The thwarting of an alleged Valentine’s Day massacre in Halifax underlines the fundamental absurdity of Canada’s anti-terror laws.

According to police, three alleged plotters planned to shoot and kill dozens Saturday at a Halifax shopping mall.

Had such a plan succeeded, the effect would have almost certainly been mass terror in the Nova Scotia capital.

Yet Justice Minister Peter MacKay says this was not a terrorist crime. “The attack does not appear to have been culturally motivated, therefore not linked to terrorism,” he told reporters Saturday.