r/canadaguns • u/drakkosquest • Feb 27 '26
News / Politics / Activism Garbage Journalism
Sent a message and considering emailing the journalist personally. Read the title, read the article, look at the photo. This is the kind of garbage journalism that leaves uninformed Canadians supporting Gun Grab policies. Its not just the CBC.
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u/Tarin2021 Feb 27 '26
Caveat didn’t read article however
Transportation requirement of a non restricted firearm is simply “unloaded”. Many take a higher standard (trigger lock, case), but that’s not required.
So how about “firearm transported in compliance with the law…”
And In other non-reportable news “breaking news: a Canadian bought a double double at Timmys”…
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u/SirKickBan Feb 27 '26
If I had to guess, the issue is probably that she was transporting the firearm while impaired (Or at least suspected to be, according to the article), which could constitute 'careless' behaviour. It is weird they don't actually emphasize what the real problem is in the article, though, and instead just imply that it's the type of firearm that's at issue.
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u/cartman101 Feb 27 '26
My firearms instructor basically told us "yes, it's legal to have your shotgun unloaded on the dash of your car while driving, but just because it's legal, doesn't mean you won't get the cops called on by some unaware Ottawa citizen. Meanwhile, in rural Alberta, no one will even look twice."
Honestly, when I go shooting at the range, I just keep my gun(s) wrapped in a blanket or something and in my trunk. No risk of being hassled.
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u/GodsGiftToWrenching Feb 28 '26
Exactly, why spend money on gun cases when you can spend 30 bucks at princess auto, get a surplus wool blanket, wrap your guns in that and transport them. Leaves you with more money in the gun/ammo fund!
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u/specificallyrelative Feb 27 '26
OMG a gopher plinker being transported legally according to the written rules, OH THE HUMANITY! Our "press" is a damn embarrassment.
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u/groggygirl Feb 27 '26
They suspected the driver was impaired and made an arrest.
They didn't say where the gun was - I'm assuming it wasn't loaded or there would be other charges. So the gun is a bit of a nothingburger...although driving drunk with a gun and ammo does suggest that you're not making great decisions around guns and maybe shouldn't have a PAL.
Honestly I'm more impressed that the used a pic of the actual gun rather than the generic AK pic.
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u/Backslash_3 Feb 27 '26
Is it not a semi-automatic rifle?
Let people see that not all semis are scary looking
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u/swift_gilford Feb 27 '26
while true, the issue is headlines are meant to be grabby and people often don't read whole articles. Unfortunately a large portion of people not in the know, will just start to associate police encounters + "semi autos" which will continue to demonize the style of firearm.
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u/gihkal Feb 27 '26
I'm impressed the news didn't label it a "nearly automatic" rifle
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u/Wiggum13 Feb 27 '26
Thank god they only had standard ammo. And not mini mags. Or there could have been some serious damage. Close call. Holy.
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u/feeddageek Feb 27 '26
It is not standard ammo, stinger are hollow point ! He had cop killer bullet with him 😱 /s
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Feb 27 '26
Hope you sent him an email to call him out on his crass jounalism. Impaired driving is what should be reported. As far as we know, there's no offence related to the .22.
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u/CorsicanMastiffStrip Feb 27 '26
I mean, I guess it isn’t exactly a good look for us, but “garbage”? The article isn’t misrepresenting anything, as far as I can tell. Dude was being sketchy in a van, police issued a stop, he didn’t stop immediately, then he did, police found ammo on his person then found the rifle in the shitbox.
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u/kurobiii Feb 27 '26
There is no loaded magazine, just a box of .22LR.
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u/do_u_like_stuff Feb 27 '26
It’s probably in the evidence bag to avoid getting compromised by being touched by by anyone. That way they can take fingerprints etc from the mag and loaded ammo.
Still is a misleading headline. Any cop who does rural policing will find a whole lot of vehicles with guns inside and a magazine in the glove box or pockets all the time, especially during hunting season. Hell most of us rural folk will drive with the rifle on our lap and mag in our pocket and its totally legal unless the gun itself is loaded or if the person doesn’t have a valid pal or a prohibition.
Trust me, almost every rural cop, including horse police and 100% against the gun stealing fairytale. Most of them are being victims of the OIC as well.
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u/kurobiii Feb 27 '26
It is definitely misleading regardless, because even with a loaded magazine it's still legal to transport as long as it's not in the firearm. A whole lot of nothing sandwich in that article.
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Feb 27 '26
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u/kurobiii Feb 27 '26
No, it's just weird that they're not taking a photo of the magazine, why would it be the only item in a bag? I've seen oddly large items be put into tamper-proof evidence bags so I doubt it's a size issue, and the comically small box of .22LR is also outside of a bag.
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u/EnvironmentalBox6688 Feb 27 '26
In the evidence bag?
Hard to say it's "garbage journalism!!!!" When it's an objective statement of facts.
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u/DuperCheese Feb 27 '26
It’s garbage because the sensational headline is taking advantage of the general public’s ignorance about the subject to raise fear and smear law abiding firearms owners.
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u/xthemoonx Feb 27 '26
Reminds me of seeing 5 cops pose in front of a gram of weed for a photo op and think they are serving justice or some dumb shit.
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u/Wokeforpepe Feb 27 '26
Where’s the “loaded magazine” for the police’s BIG ASSAULT STYLE murder weapon? What a failed opportunity to scare the parents
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u/falap Feb 27 '26
Yeah I complained about this one by "reporting a mistake" the moment I saw it:
Hello Jeff, The mistake here is that this is not news, and by publishing this non-story and having people read it, you are pushing a false narrative, whether you know it or not.
I'd argue that in all likelihood, the individual was licensed to possess that rifle, which is an ordinary non-restricted firearm. Furthermore, since your article makes no mention of the firearm being loaded, it is perfectly legal to transport. Also, having magazines in one's possession, loaded or not, is also perfectly legal.
How did you obtain this non-story? Did the police release a statement or did you receive some other tip?
What goals do you have when publishing a piece like this? Is it to push a fear-mongering anti-gun narrative? Is this intentional? Does your outlet agree with or do they force this narrative.
Thank you for your consideration.
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u/Current-Speed4096 Feb 27 '26
nothing factually wrong with the title. But it's the hidden facts that's intentionally not mentioned that's misleading people to believe the narrative of “dangerous assault weapons” out there floating around. It's a typical intellectually dishonest writing.
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u/nortontwo Feb 27 '26
Weird article. Regular traffic stop for suspected impairment, no mention of search finding intoxicants or evidence of intoxicants, impairment tests. Just that they found a rifle and ammo in the car (no mention that it is a mere .22). Judging by the photo the police seems to have confiscated the rifle, ostensibly not illegally owned nor carried (otherwise that’d definitely be a headline item).
Not only is the article intellectually dishonest, if you look at Jeff Bell’s other articles, he is pretty clearly a high volume - low quality ‘journalist’ that publishes brief sponsored stories fairly often.
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u/wehauntthewoods Feb 27 '26
This is rifle racism. Hes only scared of the 64 because its a different color.
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u/jaraxel_arabani Feb 27 '26
The whole point is to fear monger.... Telling the writer would change nothing
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u/Emergency_Rooster511 Feb 27 '26
You’re right, but you should tell the editor and executives how you feel, and cc the writer.
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u/jaraxel_arabani Feb 27 '26
I like your optimism, imo it's the executives and the editor that wanted this.
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u/Emergency_Rooster511 Feb 27 '26
Oh, definitely. I’m also petty enough that even if I just slightly annoyed them it would be worth the effort. I’d love to be the guy they went home and complained about after work.
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u/pasegr Feb 27 '26
Unpopular opinion but the reporting is accurate, .22 or not its a semi automatic rifle, and the magazine was loaded and found in the driver's pocket. How else would you report it?
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u/black_covfefe_please Feb 27 '26
It may be "accurate" but it misleads the average reader. The implication is that it was somehow illegal. Nothing in the headline or byline includes anything illegal. Are they going to start reporting every time someone is pulled over with a coffee or with a cell phone in their pocket?
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u/prosper_0 Feb 27 '26 edited Feb 27 '26
the question is why you would report it in the first place? There's nothing wrong, malicious, illegal or newsworthy (or even interesting) about the fact of its existence or its presence.
Better less 'bait-y' reporting would be to headline the reason for the pull-over. "Intoxicated driver found driving, with firearms present" (for example) might be more honest and less "let's lead people to a conclusion." Leading with "semi-automatic..." in this current climate makes it sound like the driver was on the way to shoot up a school or something. It's dishonest, even if factual. The way you decide to present the facts (and indeed, which facts you decide to present) matters.
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u/MasterScore8739 Feb 27 '26
That’s my thoughts on this too.
Does it come across a little skewed to sound worse to someone unfamiliar with firearms? Sure, maybe a little bit.
However if I was looking for a new rifle I’d probably say something along the lines of “I’m wanting to add a new semi auto to the safe, don’t know what I want yet though.”
Hell look at some of the threads even in this sub. Usually it’s some form of “I’m wanting a new semi-auto in X-calibre.” or “what semi-autos are left to actually buy?”
All the journalists did was describe the rifle exactly as it is, but left the calibre out of the equation.
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u/kinghalifax902 Feb 27 '26
Be carefull that .22 is the worlds deadliest sniper rifle
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Feb 27 '26
[deleted]
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u/kinghalifax902 Feb 27 '26
Im not discounting how lethal it can be.. but they way it’s reported is meant to put fear into the uneducated..
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u/prosgorandom2 Feb 27 '26
Garbage journalism? This is journalism. This is the media. Their purpose is to subtly brainwash the lowest common denominator.
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u/madbuilder Feb 27 '26
What's wrong here is ignorance about guns because most people will never get a chance to be around them thanks to the restrictive licensing system that you all support.
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u/JaxIsLoud Feb 27 '26
Please identify what is restrictive about the licencing part? Can't be a felon, domestic violence. What?
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u/madbuilder Feb 27 '26 edited Feb 27 '26
Very fair question. I will do my best. I should avoid the word restrictive since that's similar to restricted, a word with a technical meaning.
Preface. Personally I was given one opportunity to be around firearms. When I was about 13 y/o I spent a day at a range outside of my major city. The safety course left a strong impression on me. I was able to do some target practice and clay shooting IIRC. Most boys don't get that chance. This journalist with her ignorant comments is a DIRECT product of this kind of big-city culture.
Can't be a felon, domestic violence
(1) We don't have felonies anymore but I don't think a clean criminal record is onerous. (2) I believe your right to possess can be revoked at any time for any reason, by family, friends or neighbours. (3) Restricteds are now, I understand, completely unobtainable by mortals. This ties in with self defense being unacceptable. (4) And of course perfectly safe and modest, low-calibre arms are being outlawed. That is unreasonable, because disarming people makes them less safe.
And so my principle objection to the current regime is that it treats self-sufficient people as inherently more dangerous than those who wish to entrust their safety to a state which does not fundamentally care about them. We all know this is statistically a false premise. Licensing does not make you a better anything. It just selects for those who are really committed to do X.
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u/mcfoolnew Feb 27 '26
You could take down an airplane with that high powered tactical semi-automatic sniper assault style rifle !!!! The children will never be able to go outside again.
God I hate it here
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u/Stonecutter099 Feb 27 '26
The same part of Canada that had no problem hiring Australian contractors to indiscriminately fly around the island and shoot deer from helicopters with those evil AR15s are losing their minds when a citizen has a .22 plinker...
The bigger story is that the driver was impaired, not the fact that there was a plinker present. But that part of the truth doesn't sell papers or get clicks.
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u/Zatzy Feb 27 '26
WE SHOULD ALL BE AFRAID. VERY AFRAID. The propaganda will continue until we all appropriately AFRAID. I liked the part at the end where they said it was sent to the crown to "consider charges".
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Feb 27 '26
[deleted]
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u/Xaxxus Feb 27 '26
I mean… a .22 CAN kill you.
But .22s are basically plinking guns. The media needs to get that part into their head.
You won’t ever see a 22 on the battlefield. And almost certainly won’t see criminals using them.
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u/Fearless-Dirt6848 Feb 27 '26 edited Feb 27 '26
Not true at all. Chechens used silenced .22LR (which in a city environment are actually nearly silent) to such good effect on Grozny that the Russians developed their own .22LR rifle - the SV99 as a counter measure.
.22LR is a killer - and nearly silent.
https://frontierpartisans.com/22-war/#:~:text=The%20use%20of%20a%20.,in%20the%20top%20photo)%3A
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Feb 27 '26
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u/__WayDown Feb 27 '26
Why is it so common in this sub to post a screenshot of a headline rather than just posting the article?
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u/black_covfefe_please Feb 27 '26
Knowing police speak, I'm sure the "evasion" was simply looking for a safe place to pull over.
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u/mr_hog232323 Feb 27 '26
Ammo wasnt locked up, loaded mag in his pocket, and suspected drunk driving. The gun wasn't the cause of the arrest.
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u/RodgerWolf311 Feb 27 '26
The funniest is when they include photos of BB guns and sub-495 fps air rifles in photos and the captions are "high power rifles". lol
The worst one I saw was a literal plastic toy cap gun with the orange tip and it was captioned "9mm handgun".
This is why no one trusts or believes news media outlets any more. They just openly lie.
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u/Infanttree Feb 28 '26
Wait, thats not a semi auto rifle and a box of ammo?
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u/Jaded-Juggernaut-244 Mar 01 '26
"Infantrree likes to keep their comments hidden..."
There are so many accounts hiding comments now. It's too bad, being able to see comments helps to add context to posts like this by giving a flavor of where they're coming from.
Reddit is becoming really tiresome and boring. Time to move on soon, I think. All the conservative subs are being invaded by bots and lefties looking to troll or dunk and they don't even have the courage to keep their comment history visible on a virtually anonymous platform. Pretty pathetic and weak.
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u/Infanttree Mar 01 '26
Infantree keeps his comments hidden because the nature of some of them and the size of our military has allowed people to reach out in an unprofessional manner.
You dont need to flavor my comments, I read the post but had no more context and the OP provided it. It seems like we had a short but meaningful exchange and now I understand the posters' issue more clearly.
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u/Jaded-Juggernaut-244 Mar 01 '26
Yeah, I'm sure foreign powers care deeply who you are. Keep up the good work, James.
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u/Infanttree Mar 02 '26 edited Mar 02 '26
You are ridiculous. Its that there were contacts AT WORK with my subordinates. Its not spy shit.
Doxxing myself by posting which base I was at or opinions on specific events. So I covered it all in order to maintain a level of professionalism from the recruits I deal with face to face.
Just my username narrows me down to 1 in 23,000 people. Mentioning a base or training can narrow me down to within 20 people.
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u/Jaded-Juggernaut-244 Mar 02 '26
LOL!! Someone takes themselves very seriously.
Perhaps I am ridiculous. I've been called worse by better people. 🤷🏻♂️ Feel free to open another account and not doxx yourself and engage fully. Just a wild thought.
So, you needed extra context for that headline and picture eh? Uh huh.
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u/Infanttree Mar 02 '26
I mean this in the most empathetic way possible. You need to step away from the computer for a little bit. No one on the Canada Guns reddit is your enemy (at least Im not) and it seems like you are pretty angry.
You are behaving ignorantly and treating everyone you interract with suspiciously, its not edgy or trolling, and there are more important things than a gotcha on your own team on an internet message board.
Go do something with family or have some range therapy man.
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u/Infanttree Mar 02 '26
Yes, I take myself seriously, just like my job and my responsibilty as a firearms owner. You should too. If you arent viewing everything through whatever psycho lenses you have on I cant see how this could be skewed. Its a picture of a semi auto rifle with a box of ammunition. The headline reads "Semi automatic rifle, ammo, found in Saanich traffic stop" no lies, no embelishments no further information is given.
Why this upset someone enough to post it is ambiguous. This person evaded police, while intoxicated and had a gun.
To me, this is a criminal comiting a crime with a firearm present or do you think that shouldnt be reported? Maybe it was in some way inflammatory?
You didnt even say that, you just called me a bot and carried on like an actual crazy person...with your own post history hidden.
There is no information on whether it was a licensed firearm owner, a stolen firearm or anything else. If you're mad at a reporter for reporting the facts maybe you should be mad at the moron driving around with a 22 in their car after a few beers. They should know better.
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u/Jaded-Juggernaut-244 Mar 02 '26
My post history is not hidden. At least it's not restricted on my end, I am showing visibility on 13 communities...you should be able to see my activity. If not, well I have no answer for that.
And, you've missed the whole point of the original post. You're welcome to your opinion. Did you see me jump to the accused person's defense???
The OP already explained it to you, but you just don't seem to get it. It has nothing to do with the jackhole idiot drinking and driving with a firearm in the vehicle. It has to do with how the article is framed by the media with no context immediately obvious. We live in a society of soundbites and headlines.
Technically correct makes not a fully truthful story given the circumstances of firearms ownership in this country.
You think because I said some words on Reddit, that automatically makes me irresponsible somehow? That I'm not serious about firearms? Sounds like leftist thinking to me...I don't think like you, therefore I am irresponsible or unserious about guns? We should all think the same, act the same. Maybe in the military or in an authoritarian society...I ain't in either of those yet so, you can shove that shit buddy.
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u/AdeptArt Mar 02 '26
Guys, keep it civil. I'll be locking this comment chain before it gets any worse. What needs to be said has already been said.
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u/drakkosquest Feb 28 '26
Yes. Technically it is.
My issue with the article is that it came across disingenuous and the only crime that was actually committed was the alleged impaired driving.
Magazine in the pocket, box of .22lr and the .22 rifle being in the vehicle is not illegal.
The author didnt ask or answer any pertinent context giving questions and framed the whole article, seeming purposefully to obfuscate the situation and imply heavily that the semi auto was the crux of the issue.
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u/Infanttree Mar 02 '26
Thats fair, but I think you should be more focused on the fact the person was already commiting a crime and also had a firearm present. The sheer stupidity of that in itself is staggering. Then they decided to attempt to evade police.
Did the article mention if it was a legally obtained firearm or if the driver was licensed to have it?
Seems like this is exactly why licenses (vehicle and firearm) should be revoked.
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u/taco_sausage_sundae Mar 01 '26
The free press in London had an article about a teen that illegally had a .22 rifle and 50 rounds. A redditor made the comment, 'that boy was ready for war!'
That statement told me the mindset of ignorant liberals. I wanted to post a pic of MY basement but I know better than that!
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u/lee--carvallo Feb 27 '26
What a bell end. I have half a mind to email the website
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Feb 27 '26
[deleted]
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u/lee--carvallo Feb 27 '26
If you think this is an "objective" headline I can already tell you we're not going to see eye-to-eye on this
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u/erryonestolemyname Feb 27 '26
That is literally a semi auto rifle.
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u/Jaded-Juggernaut-244 Mar 01 '26
Yeah thanks, we hadn't figured that out until you came along. Thank you so much.
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u/aoteoroa Feb 27 '26
I don't blame the journalist. This idiot makes the rest of us law abiding gun owners look bad.
He was driving erratically and pulled over for suspected imparement. Had the loaded magazine in his pocket, and a box of ammo next to the driver's seat. The article doesn't say where the gun was, but it's a minivan so it wasn't locked in the trunk. Most reasonable people would at least have a trigger lock or a case if they're transporting. If my TM22 gets banned it's going to be because of guys like this.
Source article:
https://www.timescolonist.com/local-news/semi-automatic-rifle-ammo-found-in-central-saanich-traffic-stop-11933145
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u/Emergency_Rooster511 Feb 27 '26
Why would most reasonable people have a trigger lock or case when the legal requirement is simply for the firearm to be unloaded?
The only piece of the article worth reporting was that the driver was suspected of impairment, the remainder were irrelevant details, however factual. The author is being disingenuous and it is shit journalism.
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u/aoteoroa Feb 27 '26
I agree. It is legal to transport in a vehicle, while it's unloaded.
Having the magazine in your pocket, and spare ammo next to the driver seat, and no case or trigger lock is bad because crown can easily argue that the gun is "ready for use". At that point the gun is no longer being transported. It is being carried. If you had a gun next to you, and a loaded magazine in your pocket, how long would it take to fire...probably less than five seconds.
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u/Emergency_Rooster511 Feb 27 '26
I completely understand where you’re coming from, but the point here is that the firearm can be legally transported in that state. “Not ready for use” is nowhere to be found in the requirements. Your point about the crown arguing it’s carried rather than transported, while wrong, is also missing the point, as that’s not illegal either. The NR firearm was unloaded, that’s all it needed to be. If it were brandished in a threatening manner that would be a different story. To go above and beyond, no matter how much safer it makes you feel with regard to evading prosecution, is unnecessary. No different than people trigger locking their NR firearms while having them locked in a safe, it’s a personal choice. I’m 100% for responsible ownership, but we do ourselves no favours by acting like there was any wrongdoing here based on anything other than the alleged impairment. The remainder is deliberate misrepresentation of fact just to be inflammatory, and ought to be condemned as such.
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u/prosper_0 Feb 27 '26
You've clearly grown up in the city. This is 1000% normal in most of the country. There is always a box of 22's in basically every glove box, and in pockets during hunting season. 'Truck guns' are a thing. Hell, what do you think 'ranch rifle' means?
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u/black_covfefe_please Feb 27 '26
All you did was recite the facts of legal transportation. This is a very normal way to transport a gun if you are going hunting or to shoot a nuisance small animal.
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u/Proppedupandwaving Feb 27 '26
more annoying that the person was driving with a loaded magazine
Is plinking so urgent that 20 seconds of loading is too long?
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u/GrayCustomKnives Feb 27 '26
It’s perfectly legal to have a loaded magazine in transport as long as it’s not in the firearm.
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u/Reasonable_Hall2346 Feb 27 '26
I preload all my magazines prior to the range. For my 22, they would be reported as extended high capacity magazines. 4 or 5 25 round tm22 magazines. I can imagine how scared Saanich reporters would be.
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u/theservman on Feb 27 '26
A Savage 64F and a whole box of 22LR? What an arsenal!