Is Carrying a Knife for Self-Defense, Illegal or Legal?

[geezer]

OK, that ^^^^ explains why I, although not very brave, go through my daily life here in Phoenix AZ feeling comfortably safe. If there's anything that "scares the bejeesus out of me" it's the way people drive here!

 

[lklawson]

OK, that ^^^^ explains why I, although not very brave, go through my daily life here in Phoenix AZ feeling comfortably safe. If there's anything that "scares the bejeesus out of me" it's the way people drive here!

That's probably because you know that you're not really in particularly escalated danger, despite the fact, as you pointed out, that AZ makes it legal for every non-prohibited person (legal age and no prohibiting criminal convictions), often called "Constitutional Carry."

Despite the seeming "common sense" of it, it turns out that more access to "weapons" (or guns) doesn't actually lead to more violence. In fact, while there are ever more guns and weapons sold in the U.S., the nation is at a decades long low in "gun homicides." In fact, "gun homicides" have been cut in half since 1993 but most people don't know and don't believe it.

Peace favor your sword,
Kirk

 

[DaveB]

That's probably because you know that you're not really in particularly escalated danger, despite the fact, as you pointed out, that AZ makes it legal for every non-prohibited person (legal age and no prohibiting criminal convictions), often called "Constitutional Carry."

Despite the seeming "common sense" of it, it turns out that more access to "weapons" (or guns) doesn't actually lead to more violence. In fact, while there are ever more guns and weapons sold in the U.S., the nation is at a decades long low in "gun homicides." In fact, "gun homicides" have been cut in half since 1993 but most people don't know and don't believe it.

Peace favor your sword,
Kirk

Yes but that reduction in crime rates is a global phenomenon and so far unexplained.

I'd be very surprised if any of the countries with higher violent crime and homicide rates did not also have a profusion of available weapons.

 

[Paul_D]

I was somewhat surprised by this, and indeed this when the report states That means you have a 1/100 chance of being involved in a violent crime in Britain and Wales in any given year. In the US your chances of being involved in a violent crime are less than 1/250."

However, I upon further investigation I can see we are not comparing like for like, which explains the disparity. The US figures only include four crimes:-
Murder/non negligent manslaughter
Rape
Robbery
Aggravated assault

The statistics for England and Wales (not Britain and wales BTW!) includes these but and also these additional offences:-
Attempted murder, intentional destruction of viable unborn child, less serious wounding offences, threat or conspiracy to murder, harassment/stalking, possession of weapons, and assault without injury.

If you included these in the US Statistics I'm guessing we'd see more parity.

 

[lklawson]

Yes but that reduction in crime rates is a global phenomenon and so far unexplained.

Which fundamentally means that violent crime is NOT tied to legal accessibility to weapons, firearms in particular. As I wrote in the article, for many people it is the bedrock assumption that more weapons = more crime. But the clear evidence falsifies that thesis. There is little need to fear or "regulate" weapons on the theory that weapons availability leads to crime. It just doesn't.

Peace favor your sword,
Kirk

 

[lklawson]

I was somewhat surprised by this, and indeed this when the report states That means you have a 1/100 chance of being involved in a violent crime in Britain and Wales in any given year. In the US your chances of being involved in a violent crime are less than 1/250."

However, I upon further investigation I can see we are not comparing like for like, which explains the disparity. The US figures only include four crimes:-
Murder/non negligent manslaughter
Rape
Robbery
Aggravated assault

The statistics for England and Wales (not Britain and wales BTW!) includes these but and also these additional offences:-
Attempted murder, intentional destruction of viable unborn child, less serious wounding offences, threat or conspiracy to murder, harassment/stalking, possession of weapons, and assault without injury.

If you included these in the US Statistics I'm guessing we'd see more parity.

Yeah, I think I said something similar. My point being, despite the fact that, as I wrote, the violent crime rates, and even murder rates, are more similar than dissimilar, the weapons restrictions for one or higher availability for another don't seem to impact from one to the other. Apparently when criminals want to crime and when murderers want to murder, they're still gonna.

Peace favor your sword,
Kirk

 

[DaveB]

I was somewhat surprised by this, and indeed this when the report states That means you have a 1/100 chance of being involved in a violent crime in Britain and Wales in any given year. In the US your chances of being involved in a violent crime are less than 1/250."

However, I upon further investigation I can see we are not comparing like for like, which explains the disparity. The US figures only include four crimes:-
Murder/non negligent manslaughter
Rape
Robbery
Aggravated assault

The statistics for England and Wales (not Britain and wales BTW!) includes these but and also these additional offences:-
Attempted murder, intentional destruction of viable unborn child, less serious wounding offences, threat or conspiracy to murder, harassment/stalking, possession of weapons, and assault without injury.

If you included these in the US Statistics I'm guessing we'd see more parity.

Such a glaring error smells of propaganda.

 

[DaveB]

Which fundamentally means that violent crime is NOT tied to legal accessibility to weapons, firearms in particular. As I wrote in the article, for many people it is the bedrock assumption that more weapons = more crime. But the clear evidence falsifies that thesis. There is little need to fear or "regulate" weapons on the theory that weapons availability leads to crime. It just doesn't.

Peace favor your sword,
Kirk

I've never heard anyone make that argument.

Weapons availability leads to more of the crime that you have being lethal, as well as more lethal suicides and more crazy people shooting up schools.

I saw a good summary of the discussion via Vox:

 

[hoshin1600]

if only people could put aside their preconceived biases and think for themselves rather than being a mimic of the media.

everyone should do themselves a favor and do their own research and stop regurgitating stuff they find on Youtube or heard from their favorite media personality

 

[hoshin1600]

lethal suicides

redundancy at its finest.

 

[Danny T]

more lethal suicides

redundancy at its finest.

Yeah...
Uh...if it is a suicide it is lethal.
If it wasn't lethal it was an attempted suicide.

If there were no firearms people committing suicide would still do so.
If there were no firearms people committing crime would still do so.
If there were no firearms people committing mass murder would find other ways and still do so.
Having a firearm does not make people go out and be criminals.

 

[lklawson]

Weapons availability leads to more of the crime that you have being lethal, as well as more lethal suicides and more crazy people shooting up schools.

Real world statistics disagree.

 

[geezer]

If there were no firearms people committing suicide would still do so.
If there were no firearms people committing crime would still do so.
If there were no firearms people committing mass murder would find other ways and still do so.
Having a firearm does not make people go out and be criminals.

Right ....but having easy access to firearms tends to make people more successful at all of the (bolded) above!
We Americans are really big on success!

 

[geezer]

Hey, am I the only one who noticed that in that video DaveB posted, they stated that in the US we have a really high rate of successful (of course!) suicides using firearms, and overwhelmingly by white males (2:55). Now if that rate exceeds the rate by which whites use firearms to commit homicide against minorities, then statistically there is a net loss of white males, which over time will diminish their percentage of the overall population.

Considering this, logically White supremacists should favor more restrictions on firearms.

Oh wait, I forgot that such belief systems neither appeal to the most logical otherwise or "supreme" individuals among us. My mistake!

 

[Dirty Dog]

Thread locked. All political debate should take place at US Message Board - Political Discussion Forum not here.