Here's the deal. Not content with banning, restricting, and making illegal nearly every firearm, the British now want to get rid of knives. God help them.
A team from West Middlesex University Hospital said violent crime is on the
increase - and kitchen knives are used in as many as half of all stabbings.They argued many assaults are committed impulsively, prompted by alcohol and drugs, and a kitchen knife often makes an all too available weapon.
...
The researchers said there was no reason for long pointed knives to be publicly available at all.
They consulted 10 top chefs from around the UK, and found such knives have little practical value in the kitchen.
None of the chefs felt such knives were essential, since the point of a short blade was just as useful when a sharp end was needed.
The researchers said a short pointed knife may cause a substantial superficial wound if used in an assault - but is unlikely to penetrate to inner organs.
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French laws in the 17th century decreed that the tips of table and street knives be ground smooth.
A century later, forks and blunt-ended table knives were introduced in the UK in an effort to reduce injuries during arguments in public eating houses.
The researchers say legislation to ban the sale of long pointed knives would be a key step in the fight against violent crime.
"The Home Office is looking for ways to reduce knife crime.
"We suggest that banning the sale of long pointed knives is a sensible and practical measure that would have this effect."
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Home Office spokesperson said there were already extensive restrictions in place to control the sale and possession of knives.
"The law already prohibits the possession of offensive weapons in a public place, and the possession of knives in public without good reason or lawful authority, with the exception of a folding pocket knife with a blade not exceeding three inches.
"Offensive weapons are defined as any weapon designed or adapted to cause injury, or intended by the person possessing them to do so.
"An individual has to demonstrate that he had good reason to possess a knife, for example for fishing, other sporting purposes or as part of his profession (e.g. a chef) in a public place."
You just watch! Forks, letter openers, lamps, fire pokers, and nail clippers are next. Additional bans and restrictions coming to a not-quite free country near you. I assure you, I could kill someone just as easily with a paring knife as a butcher knife. The length of the knife is a red herring. The fact of the matter is, if you ban all knives and force people back into the dark ages of eating with their hands, they will just find another weapon with which to kill each other.
Consider an unarmed assailant attempting to rape you in the night. Could you kill him with your alarm clock? I could. Or a lamp. I could beat him to death with a remote control. I could brake the legs off of my end table and skewer him like a kebab. I could hit him over the head with my jewelry box or push him through the glass table in the corner. I could even kill him with a pair of tweezers plunged into the correct part of the anatomy. I'd prefer to have my Walther PPK near to hand though, as then I don't have to get so close to the bad guy.
You can't stop people from hurting each other. It is in our nature. Furthermore, we have a basic human right to protect our life and liberty. If that means killing an intruder with a steak knife, then so be it. Maybe they ought to make stickers for your front door.
"This house protected by Smith & Wesson, Wusthof, and Henckels."
