioned in your magazine last week [Angel, Oct. 10], firearm murders fall drastically in correlation with laws that make it harder for people to get guns. We still have a long way to go though. The United Kingdom has several times our population, yet their annual number of people killed in violent murders is somewhere around 60.

And we Canadians like to focus on our differences with the U.S. but let’s not get too complacent. Look at what happened in Taber, Alberta. If a teenager is influenced by something they saw on the NBC news, who’s to say they can’t find a way to get their hands on a gun? The power of suggestion is also something to be reckoned with.

» Gary Cobb

Sticking up for the little guy

Oh so now people want to de-planetize Pluto [Insect, Oct. 10]. These so-called scientists have got to be Leos. Pluto might be small but it packs an icy wallop. The planet rules destruction, death, obsession, kidnapping, coercion, viruses, waste, terrorism and dictatorships. Take away its status and all of these forces enter the realm of the unregulated. This is not the time to do this, people.

» Maria Bonaparte

Correction

In last week’s story, “Coming up snake-eyes,” it was reported that there are three gambling treatment centres in Quebec. In fact, the only treatment centre is McGill’s International Centre for Youth Gambling Problems and High-Risk Behaviours. The other two, at Université de Montréal and Université de Laval, are gambling research centres. The Mirror regrets the error.

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