September 15, 2004
The following, from a Canadian resident, was
addressed to SAS, the
Second Amendment Foundation,
Paxton Quigley,
Feminists4Firearms, and Ms.
Magazine.
Just
responding to your new ad about the neighbour - on a day when it is
especially relevant to me. My new neighbour, we reckon, is dealing
crack.
I live in
downtown Toronto, in a house that has been divided up into apartments.
The two cheapest apartments are in the basement, and I've lived in one
of them for 12 years. This is a "mixed" neighbourhood, with nice
neighbours that I've come to know. But we misjudged our newest neighbour.
He shows such complete disregard for other people that we - the other
tenants in the house - have removed our belongings from the storage
areas and crammed them into what little room we have in our apartments.
I get no sleep anymore due to the constant traffic of crackheads
parading in and out. We did try to take legal action (and this is
ongoing, as legal action always is), but magistrates in Canada have that
same special pseudo-tolerance of many Canadians: that is, they're very
forgiving of the damage that people are doing to *someone else*.
We first
tumbled to the crack dealing problems when I was awakened before dawn to
shouted obscenities and the sound of things breaking against the walls.
I called the police.
Ah, the
police... I must digress. American may not realize that here in
Canada, ordinary citizens are not allowed to cite personal protection as
a reason for buying a gun; here it is assumed that it should be left to
the state - the police - to protect its citizens. The police in
particular tend to lobby vigorously in favour of all types of gun
control.
I should
say "weapon control", rather than "gun control". Some years ago, when I
asked a Toronto police officer for clarification of the laws, he assured
me that if I were to carry even mace or a stun gun, I would be
considered armed. Now shortly before that, I had had occasion to look at
the statistics and had noted that significant numbers of murdered women
are strangled or beaten to death (men are not murdered in these ways by
women, by the way, despite the current panic about violence from women).
With these stats in mind, I pointed out to him that as a guy, he could
kill me with his bare hands. I'll never forget his response: "It's more
fun that way." This, verbatim, from a Toronto cop. So, okay, I'll assume
that he was joking, but.. I don't care. Especially since this
conversation took place on a night that the Toronto police did not
respond to a 911 call about a homeless man assaulting one of our staff,
I just didn't think it was that funny.
So - now I
have this new neighbour, and I'm calling the police. We're all calling
the police. And the police are doing... nothing. "Can't" they say. Can't
come into the basement even though I'm inviting them - they say. Can't
arrest or even search any of the *big scary* folks that they've called
for an extra car for - though these people turn out to be well known to
police as crack dealers. (There is one tiny woman there, a prostitute,
and they don't hesitate to handcuff *her*. It's just the rest they won't
go near.) No arrests, no charges. Ever. Crackheads coming and going
throughout the night keeping me awake, the police do nothing. One
recommends calling the "plainclothes office" for the division. So I try
that, repeatedly. Can't reach them. I call the main desk for the
division and the receptionist tells me that the plainclothes office (all
of them?!) are "out of the city at a seminar". No one left behind,
apparently to... you know... do the *work*?
And now
today, two Toronto police are finally here, in my house, knocking at my
apartment door. Hooray, I think, assuming we're finally getting a
response to our calls. Nope. Turns out they're here quite illegally,
looking for someone named Debra. They're rude from the outset, arrogant
and smirking. When I lose my temper and tell them they're overpaid
($75,000/year to start) and worse than useless (which, let's face it,
they are), I get pushed around - literally. Physically.
Now here's
the thing, and I never thought I'd say this:
On guns,
Kerry is wrong and Bush is right. Michael Moore, you need to think
again. (Won't hurt; I did it, you can too.)
Gun control
sounds great, but all it changes is who gets targeted. Police lives are
saved with increasing gun control. Don't I think that's important? Well,
*not* more important than my sister's life. *Not* more important than my
life. *Not* worth being a prisoner all my life, hiding in my apartment
crammed with stuff.
I did call
the police station to complain about what happened today, but I have to
make a complaint in person. And I intend to, just as soon as I can.
Trouble is that right now my transport - a bicycle - is stashed in my
apartment, away from the crackhead neighbour.
So I say
this now with complete sincerity. Can a Canadian woman apply for refugee
status to the U.S.? On the grounds that the Canadian state has no
genuine interest in "equality under the law", not when it can have soft
targets like me? I'm just about to qualify for a CDL, and most of my
relatives (including my sister) are now American. I think I'd like to
live in Vermont. Or Texas. Hmm, tough choice... I have relatives in
Florida, Arizona, North Carolina, and friends in Virginia and
California.
Whatever.
Just get me away from this neighbour, and this *prison for women* that
is Canada!
Jo W.
