The one that has the LEAST basis in truth that I can see come by on a regular basis is about what's legal to carry and what isn't. Let me give you an example by the rumors that seem to go around in the place where I live.
In case you didn't know I live in the Netherlands. (Not Holland, the Netherlands, here's a video about the difference:
Now as you might suspect I tend to carry a knife. Lately I've been carrying a knife I made myself, this one:
 |
| The blade is stainless steel (Niolox) with a spalted sycamore handle on it. |
It's not very big, it has a 3" blade (7,5cm) and is perfect for small jobs that I might encounter like opening packages, assisting the the flailing of an orange, or de-animating potatoes into edible chunks.
When I'm at work I usually carry the entire thing with sheath in my pocket and sometimes it just lays on my desk. (I work in an office for my daytime job)
When I'm not at the office I usually simply carry it on my belt.
On a regular basis someone will point it out and ask me: "Is that even legal?" probably because they're not used to people carrying a fixed blade instead of a folding knife.
 |
| "Also, if you have a forked stick you can always easily find water" Clueless Scoutmasters across the world. |
Very often when that happens someone helpfull in the area will chime in and tell them: "Well as long as the blade isn't longer than your hand is wide it's perfectly legal" which is probably what they've been told by their fathers, or uncles or scout master or something.
Now I can understand where someone would tell this to a young boy just to give him a small guideline on what's acceptable. However....
Do we really think that actual laws work like that? Let's think about that for a moment.. This would mean that someone with small hands like my wife (who's the perfect cuddle size, Love you dear) could carry maybe a 2,5 inch (6cm) blade on her person while my cousin Matthias Heinrichs who is around 7 feet tall could carry something with a MUCH bigger blade.
Also, imagine the conversation that a cop would have with you while checking if your knife was too big or small enough:
Cop: Is that a knife I see in your pocket/on your belt? (this can happen when you carry a knife with a clip)
 |
| You know what they say about cops with small hands right? The get to carry only small knives..... I wonder if that counts for guns too? |
Detained citizen: Yes sir/mam it is.
Cop: Can I see it please?
Detained Citizen, knowing that the knife was smaller than his hand: Yes sir (and hands it over to the officer)
Cop, holding the knife across the palm to check for length: Well sir it seems we're having a problem, this knife it too large
Citizen: Well sir it's small enough for my hand. So it should be ok right?
Cop: Well it's too big for mine. So I'm affraid I'm going to have to take it and give you a ticket for illegal weapons carry.
You see how that wouldn't work right?
So the law has to be written in such a way (it should be anyway) that an impartial person can measure what's legal or not. A certain amount of inches overall, a certain width, a certain bladelength etc. That's what you need. And in most cases that's exactly what's on the books.
I'd recommend you check your local laws, even with some of them you might be carrying something that's not allowed and you don't even know it.
On the other hand, you might be entitled to carry more according to the law and not even know it.
Local laws differ a LOT from Country to Country and sometimes even from province to province, State to State or City to City. If you're going to carry a knife, be responsible about it and know what you're allowed.
 |
| "You mean there's an actuall written law f or that stuff? |
Lastly, don't assume that a police officer knows what's legal, he or she might have been raised on the same nonsense that we were. If you encounter one who doesn't know the local laws, comply with what they ask. But ALWAYS make sure there's a paper trail. If they keep insisting that they have to take your knife make sure you get a reciept. That way you can prove which officer it was. And if the knife were to disappear in the legal system you know who's accountable for it.
In closing here's some local laws that I know of. Starting with the one in the Netherlands:
Our local laws can be found in the Law for Weapons and Ammo which can be found here: http://wetten.overheid.nl/BWBR0032774/volledig/geldigheidsdatum_06-05-2014 (sorry, no english version available)
The Netherlands
Losely interpreted our Dutch laws are as follows:
No Automatics (Stiletto's), No Balisongs (Butterfly knives), No knives that were made explicitly for stabbing (long thin double edged blades),
No folding knives that are more than 28cm opened.
No Swords (There is no definition about when a knife becomes a sword)
No knives that have a full handguard/knuckleduster
No objects that make it so that it's assumed that you're carrying them for use as a weapon. (This effectively means that if you have a screwdriver or ballpoint pen in your pocket while clubbing it could be classed as an illegal weapon.
This also means that it would be perfectly legal to carry a machete when camping or working in the yard, but 100% illegal when shopping for groceries
There's a few more laws concerning other weapons but these are the ones on the books as pertaining to knives.
Make sure you know about your local city. I know that a few of the bigger cities have local laws that make it illegal to carry anything. (I'm looking at you amsterdam)
In England you can only carry a folding knife with a blade shorter than 3" that doesn't lock without a legally valid reason. This means that you COULD carry something locking and bigger or a fixed blade when camping/hunting/working in the yard etc (all valid reasons).
But without a legally valid reason
In Germany a folding knife can lock or be opened one handed. This means that the classic Buck 110 knife is legal while the much smaller Spyderco Dragonfly isn't.
Fixed blades are in almost all cases legal.
The "Valid legal reason" rule also applies there. A one hand locking knife while hunting is perfectly legal for instance.
For more information a good place to start is this Wikipedia Page and Google, offcourse, is your friend as well. If you can't find anything usefull about your area you might want to check out www.Bladeforums.com, www.Iknifecollector.com or one of the many MANY other knife related communities and ask a question there. There are so many collectors and knife lovers across the world that chances are someone might be able to help you.
Geen opmerkingen:
Een reactie posten