Weird culture.

W. Anderson

W. Anderson

Joined
Jun 22, 2016
Messages
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I'm prompted to ask this question based on my employer's recent reaction to use of knife in an office setting:

In my mind, a knife is the most versatile tool one can use. Be it for utility, defense (lets hope not), or as even pocket jewelry or measure of status.

It seems like the layman has it in mind that knives are...bad?


Historically speaking, human kind is sort of a 'blade culture'

I'm very confused as to why a society would frown upon the blade.

I'd like to hear some thought on the matter..
 
W. Anderson said:
I'm prompted to ask this question based on my employer's recent reaction to use of knife in an office setting:

In my mind, a knife is the most versatile tool one can use. Be it for utility, defense (lets hope not), or as even pocket jewelry or measure of status.

It seems like the layman has it in mind that knives are...bad?


Historically speaking, human kind is sort of a 'blade culture'

I'm very confused as to why a society would frown upon the blade.

I'd like to hear some thought on the matter..
Click to expand...

I think its just that people aren't used to using them, or seeing them used much anymore. Also, most people at some point in their lives has seen/heard of/experienced a knife wound of some sort, so they know they can be painful. And like anything painful, I can somewhat sympathize when people are wary of them. Heck, if I don't know you, and you pull out a knife next to/near me, you can be sure I'll be keeping an eye on it for the time being. And I'm even a "knife person".

If found that so far, I've had good experiences with knives at work. I (and, not saying you did any of this) never take it out to "play" with it, open it carefully (sometimes with two hands), often announce I'm going to cut something if there are many people I don't know around me ("hold on, I'm going to open this package, just a heads up"), never "brandish" it in any way, and put it away after its been used.

Also, I may have something of a good excuse for a knife, so I use that all the time. My work stocks apples in the kitchenette thing once a week or so. I like to eat them in meetings. My front teeth are fake (boating accident as a kid), and the only thing my dentist ever said to me after I got the veneers, is "not to eat apples the normal way". So I have an Opinel (#6) I keep in my bag just for cutting up apples. With that explanation, and that knife, no one blinks twice about it, even when I've had managers a few levels up from mine in attendance.

One time someone asked me if it was a "special apple knife". And when explaining it, I mentioned that I have a more typical knife in my pocket, to which the response was "WHY DO YOU HAVE TWO KNIVES". I simply said that the one in my pocket is for opening packages, or general use. I keep the other one clean for food and usually kept in my bag, because I don't want random germs on my food knife. They had absolutely no problem with that explanation.

Anyway, I do find it regrettable (and somewhat funny, because most people have a set of like 35 knives in their kitchen, all of which are larger than my pocket knives). But, as people get to know us, and learn that we're not crazy people, I think it goes back to being a normal thing pretty quick.
 
I think that our societal shift from a manufacturing dominance to a technological one is a major cause for this feeling. Back in the day when people were working at plants and factories, knives were a common everyday tool that was practical. However, today people work in office buildings and he need for such tools are waning. So it is uncommon to be around knives and then to see someone pull out a 9" long knife might cause some concern.
Also, the design of knives themselves are also to blame I believe. Back to the scenario above, the factory workers would probably have a folding knife such as a Barlow or Stockman. This is considered to be the standard knife to the general populace and would not turn most liberal heads. But when you pull out a ZT, Benchmade, or Emerson that has a 3"+ blade...then the non-knife users take notice.
 
What did you use? Let's face it, some look scarier then others.

I always recommend a SAK for a typical business office. They just don't scare people. If your office is a machine shop, you can get away with something else.
 
Just a quirk of human nature, like wearing skimpy swim suits is ok in western culture, but walking out in similarly cut jockey shorts or bra & panties will get you arrested. Most people pick up a knife daily to eat and prepare food, and that's ok but bring one out (frequently with an OL less than the kitchen cutlery) and watch out. People in urban settings tend to be more liberal about a lot of things and less accepting of other items considered to be 'risky' as we know. But, I live in rural Wisconsin where knives, guns and bows are seldom given a second thought if carried in a non threatening manner.
 
Oh, just realized I posted suggesting a SAK in your other thread. What fixed blade did you use?
 
I wouldn't necessarily say it's a knife specific thing as much as it is a "weapon" specific thing. I live in the sticks in SW Georgia, seeing somebody walking around open carrying a gun is commonplace and you are in the significant minority if you don't have a pocket knife on you of some kind. Like you literally get funny looks from people if you ask to borrow a knife if you don't have one. Kids down in this part of the country are raised around guns and knives so it is very much common place. When you live or work in areas where growing up using weapons isn't as common place like many metropolitan areas, things are completely different and many people draw their conclusions based on what they see on TV or read on the internet.

So IMHO it's more about the culture people are raised in, then anything else at the moment.
 
For those who have asked, I generally carry an ESEE 3 for work tasks. Not too intimidating
one might say. I'm employed by UPS, so I was very surprised when my supervisor raised the issue.
 
A lot of folks like to be cocooned in their own false utopian fantasy world. They don't understand and don't want to.
 
It's the media's fault.
Honestly though, you need to know your audience and maybe try to stick to small traditional folders for an audience setting.
 
You didn't give him/her the ....

[video=youtube;H9_GlqRRs0s]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H9_GlqRRs0s[/video]
 
It's possible to live in a city and have no significant trouble going an entire life without a pocket knife. It's also possible to grow up having only seen a pocket knife in the hands of lowlifes and crooks. These people may have only seen pocket knives used as weapons, and not for utility. It's the same with guns, since you don't have to shoot pork chops to eat them.

There have always been huge differences in culture between urban and rural people, based on these sorts of divergent experiences.
 
Maybe you need this
WcxtvBcs.jpg
:eek:

Seriously, it's hard to judge without having been there. Rhetorically, was it an official reprimand, informal warning, that sort of thing. Does UPS have a policy about knives? And what about your state laws? If the boss man came down hard on you then you might have to counter with your rights (assuming you have them as noted above).
 
W. Anderson said:
For those who have asked, I generally carry an ESEE 3 for work tasks. Not too intimidating
one might say. I'm employed by UPS, so I was very surprised when my supervisor raised the issue.
Click to expand...

How do you carry it, that is, open or concealed?

Is your supervisor's viewpoint the same as your company policy?
 
I work in a so-called "liberal" environment, and nobody bats an eye at my knife/knives. A lot has to do with the fact they're used to seeing me using them for normal cutting chores (and other uses too, with my SAKs); and also because they know me well, including the business owners. Nobody cares, and I don't make a big deal about my knives.

I'm sure there's a lot of "conservatives" who disapprove of or fear pocketknives. It's less a political thing and more a lifestyle thing. I also don't live in a rural area, yet I find uses for my pocketknife(s) every day. Maybe not as much as my dad did growing up on a farm, but I have uses nonetheless.

Jim
 
Corporate HR/lawyer culture. Employees are a bad thing (other than C-level and VP executives, of course) and to be avoided if possible, or at least utterly controlled since they are all lawsuits waiting to happen. At least that how I read it, in the minds of big companies. All knives are banned at my workplace, because they are "weapons," no matter how small or innocuous.
 
I always had some sort of knife in my pocket for decades with no issues or comments and then I went to work for a company that was based in the US. The first thing we did was review this huge employee manual that had a whole chapter on weapons in the workplace and what the penalties were for possessing one. I had to ask if the manual was serious or some sort of inside joke.

Anyway I switched over to another job a few months later at a company that was half Canadian and half US. No manual, no chapter on knives in the workplace and what followed was decades of enjoyment.
 
I have had several employers take an issue with me using a knife at work. One of my bosses actually complained to her husband that i carried a knife and used it on the job. He knew I was a collector and calmed her down. Slowly but surely she actually started taking an interest in it but on first site she actually was scared, claimed to feel threatened by it and felt it was nothing more than a weapon. Mind you i didnt have the most descreet knives. Zt scavenger, kershaw offset. At that time i was on a huge kai kick and thats all I owned if it was a folder.

It just boils down to how you are raised and how knives are introduced and portrayed in your life. Or in the case of many enthusiasts including me it was a fascination and interest as a kid. Especially switchblades and balisongs. My best remedies for when using a knife in the workplace is to use it discreetly but not like you are hiding it. Try to remember that just because you are comfortable around knives many people arent for whatever reason. And showing respect for their concerns no matter how unjust it may seem goes a long way with calming any suspicion. And It also isnt a bad idea to get a knife that is inconspicuous. The less threatening your knife looks the less you look like rambo. Now five to ten years ago I would have said everyone can get bent and i will carry what i want. These days I try to respect others and their space and i dont mind compromising if it means I dont have to invest so much energy in trivial things and just being difficult.
 
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