Anyone caught carrying a knife without a good excuse should expect to be sent to prison, David Cameron says.
Prime Minister Gordon Brown has argued that anyone over 16 caught with an illegal knife should be prosecuted, rather than escaping with a caution.
But Mr Cameron says the presumption should go further - so anyone convicted of carrying a knife should be jailed.
Yes, I know what you are thinking. The title is wrong surely.
Well no. Look at the first line and you will see that all of the bluster after, is made null and void.
Anyone caught carrying a knife without a good excuse should expect to be sent to prison, David Cameron says.
Without good excuse. Well I can think of a multitude of good excuses, the first one being that by carrying a knife, rather than using one, you are committing no crime.
Then you could want to use the knife for a number of valid reasons. Peeling a fruit, cutting fishing wire, carving an ornament for your granny, cutting yourself free in a crash. There are a lot of good reasons for carrying a knife. Carrying a knife shouldn't be a crime.
Then there is the fact that you might want it for self defence. You may be the most law abiding, harmless, nice, high quality individual the world has seen. However if you are small and weak, then you will have absolutely no defence against someone who is much bigger and stronger than you. If they happen to be carrying a knife and if they are a criminal who wants to attack people, then they won't care for the law anyway. As the saying goes with guns, if you outlaw guns, then only the outlaws have guns.
A totally disarmed public is a one way ticket for criminals and worse, tyrannical governments and terrorists to have their way. Switzerland have understood this for some time, which is why it has one of the most heavily armed populations in the world. Oh and one of the lowest crime rates.
Call me Dave has been sly with his wordage, but that key line at the beginning says it all. There are plenty of VERY good reasons to carry a knife. A mere tool that in the right hands can only do good. The people non-Orwellian governments should go after are those that ACTUALLY commit crimes. You know, the ones that ignore laws like this anyway.
1 comment:
Don't forget "good reason" also includes religious reasons.
Personally if I were caught with a knife I think I'd say, "Yes, I have a good reason for carrying this knife," but then refuse to reveal what that reason was. Let the prosecution try to prove I didn't have a good reason! Impossible I would have thought.
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