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37 Canadian J. Criminology 214 (1995)
Bill C-68: Simple Problem, Complex Solutions

handle is hein.journals/cjccj37 and id is 216 raw text is: Canadian Journal of Criminology Bill C-68: Simple problem, complex solutions Neil Boyd School of Criminology Simon Fraser University Burnaby, B.C. As this article goes to press, Justice Minister Allan Rock and the federal government are set to take on an angry gaggle of gun owners, gun dealers, and their supporters. This opposition is a mostly male and largely rural lobby, passionate about the right to bear arms. I must say that notions of phallic substitution come to mind when considering these folks, although I concede that the imagery may be a little ad hominem. But let's put guns into some kind of conceptual and empirical context. First, guns are, like drugs and automobiles, dangerous commodities. The state has a responsibility to ensure that if the commodity can be used, it will be used in a manner that is consistent with public safety. Second, guns kill about 1400 Canadians annually, automobiles about 3,000, legal drugs about 35,000, and illegal drugs about 500. (Statistics Canada 1993, Boyd 1991). It is obvious that these deaths take place in very different social contexts. The legal drugs - alcohol and tobacco - kill slowly over decades, and to some significant extent, with the consent of the victim. With illegal drugs, an injection overdose is invariably the cause of death. The victim is, again, to some significant degree, consenting - by definition, careless or unknowing in his or her consumption. With automobiles, death again occurs very quickly, and, usually, human carelessness or intoxication is at the root of the problem. The victims of the misuse of these commodities are not, however, only careless users; they are often passengers, fellow travellers, and pedestrians. And so it is with guns. For the most part these machines are, like legal and illegal drugs, used by a victim, with his consent, April 1995

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