Holy smokes folks, after two terrible and tragic shootings in the united states, one in buffalo and the other in texas, canada has now decided to do something about gun violence. They are banning handguns. Yes, quite literally, in fact, let me give you the reuters definition of what's happening. Obviously, there's more detail to this, but boy, oh boy, we got to talk about this.

Take a look at this. Trudeau is announcing a plan legislation that will implement a national freeze on handgun ownership and prevent people from buying and selling handguns anywhere in the country. The legislation will go into effect sometime in august and then once it goes august or fall somewhere around there based on some research, but here they say when it goes into effect, people will no longer be able to buy, sell, transfer or import handguns. Now, usually, when things like this happen, at least this is what we learned in california - and this is relatively easy to prove.

Statistically is every time you have uh democratic governments, uh or left-leaning governments, talking about gun control measures or the limitation or ban of certain firearm transactions. Usually, you see transactions for firearms skyrocket, the months before so, for example, if i were in the gun, business i'd be pretty sad, come the fall because you might have to close your doors, which is kind of sad, because you know it's unemployed people or whatever, but But also uh before it like that three months before or the six months before that the period before whenever the ban actually finally goes through gun sales would be expected to skyrocket in canada. Because, realistically, if you ever wanted a gun, you would have to figure out the loopholes of the law. Potentially, there are rights for family transfers or gifts or inheritances, some form of limited transfers, but essentially whatever you want legally, you kind of have to buy now, which is quite shocking, because that probably is not only going to lead to a very large spike in guns.

But then you also wonder how effective it'll be in in the future like if the guns are already out there, but you can't transfer guns. That in theory means that an 18 year old can't go into a store anymore and buy a gun legally. At least it would become more difficult because somebody would have to find a black market and then transact for a weapon on the black market, and you know buying guns illegally, not necessarily the easiest thing. If you're going to do a transaction with somebody who tells you to bring cash and you're going to go pick up a gun, well, you're, literally going to now meet somebody with a gun to give them money to buy a weapon right.

So it's really interesting when we think about what what would happen if they're, just no gun transactions at all, but it's it's not just hand guns that they're thinking about modifying rules on take a look at this we've got here. Canada banned the sale and use of some 1500 models of assault weapons like the ar-15 two years ago, and now the new legislation will also implement uh that long gun magazines be permanently altered, so they can no longer hold more than five rounds so no longer, and For example, in california, you've got a sorry. You have a 10 round limit on on weapons, even semi-amount of semi automatic ars and then, of course, in other states. So you could go up to you, know 30 or even larger, depending on the kind of magazine that you use so down to five would be kind of interesting.

It also makes me wonder if they're going to have a similar kind of loophole like in california, california. You had freedom week where, if you bought a high-capacity magazine for say a glock, 15 19 20 rounds, whatever you could own a high-capacity magazine. But if you didn't get it during freedom week, you're just not allowed to own it, you can't buy it transfer it whatever. I guess, supposedly, if you find it in a desert, it'd be okay, so it'll be interesting again to see how people work with these loopholes.

But i really expect a lot of of uh. You know increased gun sales in canada if this ends up getting passed, which wouldn't surprise me if it does, but anyway, the new legislation. Bill c21 also proposes taking away firearms licenses from those involved in acts of domestic violence or criminal harassment, such as stalking other than using firearms for sport, shooting and hunting. There is no reason anyone in canada should need guns in their everyday lives, and then the reuters article here ends with this uh statistic that canada's rate of firearm homicides is 0.5 per 100 000 people compared with 4.12 uh based on research from 2021.

So definitely a lot uh. I mean this. This means we have about eight times as many gun deaths or homicides in the united states, as canada does, if they're taking this action. So let's talk about this a little bit and sort of implications here or sort of even my thoughts on guns and gun control.

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One of the things that i really wish - and i know this is not uh - there's no sole solution for gun violence right, but one of the things that i really wish that we had is better and clearer licensing in many states. You know people who shoot firearms spend somewhere around 50 cents to a dollar per bullet. You go to the range you're easily spending 100 150 bucks. Every time you go to the range and so uh.

You know, in my opinion, licensing that maybe uh requires some form of training, but then gives you more privileges, uh and potentially also has like you know. I mean these trainings could also be sort of like mental health, check-ins right so to speak, and i know that sounds crazy, but like, for example, if you're in california and somebody's like hey, i'm a law-abiding citizen. I want a firearm for whatever reason to protect myself from my business, my property or whatever. We've got an increase of violence, in los angeles, for example.

You know why why can bad guys have guns but good guys can't right, and so, in my opinion, there's this potential opportunity to say: hey look previously, california, just won't, let you have guns, but now california might say, let's give folks the opportunity to get a license, But they have to, you know, do uh twice a year uh, you know shooting training with with someone at the county or whatever or the ranges do it like. They have range certifications or whatever and at the same time they ask you. You know 10 questions or whatever about your mental health you're going to the range anyway to shoot or, quite frankly, if you have a weapon, you should be going to the range anyway right. So it should all kind of be bundled in into that.

It's like hey all right here, you get privileges, it's just go train at the range at least twice a year and then, while you're there hey we're gon na, do a quick little. You know like check-in, or whatever things like this, i think where you can give and and then and then license properly. I think is quite useful, but that's for normal sort of law-abiding folks, but then we've also got to solve other underlying issues uh biggest one. In my opinion, being poverty, if you're in poverty you're twice as likely to be involved in violent crime, so there's a very clear link between poverty and violence and crime and weapons, especially weapons violence.

Right, that's terrible, and so that's that's a system. It's a systemic issue that we have that, for example, we don't teach financial education at our schools. Well, why don't we teach financial education, our schools, along with mental health? Why don't we teach mental health in our schools to make mental health normal right to give everybody? The opportunity to have let's say, for example, a free annual meeting with a therapist or whatever or twice annual. You know we do physical checkups.

Why don't we do mental health, checkups and those could be optional but at least give people the opportunity for those everybody right and then if, for example, you're a gun licensee, maybe they're required, just as as an example, so there's there's so many things that are broken In really american society that there's no real easy answer for for gun violence, especially since a lot of the modifications that are required for weapons for legal gun owners, especially in california, like thumb guards or whatever, can easily just be detached by a criminal like a criminal's. Not going to follow the law and use weapons, the way they're supposed to be used in their unmodified state, so it's kind of some of the the regulations on on legal gun ownership seem kind of odd because they they like they don't seem to make sense because A criminal could just unmodify weapons right if they're going to be a criminal anyway. So it seems like there's a lot of punishing in society on legal gun ownership. Uh there's not much of a drive towards okay.

Well, let's, let's maybe give privileges, but then also maybe increase the barriers a little bit uh license and we're not talking about like very expensive licensing. This is why i'm saying like go to a range anyway, where you're doing it right there. There are some simple solutions that can be implemented to keep costs down, but actually compliance way up, uh. In addition to, of course, we need to have a focus on again trying to solve poverty and financial education at schools and elevating people like.

Why are schools so terrible? Why is california, for example, ranked 40th in schools in the united states? Well, geez, you know, maybe if we can elevate our schools and invest in our schools. Well then, maybe we have less poor people and then we have less violence because remember that association between violence and poverty, so very, very unfortunate. This, i think, is uh. You know this is quite a far step for canada.

I mean i almost kind of want to say extreme because it really it's going to lead to a massive spike of weapon sales. Now, there's no doubt about that, but yeah i mean look in 10 years from now somebody's like oh. I think i want to be a gun owner. It's like oh wait.

I you can't, you can't buy a gun, so it's kind of interesting to see. You know how things will end up evolving in canada. Does i mean? Does it just become a place where ultimately guns just over time kind of disappear in canada? I mean i doubt it, but if you can't import them, that also means you can't go to like the united states, buy them and bring them in unless you're doing so illegally, and there are a lot of folks who will say whatever i'll. Just you know find guns illegally, but they're also, i would say more people, probably i would guess, like 80 of people, maybe even 90 of people who were like all right.

Well, i mean if it's against the law, i don't want it because you know it's. It's not worth having it, but then also you know getting in trouble. If i get caught with it or whatever right and like how do you use it, then, if it's illegal like do, they have checkpoints at the gun ranges like it's, not a registered firearm right. I don't know i i really don't know quite interesting what canada is doing.

It seems fascinating, uh and uh. It's also to some degree, and i'm not saying that this is exactly what we want in the united states, but it's also kind of to some degree. Sad. That's like wait: the shootings are happening in the united states.

The united states can't get anything done. You get like chuck schumer and the democrats talking about doing stuff, but we know the biden. Administration hasn't really been able to get anything done, and so canada is just. Let's make it happen, so might not agree necessarily with what they're doing, but it's like actually seems like you guys, are doing something.

It's interesting again, probably not exactly the way that i would go. I've given a lot of suggestions here, but i want to hear from you what are your thoughts about this pretty wild anyway i'll look for you in the comments down below thanks, so much check out life, insurance, mckevin.com life and those courses on building your wealth.