Letter to Rep (D) Dave Jones, Utah State Legeslature:
Dave,
Please! I have not heard of any new legislation on the matter of knife
control. Last week a would-be thief was cut in the parking lot of a
convenience store. This weekend, a 14 year-old boy was stabbed to death at
a slumber party. How many more people have to suffer and die before our
government makes certain that knives (better yet, all potentially dangerous
objects or devices) are off the streets and out of the hands of all people.
I sent some ideas on the subject last week. Here are a few more:
- Prohibit people under the age of 18 from owning or posessing knives.
- Require businesses who want to sell knives to have a special license. Charge them an exhorbitant fee to make sure they are serious about wanting to sell knives.
- Since the sharpest knives are the most dangerous, restrict the number
and sizes of knife sharpening devices a person can own.
- Post undercover law enforcement officers in churches and train them to
look for men with clean fingernails. It is likely these men will have
pocket knives on them. They can be arrested and fined. This is a revenue
generator.
- Require background checks on everyone who wants to buy a knife.
- Require a three day wait before anyone can take possession of their
knife. This will make certain that people who are wanting their knife to
commit a violent act will have time to think about it and possibly change
their mind.
- In keeping with current trends in criminal justice, do nothing to
prosecute those who falsify their statements when applying for a knife
permit.
- Give a special license to butchers and doctors (no comparison intended).
These suggestions are a bonus for you. Democrats like to create and inflate
a problem, then suggest the easiest (and usually the most destructive) plan
for the long run, without thinking of real solutions. These ideas offer
plenty of options. I'll send more as they come to me.
In the meantime, please, for the sake of our children, do something about
the serious problem of knife violence.
Sincerely,
Dash Riprok
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