FOR many who watched the gripping images, broadcast live in our living rooms, of the shootings in Littleton, Colorado, little sense could be made of it all. Unfortunately, i00 Many will adopt an ostrich attitude and say it couldn't happen here. Could it? Ina New York minute. Sadly, with the inevitable calls for gun control ema- nating from within the U.S. and around the world, it’s too easy for us in Canada, with our strict gun controls, to say it’s an American problem, While it’s true that guns are easily available in most of the United States, it is simply not true to suggest stronger gun control laws make our children sate. In the first place, accord- ing to news reports, the guns used in the Columbine school shootings were unregistered, illegal firearms. In other words they were already the sub- ject of gun control. Despite our considerably stricter gun laws in Canada, it is as easy to get an illegal firearm in Lynn Valley as it is in Littleton, Colorado. When a North Vancouver man was shot three times at point blank range in front of a couple of hundred horri- fied witnesses at an Esplanade cinema, it wasn't Leo Knight crime and punishment with a registered, legal handgun. [n fact, in virtually all crimes committed with firearms in our fir city, none are with legal weapons. Now, the obvious visceral reaction to horrifving crimes is to call for the eradication of all guns. A noble thought, but not inherently practical. There are an estimated 220 million guns in circula- tion in North America. If the ownership of all guns was outlawed completely, it would take decades, at least, to get all the guns off the streets. With the gun lobby groups remaining as active as they are, the possibility of getting any such legislation in Canada, let alone in our giant, gun-loving neighbour to the south, is remote indeed at any time in the foreseeable tuture. Ar the end of the day, the lunatics who choose to take out their anger on innocents would easily find other ways to wreak their havoc. In Britain, for example, another deranged individual ran amok in a small town elementary school in sleepy Summer BBQ's & Beverages May | to 32 The Salmon House is celebrating twe. great flavors of summer with an intriguing little Dunblane, Scotland. Fourteen kindergarten kids and a teacher were gunned down in 1996, The Blair government reacted by bringing stricter gun con- trols to a country with already stringent laws. Yet, fast week another collection of looney-tunes set off'a nail bomb ina crowed open-air street mar- ket in Brixton, a racially divided area of south London. A week later, almost to the hour, the same group claimed responsibility for a similar bombing, this time in Brick Lane in the heart of London’s east end, an area populated heavily by Pakistanis and others trom the south Asian subconti- nent. Two Saturdays, two bombs, both created with little more than garden chemicals and nails, material easily available at any Revy or Home Depot retailer. Forty five people injured. Do we now outlaw fertiliz- er? Realistically, what is the difierence between the so- called “Trench Coat Matia” from Littleton, Colorado, and “Combat 18” the racist blockheads who claimed responsibility for the London bombings? Very lit- tle, I suspeet, barring their method of delivering death and destruction. Within a day of the Littleton shootings, reports began to surface in various from the BBO and refreshing Beuerages to quench the thirst. Month long events include: Changing freoh sheets featuring Chef Dan CtRinoon’s favorite gritled dishes Friday 5:30-6:30 pm tings are a symptor newsrooms around Vancouver of a similar thing in a Surrey high school, A 17-year-old “loner,” banned trom using scheol computers because of 3 fondness for neo-Nazi Web sites was threatening his teacher and other students, “jocks” who shunned him. Sound familiar? The vouth was.kept in school while he “underwent counselling.” In the wake of the Colorado massacre, the teen’s-principal decided he should finish out the school year studying from home. Just in cave. One of the youths who perpetrated the horrors in Littleton had also under- “gone counselling. According to his proba- tion officer’s report, he “appeared to enjoy his anger management course.” No doubt he was doing well, posting his hare messages and threats on the Internet on the same day as he suc- cessfully completed his counselling. 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