I just came across this Q & A on Roger Ebert's website, where someone supposedly backs up an assertation from the film "Michael Moore Hates America" that the crime rate in Canada is double that of the United States. Could this be true? It seems so... improbable. Can anyone refute this?



[ November 14, 2004, 01:23 PM: Message edited by: canmark ]

Stats can be twisted so many ways. But even so, I would hardly think that Canada is somehow less safe than the USA.

Total crime rates can be very misleading. Many crimes go unreported, and definitions of some crimes differ between jurisdictions. The high rate of violent crime may simply mean that Canadians are more likely to report an assault or rape to the police.

It's noteworthy that homicide rates(the only crime that is almost always reported)are MUCH lower in Canada (1.73 vs 5.69).

[ November 14, 2004, 02:35 PM: Message edited by: JC ]

There is a followup to this issue in this week's Ebert Answerman. It seems like there was an apples and oranges comparison, as the methodology in the U.S. and Canada are different and therefore the statistics can't be compared.

Example: "The numbers reported by the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics are for rates per 1,000 'charged.' The Statistics Canada rates quoted are for 'incidents.' Incidents in Canada refer to every instance where the police are called or notified, even if they then find no evidence or never lay charges."

And also those numbers are a crime rate, which is a basis of number per capita. Its a number that is highly skewed in any way you look at it. Its like taking a city of 1 million and saying they had 1000 crimes and a city of 1000 and saying they had 20 crimes, so the smaller city has a larger crime rate. Obviously they didnt have as many crimes committed.

And Im pretty sure violent crime is a lot higher here in America.

Interesting statistics on cost of living for those thinking of moving to Canada.

No Canadian city appears in the top 50 in terms of cost.

You have to get past the top 100 to find any Canadian city at all. Don' know if this even includes health care which must be less.

I'm reading a really interesting book by Gwynne Dyer called Future Tense: The Coming World Order. In it he says that there are roughly 3000 gun fatalities a month in the U.S. (close to the numbers who died on 9/11). He says the 3000ish include homicide, suicide and accidents.

I can tell you that at one tenth the population, Canada doesn't come close to 300 gun fatalities in a YEAR. So, in that aspect alone Canada is way down.

Oh, and the other thing about Canadian gun demographics is they break down differently than the U.S.
85% of all Canadian gun deaths are suicides, 10% are accidents, and 5% are homicides. That's why our respective firearms laws are different. The theory is that if you need to get a Firearms Acquisition Certificate before you can purchase a gun, by the time you get one, you might have lost the urge to kill yourself. Our gun laws are aimed more at stopping suicides and crimes of passion, than hindering habitual criminals. Criminals, of course, aren't stopped by licences.

That's because handguns are illegal in Canada PERIOD. The only way to get them is if you're a cop, Brinks guard, or special ministerial permit.

Even then, you MUST get an FAC, or Firearms Acquisition Certificate. (that goes for shotguns as well). In order to get an FAC, you must pass a background check, and take a course in gun safety. All guns m8ust be kept under lock and key in an approved gun safe, attached to the frame of the house. All firearms must be registered with the police. The success rate of getting a handgun is about 1% if you're not a cop.

Or you buy a gun on the streets. But if you're ever caught with one, it's automatic jail time.

ANd most Canadians, myself included, beleive that these laws are not strict enough.

Now this is where I have a problem! Someone finds a way of saying Canada's crime is higher than the US and everyone believes them without questioning. Those of us who know both countries find it a bit hard to believe. So we look deeper. And what do you know. It just not true. But now it is too late. Only the blue county intellectuals know the truth, everyone else is running around claiming that stats show Canada has more crime than the US so we can keep our guns!

Off-topic, but for some reason it amused me.

Enfield (part of London - population about 200,000(?)) were very pleased with their crackdown on car theft. Statistics looking good - until 80 E-class Mercedes all disappeared over the past two weeks stolen to order for Eastern European customers!

[quote]Lksimcoe
[/qb][/quote]That's because handguns are illegal in Canada PERIOD. The only way to get them is if you're a cop, Brinks guard, or special ministerial permit.

[/QB][/QUOTE]

I beg to differ, Lksimcoe. Handguns are not illegal, they are "restricted." This means there are more hoops to jump through. For instance, you have to be a member of an authorized range or shooting club, and also, the handguns must not only be stored with a (usually combination) trigger lock on at all times (like long guns) but also they must be in a locked box. My dad used to the the B.C. Chief Provincial Firearms Officer, and when arguing his point that "The Law is an Ass..." he would tell me about the locked box and then say that it was perfectly legal (but stupid) to store the box on top of your T.V.

(I'm no expert, though, and my dad's been retired for a while now...)

We also have one more category up in Canada, which is "Prohibited." That includes automatic weapons, crossbows and shurikens (which I saw for sale to little children at a martial arts tournament in Portland Oregon...)


You can still get handguns. There's lots of em floating around, but most just flow over the border from the south...

[ November 29, 2004, 05:50 PM: Message edited by: chuckvanc ]