non-gun weapons
Terrorists armed with knives kill 29 in China
Story here. In another account, one of the knives is described as two feet long, which would make it more of a short sword.
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NYC: man kills five with knife and machete
Story here. Of course, when comparing jurisdictions on "gun violence levels," these don't count.
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Boston proposing knife control
Video from a hearing: knives are gateway weapons! Knife Rights lobbyist Todd Rathner goes on the offensive rather than just reading a statement. Why do you have an exemption for Loews, Target, etc?
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Knife Rights Foundation has a success
Here's their press release.
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US reverses stance on small arms treaty
Story here. The US did say that any vote must be by consensus, to which treaty proponents are objecting.
UPDATE: Prob is old news. I've just fought off one hell of an infection, am not too clear at noticing things in this exhausted state.
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NYC: knife killings skyrocketing
In NY City, gun killings are down but knife homicides are up by 50%.
"amnesty for pocket knives or steak knives is not a reasonable option, said the Rev. Darryl Frazier ..."
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Crossbow assault
Story here. "Police said alcohol fueled the incident." No kidding -- the argument was over whether a dog was a pit bull or a lab.
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Non gun mass murders
Sensibly Progressive has a post on nongun mass murders.
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British press stepping up drumbeat for knife control
Scaring people increases circulation, and that increases ad revenue, so
The Daily Mail's headline is "Thugs committing 350 knife assaults EVERY DAY, as blade menace spreads to rural areas."
Times Online is more moderate: "Crime falls, but stabbings not just an urban problem."
The Telegraph leads with: "One person is a victim of knife crime every four minutes."
Not to mention: "Nike Air Stab trainer withdrawn after spate of knife murders."
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Taser loses liability suit
Story was here, but a comment made a good point--why link to a Bloomberg story? They lost a federal verdict for a million in actuals plus five mill in punitives. Officers used several Tasers on a fellow who was apparently high on meth. and his heart stopped. The jury found for the officers, but against Taser, on the theory that it had inadequately warned users against risks. Sounds thin to me, but the jury bought it.
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More knife violence
Yesterday I posted on articles reporting that "stabbings have become an epidemic in Britain" and in Canada. Today comes word of a fellow who "went on a stabbing rampage in Tokyo's premier electronics and video game district, killing six people and wounding 12, authorities said." [Update: seven dead are now reported]. It also notes:
"Once rare, stabbing attacks have become more frequent in Japan in recent years as violent crime has increased. In one of the worst attacks, a man with a history of mental illness burst into an elementary school in Japan in 2001 and killed eight children."
Hat tip to reader Jim Kindred...
Instapundit may be right: the next legislative priority will be to ban assault knives. We can require that blades have no points, limit sharpness, restrict sharpening to licensees who know the limits, remove military ("Swiss Army") and paramilitary ("Boy Scouts") models from the market, etc.. Oh, and fundraise like hell!
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Good to know things are safe in NYC
Unless the other guy has knives and a meat cleaver. Rather underscores the point made by the women legislators' brief in Parker/Heller. If the victim had been armed, the killer would have been killed. If they'd both had guns, it would at least have been an equal fight (and odds are the guy would have stayed home rather than go to an equal fight). As it was, he knew he had a victim and she was cornered.
Hat tip to reader Eric Schultz...
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There are worse things than being robbed at gunpoint
"Polk County Man Sets Two Women On Fire". The two women he splashed with gasoline during the robbery took burns over 90% of their bodies.
Thanks to reader Fred Rawlings for the story....
Update: whether and why the law should punish attempt less seriously than a completed crime has LONG been debated. The traditional view was that justice requires retribution for crime, and an attempt did less harm than a completely offense. Then that seemed a little to ... judgmental? ... and the theory arose that the object was incapacitation, lock the guy up or snuff him and he can't do it again, or alternately, deterrence. Under either of those approaches it's hard to explain punishing attempt less strictly -- a perp who tries to kill is just as a much of a risk as one who succeeds, and deterrence of attempts is just as valuable as deterrence of the crime. Of course, here the guy is gonna get the max for, oh, three counts of agg. assault while armed, three of attempted murder, one of burglary (entering a structure with intent to commit theft, and anything else they can fit in. (In AZ, if the perp says "stand over there," they add in kidnapping). In some states, but not AZ, the judge can "stack" sentences at will, so the guy might wind up with about four twenty year sentences, consecutive.
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Robbery with a gun... a stapler gun
Story here.
"Petrella said the stapler's chrome finish could have made it look like a gun "if someone didn't get a good look at it.""
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Novel non-gun crime
From the BBC:
""The defendant pointed the vibrator in the bag at Mr Vakani and warned him to back off," said Tim Palmer, prosecuting."
Hat tip to Budd Schroeder...
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Now this is a new one...
A Pennsylvania woman gets probation for holding officers at bay using four rattlesnakes. As might be expected, she got bitten. "I just wasn't in the right frame of mind that night," she explained, which does seem likely to have been the case.
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The perils of a blind date
The Arizona Republic has the story. When she asks to tie you up, you might figure it's gonna get kinky, but when she pulls out the knife and pickaxe, it's a clue this is going to be a Valentine's Day that you will remember for a long, long, time. If you live through it, I mean.
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Grave rage and assault with a rake
A visitor to a cemetery finds a worker relieving his bladder upon the visitor's mother's grave. As might be expected, the visitor found this rather inappropriate. The worker finds his anger unacceptable, and tries to brain him with a rake. Story here.
Reminds me of a tale told by my late ex father in law, which was a student of classical languages (founded the U of Md. classical languges department). Scholars had been puzzling over a fragmented inscription found in a late Roman cemetery, trying to read all sort of meaning into it. He solved it. It read to the effect of "Be careful what you're doing up there -- remember we're down here and have to drink it."
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Inventive assault
A Missouri woman is accused of forcing her way into a dog-breeder's home and repeatedly battering her with a dead puppy.
Instapundit will probably observe that that was a waste of a perfectly good puppy.
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Driver uses auto to run down five
In Covington, GA, Lanny Barnes used an auto to run down five people, including three toddlers. "One witness described the man as having a smile on his face." "Barnes' mother, Mary, told The Associated Press that her son has battled mental illness."
What kind of society do we have when any madman or felon can buy a car without a background check, and easily secure a license to drive it anywhere he desires? Why don't can't we at least regulate cars as tightly as we regulate guns?
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Mass hammer slaying in PA
Six dead in hammer attack. Here's more.
It's a bad day for hammer casualties. Rep. Patrick Kennedy was injured in a hammer accident, too.
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British killer wanted to emulate Columbine massacre
Reuters is reporting a British killer decided to emulate the Columbine massacre, using knives, and managed to kill four.
Continue reading "British killer wanted to emulate Columbine massacre"