MICHAEL WALSH: Toronto Discovers the Joys of ‘Diversity.’ Rising violence, increasing fear — so naturally Canadian officials blame guns.
Rattled by string of violent attacks, Toronto wonders if city is unraveling
As residents grapple with the latest attack to hit the city in recent months, some are asking whether it was becoming less safe
Detectives in Canada are still seeking a motive for a mass shooting which left three dead – including the gunman – and injured more than a dozen others, as residents of Toronto grapple with the latest in a string of violent incidents to hit Canada’s biggest city in recent months.
Federal officials said on Tuesday that there was no terror link to Sunday’s attack in which the lone gunman opened fire along a bustling avenue in the city, seemingly shooting at random at pedestrians and into shops and restaurants. “At this time, there is no national security nexus to the investigation,” said a spokesperson for the ministry of public safety. The attack killed two people, a recent high school graduate Reese Fallon and 10-year-old Julianna Kozis. The 13 injured include six women and girls, as well as seven men.
Authorities have not yet publicly speculated on the motive of the gunman, Faisal Hussain, or explained how he obtained the handgun used in the attack. In a statement, his family cited his lifelong struggle with depression and psychosis, noting that professional help, medication and therapy had failed to help him.
I would say his name alone is a pretty good clue as to the gunman’s motivation. Note the usual “no connection to terrorism” bromide about an incident that is obviously terrorism, committed by a “known wolf” Pakistani Muslim exercising his religious freedom to kill the infidel wherever he may find us. But as long as the authorities and the media continue to pretend that only provable-in-courts-of-law conspiracy cases are “terror links,” the public will continue to be ill-served about the scope of the problem.