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Peggy Hickenbottom, mother of three, salesman and former wedding-dress buyer, is in the crosshairs of Canadian politicians
By THANE BURNETT, TORONTO SUN
Peggy Hickenbottom is in the crosshairs of Canadian federal and provincial justice ministers.
What crime has she committed? They will consider whether they should blame her for the rash of gun murders, particularly in Toronto, this past summer.
This mom of three is from the American rural heartland.
This 42-year-old salesman, who once toiled as a wedding dress buyer.
Because, for 16 years, she has worked for the most respected company in Geneseo, Ill. -- the Springfield Armory, which is also one of the oldest gun makers in the U.S.
That makes her -- and the other 180 employees -- suspect, in the eyes of American left-wingers, and now some Canadian politicians, who see public relations value in again damning Americans for modern life.
During a preamble to a federal election, and against a cry to tackle gun crime at home, gun makers in the U.S. are a juicy target. So next month the ministers will consider whether the firms should be sued for what criminals are doing on our streets.
After all, Prime Minister Paul Martin says up to half of all gun crimes in this country are committed with firearms produced, stolen and smuggled from the U.S.
LEFT OUT
The voices of those who work for the plants have oddly been left out of the debate. So I simply picked up the phone.
"The criminals are the ones who are responsible," Peggy says. "I'm proud of my company. Of its integrity. Its history in this country and this community."
Springfield Armory, from as early as 1794, was a centre for the manufacture of U.S. military arms. Its location was hand-picked by then president George Washington. The arsenal played a part in the vote for a U.S. federal constitution and the push for a stronger central government. It has roots.
Peggy would be glad if her three sons -- a 12-year-old and twins who are 9 -- one day came to work for Springfield. Though, as of now, they are too young to hunt.
"They can't even point their toys at people," says Peggy.
She adds: "But they are very proud of what Mom does."
Her company labours under the tightest guidelines possible, she continues, adding she will work there until she retires.
James Skildum once sold hockey sticks and baseball bats. In 1980, he helped found Magnum Research Inc. in Minnesota. They create the world's most powerful handguns.
You're familiar with them. You just probably don't know it.
Their Desert Eagle pistol was Arnold Schwarzenegger's favourite in his films and is used in the Matrix trilogy.
Two years ago the National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People (NAACP) took various firearm makers -- including Magnum -- to court, blaming them for criminal shootings in African-American communities. The association lost, but it cost the companies at least $20 million in legal costs.
"There's no buckets of money (in the gun business)," says Skildum, 60, from his company's Minneapolis headquarters.
"I wish there were."
In 1999, the U.S. gun industry made less than $200 million in profits. All combined, they don't qualify for Fortune 500 status.
Almost every U.S. gun maker -- producing weapons for police and the military -- could not stand the kind of legal judgments found against the tobacco firms, says Skildum.
And if Canada wants to have at them, time is slipping away.
Families of victims of the Maryland sniper won $2.5 million in a case against the manufacturer which made the weapons used in the attacks. But just six days ago, the U.S. Congress passed the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act, which protects gun makers against frivolous lawsuits.
CHECKS AND BALANCES
Skildum said it's not inevitable legal weapons will end up in the hands of criminals, including here in Toronto.
"It's clearly a lethal product ... it's there in the design," he says, but adds, the industry is working to stress proper storage and checks and balances when owners sell guns.
Paul Pluff, at 47, has worked for Smith and Wesson for the past 27 years. His father-in-law, brother-in-law and wife, at one time or another, worked for the Massachusetts-based gun maker. One co-worker's family has a 120-year history with the plant. So he bristles when his industry is attacked -- an easy target, he says, when you can't stop real criminals.
"We're portrayed as non-caring, willing to break the rules," he says. "But we take the regulations seriously ... criminals, however, don't."
If lawsuits were launched against every product ever used as a weapon -- from cars to baseball bats to kitchen knives -- the North American economy would go bust, he's sure.
Something has been lost in the debate, he adds of politicians and activists who would target companies like Smith and Wesson -- even from here, across the border.
"People are no longer held accountable for their own actions," fumes Pluff.
"Now, not even criminals."
By THANE BURNETT, TORONTO SUN
Peggy Hickenbottom is in the crosshairs of Canadian federal and provincial justice ministers.
What crime has she committed? They will consider whether they should blame her for the rash of gun murders, particularly in Toronto, this past summer.
This mom of three is from the American rural heartland.
This 42-year-old salesman, who once toiled as a wedding dress buyer.
Because, for 16 years, she has worked for the most respected company in Geneseo, Ill. -- the Springfield Armory, which is also one of the oldest gun makers in the U.S.
That makes her -- and the other 180 employees -- suspect, in the eyes of American left-wingers, and now some Canadian politicians, who see public relations value in again damning Americans for modern life.
During a preamble to a federal election, and against a cry to tackle gun crime at home, gun makers in the U.S. are a juicy target. So next month the ministers will consider whether the firms should be sued for what criminals are doing on our streets.
After all, Prime Minister Paul Martin says up to half of all gun crimes in this country are committed with firearms produced, stolen and smuggled from the U.S.
LEFT OUT
The voices of those who work for the plants have oddly been left out of the debate. So I simply picked up the phone.
"The criminals are the ones who are responsible," Peggy says. "I'm proud of my company. Of its integrity. Its history in this country and this community."
Springfield Armory, from as early as 1794, was a centre for the manufacture of U.S. military arms. Its location was hand-picked by then president George Washington. The arsenal played a part in the vote for a U.S. federal constitution and the push for a stronger central government. It has roots.
Peggy would be glad if her three sons -- a 12-year-old and twins who are 9 -- one day came to work for Springfield. Though, as of now, they are too young to hunt.
"They can't even point their toys at people," says Peggy.
She adds: "But they are very proud of what Mom does."
Her company labours under the tightest guidelines possible, she continues, adding she will work there until she retires.
James Skildum once sold hockey sticks and baseball bats. In 1980, he helped found Magnum Research Inc. in Minnesota. They create the world's most powerful handguns.
You're familiar with them. You just probably don't know it.
Their Desert Eagle pistol was Arnold Schwarzenegger's favourite in his films and is used in the Matrix trilogy.
Two years ago the National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People (NAACP) took various firearm makers -- including Magnum -- to court, blaming them for criminal shootings in African-American communities. The association lost, but it cost the companies at least $20 million in legal costs.
"There's no buckets of money (in the gun business)," says Skildum, 60, from his company's Minneapolis headquarters.
"I wish there were."
In 1999, the U.S. gun industry made less than $200 million in profits. All combined, they don't qualify for Fortune 500 status.
Almost every U.S. gun maker -- producing weapons for police and the military -- could not stand the kind of legal judgments found against the tobacco firms, says Skildum.
And if Canada wants to have at them, time is slipping away.
Families of victims of the Maryland sniper won $2.5 million in a case against the manufacturer which made the weapons used in the attacks. But just six days ago, the U.S. Congress passed the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act, which protects gun makers against frivolous lawsuits.
CHECKS AND BALANCES
Skildum said it's not inevitable legal weapons will end up in the hands of criminals, including here in Toronto.
"It's clearly a lethal product ... it's there in the design," he says, but adds, the industry is working to stress proper storage and checks and balances when owners sell guns.
Paul Pluff, at 47, has worked for Smith and Wesson for the past 27 years. His father-in-law, brother-in-law and wife, at one time or another, worked for the Massachusetts-based gun maker. One co-worker's family has a 120-year history with the plant. So he bristles when his industry is attacked -- an easy target, he says, when you can't stop real criminals.
"We're portrayed as non-caring, willing to break the rules," he says. "But we take the regulations seriously ... criminals, however, don't."
If lawsuits were launched against every product ever used as a weapon -- from cars to baseball bats to kitchen knives -- the North American economy would go bust, he's sure.
Something has been lost in the debate, he adds of politicians and activists who would target companies like Smith and Wesson -- even from here, across the border.
"People are no longer held accountable for their own actions," fumes Pluff.
"Now, not even criminals."
