! "James A. Donald" <jamesd@echeque.com>, writes: ! >I heard on talk.politics.guns somebody say that in Sweden they ! >had banned knives with a sharp point at the end, and were going ! >to ban sharp knives altogether. I think he was just engaging in ! >hyperbole, that he really meant that gun control in Sweden was ! >unreasonably strict, but on reflection I am not sure. ! ! There is a law in Sweden, some 5 years old, against carrying ! 'dangerous devices' (hunting knives, Ninja stars etc) in 'public ! places' (unless you are a carpenter, electrician or some such ! going about your business). It's okay to carry a knife when ! going fishing/hunting or sitting on your terrace carving totem poles. ! It's only a misdemeanour and might be punished with a fine, ! but usually the cops just use the law to disarmour street gangs ! on the spot. The effects of the law are dubious. Knives have come ! into fashion among teenagers after this legislation (but not as ! a consequence of it, I think). In California, it's a felony to merely *own* a Ninja star. It's a felony to carry a *concealed* knife, but carrying it openly in a holster is legal. It's a felony for most people to carry a concealed loaded handgun on the street only on a *second* offense. It'a a felony to merely *own* a switchblade, brass knuckles, etc. Do our weapons laws sound strange? Are many of our weapons laws stricter than countries like Sweden? Yes!