Jarnhamar said:
Shows you how utterly vindictive our government can be.
Lightguns said:
Governments are vindictive to their citizens by nature, democrat ones more so because we expect better. Civil forfeiture, like all things government designed has morphed from a way to punish the worst criminals to a way to check the errant citizens. They worked far harder on punishing Montague than any of the Ponzi schemers that Ontario has caught.
Were they really being vindictive, or were they just applying the laws as they are written?
Mr. Montague broke the law by allowing his firearms business licence and firearms acquisition certificate to expire.
I'm not speaking out against the justness of this law or gun laws in general, but just because a lot of people disagree with the law, doesn't mean we stop enforcing it.
A lot of people disagree with the prohibition against marijuana; do the people on this forum think that all those people running illegal dispensaries should have their property and their businesses returned to them?
"But drugs hurt people, Mr. Montague wasn't hurting anyone." Again, laws are meant to be both preventative
as well as punitive. Now, you don't have to agree that the law to understand the Government's actions. In their eyes, and the eyes of many pro-gun control Canadians, unregulated guns (and those business that support them) create a dangerous environment. If the government waited until harm was done, then they would have failed in applying one of the mandates of the law.
I'm personally happy that Mr. and Mrs. Montague we're able to walk away from this mess, with their heads held high to boot. However, I believe it to be disingenuous to insinuate that everyone from the government involved, form the police who showed up at his door, to the crown attorneys, were being vindictive.
mrcpu said:
I don't have a problem with the government taking a drug dealer's sportscar that he bought with drug money. I do have a problem with them going after someone's home that was bought/built with LAWFUL INCOME from BEFORE he broke the law. Absolute, unadulterated BULL CRAP. Whomever started that action should be held accountable. They should be sued into poverty and be forced to lose their own home to pay for damages. Maybe then bureaucrats will think twice about their actions before launching such an immoral act.
1. Ok then, I'm going to build a house from scratch using my LAWFUL INCOME. Then, I'm going to run a drug dispensary/sweatshop/bawdy house from my basement and living room. When the cops come to shut me down and seize my property, I'll make sure to show them you're argument.
I mean, once something has been designated as "Legal", it can't possibly become "Illegal", am I right mrcpu?
Also, as the last three sentences in your statement... wow... just wow.