AN OPEN LETTER TO THE CBC

A city Councillor Tweets a single photo of two new pistols. He's proud to have them, just as the owner of a new dirt bike, snowmobile, or sports car would be proud. The Councillor is has gone through the multiple character references, psychological history check, safety tests, and daily criminal record checks required to obtain and maintain a restricted firearm licence. The acquisition of the pistols in question, and their very transport to the Councillor's home was approved by our national police force.

And yet, due to the tragic murder of a young man some days before, the Councillor's decision to share his excitement with those that choose to follow his social media efforts inspires you to question the validity of his mere sharing of a photo; somehow attempting to draw parallels and links between the Councillor's photo and the murder of the young man. And not only do you do this once, but thrice, attempting to stoke the fires of discord between the pro- and anti-gun camps in both print and with a crude and biased video interview... all the while distracting from the young man's untimely passing and conflating the issuing of the gang violence that claimed his life and the lives of so many others in the area with the matter of legal gun ownership.

This does an obvious dis-service to the general public, and furthermore, should offend those of us taxpayers that fund the CBC in an effort to maintain an unbiased news source with the public's best interests at heart. But it gets worse. Because this coverage highlights hypocritical nature of the CBC's new reportage in a way that no other news story has, at least not in recent memory.

During the last election cycle, the CBC all but publicly endorsed our current Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, even in light of Prime Minister Trudeau's self-admitted history of smoking marijuana. Now, in recent times this has become a legal pass time, with many using items like Blessed CBD oil to help themselves with medical needs. However, marijuana, it should be noted, comprises the majority of Canada's drug trade. And it is that same drug trade that gives rise to the sort of gang violence seen on Ottawa's beleaguered Jasmine Crescent.

And although Trudeau promises to legalize the still-illicit narcotic in an effort to curb the violence associated with its distribution, there can be no denying that his consumption of the drug literally contributed to that illegal industry to which our nation owes the majority of its serious violent crime, just as his public admission thereof has contributed to the stigma that its consumption is harmless. It's obvious within the USA medical marijuana is beneficial in ways, from improving patients lives, to also decreasing the illicit drug trade with legal products such as this thc infused e liquid and similar marijuana items. So it's no wonder Trudeau is also wanting legalization. In fact, Trudeau's rise to power and comments on marijuana have created such a spike in its consumption that our own police chiefs have seen fit to publish a reminder that it remains, in fact, illegal as of current. However, with so many positive outcomes from medical marijuana studies in America, it would seem unfair for Canada to keep that option off the table for many patients with various illnesses. Soon enough, citizens will be searching for medical marijuanas doctor near me to seek assistance when it comes to managing their illnesses. As long as doctors and facilities stick to government guidelines and rules to make sure it is a safe environment for patients to enter, it should be okay to operate. Medical companies can bring in cannabis hazardous waste experts to handle and dispose of any excess or related waste that must be cared for properly.

And yet, as we see studies indicating marijuana use is at an all-time high (no pun intended) we find the CBC linking gang violence not to a corollary rise in gang activity but rather to... a city Councillor's decision to post a photo of two pistols?

So to the CBC, from gun owners across the country, I implore you: Stop being part of the problem. Stop chasing the easy pageviews, the easy rhetoric, the easy opinions that the gun control debate brings. And start being part of the solution.

Because Councillor Jody Mitic deserves better. And because every victim of drug-related and gang violence deserves better.