8 October 2008
Knife Control Spreading in Massachusetts?
Posted by admin under: Equipment .
In the The Patriot Ledger reader Joe Ranieri in Quincy says that Councilor Dan Raymondi has proposed an ordinance that would make it illegal for anyone under the age of 18 to have a pocketknife.
I read the article in the Sept. 3 Ledger regarding Quincy Councilor Dan Raymondi proposing an ordinance that would make it illegal to give or offer for sale a knife to anyone under 18 years old. This is ridiculous. I was in the Cub Scouts when I was 10, and I had a knife. It was part of the uniform. Then I went in to Boy Scouts. Everybody in the troop had a knife. It was part of the uniform. Growing up in Quincy, I did a lot of fishing. The most important tool in my tackle box was a knife. Raymondi is saying you can’t give anyone a knife. Does this mean you have to be 18 to get a steak knife in a restaurant? I think Raymondi should put his energy toward the problems in Ward 2.
Based on the earlier article here it sounds like Mr. Raymondi is trying to solve a problem that doesn’t exist since it’s not based on anything other than his discomfort. However, that earlier article suggested that Boston does have such an ordinance and I’m wondering what is going on. Of course there are some kids who can’t handle knives. Teach them. Of course there are kids who will use knives illegally. Be a parent and keep track of your kid. This fearfulness on the part of adults is counterproductive when they use it as an excuse to diminish the opportunities for children. Instead of presuming that a kid is stupid or delinquent with parents who don’t care I think we should accept the reality that most parents do track what their kids do and possess. They also try to teach them how to handle things, including knives, at the appropriate time and if they feel that their kid isn’t ready then they take it away and wait until the child is ready. That’s what normal parents do. I don’t want to write our laws based on the lowest representation of parents and I don’t want good and honest Scouts to be painted with the same broad brush of distrust. Don’t treat kids like infants.
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