Willfully Incapable People

Leatherman, original. Benchmade Resistor. NEBO flashlight. Zippo lighter. Sidearm, spare ammo, possibly spare sidearm, too. Smart phone. That about covers what's ON me. IN the car is another story, and we don't have that much time.

Of all the things I carry its the flashlight I use most.

Same here David. Especially working on a boat, if I drop my knife or Leatherman that's one thing, if someone else does it that's another.

Let me dig through my purse...

Two folding knives(one long, one shorter), a Colt Commander, a small roll of baling wire, pliers, screwdriver with 8 bits and an wrapped scalpel. (Still haven't figured out when or where I got the scalpel.)

Needless to say, I don't have to go through any TSA checks.

Thanks for reminding me I need to get some more lighters .

And thanks for reminding ME I need to carry a purse...



Larry

A couple of years back, we went to see some friends for their son's poolside birthday party, at the community pool in their apartment complex. Their son entered the clubhouse ahead of us, then promptly closed the auto-locking door behind him, and he had the card (he was three years old.)

His father tried pitifully to open the door with a credit card, and I allowed him a minute or two to do so before I stepped forward with my knife. Within ten seconds, I had the lock flipped and the door open. His Russian wife (mine is Russian, too) asked me for what reason I would have a knife on me, and I replied "in case I need to open a locked door!".

I have carried a Leatherman for some years now and it is essential EDC IMO.

Some of the comments reminded me of an incident about 13 years ago where there was a party with helium balloons and when the party was over, the balloons needed quick deflation so I started using the blade point on said Leatherman to accomplish the task. One kid TOTALLY freaked out that I was using it for such and wanted to call the cops! GO FIGURE.

Our youth has been CHLOROFORMED by the mainstream media, uber-left wing teachers, et cetera. Sad world we live in right now...

Actually, life for them is a lot like life for a soldier - everything comes precut, tear to open, no knife needed. Goes to why soldiers in combat don't often carry a knife, despite all the macho hype from those who collect "combat knives."

Of course I did it, too, after serving 22 years it finally sinks in. I carry a knife because I find it useful. Most people simply don't - they teethe on a clamshell package or ask someone else, because they aren't self sufficient. They lack the knowledge or the tools.

They don't know how, so they wander around craving someone else's brains to fix their problem.

Zombies.

World's full of them.

DT Guy said:

And thanks for reminding ME I need to carry a purse...



Larry

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Hi Larry,

I'd give you a full inventory but I'm afraid your eyes would start to glass over like my hubby's does. Yet he's always asking me if I just happen to have...

Crashbox said:

Our youth has been CHLOROFORMED by the mainstream media, uber-left wing teachers, et cetera. Sad world we live in right now...

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How did that happen?

David E said:

No sense in alarming the sheeple needlessly, fun tho it may be.

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Oh. Now I see...

Hammers, knives, screwdrivers, and even guns are just tools. If the users of any of them are ashamed or nervous that some ninny might be alarmed, we end up where we are. Being prepared is now seen as neanderthal and some prefer to hide their knife or sidearm for fear of the reaction of the ninny. There are still a few of us that view them as the tools that they are, and you'll have no problem spotting my knife clip or my sidearm.

I don't carry a knife, because here in Mi you can cross a city limit and find yourself breaking the law if you have a knife.

Mainsail said:

How did that happen?

Oh. Now I see...

Hammers, knives, screwdrivers, and even guns are just tools. If the users of any of them are ashamed or nervous that some ninny might be alarmed, we end up where we are. Being prepared is now seen as neanderthal and some prefer to hide their knife or sidearm for fear of the reaction of the ninny. There are still a few of us that view them as the tools that they are, and you'll have no problem spotting my knife clip or my sidearm.

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Unfortunately in modern times it's "chic" to consider chores beneath you. Having the tools available marks you immediately as "low class" or worse, "one of those!"

Kinda makes us all "Tommies" in a way...

It's Tommy this and Tommy that and chuck 'im out the brute.
But it's savior of 'is country when the guns begin to shoot.

Today, from one of the posts here, I wrapped about 5 inches of Gorilla tape around my Bic. While it sounds too short to matter, I can rip off 1/4" wide strips which I've found myself doing with the large roll, anyway. We will see if anything presents itself that requires a bit of tape!

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I keep a Sharpie with a couple inches of duct tape rolled around it. It's come in handy a couple of times, mostly as an impromptu bandaid for minor cuts.

My Case folder and Thrunite Ti flashlight definitely get the most use out of my edc gear. Both are rather unremarkable looking, other than the orange-dyed bone handles on the Case. Still sometimes people are rather shocked or look at me strange when I pull one or the other out. I just act shocked back at them because they don't carry such things. Usually ends the bluster.

I used to carry a Zippo, but stopped when a freshly filled one opened in my pocket once and soaked the other contents of my pockets. Probably my fault. I should get back into the habit of carrying a Bic.

Want to carry something really handy that's light as a feather and cheap to boot?

Then carry 2 or 3 Band-Aids in your wallet. I've been in the habit of doing this for 40 or so years now, and you'll not find a better EDC item.

Try it. I guarantee it.

His Russian wife (mine is Russian, too) asked me for what reason I would have a knife on me,

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I would have asked, "Would you prefer I not have a knife and your child still be behind a locked door? Good grief."

I'll have to look at the tape on a lighter thing, not a bad idea.

Want to carry something really handy that's light as a feather and cheap to boot?

Then carry 2 or 3 Band-Aids in your wallet. I've been in the habit of doing this for 40 or so years now, and you'll not find a better EDC item.

Try it. I guarantee it.

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You're absolutely right, SleazyRider. My grandfather patched me up quite a few times with band-aids he kept in his wallet. Fond memories.

I've had people think I'm nuts for having basic survival items in my car. One of the same folks got upset because he could not borrow my expensive Zero Tolerance knife to cut up some boxes.

My smart phone. Ain't nothing you can't fix with Google. It is today's duct tape.

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Meh. I'm betting you are under 30. You can't cut a cake or start a fire with a smart phone (two of the things mentioned in the OP).

You can't fix a flat, although you can call AAA and wait for help (which is fine, because 90%+ of people these days can't read the owner's manual to find the jack, let alone actually change a tire themselves). Also known as being helpless.

People today rely on technology to the point of being paralyzed without it.

Remember that people once found their way around the globe with only the knowledge and sense they had in their heads.

These days, most people can't find their way to Wal-Mart and back without their GPS.

This is improvement? Nah, not so much.

And so goes our civilization...

I know it sounds strange, but I carry around a leather satchel ("man-purse") with enough basics for darn near anything - extra magazine, flashlight, cigar lighter, folding knife, Czech tool, radio (licensed ham), pipe and tobacco, and tape.

I get made fun of occasionally for carrying it with me (mostly by friends), but love the thought of having what I may need at my disposal. I've saved the day enough times with that satchel to put Superman to shame.

David E said:

I swear I don't get it. People willfully making themselves incapable and nearly helpless. I see folks wearing pajamas and slippers to Walmart. Frequently.

Men and women used to carry at least a pen knife in their pocket or purse, but not now. Is it a side effect of silly "no tolerance" policies that suspend 5 yr olds for drawing a picture of a gun or knife?

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To be honest...these people have been around LONG before. I very clearly remember going to the grocery stores as a kid and seeing ladies dressed up in flannel nightgowns with curlers in their hair.

And a lot of those ladies didn't have a knife or gun with them, in their purses or otherwise. Nail files and fingernail clippers, maybe. But their purses alone probably would have classified as weapons with all the stuff they had weighing them down.

And Walmart hasn't been much different over the decades, either.


As for stupid stuff like this being an outgrowth of the "no tolerance" policies such as you mentioned...maybe, maybe not. As I said, I'm not really seeing anything different from my perspective.


With respect to the "no tolerance" policies in schools, I sense a potential issue with "Daddy's Little Troublemaker" coming up in school, but it just makes me smile when I think about it.

(Daddy's Little Troublemaker is my 14 year old daughter, who's been a teenager most of her life.)

She showed me a picture of a gun she drew and put on the cover of her three-ring binder and told me she went around to kids in her class, showing it to several and asking "Do you feel threatened or scared of this?"

(By the way...it's a nice drawing, too. She's quite the artist.)


Why does she do this? Because, God bless her, she sees the total stupidity of people in positions of authority who willfully claim they cannot tell the difference between the absurdly unrealistic caricatures of firearms and the real deal...such as Pop Tarts and thumb/forefingers. That and she TOTALLY does not buy into the gun control crowd's propaganda.

Good Lord, for all the grief I have with that girl at times, she can actually think with that noggin of hers...when she wants to, anyway.


If she ever gets into trouble for it, I'll stand proudly next to her every step of the way and document the heck out of everything for posterity.


And all the while, I'll be pointing out to the authorities via the media that having a bunch of people in the education system who cannot tell the obvious difference between a hand drawn picture on a flat sheet of paper that weights 4 grams and a real gun that weighs 2.5 pounds does not bode well for a group of people who claim to need pay raises all the time so that they can teach better.

If you watch the Mall shooting video of the attacks in Kenya those that were shot first had fallen while trying to run in shoes to slick for the task.
Good foot gear is always important.