Canadians... What's it really like?

Grassland

Well-known member
The first rule in law enforcement, is to go home at the end of your tour of duty. Anyone who poses a threat to that, gets what is most politely described as less than the benefit of the doubt.

The second rule in law enforcement, is that if you show up for a fair fight, you're unprepared. We are not there to "compete" with anyone. It has nothing to do with bravado, it is simply being a good steward of the life that has been given to us by our Creator...
There are three sets of rules. A set for the rich/powerful, a set for LEO, and a set for us peasants
 

billiebob

Well-known member
When we hike, I usually carry. When I go out fly fishing, I usually carry. When we camp, I usually carry. What do you Canadians do?
We do not carry, long guns maybe but hand guns never.

In Canada hand guns are restricted to transport between your home and a gun range. PERIOD.

No deviation, stop for beer or groceries, you get a fine. Stop for gas.... not sure but why test the law.
IF you must have a gun, don't come to Canada. Period.
Transporting a handgun??? Unloaded in a case.

Heres a good read on guns in Canada.
Canadas first female hunting guide, shes 98 this year.
A rancher in the Chilkootin she has a few stories of being out without a gun.

28367767._SR1200,630_.jpg
 

AbleGuy

Officious Intermeddler
A change in what the LEOs of NA need to be taught is conflict resolution . If you look at LEO's in other countries thats the part job on meeting an incident. Can it be deescalated, if so why not try that vs what's happening here which is reaching for a gun, taser, or pepper spray?

That’s an interesting point of view to be sure. Better training is always a good idea.

In all fairness though, I don’t believe that the LEO’s in those “other countries” face anywhere near the same risk that the disturbed individual they’re approaching is carrying and willing to use a loaded firearm, as LEO’s do way too damn frequently in the US.

I suspect successfully talking an enraged, drug and/or booze fueled criminal into peacefully surrendering his weapon works a lot better in the movies and on tv than in real life.
 

billiebob

Well-known member
In all fairness though, I don’t believe that the LEO’s in those “other countries” face anywhere near the same risk that the disturbed individual they’re approaching is carrying and willing to use a loaded firearm, as LEO’s do way too damn frequently in the US.
So you agree, the big issue in the USA is easy access to guns. Cuz the disturbed individual is pretty much generic around the world. They just often do not have a gun in other countries.
 

billiebob

Well-known member
A change in what the LEOs of NA need to be taught is conflict resolution . If you look at LEO's in other countries thats the part job on meeting an incident. Can it be deescalated, if so why not try that vs what's happening here which is reaching for a gun, taser, or pepper spray?
I like to think this is what defunding police is all about. Defunding is just the wrong word. The redistribution of funding is more accurate but tough to do right.

In Canada a domestic dispute often involved social services. Either calling in the request for police or joining the police at their request. A complicated, expensive but effective process, Budgets and politics interfered and we end up expecting police to be social workers, negotiators descalating domestic conflicts. We built in failure. We overloaded the police expecting them to do it all. We need to separate those functions.

For those thinking defunding police means spending less money, no, guaranteed defunding police will not save money but it will make your community safer. It will relieve stress on the police. It will deescalate conflicts before deadly force becomes the only option.

We might think why should I care, just don't break the law.... and that will work until your son, niece. father, breaks and does something stupid, altho they will believe that stupidity was their only choice. 50% of crime, criminals are acts of desparation. Very few serious life threatening crimes are conscious premeditated coherent acts. If we expect police to deal with mental health or social or family or economic distress, not only will more people die, we will not understand the issues we as a society need to address. Our culture is far from perfect. When we make mistakes, we need to find and correct the reason.
 

MTVR

Well-known member
There are three sets of rules. A set for the rich/powerful, a set for LEO, and a set for us peasants

Wow- it must suck to be a subject of Canadia. American citizens don't have that problem- the law applies equally to us all here...

...except for tax laws. The top 5% of wage earners (guys like me) pay 60% of the taxes in this great nation, the bottom 50% of all wage earners pay 3% of the taxes, and a career in law enforcement comes without Social Security pension benefits.

 
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Grassland

Well-known member
Wow- it must suck to live in Canadia. Here in America, it's a free country, and the law applies to us all equally...

...except for tax laws. The top 5% of wage earners (guys like me) pay 60% of the taxes in this great nation, the bottom 50% of all wage earners pay 3% of the taxes, and a career in law enforcement comes without Social Security pension benefits.

I'm assuming you made your money after your career in law enforcement to be in the top 5% income of one of the richest countries in the world.

Yeah Canada has a lot of downsides.

Right now the police are being used to hand out $1000+ tickets for breaking Covid 19 code red restrictions, while ignoring all the meth crime in town. They also aren't crashing the party of all the Hospital CEOs and politicians who went on vacations outside the country, while we peasants are forced to isolate and all non essential businesses are closed. Because the law doesn't apply equally.

Own an AR pattern rifle as a civilian?
"It's an assault weapon, a mass killing machine, a weapon of war"
Supply police detachment with an AR pattern rifle?
"It's a patrol carbine"

And who do you think the black boots kicking down doors will belong to when Biden bans semi auto rifles, or widens all the other unconstitutional BS that's been passed by Bush, Obama, etc.
 

MTVR

Well-known member
I'm assuming you made your money after your career in law enforcement to be in the top 5% income of one of the richest countries in the world.

No. I knocked down an easy six figures as a cop. My daily commuter was a Porsche convertible that I custom-ordered new. My wife's car is a BMW Track Pack that I let her custom order new. We flew to Munich Germany to pick it up at the factory- we typically vacation in Europe a month a year.

20210129_090417.jpg

Heck, I don't remember the last time I had a rookie officer that made less than $100K their first year on the road.
 
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Ducstrom

Well-known member
Kind of like drunk driving why make it illegal, the drunks are still gonna drink.
Not the same thing at all.

Making drinking illegal would be a more accurate comparison. We all know how well prohibition worked for people that wanted to drink.
Drunk driving would be more compatible to pointing a loaded gun at random people. Which every gun owner knows is already illegal.
 

toylandcruiser

Expedition Leader
The first rule in law enforcement, is to go home at the end of your tour of duty. Anyone who poses a threat to that, gets what is most politely described as less than the benefit of the doubt.

The second rule in law enforcement, is that if you show up for a fair fight, you're unprepared. We are not there to "compete" with anyone. It has nothing to do with bravado, it is simply being a good steward of the life that has been given to us by our Creator...

Love how cops refer to themselves as being in the military.
 

MTVR

Well-known member
A lot of the subjects of foreign countries don't understand the freedoms that we as American citizens possess.

Driving is a PRIVILEGE, granted at the whim of the government. Firearms possession, however, is a RIGHT. And although the U.S. Constitution recognizes and supposedly protects that right, the Constitution is not the source of that right- that right belongs to us as individuals...
 

Todd n Natalie

OverCamper
Not the same thing at all.

Making drinking illegal would be a more accurate comparison. We all know how well prohibition worked for people that wanted to drink.
Drunk driving would be more compatible to pointing a loaded gun at random people. Which every gun owner knows is already illegal.
Yes, I agree with your comparison. My thoughts exactly.
 

givemethewillys

Jonathan Chouinard
No. I knocked down an easy six figures as a cop. My daily commuter was a Porsche convertible that I custom-ordered new. My wife's car is a BMW Track Pack that I let her custom order new. We flew to Munich Germany to pick it up at the factory- we typically vacation in Europe a month a year.

View attachment 639302

Heck, I don't remember the last time I had a rookie officer that made less than $100K their first year on the road.
Shoot, I want to work in your department... when I started as an LEO, I made $32k/year, which was about $3k more than other local departments were offering. I made another $14k in overtime. While I wasn't killing myself, I was working quite a bit compared to some of my peers. After 15 years on the force, I still never came close to breaking $100k. I'm now in the IT field, which I like very much.

I think your case is more the exception than the rule, at least in a lot of the US. MTVR, please don't think that I'm picking a fight with you, just stating that at least in the area where I live, cops work long hours for small pay.
 
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