The average American probably doesn’t know this, but there’s a huge problem with knife-crime in the UK. (That’s what happens when guns are so hard to get a hold of, knives everywhere.) Sports stars try to tell people to knocks it off; so does the prime minister but no one cares what he says anymore. Which brings us to today’s news: the very first “anti-stab” knife. That is, a knife that’ll do the job in the kitchen, but can’t really be used to stab someone.
How does it work?
The knife has a rounded edge instead of a point and will snag on clothing and skin to make it more difficult to stab someone.
But as the inventor, a gentleman from Swindon—go, Swindon Town!—says, no knife can ever truly be “stab-proof”:
It can never be a totally safe knife, but the idea is you can’t inflict a fatal wound. Nobody could just grab one out of the kitchen drawer and kill someone.
It’s also £40, which, I think, is a tad expensive for a kitchen knife.
Also, the comments on the Times Web site are truly disheartening: “This invention is stupid die die die.” Calm down, sirs.
Don’t need this here in the states because we got guns. Knives are so old school for killing people.
OJ could have used this.
Can’t you just cut the jugular with “any” knife available out there?
Yeah, but that’s not stabbing, that’s cutting. You can stab someone pretty much anywhere and inflict moderate to major harm simply because you’re damaging internal muscles/organs. If you’re cutting, you’re breaking skin (initially) which is far less damaging.
These knives won’t help you much if you’re locked in a basement with some psycho… but if you’re house is robbed and you need to beat a hasty exit, it might give you more of an advantage.
Dunno, neat idea, but unless all knives turn into anti-stab knives, I can’t see how it’ll be useful.
Moreover, the stabbing motion is actually harder to defend against.
By forcing someone to use a swinging slicing motion you have a greater chance of either blocking or trapping their arm.
“The average American probably doesn’t know this, but there’s a huge problem with knife-crime in the UK.”
Yes- HUGE problem over here in the UK. 277 deaths between 2007-08. Population approx 60 million. Not exactly huge is it, but good for the newspapers to over-hype I suppose.
2006-07: 59 gun deaths. That’s why we don’t carry guns:)
This could still slit a throat though I imagine.
Don’t mean to be a stick in the mud but I’m pretty sure you can stab anyone, with just about anything, if you apply enough force…
Is the problem with people breaking into someone’s house and grabbing a knife from their kitchen and stabbing them….
Because if the assailant is bringing his own knife to the fight, I don’t see how this even remotely makes any sense.
I have a boat knife that’s meant to be used when you’re rafting. It’s just a modified version of a tanto-point knife the same company makes, and has a blunt point on it sort of like this thing (but it’s double-edged) and the idea is if you drop it, it won’t punch a hole in your raft.
My friend and I have gone back and forth over whether my knife would make a suitable defensive weapon (he has the tanto-point version), and the conclusion we both eventually came to was that yes, it probably would. At the end of the day, I may not be able to stab someone in the heart (which is almost impossible to do anyway) or through the leg musle or whatever, but a solid “stab” to the chest with my blunt knife from a fairly strong guy such as myself would definitely ruin an attacker’s day, and might even break the skin. After that they’d definitely have to think twice about whether they wanted to come at me again, and I’d probably have enough time to get some space between me and them.
STFC FTW!!
All those nay-sayers at the Times are just upset that they won’t get to stab people anymore if this catches on.
Uhh….did it ever occur to these moron Brit socialists that any moron with a stone can sharpen these to a point?
Stupid sheeple, freedom is for Americans!
I think this knife is a great idea, it may not be effective for adults but it may save a child. keep up the good work
This is the stupidest thing i have ever seen. It wont do a damn thing to stop crime.
Criminal:”I want to kill someone, but all the knives have had their points removed. Has that detered me from wanting to kill someone? No i’ll just beat them to death with a big stick instead”
Labour party idiots: “we have to ban trees to stop this wave of big stick crime”