Posted on 12/09/2005 3:24:28 PM PST by proud_yank
After a horrendous summer in Toronto, where more than three dozen people were shot to death on the streets, it was inevitable that gun control and gang violence would figure prominently in the current election campaign.
Indeed, even before the campaign began, Prime Minister Paul Martin promised: "We're going to take handguns out of our communities."
Now, with the election campaign in its second week, the prime minister has returned to the hard streets of the country's largest city and promised an outright ban on handguns "to make our communities safer."
Nobody would disagree with the hope. But handguns and gang violence in a modern big city may prove to be more complex than any other problem confronting Canada's political leaders in this election campaign.
However chaotic the streets of Toronto may have seemed last summer, the rate of gun homicide this year in the city is actually fractionally lower than it was in 1991.
And Toronto's murder rate per capita this year is lower than the rate for Winnipeg, Edmonton, Vancouver and Calgary.
But the nature of firearm violence has changed dramatically since the first of the stronger gun-control laws of the modern era was passed in 1991 and then strengthened four years later. There has been a 68 per cent decline in homicides involving rifles and shotguns. By contrast, the rate of murder by handguns has dropped by a more modest 30 per cent.
In theory, handguns have been controlled through registration since the 1930s and effectively illegal for all but target shooters since 1991.
The harsh reality is that people inclined to use handguns are not concerned much by what the law says. Virtually all the handguns on the streets of Canadian cities have been stolen from legal collections in Canada or smuggled from the United States.
The estimate of U.S. authorities is that 280 million people in the United States own 230 million guns. Every year, 500,000 of those are stolen and disappear into the underworld.
How many of those stolen American guns make their way into Canada, nobody knows. Canada Customs seizes about 1,500 smuggled guns every year, but that gives no indication of the real number. Only about three per cent of the traffic across the Canada-U.S. border is inspected, so the guns they miss may number 50,000 or many, many more.
It is the appearance of armed gangs using illegal handguns on the streets of Toronto and other large cities that has created the greatest uncertainty about public safety. The Coalition for Gun Control cites the case of a Toronto man who unknowingly tried to cross the border with 23 high-powered handguns that someone had hidden in the trunk of his car. The guns were destined for a Toronto gang.
The reality is that despite the newspaper headlines and concern of politicians, there has not been a massive rise in violent crime. Over the past 30 years, the level of homicides has declined dramatically, so it is hard to see what difference the current election campaign will make.
I don't know. I guess the old addage 'figures don't lie, but all liars figure' is somewhat applicable!
A five-shot derringer? Do you mean a mini-revolver? I thought a derringer was a fixed-barrel firearm, and five barrels would be a bit much. Not totally impossible, but highly unusual.
I test fired it last night. It's about 2and a half to 3 inches in length. We won't talk accuracy...this one is for up-close and personal protection.
Well, I see they have issued an ammunition advisery with it. Double-discharge is something I'll have to check out before firing it again.
I like it.
How's the hammer cocking force on it? My understanding is that many derringers require sufficient cocking force that single-handed operation is difficult. I wouldn't see why the mini-revolver would be any different in that regard.
One thing I've thought might be interesting would be a two-barrel derringer with three mainsprings and three cocking mechanisms. One (called "A") would be tied directly to the hammer, but the other two ("B" and "C") would be capable of driving it as well.
Prior to use, springs B and C would be cocked, while spring A and the hammer would be decocked. Pulling back on the hammer all the way would cock it and connect spring B. Pulling the trigger would then cause both springs A and B to drive the hammer. At that point, spring B would disconnect; recocking would connect spring C, and pulling the trigger would cause the hammer to be driven with springs A and C.
In this way, the force required to cock the hammer in a 'crunch' situation would be minimized (spring "A" tension would be set so as to avoid having the hammer get cocked accidentally; springs "B" and "C" would be responsible for most of the firing energy). The mechanism would be a little complicated, but not necessarily much worse than a double shotgun.
My son has huge hands and his thumb web got pinched. Not a MAN'S pistol at all. I snickered at him, he won't make that mistake again.
My dream pistol is a double-barrel derringer. I'd ask for that one, but, we have a wedding anniversary coming up in January. :-)
What surprised me the most was the loudness of the shot. I was thinking a muffled ping, and I heard a loud bang.
This is what it looks like. My son has my digital camera. When he gets here I'll take a shot of it and post it.
BTW, the Oreo no longer exists. :-)
I've seen the mini-revolvers, though I've never handled one. Is it possible to cock the hammer one-handed? If not, I'd question the usefulness of having five shots. But maybe that's just me.
Oh yes. It's the hardest hammer I've pulled back. But easily done.
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