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After the United States, Canada is one of the largest owners of private guns in the developed world. There’s about 31 guns for every 100 people, putting Canada in 12th place worldwide — and only three guns short of the rate of firearm ownership in war-torn Iraq.

But compared to our American neighbours, Canadians are disproportionately skilled at keeping these guns from killing people.

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We Canadians may have one-third the rate of guns as the U.S., but we have only one seventh the gun murder rate, and one fifth of the overall gun death rate. If the United States had our stats, several thousand extra Americans would get to the end of 2016 without being shot to death.

Why? As shown in the above video, it may simply be a matter of attitude.

A mere five per cent of Canadian gun owners see their rifle or shotgun as something that’s going to protect them from muggers or home invaders — so Brown Bess spends most of her time locked up in the basement.

In the United States, “personal protection” is cited by a whopping 60 per cent of gun owners.