If I’m out of bed, I may or may not have a gun on or about my person, but I always — and I mean always — have a pocket knife.
If I don’t have a gun, I’ll have a pocket knife and a GTFO* knife, but that’s not really relevant right now.
The first gift I ever gave to Rita was a CRKT Spectra KISS I looked all over Itchy Paws Falls for — at the time the multi-coloured finish was hard to get your paws on, and that rainbow effect suits her.
When anthropologists are trying to find the point where — to quote Sir Pterry Pratchett — “The rising ape meets the falling angel” they look for complex tool making. They find the point where they’re making knives, and they say, “Here. Here are early humans.”
Why? Because our fangs are nothing to write home about, our talons — quite frankly — suck; and there is nothing anywhere near as useful as a sharp edge. With a knife you can open dinner (whether that dinner be a frozen pot pie, or a Paleolithic possum), you can build shelter, construct clothing, make a fire, dig for roots, keep the other people’s grubby mitts off of your stuff, and — probably most importantly — you can use your knife to make more complex tools that you can use to construct civilisation.
Every tool we have used to put society together — and I mean every tool — has had a knife involved either in its construction, or in the construction of another tool that was vital to its construction.
It is safe to say that we would not have cities, nor governments, nor society without knives.
We would not be people without knives.
Today we learn that Victorinox, the makers of the iconic Swiss Army Knife, will be making Swiss Army knives … without a blade.
“In England or certain Asian countries, you are sometimes only allowed to carry a knife if you need to have it to do your job or operate outdoors,” Victorinox CEO Carl Elsener Jr. told the Swiss media outlet, as translated by CNN. “In the city, however, when you go to school, to the cinema, or to go shopping, carrying pocketknives is severely restricted.”
Let me read that again: “… carrying pocketknives is severely restricted.”
Sigh. You know, when your government doesn’t trust you with a non-locking, slip-joint, 2-inch blade in a Swiss Army knife …
… You might consider getting yourself a new government. Just saying.
LawDog
*Get The [Deleted] Off. A short, fixed-blade knife, carried horizontally next to the belt buckle.
Since I can not carry a blade when I fly, I put them in my checked luggage. However, I do carry a bladeless multitool on me when I fly. You never know when you meet need a screwdriver or pliers. I might not have a blade, but I will still have tools on me.
There’s a reason I dislike flying nowadays. I have a perfectly good Tundra and an equally good Honda Gold Wing.
Now, if they’d just finish that bridge to Hawaii so I could take my bride there…
Consider it at length, and very, very, seriously, IMO…
Getting on to being time to start exporting freedom to some other formerly civilized countries.
I carry a Leatherman on a daily basis. Also used to carry a Benchmade, until it fell down a customer’s wall while on a residential job, and I was unabld to retrieve it. Really ought to pick up another one.
Knives are cool as a tool or to open arteries and veins on a person trying something silly. Good knives are hard to come by. Like my spiderco military folder. It has the straight edge and it’s very sharp. I’ll be home this weekend to sharpen the Doctors knives for moms day!
I’ve carried a knife since I was a Cub Scout 60 years ago. They’ve varied, but I’ve settled on lock-blades and currently carry a Kershaw open-assist lock-blade. It stays clipped to my pocket, and is easily accessible.
Early in my working career, a knife was carried by most people on the crew. When I was close to retiring, I was a little amazed at how so many young men didn’t have one. When they asked for mine, I had to explain to them how you always give a knife back to the person you borrowed it from as it was given to you. I refused to take it back closed, if it was open when I let them borrow it, and visa versa.
Since I cannot fly with a blade, I fly with a set of Murderneedles in my hair, and usually a set of lace-point knitting needles in my bag.
The only time I have been looked askance at by TSA, the gate guard (from tats and attitude, he was a retired Marine) had just heard my son and his buddies, who were keeping me company while waiting for my flight at the tiny airport that serves Camp Lejeune. The boyz had been giving me a briefing on all the improvised weapons in my knitting bag.
TSA: (in best DI voice) “Ma’m, you won’t use any of that on my airplane!:
Me: (meep) No, sir
TSA: (leans over and whispers) “Unless you have to.”
My daughter likes titanium chopsticks to hold her hair when she flies. She’s convinced the pretty colours keep security from thinking about obvious uses.
Hairborne Defenses are quite pretty, incredibly tough and sharp, cheaper than titanium, and made by a fellow down south who’s Good People. Just for future reference. 🙂
https://www.hairbornedefenses.com/
+1 for CRKT. For a couple of decades now, my EDC has been an
M16-01K. A few years ago, I picked up one of their Homefront Field Strip knives. Oddly, I don’t see it on their website, but other online vendors list them in stock.
I also have a couple of my dad’s pocket folders with the blades well-worn from sharpening.
(My screen name is RHT447, but I get a “numbers not allowed” error message)
I ALWAYS carry a Swiss Army knife unless prohibited by law. If I’m flying, it goes in checked luggage. Two years ago, we went to Europe and I left it at home because of all of the ridiculous restrictions on that side of the pond. I kind of felt naked without it. I brought a small tool kit instead, but it was no substitute.
A few years before that, we went to Canada. We drove. At all times, I left my knife in the car. But the Canadian boarder guard didn’t ask about knives. She was, however, almost paranoid about guns. When I was asked if we had any guns in the car, I truthfully said no. She persisted with, “Are you sure? You are from Kentucky.” I simply told her that they were unnecessary in Canada. I would just take one away from their wussy criminals if they bothered me.
The knife is the first tool. The fang we lack, the claw we need.
Fire is the first technology.
Together they make us Human.
I never leave the house without them, or at least with a way (usually several) to make Fire.
I barely take a shower or sleep without a knife, generally a Benchmade.
I don’t fly. If I can’t drive there it’s probably not worth going.
I’ve carried a knife for over 60 years… Sigh… I can also remember when you COULD carry a knife in Britain and the EU… double sigh…
Mohammed attacks Billy and Suzie with a machete. Gov disarms Robert Sr. and Susan the first. Gov imports 20 more Mohammeds. Family of Bob and Sue move away, their family home is seized by the Mayor to house “refugees” from 9-20 border crossings away. Mohammed #9 is released without bail after taking grenade to a protest demanding Shari’a law.
Rinse and repeat.
TINVOWOOT.
RAT1 in D2 and Leatherman Supertool are my EDC on the farm, and on those occasions when going to town for farm supplies , being still in my work clothes provides a “reasonable excuse”.
Unfortunately, yes, we have Plod who consider themselves the arbiters of what is “reasonable”, and the consequences of them getting pissy over my personal tools can be very expensive, even if I win.
One recalls with nostalgia the days in which the ascension of a new Monarch was not considered complete without them being presented to the public for “acclamation” by the gathering of all interested Free Men……. the “Free” being those who turned up carrying weapons, because no-one would permit a bondsman to be armed.
A somewhat primitive form of democratic legitimacy-test, but you won’t be King for long if the fighting-men won’t turn out to support you.
So many knives. On me, all the time. Multitool of some kind. Fixed blade of some kind. Folder of some kind. I’m always reaching for a knife when outside in the yard, or opening packages in the kitchen, or whatever. I won’t fly anymore and this is one of the reasons. If folks want to get together and charter a flight somewhere, count me in. If we know the pilot isn’t going to have a stroke. Otherwise: no.
Remember when the Brits started the “No one except a professional chef needs a pointed knife!” crap?
They’ve just gone downhill since.