Carrying and using a knife

[ltindiandaeng]

I am,as it suggests by my screenname,of American Indian heritage so I have used and carried knives all my life.Mostly as tools for work and hunting,but also at an early age my uncles taught me how to fight with them,and I generally carry one with me wherever I legally am permitted.I am writing this to help others avoid what happened to my cousin,quite a few years ago.He is the son of one of the same uncles who taught me to use a knife,and of course his father taught him also.Now he is in prison for killing a guy in a barfight.His brother,who witnessed this incident,says if t my cousin did not have a knife,as did the guy he killed,the whole thing would have been a fistfight at worst.But booze and knives were involved,so 1 man is dead and the other is in prison.

I am not anti-knives.I live in Thailand and live sometimes in the city and sometimes in the jungle.In the jungle I carry a knife,as does most everyone here,as it is a useful tool and easily explained to the authorities.In the city it is illegal and I leave it home.

If the time comes,which hopefully it never does,that you have to use a knife in self-defense,then use it but you damn well better be able to justify in court not only using it but why you were carrying it.In America,guns are part of our culture and as long as it is legal and registered you can usually make out okay in court if you have to use it.On the other hand,thanks to people like my cousin,knives are seen by the general public,which make up juries,as the weapon of thugs and punks.This is not my opinion,but it is the reality of the situation.

I apoplogize for the length of this posting.By all means continue to study knife defense,and despite alll my concerns regarding knives,let me also say if you really,really need to use it ,it is better to be tried by twelve than carried by six.Whatever your decision,one thing I am sure of,if you are going to be drinking then leave the knife at home.

[Tant01]

You make some very good points! Sadly EXPERIENCE is not always the best teacher.

We call it learning the hard way.

I'm sorry for your brother...

[darrianation]

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[GQchris]

I prefer the balisong, for dirty knife work.

[Guest]

Put a knife on your belt if, and only if, you are prepared to take a life.

If you aren't prepared to accept that consequence, then leave it at home.

[Guest]

I prefer the balisong, for dirty knife work.

Really? How many knife fights have you been in Chris?

[Hardball]

I can't help but wonder if your cousin would have gone to prison had he killed the man with a rear naked choke instead of a knife. Makes me wonder about the law.

[ltindiandaeng]

Thank you all for condolences for my cousin.The fact was he could have walked away,and chose not to.So self-defense was not applicable to his case.One thing though.I mean no disrespect,but I must admit I did not understand the reference to the balisong or also the lonely heart.

[darrianation]

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[TTEscrima]

Even in tragedy there are lessons to be learned. When I was in college I took a few criminal studies courses. One of the things I learned that was somewhat surprising (at least to the majority of the class) is when our professor explained that the number one murder scenario in the country (US) is the bar fight.

I dunno when/where you went to college, but I think someone was pushing a personal agenda because that's way off the normal murder statistics, in 2004 for instance of 14,121 murders only 139 involved alcohol, usually money and property arguments are the leading cause at 44.4 percent of murders.

http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/cius_04/offenses_reported/violent_crime/murder.html

[chillaplata]

The sad story of the OP's cousin reminded me of this news item from a couple of years ago:

Harvard Grad Student Gets 6-8 Years For Manslaughter - Denver News Story - KMGH Denver

A variation on the same theme. A drunken student on his way home from a bar exchanges words with a local teenager, and a fight ensues. At some point, the student pulls a knife and stabs the teenager to death. One life ended, and one damaged perhaps beyond repair. To me it just bears out what others have said: don't carry a knife unless you are prepared to kill someone with it if necessary, and be prepared to face the consequences if you do.

The student in question ended up having his conviction reversed, on the grounds that the trial court erred by not allowing the jury to be informed of the victim's criminal history. A second trial resulted in a hung jury. In January of this year, he pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter in exchange for a two-year sentence.

Ex-Harvard student pleads guilty in deadly stabbing | U.S. | Reuters

I hope this guy and the OP's cousin are both able to put their lives back together once they get out of prison. A criminal conviction completely and utterly f*cks up your entire life, and prison isn't the end of it.

[ltindiandaeng]

Thank you again for good words for cousin.I do not know statistics so I cannot argue about the causes of homicides.I did work for 25 years in NY prison,and I believe that the majority of murders were related to money.For instance there are alot of killings between drug gangs,which is in essence about money.Here in Thailand,I believe alcohol is involved in a large per centage of killings,but there are also alot commited over business deals,which means they are about money,and saving face,which is an Asian thing.

[Garland]

I dunno when/where you went to college, but I think someone was pushing a personal agenda because that's way off the normal murder statistics, in 2004 for instance of 14,121 murders only 139 involved alcohol, usually money and property arguments are the leading cause at 44.4 percent of murders.
http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/cius_04/offen...me/murder.html

Well there goes the argument proported by so many *ahem* lying cocksmokers saying that most violent incidents involve the use of ETOH. For some reason, that didn't seem like bullshit at the time...guess you can't trust nothin' no more.

[Bill_1]

A knife can be very useful or very dangerous. I recommend using a knife with an small blade, so small there isn't a chance in hell that it could kill your opponent. I have a buddy, who was jumped by 6 kids, he ended up stabbing a kid with one of those knives and the rest took off. the name of these knives escapes me though..does anyone know what I'm talking about?

[Guest]

I recommend using a knife with an small blade, so small there isn't a chance in hell that it could kill your opponent.

I'm sorry Bill, but that's complete nonsense.

Any sharp edge or point, regardless of length, is capable of opening an artery. Most of the knife deaths in the UK involve small, folding knives about 3 inches in length, because they are legal to carry if you can justify why. I was working with the Police last year and they showed me photos of a victim who was killed with a 2 inch blade, the femoral artery was severed and a lung punctured.

I hear people say all the time "well I'd only do this with a knife or I would only go so far with a knife"........

Prison is full of people like that.