A lesson well learned

Shiny Bolster said:
Those people must give a wide berth to the cooking section where the 10" knives are, and they should probably avoid the sporting goods counter if a 110 scares them. I would not let my .44 vaquero show itself in Walmart, but I would have no problem picking at my teeth with a Mora while waiting in line.
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Wish there was a button to give thumbs up on post! :thumbup:
 
Thomas Linton said:
Honesty test. Have you ever selected clothing or a hair style because of what others would think?

Entire (very profitable) industries are built on a perceived answer to that question.
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No, I haven't. I've never been the kind of person who makes personal decisions based on what other people think. Whether it be clothes, hairstyle, knives, or anything else.
 
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THESE THREADS....pi$$ me off!!,,,..i carry everything from big fixed blades ,ZT,s and traditionals...the bottom line is ,show some form when you pull your knives out..listen to JACKNIFE... FES
 
I'd be more concerned as to why the knife fell out of the sheath. Fix that and this would never have happened.
 
Too many people are ignorant and weak minded and I don't carry a knife to suit them I carry it to suit me. One could cause fear with the most innocuous knife in today's society and it is how we carry ourselves and not what knife we carry that would stop a panic if we were to relive the OP's situation.
 
Hey, carry what you want.

It IS a fact that some DO carry large evil looking knives. It's when a few juvenile minded users "whip them out" and make an aggressive display of using them that creates an incident. On the other hand, others apparently go out of their way to make it an issue even when said knife has never been seen by them. I was called out for wearing a Buck in the office, a folding hunter in the black cordura case. They wouldn't have known it except for the gold embroidered lettering.

We get it on both ends - boys who are showing off their enhanced masculinity, and "others" - not always gender based - who will seize the moment to make their political statement of the day. I swear there is a secret paper of talking points that outlines how to do it.

Since most of us are trained to be polite in public, I see and read the common reaction to someone making a scene over a knife to largely back off and avoid further escalation. That's good. It means we aren't going to extend the confrontation with explanations or worse, put downs.

What I DO see is that said confrontations when posted about have a profile of both participants. If the knife user is a young male, and the knife is anything but traditional, he gets outed. The person making the comment is usually liberal, often female, and usually over 40. The situation is that they see the user as someone they need to put into a subservient social position. THAT'S what is going on - it's social warfare, guys, not knife hating. The knife is just a useful excuse. What else are they going to complain about, your boxers? Well, maybe if that's all that is covering your butt. :rolleyes:

I'm almost 60, got that touch of gray the men's hair color sellers are trying to market, and I get more comments on my watch than my knives. Most I use are tacticool - but small. I quit toting 4" folders because they are 4" - big isn't what I need daily. But I have been carrying a BM Vex, or CHB Bokers, a Ti M16, and lately, a spearpoint Boker Magnum Tech with cf scales. Hardly traditional, and nobody says anything.

It's the younger user who gets the crap thrown at them, I DO see that happen in retail all the time. American society goes out of their way to put down young men to put them in their place. Whether or not we need to, there is a mindset that young men have to be monitored and kept on a verbal leash so they don't get out of line.

Wonder why?, like I don't know. Was one. People have a few difficult experiences, and from then on, they continue to react when they perceive the same circumstances. Like a vet diving for cover hearing a loud noise, they engage in a behavior designed to protect themself. They ARE afraid. We learn to modify our behavior. Life goes on.

Except for those b's that look to put someone down. They aren't going away, and they like making a scene. For them, I am still looking for that comeback.
 
Agreed.

3 or 4 years ago I was with a friend who was pulled over for driving stupidly.
When the police officer searched me I have a large Sebenza, a hidaway knife, a cold steel kobun, and a Leatherman charge TTI on me. Needless to say I felt like an idiot. It was Totally over kill.

As I remember I had a hard time justifying the reason for carrying them all. But in the end I did end up leaving with my knives.
 
I dropped this knife while walking up to communion in church, I got so many senseless reactions.... :s
knifeun.jpg


I'm joking...
 
NeverMore1701 said:
I live within the law (as much as possible), not within the imagined reactions of random people around me. People will react to your attitude and demeanor more readily than whatever gadget you happen to be using. Being polite, courteous, and friendly will go a long way to keep people's reactions reasonable, in my experience.
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Simple and accurate in my experience. I may just have been fortunate, but I've always carried some form of knife from the time I was 6 or 7 on. I've had some minor negative reactions that pretty much have all come from surprise (usually I have taken out my knife for something or another and this person turns to see it in my hand), but never anything that a quick survey of the situation didn't fix. I tend to carry larger knives, nothing massive but usually in the 3-4 inch blade area, but I don't take them out purposelessly and I make a point of being nonthreatening. I dress traditionally and conservatively, I don't lurk around or act awkwardly, and even when I take out, for instance my JYD, I make a point of taking it out slowly and cautiously and opening it in the same way. No quick slides of hand or tactically flips-just a normal person who carries a knife for just this situation.
 
Knives and all sharp edge instruments for that matter had been used as weapons for millenniums. People will alway make that connection and perceive the carriers as threats. Hollywood along with sensational news escalated and ingrained this in to the mind of the general public. Being sensible and event a bit sensitive will help avoid negative reactions. Of course having a work of art as your EDC is a big plus. Using the clip of my folders as money clip lessened the silhouette in my pocket. Tip up with a simple knot of the lanyard hanging out will allow ease of deployment.
 
I tend to EDC a larger folder or small fixed blade because that's my preference. However, I also carry a Leatherman Squirt along as well for tasks that don't require that much heft or that occur in crowds. For example, my fiance needed a tag cut while we were in a mall yesterday on a new jacket. I could have reached for my Benchmade Rift and snapped it open with one hand with a flourish but in that case it was simply easier and more considerate of those around me to use the friendly looking little blue Leatherman with a small folding blade to clip the tag. Because it didn't just snap open and seemingly "appear" in my hand it was less of a potential issue than the Rift may have been in a checkout line. I completely understand carrying based on the local laws and a sense of personal freedom, but sometimes a little courtesy for the folks around us can give a better impression of the legitimate daily uses of carrying a knife to some who may not have thought of it before. That said, each to their own. Because someone else thinks of that differently than I happen to doesn't make them wrong either.
 
Shiny Bolster said:
Those people must give a wide berth to the cooking section where the 10" knives are, and they should probably avoid the sporting goods counter if a 110 scares them. I would not let my .44 vaquero show itself in Walmart, but I would have no problem picking at my teeth with a Mora while waiting in line.
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Thank you for supporting periodontists. 0___0
 
Next time you flashing your big knife at Walmart, don't make any suddenly move. The guys in line behind you might be disengaging the safety on his 1911.
 
Lolwat.

If you can't tell the difference between someone cutting a tag off a sweater and someone about to start stabbing people, you shouldn't be carrying a gun.

Using the general "you" here.
 
I work with College age girls, I cut cardboard boxes very often. I choose to use a SAK instead of a Delica for a reason. I had a friend even go "you carry a knife!" at my SAK Cadet.

That being said, I try to convince them to get one.
 
I'm just saying what is normal to you might be extreme to other. To me someone whipping out a large tactical knife in front of the cashier will be a cause for reassessment of the situation.
 
The only thing that determines what kind of knife I carry are my local laws. I'd love to carry a small pocket fixed blade, but they're illegal so I don't. However, a Spyderco Endura is perfectly legal, so I do carry one of those. I'm not out to make anyone uncomfortable, but I'm also no going to live my life based on what makes everyone else feel all warm and fuzzy.
 
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