Are You concerned about the Sheeple?

I try to be discrete with my carry choices. In my opinion, the best reaction to seeing one of my knives is, "It's good that you've got that knife with you. Maybe I should carry one too." I want to promote knife carry as a civilised thing to do. I don't want to freak people out and turn them off. I believe that you can catch more flies with honey than vinegar. Of course, I haven't caught that many flies, and I'm not sure what to do with them once I've got them...

 

People seem to forget they do not have the right not to be offended.

 

You hit the nail on the head.

Here in Canada, there are no laws regarding blade length. Still, I don't push that too far. The biggest knife I carry is a 10" OAL HI KK. I only carry it when I expect to use it, and in an IWB sheath that keeps it neatly tucked away. I care enough about public opinion to not carry more than a 4" fixed blade, and even then, it's always discrete.

 

This is a good point. Being an obnoxious nerd about your right to carry your Rambo knife reflects poorly on those who carry their Rambo knives, and are perfectly well integrated, civil people. In the end, we could all lose rights because of a few jerks, even if they're harmless.

 

I believe that some offensive behaviours are illegal. For example, when it comes to expressing your sexuality, there are lines that may not legally be crossed.

Not too long ago, I opened an overhead bin on an airplane to retrieve my carry-on. In the process, I knocked a bag over and it fell onto a woman. She said, "Ow! You just dropped that bag on me!" She was rather angry.

Without a moment's hesitation, I said, "I'm very sorry." And I was very sorry. I have no desire to interact negatively with people. I don't want people to walk away from me thinking that I'm a jerk. I try to get along with others as best I can. To that end, I seek to be polite in all dealings. There is no law requiring me to act this way. I do it because I believe that it is the right way to treat people.

What benefit does anyone get from going out of your way to freak out people?

With a little effort, I believe that we can get some of these sheeple to start carrying knives. It might take a hundred positive interactions with knife-carrying individuals, but isn't it worth it in the end?

 

I've yet to offend or scare anyone with my knife. The usual reactions are "whoa" or "Damn, Brent." Many of them ask to use it. Today my boss called my 710 a "pig-sticker."

 

I tend to keep my knives concealed, I don't want co-workers borrowing them, or whining to HR that I might be in violation of silly anti-weapons policies.

But I'm not too paranoid, I'll just draw , use, and pocket my Spyderco smoothly and nobody notices. When someone asks if I have a knife, I'll help them find a big ugly boxcutter somewhere.

 

I had some people in a college class stare at me like I was a psycho for pulling out my little SOG Blink to cut off a ragged piece on the bottom of my blue jeans I kept stepping on. I didnt make much of a scene out of it, but all eyes were on me and my 1 inch blade like I was a killer.

Thats the only time. Most times people mind their business, or even get curious and ask me if they can check my knife out, which leads to me giving them advice on what knives are good for them to purchase.:thumbup:

I guess it all depends on where you live, and where you are.

 

I think most mature folks that carry (knives or guns) have enough common sense to use them when they need them and unless by accident would not expose just for shock value.

I think "sheeple" generally are the types who are always looking for something to be offended by... and ironically are usually the first ones to make a case for tolerance... go figure.

 

Colour me not concerned. I carry kives that are appropriate to my planned uses and situation: I bring my Endura or Rucksack to the office, not my BK-9 (well, appropriate by MY standards, anyhow ). I use them calmly, rationally, matter-of-factly and efficiently (no cleaning my nails with a Dork Ops Bin Laden Scalper, for example), and put them away without fuss or ado. And although I'm fairly large, I tend to maintain a non-aggressive, non-threatening demeanor.

And I've never had any sheeple issues. Do your thing in a situationally appropriate, responsible manner, and you probably never will either.

 

he wasn't the only one confused... ROFL. I guess i'm *dense*
at times. Course it was a hard day at work too (can I use
that excuse?).

 

If it is not an emergency and I'm surrounded with sheeples, I usually use my 2 hands to open the knife. Simply

Also, in you surrounding, just try to become "the guy you must ask if you have something to cut" instead of "that freak with knives". I mean, everyone around me at school or work know I have at least one knife with me all the time. There is that girl that has this way of talking: "Who do I have to blow to get (insert anything she may want)?". Well to get a knife, it's me

 

yeah I was that freak to the sheeples too only with information and my head in books no one else wanted to read or could read... I had no sharp objects then maybe if I had had them people WOULD have stayed away from me more instead of bugging me for information for tests and such. Now I get paid for my book worm ways.....

Of course, i'm STILL the freak LOL Just today my boss walked up to me and said "that's a nice outfit Linda" (see picture below) (I was carrying my favorite sword around too) (see piecture below) and I said "yeah... and this sword looks really good with it too...." and then he simply turned and walked away.... I'm still the freak. At least i'm me.

 

In an ideal world, no.

In the real world, as little as I can get away with.

maximus otter

 

I guess I live in the knife utopia or something. In my world, we compare my dodo to Steve's D2 Griptillian to Cole's Gerber Air Ranger over a table in a crowded cafeteria or in the local coffee shop, without so much as a blink. We flick our knives open and closed just laying around at parties etc and no one notices. In fact, I kind of find it humorous, because it seems to have gotten to the point where people might genuinely be reasonable in being alarmed, like walking into my apartment or something and I'd be flipping a bali. But I guess everyone knows everyone so well it doesn't matter. I'm still very conservative with showing my knife, but my friends don't seem to care. But I suppose when you're wealthier than small countries, there's just not a lot they can do about you.

Now my family, that's a different story. My father, who has carried a slipjoint every day of his life, son of a knife collector, somewhat dissaproves of my knives. I'll show him my paramilitary or blue bump and he'll say typical sheeple things (he's NOT ordinary sheeple, served in vietnam, has a ton of guns, etc etc) like "I'll bet you could kill a lot of people with that," etc. I gave my cousin a Native last christmas and his father (my uncle) said "you're gonna get yourself in trouble with that knife!" It might have made sense, I guess, except that he was carrying an AO Leek, which sort of made any negative knife comment irrelevent in my mind.

In the last generation of my family, more than a two inch blade is quite simply intent to kil. I'm extremely pleased that my father was amazed with the dodo, and seems to buy that I didn't buy it to take out ninjas or something.

 

While not concerned, in my line of work, you have to, at least, be conscientious. My agency forbids any 'concealed' weapon, I'm sure this would be extended to pocket knives, in circumstances regarding sheeple. Also, since a deformity of my knife hand makes folders somewhat problematic anyway, I carry a fixed blade. While I haven't been in uniform for at least a decade, I do wear a lot of equipment on my belt. A large knife in a corporate environment is just silly and asking for trouble. My large tacticals and survival knives were semi-retired when I came out of the field, and now only accompany me in the woods, ATV'ing, or on the very rare occaision I'm called out on special assignment, like securing a disaster zone. Sheeple can, and would, have the ability to have my license revoked if I didn't give a damn what they thought.

 

I guess I just mean I am conscientious. I don't do anything careless or stupid with my knives, so I don't really worry about them. That is all I meant. I should have clarified.

 

I can sympathize.

My worst sheeple "adventure" was about three years ago, at the local mall. I sat down at a table in the food court to open an item I'd just bought, which of course was in one of those @#$%^ "clam-packs". I casually pulled out my knife and started cutting carefully. It was a SOG Flash II, but I was sure to open it two-handed, since I was in public. Still, this typical soccer-mom two tables over sees me, gives me the "sheeple look", and promptly moves herself and two sproggen several tables away.

I kept an eye on her, too; when I saw her spy a mall rent-a-cop, and get up and walk in his direction, I gathered up my stuff and beat feet outta there. (Thankfully the mall exit was right there; I'm sure I was in the parking lot before she said a word to the security guy.

Oh, definitely.

I think it's no accident that most of the people posting here that they couldn't give a rat's patootie about sheeple, also happen to live down south, out west, or in some other thinly-populated, non-reactionary state. I don't happen to be that lucky...

Oh, and to those of you who say you don't care what the sheeple think, but that you're always sure to carry and use your knives discreetly: why discreetly? Could it be because you actually are concerned how others react to the presence of a knife?

Let's be honest here: if you live in pretty much any modern American urban or suburban area, you have to be concerned, and you have to be discreet. If you're fortunate enough to live in the country, it's not such a big deal.

 

Well I live in the northeast , and work for a liberal N.E. city . I make it a point to use my knives ( I carry 4 inchers, like strider AR, LCC etc) in front of folks all the time with zero problems.

I think I'm a good guy. Make my living as a fire dept. LT. coach youth sports, medic youth sports, vollenteer at church and so on.

We need to show folks that good people use knives, large ones, one handed ones etc. If not the only folks they think use knives will be the bad guys.

Don't hide your knife like its child porn......

 

I live in the South and I am one of those who do not care about the sheeple I do however use my knife discreetly and rationally because I'm not into shocking people just for the shock value. If I do things like walk through the grocery store with my knife between my teeth and say things like "YYYAAAAAARRRGGHHH me matey's tis a fine day!" They would put me in the nut house and for my community I would do more damage to knife owners than a Dark Op's bullentin board. I could care less about what the sheeple think but I do care about hurting the rights of current and future knife owners by being needlessly stupid.