What's the deal with the psuedo-superiority attitude knife people have towards people

melt said:
And, if something like what Kamagong posted above happens to them,
( http://www.wjla.com/news/stories/1208/578224.html )
and they have no knife on them, then they will wish they had one of your knives that they probably thought you paid too much for.

If I'm following along correctly here, the central question of this thread is: If person A is carrying a knife, and person B is not, is person A superior to person B?

"Superior" is a heavy word, and someone who is modest and humble would not like to say they are superior to someone else. History is full of crazy, evil people who tried to say one group of people is superior to another (Hitler, for example).

But let's ignore all the negative vibes the word "superior" sets off for a moment.

Fact: Superiority is situational.

If something needs to be cut (and I mean needs to be cut, like the seatbelt that was choking the kid in Komagong's post above) and you don't have the knife, then the person who has the knife is superior to you. Until a true need to cut something arises, then the person with the knife is not superior to a person without a knife.

I carry a knife because I don't want to have to wait on someone with a knife to show up if my child is getting choked by a seatbelt, or if I can't seem to tear open the package my beef jerky is in.
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That was a great post, for oh so many reasons.
 
We really need to get a clear definition of the word "sheeple" before we continue to denigrate eachother over it.

From Wikipedia:

Sheeple is a term of disparagement, a portmanteau created by combining the words "sheep" and "people."

It is often used to denote persons who voluntarily acquiesce to a perceived authority, or suggestion without sufficient research to fully understand the scope of the ramifications involved in that decision, and thus undermine their own human individuality or in other cases give up certain rights. The implication of sheeple is that as a collective, people believe whatever they are told, especially if told so by a perceived authority figure believed to be trustworthy, without processing it or doing adequate research to be sure that it is an accurate representation of the real world around them. The term is generally used in a political and sometimes in a religious sense.
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It really has little to do with knives or guns.

The term took a "tactical" meaning when Dave Grossman used it in the following context:

"Most of the people in our society are sheep. They are kind, gentle, productive creatures who can only hurt one another by accident." This is true. Remember, the murder rate is six per 100,000 per year, and the aggravated assault rate is four per 1,000 per year. What this means is that the vast majority of Americans are not inclined to hurt one another. Some estimates say that two million Americans are victims of violent crimes every year, a tragic, staggering number, perhaps an all-time record rate of violent crime. But there are almost 300 million Americans, which means that the odds of being a victim of violent crime is considerably less than one in a hundred on any given year. Furthermore, since many violent crimes are committed by repeat offenders, the actual number of violent citizens is considerably less than two million.

Thus there is a paradox, and we must grasp both ends of the situation: We may well be in the most violent times in history, but violence is still remarkably rare. This is because most citizens are kind, decent people who are not capable of hurting each other, except by accident or under extreme provocation. They are sheep.

I mean nothing negative by calling them sheep. To me it is like the pretty, blue robin's egg. Inside it is soft and gooey but someday it will grow into something wonderful. But the egg cannot survive without its hard blue shell. Police officers, soldiers, and other warriors are like that shell, and someday the civilization they protect will grow into something wonderful.? For now, though, they need warriors to protect them from the predators.

"Then there are the wolves," the old war veteran said, "and the wolves feed on the sheep without mercy." Do you believe there are wolves out there who will feed on the flock without mercy? You better believe it. There are evil men in this world and they are capable of evil deeds. The moment you forget that or pretend it is not so, you become a sheep. There is no safety in denial.

"Then there are sheepdogs," he went on, "and I'm a sheepdog. I live to protect the flock and confront the wolf."

If you have no capacity for violence then you are a healthy productive citizen, a sheep. If you have a capacity for violence and no empathy for your fellow citizens, then you have defined an aggressive sociopath, a wolf. But what if you have a capacity for violence, and a deep love for your fellow citizens? What do you have then? A sheepdog, a warrior, someone who is walking the hero's path. Someone who can walk into the heart of darkness, into the universal human phobia, and walk out unscathed
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Yet again, it really has nothing to do with carrying knives.

A person without a knife is not a "sheeple", their just a fool.
 
Loosearrow said:
"A man without a knife is a dead man". Alot of people do not live in a world of self reliance. They pay other people to do something for them. They have not developed proplem solving skills, most of which require tools. Can't cut up a chicken, scrape a gasket, cut ribbon to wrap a present. Can't sharpen a knife and appreciate the difference. A great loss of independence has happened to people in the last few generations, just ask those few people left that lived thru the depression. Our value system has changed. Few can appreciate a sharp edge, feel the difference in the shape of a knife in the hand, appreciate the workmanship that went into the knife, and understand why it works so well based on grind, steel etc. They don't take care of anything, just have someone else do it and throw it away when it doesn't work. We are due for a wake up call. It is great to have a forum like this to pool ideas.
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I think this thread is about appreciating our self reliance, and then having a good laugh at those who do not possess that same self reliance. We can laugh because we know that these people probably will never have a need to fend for themselves. Part of self reliance is having the proper knowledgeand motivation, the other part is having the proper tools. So for one to view an anti-knife society (I use this term loosely), why would we not find it humorous for people who are incapable of "coping" as many of you have put it, to cringe and not understand why we carry our tools (knives) and maintain a level of readiness. You don't buy your way out of getting choked by a seatbelt, nor do you buy your way out of getting stranded on the side of the road in the middle of winter. I do not feel superior. I feel better prepared and more self reliant. There is something satisfying about working for what you have and being able to feel "capable." Maybe it is a manliness thing, perhaps it is an instinct going back to caveman times. All I know is that I would rather be self reliant and able than be some dandy who would perish after one night in 40 degree weather. This is not a feeling of superiority, it is common sense and Darwinism.

So, by all means be proud of your capabilities guys. Superior and inferior are strong words though. The Martialist made a good clarification about being superior in a particular situation; that is simply based on fact, not feeling. But can we scoff at these people when they do not understand why we EDC and take care of our tools? Yes. It is the same thing as someone just out of college with an office job wondering why in the heck someone would drive a pickup truck. They just haven't lived long enough to figure it out, or in the event that they are no spring chicken--they just never payed attention to the way the world works.
 
melt said:
And, if something like what Kamagong posted above happens to them,
( http://www.wjla.com/news/stories/1208/578224.html )
and they have no knife on them, then they will wish they had one of your knives that they probably thought you paid too much for.

If I'm following along correctly here, the central question of this thread is: If person A is carrying a knife, and person B is not, is person A superior to person B?

"Superior" is a heavy word, and someone who is modest and humble would not like to say they are superior to someone else. History is full of crazy, evil people who tried to say one group of people is superior to another (Hitler, for example).

But let's ignore all the negative vibes the word "superior" sets off for a moment.

Fact: Superiority is situational.

If something needs to be cut (and I mean needs to be cut, like the seatbelt that was choking the kid in Komagong's post above) and you don't have the knife, then the person who has the knife is superior to you. Until a true need to cut something arises, then the person with the knife is not superior to a person without a knife.

I carry a knife because I don't want to have to wait on someone with a knife to show up if my child is getting choked by a seatbelt, or if I can't seem to tear open the package my beef jerky is in.
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Must give credit on the "Superiority is situational" in bold lettering. It is about being better prepared for this unpredictable thing we call life. Better to have it and not need it....ya'll know how the rest goes.
 
I feel superior to people who carry dull knives while I carry knives that whittle hair. I feel superior to people who only carry knives while I have a multitool as well. I feel superior to people who carry a knife but no cell phone while I have both. I feel superior to people who carry knives while driving their econoboxes while I am in my pickup with a loaded toolbox. I feel superior to people who carry knives with a high school education while I have a college degree.

Anyone can make themselves feel superior for any reason.
 
shecky said:
That would make you a sheeple. According to the line of thinking by many of the knife nuts here, if it were followed by most cell phone carrying people.
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They DO think I'm living in some weird twilight realm for not owning a cellphone.
You should see the incredulous looks whenever someone finds out I don't own a cellphone or a laptop.
And then the utter look of disbelief when they find out I don't even WANT to.:D
Give me $2500, and I'll buy more knives, books, and ammo, and say a big "screw you!" to the technological toys many people drool over.:thumbup:
 
shotgunner11 said:
I was just talking to my Blackberry and he said your a jerk.:D
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If your Blackberry is talking to you, you might want to see someone about that.:eek::)
Those hands-free headsets for cellphones sure have made it hard to tell who's crazy now though, haven't they? Used to be, when you saw someone walking along talking to themself, you knew they were crazy)or trying to appear so).
NOW, it's usually a cellphone.
Although the one time, I saw this woman walking along talking to no one, and of course being these days I thought she was on a cellphone.
Turned out she wasn't...she was just crazy.:D
 
stabman said:
If your Blackberry is talking to you, you might want to see someone about that.:eek::)
Those hands-free headsets for cellphones sure have made it hard to tell who's crazy now though, haven't they? Used to be, when you saw someone walking along talking to themself, you knew they were crazy)or trying to appear so).
NOW, it's usually a cellphone.
Although the one time, I saw this woman walking along talking to no one, and of course being these days I thought she was on a cellphone.
Turned out she wasn't...she was just crazy.:D
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See, it's worked out great for me, nobody can tell I'm crazy anymore.

One mans trash is another mans treasure.
 
Sheeple exist. An understanding of their faults does not mean someone doesn't have a underlying love for Americans, despite proving themselves dumazz on a daily basis.

I'm not much on being sheeple, the "positive" example they display daily is an excruciating source of simplemindedness. Wolf is not in my makeup - I recognize I'm descended ethically from sheeple and why. That leaves sheepdog. Sheepdogs do NOT respect sheep at all. Their job is to make them obey the sheepherder's commands, to herd them in safe directions, and help the sheepherder bring them to feed and water.

On the rare occasion, they have to fight off a wolf.

They get no appreciation from the sheep, in fact, the sheep constantly test them, and bleat constantly about the sheepdog's aggressiveness and sharp teeth. On a daily basis, the sheep are worried about the dog more than the danger. They're sheep.

Some rams do step up when the wolf comes. A ewe will protect it's lamb. In human society, it can be pretty stupid to be the assaulter in that scenario.

Overall the problem is that the sheepdog isn't doing something to help their image with the sheep. A dog is just a dog, but those of us who do carry and use tools that can be lethal often get confused as looking, dressing, and talking like the wolf.

Who's fault is that?

Sheepdogs need to clean up their act.
 
tirod3 said:
Sheeple exist. An understanding of their faults does not mean someone doesn't have a underlying love for Americans, despite proving themselves dumazz on a daily basis.

I'm not much on being sheeple, the "positive" example they display daily is an excruciating source of simplemindedness. Wolf is not in my makeup - I recognize I'm descended ethically from sheeple and why. That leaves sheepdog. Sheepdogs do NOT respect sheep at all. Their job is to make them obey the sheepherder's commands, to herd them in safe directions, and help the sheepherder bring them to feed and water.

On the rare occasion, they have to fight off a wolf.

They get no appreciation from the sheep, in fact, the sheep constantly test them, and bleat constantly about the sheepdog's aggressiveness and sharp teeth. On a daily basis, the sheep are worried about the dog more than the danger. They're sheep.

Some rams do step up when the wolf comes. A ewe will protect it's lamb. In human society, it can be pretty stupid to be the assaulter in that scenario.

Overall the problem is that the sheepdog isn't doing something to help their image with the sheep. A dog is just a dog, but those of us who do carry and use tools that can be lethal often get confused as looking, dressing, and talking like the wolf.

Who's fault is that?

Sheepdogs need to clean up their act.
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Whoa, wasn't sure where you were going with that metaphor, but it ended up making sense. :thumbup:
 
hardheart said:
I feel superior to people who carry dull knives while I carry knives that whittle hair. I feel superior to people who only carry knives while I have a multitool as well. I feel superior to people who carry a knife but no cell phone while I have both. I feel superior to people who carry knives while driving their econoboxes while I am in my pickup with a loaded toolbox. I feel superior to people who carry knives with a high school education while I have a college degree.

Anyone can make themselves feel superior for any reason.
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If we ever meet, there is going to be a duel:D, because you just described me to the letter. :thumbup:
 
People who carry a knife ARE superior to those who do not. People who carry a quality knife are superior to those who carry junk. People who disagree with me are both stupid and wrong. :)
 
How is the question not relevant?

You see this a lot on the board:

Went shopping yesterday... saw a guy trying to open a package with his keys... could have let him borrow my knife but instead I had a knowing chuckle that he's a doofus that doesn't carry a knife...

If you think carrying a simple pocket knife somehow isolates and defines your superiority to the rest of the unprepared population - well - you may just have some personal inadequacy problems. :)

Bottom line: we're all surrounded by people on daily basis, some dumber than others, who carry an assortment of items. Leaving the house with a knife shows you're prepared, not superior to anyone else. Care about what you have on yourself and not what the guy next to you is or isn't carrying.
 
Tonight, I felt inferior when I went upstairs to cook some couscous, and, not being able to tear open the spice pack, I reached for my knife and realized I left it downstairs. I went down to get the knife and brought it back up, now feeling superior to my previously inferior self. It's all been so very confusing for me. :sniff: :confused:

Something to talk to my therapist about. :D
 
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