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Simon Augustine
Rogers
Gov.
23 October 2015
On Knife Control
You see a man walking in public, a switchblade-style of knife clipped to his belt, whats
your first thought? If you answered killer or criminal I recommend you read this research
paper and consider the importance of the Knife Freedom Act of 2015. Many U.S. citizens would
consider certain types of folding knives that have a quick method of deployment; such as switch
blades, balisongs, and gravity knives, to be dangerous concealed weapons, designed to kill
people. The truth is that all knives are indeed tools that, like a baseball bat, hammer, or
automobile, can be abused and misused to kill people. Though these people would likely want to
see these knives banned, many law-abiding citizens, depend on these knives to do work, or just
as importantly, enjoy using these knives for recreational purposes. Banning folding knives
because of the method of deployment and potential harm is ignoring the real problems of crime
which are that criminals are to blame for violence, not knives, that the bans that already exist are
hard to enforce, and that a knife ban like this is an impediment on every United States citizens
right to the pursuit of happiness and self-defense.
To put it simply, one only needs to put in a small amount of thought to realize that the
true cause of any violent crime is not the tool or weapon, but rather, the individual who uses it. A
knife, be it a kitchen knife, a buck skinner, or a balisong (also known as a butterfly knife), is an
inanimate tool that can be used to achieve a wide array of goals. Even if the tool in question was
designed to kill, it is up to the intent of the user to determine the use of said tool; therefore, it is

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the criminal that decides that a knife should be used to kill. There are indeed many examples of
tools that were designed for something and then used for something else, one such example
being the consumer use of sports cars, mind you, these sports cars are designed to reach unsafe
speeds that excel all speed limits, yet rarely achieve these speeds due to their current use. That is
not the only example, though, Numerous opportunities exist for young people interested in rifle
shooting sports. The Olympic events include Mens and Womens Rifle Shooting. (Faught)
Here we can clearly see the use of rifles, designed to kill human beings, in Olympic sports
entertainment. Likewise, knives with opening mechanisms that make them ideal for violent
crime can be used for recreational purposes such as collecting and martial arts, and can even help
with the everyday tasks they are designed to do. The design of the knife does not limit the
manner of its use. A team from West Middlesex University Hospital said violent crime is on the
increase - and kitchen knives are used in as many as half of all stabbings The researchers say
legislation to ban the sale of long pointed knives would be a key step in the fight against violent
crime. (BBC). Here we see that in the UK, kitchen knives are being used as murder weapons,
making their ban on folding knives useless. In response the UK has created the Save a Life,
Surrender Your Knife campaign to ban all knives in the United Kingdom. The idea that this
could be an enforceable, practical knife ban is absurd due to the inclusion of kitchen knives in
the ban.
As we have seen in many cases throughout history, banning an object simply does not
make it disappear, in fact as exampled during the U.S.s ban on alcohol, a ban may increase the
use of an item. The knives in question are tools that are considered to be extra dangerous due
to their faster method of deployment, for example a spring loaded knife can be deployed with the
press of a button, a gravity knife by simply being pointed downwards, and switchblades with the

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flick of the wrist, but at the end of the day these are nothing more than sharpened pieces of
metal. Criminals, by definition, do not obey the law. History has shown that gun control laws
will not prevent mass shootings. There was an assault weapons ban in effect at the time of
Columbine (Pittenger). Obviously this applies to knives too, seeing that criminals that would go
as far as to use a knife as a deadly weapon would not care that they are breaking the law by
simply owning the knife. one needs to look no further than the states with the toughest
restrictions on firearms to see that they are the ones consistently ranking the highest in violent
crime (Gosar). In fact, in the city of Oakland, the majorities of police confiscated firearms are
banned and were obtained through the black market. Once again, this is very similar to
Prohibition, our own attempt to ban the sale of alcohol, where history shows that during this time
alcohol consumption was at its highest. This was because people either bought the alcohol
illegally, or simply produced their own; now remember that a knife is just a sharpened piece of
metal in its most basic form. Despite of bans, drugs and illegal weapons are so easily available to
the public, one would assume that they are legal; these banned things are just so common. It
would be impossible for the Federal Government or local government to come collect guns.
This opinion by police officer, and veteran, Jeffery Denning explains how impossible it would be
for the government to collect banned items, as it would be a waste of resources. If anything,
knife bans dont hinder the criminals that ban aim to, but rather, puts innocent people at risk
because they now cannot uses these knives to defend themselves. It really puts a new truth to the
saying, If guns are outlawed, only outlaws would have guns. Law-abiding citizens turn in their
knives knowing that it is against the law not to, while criminals keep the banned items.
Finally, the banning of any type of folding knife impedes on a citizens right to bear arms,
right to the pursuit of happiness, and perhaps even more important, a citizens right to self-

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protection. Because these tools are banned, law-abiding citizens must surrender their knives,
usually without compensation, while the criminals that would use these knives to kill simply
dont. the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed (James Madison,
The Constitution). Some may argue that the innovation of firearms makes the Second
Amendment outdated, though knives are regarded as armaments and certainly do not contain the
capacity to kill dozens of people at a time, and therefore, should be an unalienable right of every
citizen. knife bans prohibit knife owners from traveling to states where their knife is legal. [a lift
of these bans] would allow people to possess knives in states where there are illegal if the person
is traveling from states where the knife is legal, if the knife is secured (CBO). Unfortunately,
many citizens are unaware of the fact that that a particular knife that they carry is banned in
another state, and are therefore subject to fines and even jail time. The evidence shows that knife
bans, and even material bans in general, dont achieve anything with the exception of limiting the
freedom of responsible people.
In the defense of those who wish to see such bans enacted, violence is one of the largest
problems that America faces, however the idea that the above mentioned folding knives are used
in violent crimes more than everyday items is false. Likewise, the notion that in a country
without knives, there would be a lot less violent crimes is simply untrue. It is very true that
knives are used in many crimes; however their use as weapons does not justify the bans that are
placed on them. the trouble with such restrictions is that knives are dual-purpose objects. They
can be used as weapons, just as hammers and baseball bats can, but like hammers and baseball
bats they usually arent (Hinkle). Knives are simply inanimate tools, and just like anything, can
be abused and misused. According to the FBI, more than 1,500 Americans were killed by
knives or cutting instruments in 2012. But thats still just a fraction of the more than 33,000

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Americans who were killed by motor vehicles in 2012 (Hinkle). Here we see that the number of
deaths due to knife-related injury is greatly outnumbered by deaths due to motor accidents, yet
no one seems inclined to ban motor vehicles. The next counterexample states that America would
suffer less homicide if dangerous knives were banned. an example of homicide rates before
and after a ban, take the case of the handgun ban in England and Whales in January 1997. After
the ban, clearly homicide rates bounce around over time, but there is only one year (2010) where
the homicide rate is lower than it was in 1996. The immediate effect was about a 50-percent
increase in the homicide rates. The homicide rate began falling only when there was a large
increase in the number of police officers during 2003 and 2004 (Lott). Just like the case of
Prohibition, this weapon ban led to a spike in weapon-related crime. Banning a weapon doesnt
make it disappear from the public, but rather appear in abundance in the illegal weapons trade,
where criminals have access to them, and that is the opposite of what America needs.
In conclusion, the Knife Freedom Act of 2015 will lift all existing knife ban, contrary to
popular belief, knives are not the root of violence, people are and to say otherwise is
irresponsible. Likewise, the notion that the enforcement of current bans is effective is also
incorrect, as these items will always be in circulation outside of the law. Most importantly,
without this bill being passed into law, many of the freedoms of American civilians will be
limited. The real issues with violent crimes are not the weapons used to commit them, but rather
the criminals who commit them. The only way to stop these horrible crimes from happening is to
stop criminals from owning weapons, not limit the freedoms of the innocent.

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Works Cited
BBC News. Doctors Kitchen Knife Ban Call. bbc.co.uk, 26 May 2005. Web. 18 October
2015.
Cbo. Cbo. S. 1315, Knife Owners Protection Act of 2015. www.cbo.gov, 16 June 2015. Web.
24 September 2015.
Madison, James. United States Constitution. www.loc.gov, 06 September 2008. Web. 29
October 2015.
Faught, Steve. Youth Rifle Programs. usashooting.org, 2012. Web. 21 October 2015
Gosar, Paul. Second Amendment and Gun Rights. gosar.hous.gov, 2014. Web. 23 September
2015
Hinkle, Barton. The Case For Knife Rights. shouselaw.com, 7 April 2014. Web. 18 October
2015
Lott, John. Murder and Homicide Rates Before and After Gun Bans. crimeresearch.org, 29
October 2015.
Pittenger, Robert. Gun Control. pittenger.house.gov, 14 June 2013. Web. 20 September 2015.