Anti-Knife Bill Introduced in Nevada

Critter

Critter

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Anti-Knife Bill Introduced in Nevada

Nevada State Senator Sheila Leslie (D, Washoe 1) has introduced SB 171, to add to the list of weapons that the state prohibits in schools, including a sword, axe or hatchet, machete and so-called "dangerous knife," meaning in her bill, any knife with a blade 2 inches or longer. Nevada is one of the few rational states where common pocket knives are not mandated to be treated as weapons prohibited by the state from schools. Schools are free to determine for themselves what restrictions, if any, they will make. Apparently not everyone in Nevada is willing to allow schools to deal with this issue as they see fit.

In addition, this new definition of a so-called "dangerous knife" would set very bad precedent in Nevada state law

Read the proposed bill: http://www.leg.state.nv.us/Session/76th2011/Bills/SB/SB171.pdf

Knife Rights' is on the ground in Nevada, working to stop this unnecessary and unreasonably restrictive bill which sets bad precedent.

We need your support to oppose legislation such as this. Donate today to support Knife Rights: http://bit.ly/fMccv9


Join or Renew your Knife Rights membership today! http://bit.ly/2QEVMP


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I didn't even know there were any schools left that allowed pocket knives. When I was a kid, having a plastic toy knife in school was grounds for disciplinary action. I remember one kid being suspended for a week because he accidentally brought his Victorinox Classic to school on his key chain and a teacher spotted it. I hope this bill gets squashed and they leave it up to the schools to (responsibly) decide what's appropriate.
 
GRIM 62 said:
When I went to school,you were'nt dressed if you did'nt have a pocket knife on you.
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Same here. A two-bladed Barlow knife was my constant companion right through high school. Most of the guys carried either a Boy Scout pocketknife or a SAK. My Barlow was a gift from my Dad, so that is what I carried. In these "enlightened" times (:jerkit:), I would have been handcuffed and hauled off to the police station to face weapons charges for carrying it in school. Meanwhile, the school would have finished processing the expulsion paperwork before my juvenile court arraignment.
 
I hope that all of you who remember how it used to be, and still is in some places yet today, will make a contribution or join Knife Rights so we can fight to oppose bad legislation such as this.

This bill isn't going to defeat itself. The Nevada legislature has a Democratic majority led by Las Vegas and Reno "big city" legislators. We can win this fight, but it will take some aggressive lobbying efforts and that doesn't come for free.

Please! Donate here: http://bit.ly/foA0QA
 
They should change it from dangerous knife to any knife at all.

There is no need for any student to carry a knife in school. I know how it used to be and that the majority of people here carried one in school. But things are different these days. I work in an inner city school and there are many students that have numerous anger issues and have a tendency to act irrationally. Any knife, regardless of the size, is a bad idea in a school. Kids in urban schools, in my experience do not view knives as a tool, but rather a weapon.

As a NYS resident, I also understand the danger of including the wording surrounding the definition of a dangerous knife into a law. I don't see why anyone would have a problem with just banning pocket knives of any size in schools. Simple solution. It seems that if it were changed and knife rights supported the newversion of the law, people would give a lot more respect to the organization. knife Rights: Working towards the safe use of knives in society.

I think that would be wonderful and effective press. I understand completely and support the views of this organization. But to the non knife person, Knife Rights screams, " Don't mess with my ability to own lots of dangerous weapons." Obviously this is not the case at all, but I think a lot of people think like that.
 
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i remember storys of my uncle when he was 7 or 8. he would walk to school with his riffle, leave it by the front door, then once school got out he would go hunting.
 
I knew plenty of kids that carried Knives to school growing up... even though it was illegal at the time.

Guess from my experience these laws are kind of pointless unless you take active steps to search for weapons. (maybe some TSA bad touch searches will do the trick)

and what about pencils/pens... I was not once but twice stabbed with those... Those need to go... screw that writing skillset.

All it takes to Hurt someone is Will... So maybe we should strip our youth of that to.
 
jackman2 said:
They should change it from dangerous knife to any knife at all.

There is no need for any student to carry a knife in school. I know how it used to be and that the majority of people here carried one in school. But things are different these days. I work in an inner city school and there are many students that have numerous anger issues and have a tendency to act irrationally. Any knife, regardless of the size, is a bad idea in a school. Kids in urban schools, in my experience do not view knives as a tool, but rather a weapon.

As a NYS resident, I also understand the danger of including the wording surrounding the definition of a dangerous knife into a law. I don't see why anyone would have a problem with just banning pocket knives of any size in schools. Simple solution. It seems that if it were changed and knife rights supported the newversion of the law, people would give a lot more respect to the organization. knife Rights: Working towards the safe use of knives in society.

I think that would be wonderful and effective press. I understand completely and support the views of this organization. But to the non knife person, Knife Rights screams, " Don't mess with my ability to own lots of dangerous weapons." Obviously this is not the case at all, but I think a lot of people think like that.
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I will respectfully disagree with your proposition.

We believe it is illogical to believe that a state mandated knife ban in schools will have any effect on a person bent on hurting someone with a knife. There is nothing to suggest that any ban of knives in schools will prevent any crimes, nor that there is any problem currently in Nevada schools that needs solving.

Knife Rights and our staff have witnessed the appeasement of gov't over the years and the inevitable adverse impact that has had on individual rights and liberties. We exist precisely to oppose going down this type of slippery slope.

Our legitimacy is based on standing up for principle and defending knife owners from attacks on their rights. We are practical realists in the difficult world of politics and have no desire to throw out the baby with the bath water, so to speak, but we also don't believe in simply rolling over when our members' rights are at risk. This is a political fight we believe we can win
 
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jackman2 said:
They should change it from dangerous knife to any knife at all.

There is no need for any student to carry a knife in school. I know how it used to be and that the majority of people here carried one in school. But things are different these days. I work in an inner city school and there are many students that have numerous anger issues and have a tendency to act irrationally. Any knife, regardless of the size, is a bad idea in a school. Kids in urban schools, in my experience do not view knives as a tool, but rather a weapon.
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Do YOU NEED a knife during grocery shopping? Do you need to carry a knife at all?
I guess it is reasonable to take away knives from people who impose a danger to others and I understand that the density of these people among teenagers is greater than usual and I accept that banning knives in school is a simple way to take away those knives that pose a danger - but I think the 'need argument' isn't that appropriate.


I finished school in 2008 in a smaller town in Germany (not yet rural) and I had carried a knife since about 4th or 5th grade. I didn't know anyone else who was carrying one but I carried it to use as a tool and I enjoyed being able to do so. THe first knife was a SAK knockoff and since about the 6th grade it was a medium sized locking folder and a box cutter.


You won't find metal detectors and security personnel in german schools - and there are no laws against carrying weapons inside a specific radius either (but you wont be allowed to carry a gun as a civilian und the (legal) gun ownership is pretty low - about 2-3% of the population).
Yes, you can't really compare Germany and the US when it comes to weapons regulations or crime - there is much less crime in germany and it's much safer but maybe it makes people more afraid of knives and guns and tells them that they are dangerous weapons and that the only way to use them is as weapons if they grow up with metal detectors and all that fancy stuff and with the news constantly telling them about criminal actions...

And yes, it's getting worse for ppl who carry knives in Germany and it also gets worse in schools but... maybe this zero-tolerance policy doesn't work that well in a long run...
Just imagine - they bust one of your class mates for bringing a 2.5" bladed SAK to school and he has to stay at home for a few days - then a 6" ESEE-6 has to be a VERY dangerous weapon....

s_f
 
This is bill is stupid, you already cant carry a knife over 3 inchs in Las vegas and now they are trying to make it two?
 
jackman2 said:
They should change it from dangerous knife to any knife at all.

There is no need for any student to carry a knife in school. I know how it used to be and that the majority of people here carried one in school. But things are different these days. I work in an inner city school and there are many students that have numerous anger issues and have a tendency to act irrationally. Any knife, regardless of the size, is a bad idea in a school. Kids in urban schools, in my experience do not view knives as a tool, but rather a weapon.

As a NYS resident, I also understand the danger of including the wording surrounding the definition of a dangerous knife into a law. I don't see why anyone would have a problem with just banning pocket knives of any size in schools. Simple solution. It seems that if it were changed and knife rights supported the newversion of the law, people would give a lot more respect to the organization. knife Rights: Working towards the safe use of knives in society.

I think that would be wonderful and effective press. I understand completely and support the views of this organization. But to the non knife person, Knife Rights screams, " Don't mess with my ability to own lots of dangerous weapons." Obviously this is not the case at all, but I think a lot of people think like that.
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It's up to the school to decide and the state should not micro-manage. Sure, a high-school in the heart of Las Vegas might do well to ban all knives in school but a small school serving several working-class towns with teens less likely to be gang waste and more likely to be productive members of society should make the rules based on the reputation of it's students, not what the state says.
Since New Hampshire effectively dropped it's knife laws, I've heard nothing about any increase in knife-related violence in our schools probably because the schools do a fine job of handling knife issues without the state's input.
 
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I, too, went to school with a knife in my pocket, nor was I alone. More, many of our teachers were actually veterans (and proud of it); many had a model of the tank they'd commanded or the battleship they'd helped crew. With the zero tolerance we see these days, even those models would be grounds for discipline. Where will it end?
As was said earlier, only the will is needed to turn ANYTHING into a weapon. It's my belief that many of these "anger issues" stem from the slow-but-sure strangling of our liberties. The children can feel their parents' frustrations, even if they don't understand the causes directly. As with any proscribed activity, the fact that one isn't "supposed" to do it is reason enough for many to try.

Knife rights charter member #169, and proud of it.
 
In my opinion,the government should mind its business about what we decide to carry in our pockets. And schools should concentrate on teaching,not regulating. I went to grammar school in the late 60's and early 70's and ALWAYS had a pocket knife on me. It was part of being a Cub Scout. My Dad,Uncles,and most of the male teachers were military veterans. They universally carried a pocket knife. They didnt pee their pants whenever someone used a knife in public. I was taught to be responsible with any knife. Taught to maintain its edge and be mindful of the fact that the knife could cause injury. I dreaded doing anything,particularly with a knife,that would upset my father. Most of the boys I grew up with were similar. Children should be taught to obey and respect adults,no exceptions. Without that,they will never respect each other. Knives arent the problem,so regulating them does nothing but keep a usefull tool out of law-abiding hands.
 
jackman2 said:
They should change it from dangerous knife to any knife at all.

I work in an inner city school and there are many students that have numerous anger issues and have a tendency to act irrationally. Any knife, regardless of the size, is a bad idea in a school. Kids in urban schools, in my experience do not view knives as a tool, but rather a weapon.
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How about, you know, let anyone bring a knife to school and take them away IF they start threatening people with them, not assume that they all will.
 
I always carry a Leatherman Blast to school. I've used it to fix other people's shoes, pull up broken zippers, helped pry open some kid's locker (the lock was broken and he needed his stuff) and used it in shop class. It's a hell of a lot useful to me than a phone, that's for sure. Never got in trouble for it either.
 
Ok. You guys make some valid points and I agree. There is nothing a law would do to deter someone bent on doing harm. And yes a pencil would be just as dangerous. My point arose from personal experience in dealing with knives in a school. Normally in a rural school setting (where I grew up), if someone had a knife, it was a tool they used often and forgot to leave it at home. No one was bringing it to try and hurt someone. Now, almost every incident involving knives I have had to deal with in an urban school (where I have worked for 10 years), has been as a weapon.

I agree with Knife Rights and gladly support your cause. I just shudder at the thought of any changes to the "dangerous knife" definition. As stated before, I am a NY resident, and apparently now, anything besides a small SAK is dangerous. I figured that any way to get that kind of wording out would be a victory for Knife Rights. That kind of thing would be way worse in my eyes than a flat ban in schools.

But I also agree with not giving in. Thank you for all of your hard work Doug.
 
Knife bans in schools will only reinforce the notion that knives are bad and are weapons into young minds who will then grow up and possibly become politicians who will then institute new knife control/bans of the future.

Knives should be encouraged to be used in school in useful ways such as for kids peeling their fruit at lunch or for cutting materials for class projects. They will learn a life skill by doing this.

When I went to school we had a lesson on sharpening in one of our shop classes in grade 8. We were asked to bring knives to school for sharpening. Students brought a variety of blade ware ranging from kitchen knives to Kabars for the sharpening class. However there was one student who forgot to bring in a blade to sharpen, he was given a verbal lecture right infront of the class and had to serve a detention. Our schools were strict back then, and nobody ever threatened anybody with knife that I can recall. The other thing about school in those days was that students actually learned something, and were ready for the working world when they graduated highschool.
 
Thanks jackman2 for providing your experience and having the balls to offer an alternate, nuanced opinion.
One unfortunate byproduct of growing populations which become more concentrated and urbanized is the representation of knives as weapons first, vs. the more traditionally rural representation of knives as tools first. I had to think about this proposed law for a minute, because I don't believe that all restrictions on knives should be opposed automatically. My conclusion is that this statewide ban is too sweeping, and fails to account for local differences in knife use in and out of schools. It should be up to individual schools to enact whatever restrictions they see fit. For instance, a 4" hunting knife might carry a different meaning in a school in Las Vegas than in a small town.
 
I agree, I carried my knife to school everyday from 8th grade through graduation without incident even though it was against the rules and would result in expulsion, the key is to not be stupid with it.
 
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