Posted on 02/12/2015 9:05:35 AM PST by marktwain
AUGUST 12, 1958, a date that has faded into obscurity, the Congress of the United States enacted Public Law 85-623, an "act to prohibit the introduction, or manufacture for introduction, into interstate commerce of switchblade knives, and for other purposes," and sent it on to President Eisenhower for his signature. Under this act, "The term 'switchblade knife' meant any knife having a blade which opens automatically --
(1) by hand pressure applied to a button or other device in the handle of the knife, or
(2) by operation of inertia, gravity, or both."
The maximum penalty for each violation of this law was a $2,000 fine and five years in jail.Levine goes on to examine the history of switchblade knives, American manufactures, the debate in Congress, and the parallel to the "assault weapon" ban. At the time that the article was written, in 1990, the Clintonian "assault weapon" ban had not been passed, sunset out of existence, and generally discredited.
"Switchblade knives in the hands of criminals are, of course, potentially dangerous weapons. However, since they serve useful and even essential purposes in the hands of persons such as sportsmen, shipping clerks, and others engaged in lawful pursuits, the committee may deem it preferable that they be regulated at the State rather than the Federal level."Mr. Levine does an excellent job of describing the lies and distortions used by the politicians pushing the ban. I have no wish to duplicate his work, but the parallels with the willful ignorance of those who push for more and more legislative restrictions on firearms are obvious. Even the 100 year gap in their references to technological advances is similar:
Congressman Delaney's mind was made up, so it probably would have been pointless to confuse him with the facts. Switchblades came into common use in the United States, not around 1950 as he stated, but around 1850. After the turn of the century, thanks to the inventive genius of George Schrade (and the "protection" of the Tariff Acts of 1891 and 1897), American made switchblades of all sizes became popular and commonplace.It will come as no surprise that the principle push for the switchblade ban was a representative from New York City, James J. Delaney. New York is noted for its nannystate policies. Levine goes into detail about the philosophical basis for this desire to control every aspect of a persons life.
During the 1950s, established U.S. newspapers as well as the sensationalist tabloid press joined forces in promoting the image of a young delinquent with a stiletto switchblade or flick knife. While the press focused on the switchblade as a symbol of youthful evil intent, the American public's attention was attracted by lurid stories of urban youth gang warfare and the fact that many gangs were composed of lower class youth and/or racial minorities.[4] The purported offensive nature of the stiletto switchblade combined with reports of knife fights, robberies, and stabbings by youth gangs and other criminal elements in urban areas of the United States generated continuing demands from newspaper editorial rooms and the public for new laws restricting the lawful possession and/or use of switchblade knives.[4] In 1954, the state of New York passed the first law banning the sale or distribution of switchblade knives in hopes of reducing gang violence. That same year, Democratic Rep. James J. Delaney of New York authored the first bill submitted to the U.S. Congress banning the manufacture and sale of switchblades.
It's just right.
I bought a purple handled Ken Onion Leek just today- and gave it to my wife for her birthday :) She was very happy (she was also gratified to see the pricetags showing that I got it at $30 savings).
Thanks ,
Kershaw has great customer service too.
I have two Leeks and the torsion spring in each eventually needed replacing. I visited the Kershaw site hoping to buy replacement springs and discovered they replace them free. I think I just filled out an online form...and the new ones arrived in the mail.
I also snapped the tip off of my black one (doing something completely stupid). The website gave info on sending it in for repair. I sent it in with a note saying that it was my fault, and I’d be glad to pay for a new blade. Week and half later, it was back with a new blade at no charge (cost me $5 to mail it to them). They even replaced the blade lock mechanism that I’d taken out.
Nice.
I've since given them away as gifts and they are always well received and usually it becomes the person's EDC.
Someday soon I'm going to learn how to consistently sharpen that serrated blade.
I think Spyderco owes you a referral fee for all of the business your one recommendation has given them and I really don't want to think about how much I've spent with them since you told me about their Harpy.
I'm also a big fan of their Caly 3.5 and its low profile (though somewhat fragile) pocket clip.
Ah my pleasure!
The curved shape of the blade makes it a very useful knife to carry, and for sharpening it I just use a standard serrated edge sharpener, which is a long gradual cone shape grinding rod that can handle both the small and large areas of the blade.
Of course if the blade gets too far gone, I just buy a new one since that particular knife isn’t too awful expensive. i think I have owned four of them in the past 20 years or so.
Thanks I did not know that.
A buddy and I found one in the grass beside a road back when we were in high school, but I don't know what became of it.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.