Just when I was thinking of selling my T-34

[Jester]

The figures I've seen vary from 200,000 to 600,000 guns are estimated to be stolen -- then, what percentage of those flow north or south? I'd guess that 90% of stolen guns stay here in the US, and of the remaining 10%, most head south rather than north. So, maybe between 5,000 and 15,000 guns go into Canada, from a US gun census of 250-300 million guns.

Let's see if we can clear this up.

First, that's a number of guns stolen per year, which is obviously a lot different from a stock. Second, the comparison with the US gun census is irrelevant. Canada and Mexico do not care how many guns you keep secure, we care how many guns are NOT secure. Third, your estimates of how many stay in the US are just guesses.

But, to run with it anyway, if what you're saying is 15,000 illegal guns a year are smuggled onto the Canadian black market, then yes, I would suggest that this is a problem Canadians have a right to be concerned about. Mexico, obviously, has a much bleaker situation.

Also, the study you linked was from 2009 citing a murder rate of 5.7 for the US (the entire US), where as the FBI is showing that the rate was 5.0 in 2009, and has fallen to 4.7 in 2011. It has been steadily falling for a decade. Then, if you compare the murder rate of Canada (which this source says is at an all time low of 1.62) to the states that border Canada, you'd see similar rates. Maine 2.0, New Hampshire 1.3, Vermont 1.3, North Dakota 3.5 (was 1.5 last year) -- maybe a side effect of the oil boom, Minnesota, 1.4, Montana 2.8 -- Ergo, the states with large urban populations have the highest murder rates.

I'm not sure how this matters, exactly? The counterfactual claim would be that the rate of gun crime would be lower in Canada if the US was not available as a cheap source of illegal guns. Telling me that crime is about the same on both sides of the border does not affect this claim.

IAnd, um, thanks for sending down all the BC bud.

You're welcome!

But, we also need to worry about people like Ahmed Ressam and relative safe haven Canada has become for those that would come south to do mayhem.

Because there have been so many terrorist attacks on the US from Canada?

-Jester