A letter from the Ministry of Public Safety in BC concerning Airsoft

[That_Limey_Brit]

Spengler,
It seems to me, they're reviewing Airsoft in order to help prevent violent crime. Often these are drawn up as a political stunt.

Paraphrasing the letter; they want to limit where you can use/own/play Airsoft and restrict youth access to them.

It seems they're doing something but have bugger all idea how to go about it. Hopefully nothing will happen but this is how blanket bans come in; when law makers have no idea what they're dealing with.

[Spengler]

Originally Posted by That_Limey_Brit

Spengler,
It seems to me, they're reviewing Airsoft in order to help prevent violent crime. Often these are drawn up as a political stunt.

Paraphrasing the letter; they want to limit where you can use/own/play Airsoft and restrict youth access to them.

It seems they're doing something but have bugger all idea how to go about it. Hopefully nothing will happen but this is how blanket bans come in; when law makers have no idea what they're dealing with.

Ain't that the truth.

[Airmax]

Originally Posted by That_Limey_Brit

Afternoon chaps,
A word of caution to those who disregard this kind of political play- I'm from the UK. We had this similar situation about 15 years ago.

Funnily enough, political figures love banning things (because that stops bad guys) or at the very least imposing complex and flawed new 'protocols'.

Oddly enough, we have adopted a system that now works pretty well. In case you're not aware, we have 2 levels of "authentication" for Airsoft in the UK:

1) Being 18+ with a fixed address.
2) Criteria of .1) but also a documented, ID proven, skirmish site signed+stamped, externally approved, member of UKARA (United Kingdom Airsoft Retailer's Association).

If you don't have a valid UKARA (most common form to prove one is an airsofter) but are over 18 you fall into category 1 and you may purchase a half black, half bright green/yellow/pink/blue/red/orange gun. Also known as an IF (Imitation Firearm) in the UK.

If you've been through the simple checks and submitted paperwork you get a RIF (Realistic Imitation Firearm).

I personally have always been part of this ruling after starting 10 years ago. As a result I see it as a reasonably good system. It keeps those soccer moms happy their kids don't have easy access to realistic guns, the stricter controls pleases government and airsofters can continue with their hobby with minimal disruption.

That is exactly what is needed in BC. Lets face it, it's the wild west here, anyone under 18 can buy Airsoft without worry or cause of concern. Whether stores enforce the old rules is unknown ,but I bet today it is not.

I called the number on the letter and spoke to one of the folks regarding the matter of concern. It turns out that the BC Gov. is trying to get feed back from the BC airsoft community and still doing active research on issues with young people joining gang's but using Airsoft or other platforms to do crimes. The UKARA as suggested was actually one of the item I put forth today in my conversation with them.
The main concern is the sale to anyone under 18 as the younger age group is the area of concern with the BC gov. in terms of gang related issues. Their not wanting to ban or force us to colour our guns, just that there is no rules today in place regarding airsoft in BC other than importation rules in which is a federal regulation that the Canadian community had dealt with in the past, which the BC gov. is aware of. However the access to airsoft platforms in BC is a concern of theirs regarding gangs and those under 18. From what I got out of the conversation, it seems like the Ukara system would be ideal for this situation as the BC Gov. is looking for idea's from the BC community.

I encourage the BC Airsoft community to get involved with this matter as the BC Gov. haven't really gotten allot of feedback from us and the floor is still open for feedback from us.

[Ratters]

What I have noticed during my brief time on this planet and in this country is that firearms and their POSITIVE influence in society has been diminished by snowflakes criminalizing them. Criminals are abundant in this country, violence whether it is drug related, crime related, ego related or intimidation related will not stop whether it's bumping a tire iron off someones head to pay a drug debt or pointing an airsoft item at a persons temple while they are taped to a chair with a sock in their mouth because somebody crazy told someone who is crazier did this or this or this.

It is up to our law enforcement to keep us safe. That means infiltrating networks that are actively engaging in heinous criminal activity. Crime is occurring daily, right in front of our noses. Certain families condone it and stay zipper-lipped because it brings cash money into the home, media condones it, special interest under-their-breath hate groups promote it. The issue isn't simply about schizophrenic, radicalized nobodies using our countries shelter systems to hop across the country undetected until they find someone to sell them a gun or other nefarious items to cause the general public harm. It begins right under our noses, at the CBSA level, at policing and policies of who and what to look at, it means turning over stones and eliminating corruption at our borders.

Using our airsoft community as a scapegoat to solve a very MINOR element of violent crime is not the correct solution.

The majority of airsoft users that I've met are responsible and use them in a yard, during camping or at a field. The flip side is this, a kitchen knife in the hands of a sane person is simply a kitchen knife. A machete in the hands of a methed out angry person stumbling down an alley in the dtes gets him filled with hot lead. Half the time these occurrences don't make it in the 6 pm news BUT IT SHOULD. If this happened we, the public, would realize solutions sooner than later are always a better idea.

This is my opinion on the matter and in no way reflect the beliefs on this matter on this forum

[Oberst39]

Originally Posted by Ratters

What I have noticed during my brief time on this planet and in this country is that firearms and their POSITIVE influence in society has been diminished by snowflakes criminalizing them. Criminals are abundant in this country, violence whether it is drug related, crime related, ego related or intimidation related will not stop whether it's bumping a tire iron off someones head to pay a drug debt or pointing an airsoft item at a persons temple while they are taped to a chair with a sock in their mouth because somebody crazy told someone who is crazier did this or this or this.

It is up to our law enforcement to keep us safe. That means infiltrating networks that are actively engaging in heinous criminal activity. Crime is occurring daily, right in front of our noses. Certain families condone it and stay zipper-lipped because it brings cash money into the home, media condones it, special interest under-their-breath hate groups promote it. The issue isn't simply about schizophrenic, radicalized nobodies using our countries shelter systems to hop across the country undetected until they find someone to sell them a gun or other nefarious items to cause the general public harm. It begins right under our noses, at the CBSA level, at policing and policies of who and what to look at, it means turning over stones and eliminating corruption at our borders.

Using our airsoft community as a scapegoat to solve a very MINOR element of violent crime is not the correct solution.

The majority of airsoft users that I've met are responsible and use them in a yard, during camping or at a field. The flip side is this, a kitchen knife in the hands of a sane person is simply a kitchen knife. A machete in the hands of a methed out angry person stumbling down an alley in the dtes gets him filled with hot lead. Half the time these occurrences don't make it in the 6 pm news BUT IT SHOULD. If this happened we, the public, would realize solutions sooner than later are always a better idea.

This is my opinion on the matter and in no way reflect the beliefs on this matter on this forum

Thank you for this, I echo these sentiments exactly and could not state in in any better words....Airsoft should not be politicized for the interests of politicians or others seeking re-election.

[Spengler]

Originally Posted by Oberst39

Thank you for this, I echo these sentiments exactly and could not state in in any better words....Airsoft should not be politicized for the interests of politicians or others seeking re-election.

Thing is, you could say the same thing about literally anything. I'm not in BC, I don't know what's going on over there, but based on this thread alone, I'm lead to believe that retailers don't care about not selling airsoft stuff to people under 18, which is fucked-up enough as it is, but gets even worse if folks then use said airsoft stuff for criminal activity.

Sure, airsoft's a sport, but a hockey stick looks like a hockey stick. A tennis racket looks like a tennis racket. An airsoft platform looks like a goddamn accurately-scaled officially licensed firearm, so people panicking is understandable.

If you're in BC, call that number and talk to the people behind it. See what's up, what their deal is. If all these shit-nanigans could be avoided by just, say, enforcing the no-sales-to-under-18 rule, tell them that. Be proactive like our dude Airmax.

[Oberst39]

Originally Posted by Spengler

Thing is, you could say the same thing about literally anything. I'm not in BC, I don't know what's going on over there, but based on this thread alone, I'm lead to believe that retailers don't care about not selling airsoft stuff to people under 18, which is fucked-up enough as it is, but gets even worse if folks then use said airsoft stuff for criminal activity.

Sure, airsoft's a sport, but a hockey stick looks like a hockey stick. A tennis racket looks like a tennis racket. An airsoft platform looks like a goddamn accurately-scaled officially licensed firearm, so people panicking is understandable.

If you're in BC, call that number and talk to the people behind it. See what's up, what their deal is. If all these shit-nanigans could be avoided by just, say, enforcing the no-sales-to-under-18 rule, tell them that. Be proactive like our dude Airmax.

True you could say that about anything, however for the airsoft retailers that are selling to minors, these are EXACTLY the type of people we do not want selling airsoft, or for that matter affiliated with the sport whatsoever. For them, (the retailers) it is about the bottom line, money, and they do not care about airsoft at heart or otherwise would not be selling to minors. As a legitimate business, they have a duty to request ID of anyone who appears to be a minor. I would suggest that those of us who love airsoft police these stores as well. Should we become aware of, and observe the sale of airsoft to underage individuals, then we have a duty to call them out and report them to the appropriate authorities. Trust me, they will lose their business license to operate. I know that this may cast a disparaging image on other legitimate retailers, however if we as a community hold retailers accountable for their actions, it will demonstrate to government and the watchers out there that not only are we as a community responsible and law abiding when it comes to airsoft, but we will also hold each other accountable for our actions.

[john3302]

Originally Posted by ThunderCactus

The solution is pretty obvious.
Let's just make it illegal to commit a crime with an airsoft gun.
There ya go, problem solved.
I don't want royalties for the idea, I'm just trying to make the world a better place. XD

Ha, ha. We are talking about politics here. Simple common sense does not apply.

[Spengler]

Originally Posted by Oberst39

True you could say that about anything, however for the airsoft retailers that are selling to minors, these are EXACTLY the type of people we do not want selling airsoft, or for that matter affiliated with the sport whatsoever. For them, (the retailers) it is about the bottom line, money, and they do not care about airsoft at heart or otherwise would not be selling to minors. As a legitimate business, they have a duty to request ID of anyone who appears to be a minor. I would suggest that those of us who love airsoft police these stores as well. Should we become aware of, and observe the sale of airsoft to underage individuals, then we have a duty to call them out and report them to the appropriate authorities. Trust me, they will lose their business license to operate. I know that this may cast a disparaging image on other legitimate retailers, however if we as a community hold retailers accountable for their actions, it will demonstrate to government and the watchers out there that not only are we as a community responsible and law abiding when it comes to airsoft, but we will also hold each other accountable for our actions.

Agreed! A legitimate business needs to obey the law. 18 and over.

[john3302]

Originally Posted by Oberst39

True you could say that about anything, however for the airsoft retailers that are selling to minors, these are EXACTLY the type of people we do not want selling airsoft, or for that matter affiliated with the sport whatsoever. For them, (the retailers) it is about the bottom line, money, and they do not care about airsoft at heart or otherwise would not be selling to minors. As a legitimate business, they have a duty to request ID of anyone who appears to be a minor. I would suggest that those of us who love airsoft police these stores as well. Should we become aware of, and observe the sale of airsoft to underage individuals, then we have a duty to call them out and report them to the appropriate authorities. Trust me, they will lose their business license to operate. I know that this may cast a disparaging image on other legitimate retailers, however if we as a community hold retailers accountable for their actions, it will demonstrate to government and the watchers out there that not only are we as a community responsible and law abiding when it comes to airsoft, but we will also hold each other accountable for our actions.

I would think that most kids and teenagers who own airsoft guns would do so with their parents knowledge. Maybe a very small percentage do not. Why would any retailer risk losing their business for a couple of thousand dollars a year? The problem would be some unscrupulous adult buying guns from retailers and selling them to minors. The same old story. Just like the gun crises in the US. Guns sold to individuals at gun shows with no regulation and then resold to criminals. I prefer Canadian gun laws to American ones, but as far as I am concerned, airsoft has nothing to do with that.

If a criminal walked into a store to rob it and told the clerk it was an airsoft gun, the clerk would most likely give him the money anyway, just as if he walked into the store with a baseball bat. Should we regulate baseball bats? Anything can be used as a weapon. Airsoft guns are not weapons. They are intended to tag their opponents, not injure them. The sport is safely regulated and most injuries come from falling. Football is more dangerous.

But I agree, an airsoft gun can be used to trick someone into thinking the threat is more dangerous. But a criminal could also use a bag and say it has a bomb in it. Should we regulate bags? Make stricter laws in regards to any object being used as a threat in a criminal act.

In the meantime, be responsible and keep your airsoft gun in a case and only use it on isolated property, or at a airsoft field. Each individual has to be accountable to protect the sport from too much regulation and its demise.

[Oberst39]

Originally Posted by john3302

In the meantime, be responsible and keep your airsoft gun in a case and only use it on isolated property, or at a airsoft field. Each individual has to be accountable to protect the sport from too much regulation and its demise.

I 100% agree, lets all act responsible and teach responsible gun handling and safe storage, whether it be real steel, airsoft, paintball, pellet or BB guns. It is up to us all to act and teach responsibly for the future survival of the sport. Enough said!

[PaulG.P]

Originally Posted by Oberst39

I 100% agree, lets all act responsible and teach responsible gun handling and safe storage, whether it be real steel, airsoft, paintball, pellet or BB guns. It is up to us all to act and teach responsibly for the future survival of the sport. Enough said!

I support your idea 100% !!!

[carlstens01]

Originally Posted by PaulG.P

I support your idea 100% !!!

I also support this idea! Prohibitions and restrictions will not solve the problem of crime, but will also add difficulties to ordinary fans of airsoft sports.
I like the system used in the UK. This is a very well-thought-out system!
But don't do something like what's done in the United States. I've read at https://samplius.com/free-essay-examples/gun-control/ about their rules, and I want to say that I doubt it will work. By the way, there are many interesting materials, so I recommend reading this resource.
All items can be weapons, but we do not prohibit everything in a row.
Remember: Airsoft guns are not weapons.

[Snerpydoodle]

Edit:Holy thread necro