HANNAFORD: Bear spray registry doesn't help anybody except councillors wanting to look good

It is easy to mock the City of Edmonton for its ‘bear-spray registry.’And we will do so: the city’s intention to record the vital statistics of anybody buying bear spray and to introduce restrictions at the point of sale is typical woke progressivism. As with restrictive gun laws, lawmakers support regulations such as these because they offer the comfortable illusion of action taken, by jiminy, with the obligation of an uncertain enforcement shouldered by the local constabulary.Way to go Edmonton. That’ll show ’em.But could there be a case for a bear-spray registry?No, but If there is, it would probably be that it’s commonly used among street people to attack and rob each other. In 2020, the CBC reported more than 3,400 cases in Edmonton where bear, dog or pepper spray was involved. And it’s a national phenomenon. The same article reported more than 400 cases in Vancouver, although in Calgary it’s still considered newsworthy.Certainly, it’s nasty stuff — you really don’t want to try it out to see what it's like. It’s also illegal to use it against other people: It’s considered a weapon and Section 90 of the Canadian Criminal Code provides for up to five years for concealed carry — even for self-defence — unless you’re out in the woods.However, it’s worth noting that most instances of its use are near transit stations — 62% within100 metres — or within 400 metres of schools. So, the question for the Edmonton City Council is really this — 'You know where and what the problem is: vulnerable people in public places. What are you doing about it?'And it's the right question. Progressives hate spending money on law enforcement. Actually so too do penny-pinching social conservatives. But unless you're living in a community where people have strong moral convictions (wherever they got them) about respect for property and the lives and dignity of others — and are not driven to desperation by addiction — you have to do it. The first obligation of government is protecting its citizens. Right Edmonton?That takes more than passing a bylaw. To be honest, it also takes more than extra police officers. But that's the place to start. Passing a bylaw to register a spray can that doesn't even have a serial number is not going to do much.Why would that be? Canada being Canada, the right to self defence is always one test case away from being lost. But if people feel insecure, they may well reason that if they're threatened with a knife — or in the case of a vulnerable woman, just plain threatened — the blade is the more immediate risk than jail at some time in the future.Projecting soft on crime and dreaming up bylaws is just avoiding the real issue. Some people live in a dangerous place and they deserve protection as much as those who don't.Not all the dangerous animals are in the forest.