Oh, I like where
this is going...
My thought's exactly... I think we touched a nerve. We're not talking about "impressing" anyone. It's basic knowledge that has legal implications.
I'd love to take service and quality... so there's my two but unfortunately in southern Saskatchewan our options are very limited. There is no gun shop in my city. We have WalMart and Canadian Tire. Neither sell rifles or reloading stuff.
If I can wait for something I will always shop through Marlin at Frontier Firearms in Prince Albert... but he doesn't carry the reloading stuff I need... but for rifles and scopes and other things like that... he is always the first guy I call because his service is top notch and the quality is always there. If not, he'll do whatever he can to make things right.
I should add about the store in Saskatoon. There is a beautiful young woman who works the archery counter and I would put her knowledge up against most of the other staff at the store.
I simply question the requirements that WSS use to select new employees and the training, or lack there of, they recieve afterwards.
When you get hired at McDonalds you don't just get tossed on the grill and get told to cook or get put on the till and told to take money. They teach you what to do. Can you imagine if you walked into a McDonalds and asked for a Big Mac and the person behind the counter said, "what's a Big Mac?".
To go back to the OP, imagine if someone with an RPAL purchased the rifle in question and then went hunting with it. Was caught and tried to explain to the CO that the guy at WSS told him he could. If you don't have the knowledge to work the gun desk then there are always shelves that need restocking.
I'll use another example. You go to a garage to have your oil changed in the middle of winter. The guy at the shop making minimum wage puts the wrong oil in because he doesn't have the proper knowledge. IT'S THE SAME THING!