Victory for Knife Rights Advocates
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
While the area of firearms rights is seeing some improvement, knives have always gotten the short shift. Most legislatures aren't that interested in addressing problems and inconsistencies and there isn't much case law. What we are left with is a myriad of confusing and sometimes contradictory laws and regulations, including local statutes. Additionally, there aren't very many knife rights groups and they have nowhere near the funds of the NRA, though they have gotten involved in this case.
Volokh reported that the Senate has proposed an amendment to the Federal Switchblade Act that will clean up some of the language so that a proposed change by officials/assbag busybodies at Customs that would have brought a who;e bunch of other knives under that law. This is what the new law says. A switchblade is NOT:
a knife that contains a spring, detent, or other mechanism designed to create a bias toward closure of the blade and that requires exertion applied to the blade by hand, wrist, or arm to overcome the bias toward closure to assist in opening the knife.
I don't really see how banning switchblades keeps us safe, but I am glad this is coming from the Senate and Obama is expected to sign it. I am hoping that this will clean up some Michigan laws, as I frequently carry this knife:
If you look at the top of the blade near the handle, you will see a "hook". That is called the "wave" and assists in opening the blade. There are many other kinds of knives with similar features, such as springs that assist in opening the blade when pressure is applied. There have been instances of municipalities charging people carrying them with violating switchblade laws, so hopefully this will clear things up.
5 comments:
Is the knife carried for self defense purposes?
My younger brother made some nice ones before he died.
Yeah, I've often wondered why 2nd-amendment advocacy groups don't give the same level of attention to knives, nunchucks, brass knuckles, land mines, tasers, flamethrowers, large wooden sticks, mace (either the spiked-ball-on-a-chain kind or the eye-irritant kind), bazookas... or frankly anything but traditional firearms.
All are helpful for defending yourself from the government, criminals, and foreign nations... but none get a lot of love. Why?
Say what you want about the ACLU (and I could say plenty), but I've seen them take the unpopular side of cases because of the underlying principle at stake. They've supported Neo-Nazis, the Klan, and the Westboro Baptist Church (I recommend against it, but I challenge anyone to read their actual website and tell me with a straight face that they could publicly side with these degenerates), all in the name of upholding the 1st amendment.
In the 2nd amendment movement, I don't see the same willingness to support the unsupportable because
of the underlying principle.
Am I off base here?
Yes, the knife is carried for self-defense, but also for cutting boxes and more day-to-day stuff. I know a few knifemakers. Fascinating work.
B-mac, I had thought the same thing, but then I noticed that the NRA had gotten involved in this matter. I can't speak for all of the various 2nd Amendment groups, but I think their focus on firearms has more to do with the fact that most laws and regulations focus on that, as opposed to other self-defense tools, and that it isn't because they don't think they are important. The squeaky wheel gets the grease.
On the flip side, there aren't reall any anti-knife groups, like there are anti-gun groups.
Considering that a knife in the hands of a kids might make an accidental wound, but won't get another kids head accidentally blown off, knife rights seems fine to me. A knife also isn't going to travel through my neighbors wall and kill a member of my family either.
That said, we chould remember what a bunch of dudes with boxcutters pulled off.
BTW- if you like knives, the State of Michigan surplus store on St. Joe in Lansing sells confiscated knives from airports etc. for cheap. They always have piles of them. Swiss Army knives for $3. Piles of other types.
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