Should "regular" people carry knives?

Dylside said:
I'm going to have to say no. I don't think that everyone or "normal people" who don't have the skills should carry a knife. Maybe a small Old Timer folder or Barlowe or something, but that's it.
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The people of which you speak would have off'd themselves at the dinner table long, long ago.

n2s
 
Calebklyne said:
even if you dont have any skill with a knife you would have to be pretty stupid to not be able to use it in a way to help you in a survival situation
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I don't agree with that. If a person has no skill what would they do with the knife? I know I can shave fuzz sticks for a fire and cut evergreen bows for bedding. Most people don't know those skills. I didn't until a few years ago and I had even been through SAR training. So what would they use the knife for?

As to what Dylside said. My brother in law goes hunting every year so you would think he was somewhat outdoorsy. Nope, he stabbed himself in the leg as well. On Christmas day.

I just think that if I were to come up with a ten essentials list for a total newb that there's probably ten things you could tell them to bring before a knife. Even though a knife would be at the top of my "person with experience" top ten list.
 
You would be stupid not to in Idaho, I don't care if you're walking your dog in the foothills or whitewater rafting or going for a trail run, you should have a solid survival/bushcrafting knife on you. And with the fine powder we have for dirt, probably a fixed blade so your folding knife doesn't get gummed up.
 
not2sharp said:
The people of which you speak would have off'd themselves at the dinner table long, long ago.

n2s
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Not necessarily. Have you ever tried to cut your steak with one of their kitchen "knives"? I was at a buddies house not that long ago and his wife was failing miserably to slice a tomato with her kitchen knife. She opted for a serrated steak knife instead... and cut her finger. Bro, trust me. There are some people out there who, even when they open themselves up like a baked potato, will not learn and shouldn't be given pointy or sharp objects.
 
wildmike said:
I have always carried a knife since 5 years of age.

In myt opinion foks who don't carry a knife are the irregular ones. They are also anoying always asking me "why do you carry a knife? Are you afraid of something? or some such idiocy.

Then they have the gall to askme to cut something for them, or to borrow my knife.
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Yep, same here...my father "issued" me my first small fixed blade and a heavy @$$ Stevens .410 when I was six after he had taught me how to shoot with a single shot Remington .22 . Everything we ate back then came from the river, the woods, or the garden and I wasn't given (not that I wanted) a choice in whether or not I was going to use them. Since then I've always had at least a small fixed blade on me or handy and not on me only if I was carrying a folder and the fixed was still close by.

I've gotten the same thing from people about why I always have one and then them asked to borrow it. My standard answer for those people is usually to tell them to piss off. One even had the audacity afterward to try to just take my utility knife out of my tool pouch while I was setting finish nails in a door jamb. He got a quick impromptu lesson in the dangers of invading the personal space of a man wielding a hammer. It really got funny when he went whining to my boss about his sore hand.
 
A knife is a useful tool to carry with you IF you have conditioned yourself to actually use it and know HOW to properly use it. Otherwise, a person can get by without a knife in 90% of unforseen circumstances in every day suburban life. I got by without an EDC knife just fine for years, and even after I started carrying, I found that an EDC simply made things a bit easier. Instead of searching for the scissors to cut open a package or whatever, I just grabbed my knife from my belt. It just simplifies things a bit.

That being said, there are situations where you are more likely to use a knife (such as camping) and those situations should be properly prepared for in terms of equipment and tool needs.

Edited to add: These statements describe a layperson who has not made a hobby/interest of the outdoors in the sense that we all here have. Also, a rural lifestyle will have much more opportunity for knife use than most suburban lifestyles.
 
I think that 'most' people should carry some sort of knife - basicly everyone that is not a hopeless uncoordinated clutz. At least a basic SAK with blade, bottle opener, can opener, file & scissors would be really useful to most people at least occasionally.

I don't use my SAK or LM Wave every day, but I like to carry them because when I do need them it is really handy that they are there. If I didn't carry them it would be a real pain if the butt not having them when the need arises. I find that a sharp blade cuts stuff better than my empty hand, but maybe that's just me. :p

Of course you also come across those people that have a SAK that is blunter than the average butter knife - I think there is something wrong with people that carry a blunt knife! Then there is my mum who keeps a drawer full of blunt knives in the kitchen - I don't mean her butter knives, I'm talking about carving knives & paring knives. Last Christmas I took my DMT Aligner & strop and sharpened over half a dozen knives for Mum. When she started chopping potatoes with one of her knives that was now sharp she said "Ooooh!" - best Christmas ever! :)

I would love to see everyone carry a sharp knife and have safe use of knives taught in schools, but that is only a pipe dream. Mankind rose to the top of the food chain by harnessing the awesome power of tools - then most of the species forgot how to use the basic knife safely & effectively. :(
 
I would say everyone should have a knife on them, yes. However, as I am sure many of you stated, I would like them to get a little knowledge of how to safely use the knife first and foremost. The knife may not do them any good if they are wondering how to effectively use it in a certain situation.
 
Mixed views.

On one hand yes. My reasons for yes range from the boring practical list right through to the I just think carrying a knife and a lighter is something a Gentleman does. Yes, from the most pragmatic to quirky dogmatic and ethereal.

My other view forces me to recognize egocentricity. My first view is largely based on my own model that a knife always has the potential to offer me an advantage nearly irrespective of my state. In actuality I don't believe that is true for all people. In order for me to accept that I must decenter, which is hard because of my beliefs about what knives can do for me, even if my state included some handicap or impediment. However, I am forced to conclude it probably is true of some others. First, some people seem to wield knives in such an uncoordinated way they're a hazard from the off. I suppose the only real insight I have into that is when I switch from being able to pitch baseballs at you like missiles on mah strong side to chucking them a few yards like an effeminate ninny with mah left hand. Some people seem just like when using a knife regardless of which hand they use. Then there what needs to be cut, and that supposes some knowledge about the properties of things and their relationships. I suspect for some that is a much more narrow band than many of us here may have. Also I'd add the willingness to cut X. Knowing what needs to be done and having the tool to do it is no guarantee a person will get about it. There are other obstacles that may inhibit satisfaction, perhaps a defect or being strong proponent of vegetable rights or something. “A man has got to know his limitations...”
 
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FortyTwoBlades said:
Perhaps there's a new niche market for survival scissors? :p
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I have some survival scissors, they are pretty good actually:
http://edcreviews.blogspot.com/2007/07/leatherman-squirt-s4-p4.html
(Not my link, just one of the first ones found by google)

I really like this little tool - it is a really good pair of scissors that work well and I have sharpened up the blade to 'shaving sharp'. It never hurts to have useful tools on hand like screwdrivers and a file and a bottle opener and tweezers. I decided against the P4 version because the pliers aren't as useful when they are that small and I already have pliers on my Wave and also on my Victorinox Cybertool. The scissors on the squirt are a nice step up from what you get on a SAK.
 
Growing up with farmers and trapping/fishing since 4 or 5 I can't understand people that don't carry a cutting implement. Business men should go back to carrying little 2 blade slippies etc like days of old.

I have given cheap keychain and pocket knives to many people on the promise they would carry it everyday for a month and see if they use it.
Have made at least a dozen unbelievers (I hate the term sheeple) into EDCing a blade, however small.....it is a start.
I try to educate people tearing at things with teeth,keys,pencils........ plus I don't mind a" friendly debate" with those who think carrying a useful tool is dangerous or not needed.
My wife's friend is an airport borderguard and the pink kabar/dozier folder I gave her is being used daily to cut the shrinkwrap off luggage to check inside etc. She was very sceptical of carrying until we talked about the day to day duties of her job and suddenly "the light switched on" and she started seeing all the uses.
I told her "You carry an @#$%ing glock for god's sake!! Who is going to feel threatened by a 3 in pink knife you are using for its intended purpose?"

Lead and teach is better for the knife community than deriding "sheeple" arguements and sarcasm to those uninitiated souls who were not brought up with knife sense.........common sense too.
 
I believe most people should carry a knife, yes, but most — at least around here — won't. For some unfathomable reason, they seem to be afraid of them. They're afraid of everything from something the size of a BK-9 right on down to the smallest SAK.

Why? I really don't know. Did they cut themselves as a child? Did their mommies teach them that knives are bad — something to be feared? Are these the exceptions to the claim the man is a tool using animal? I simply don't know.

People in less "advanced" societies learn to use knives as small children, and use them throughout their lives, without giving it a second thought, yet many here in what is — supposedly — the most advanced society on Earth, won't touch them.

Come to think about it, maybe those who fear even the smallest knife shouldn't carry them; fear and unfamiliarity cause fumbling, which causes accidents.

What do you think/
 
...a cell phone. It even tells time that's why no one wears a watch anymore either. At least that's what they tell me. :yawn:

But now maybe one should think this way...

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I don't think everyone should carry a knife, but I do think a knife is a great convenience for anyone choosing to carry one. In my opinion, if a person doesn't want to carry a knife that's their perogative.

I've tried for many years to get my wife to carry a small (2.5" blade) folder in her purse. I've since given up. She carried one for a couple years and absolutely never, ever used the damn thing. It wasn't because she was afraid of it or that she didn't like it. She just never thought about using it even when she might have had a use for it. Her knife was forgotten in the bottom of her purse until the day she took it out and put it in my top dresser drawer where it remains today. Since then she has never once mentioned that she wished she had a knife on her.

I've concluded that people just don't need to carry a knife. However, I never leave my house without at least one blade on my person. And I'm always finding a use for it. It's a tremendously useful tool that I can't imagine not having. I also don't mind cutting something for someone that doesn't have a knife. I like being the guy who is prepared. So if someone doesn't want to carry a knife, I don't see why it should bother me. Different strokes for different folks.
 
not2sharp said:
Those who do not carry knives are usually found gnawing on their packages. More proof that it is painful and inefficient to be mindless sheep.

n2s
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That image would make a perfect Bladeforums advertisement.

On a side note, I recently visited a friend that I haven't seen in a while. He knows that I am into knives and he is 50/50 about carrying a knife. He thinks that they are obviously useful but not so much so that he carries one as EDC -he sees them as primarily a dedicated woods/ kitchen tool.

I showed him my Victorinox Farmer and he said, "Hey, I think I have one of those." We went to his miscellaneous drawer in the kitchen and he presented three totally ignored Victorinox SAKs. They had not been opened in ages. The oxidation had sealed them tightly closed. We soaked them in warm soapy water and got them to open up eventually. He had a Recruit model, a Hiker model, and a Super Champ!. He used to work in a kitchen, so he was able to impress me by putting a nice working edge on the blades with a steel. I talked about carrying one as EDC and got him to take the Hiker out one night. He was happy to have all the capabilities but I am not really confident that he will carry it everyday. I think that I renewed his passion for pocket knives a little bit.

I think the real difficulty is trying to convince someone to carry a knife as EDC. It takes a certain amount of dedication that most people don't see the value in. My best bet is to get him a Vic classic for his birthday -put it on the keys and forget.
 
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I know many outdoors folks who don't carry knives. I recently purchased the book "Snow Walker's Companion". It is a highly recomended winter wanderer's resource and I don't think they made mention to a knife, even once. Ultralight hikers, canoeist and backpackers alike get by without knives all the time. I won't preach to them, though... I don't carry a gun into the wilderness, where others do. If I was going on a trek with someone, I'd feel better if they carried a knife.


Rick
 
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