Doug Ritter of Knife Rights Talks Knives and Your Rights | (Episode 22)
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Rational thought rarely works when it comes to politics in and that sort of thing where we wouldn't be dealing with many of the issues that we deal with including these these irrational in archaic my fluff. Welcome to the nice junkie podcast. Your weekly dose of knife. News and information about knives and knife collecting, here's your hosts Jim person involved the knife junkie to Marco. Hello and welcome to the knife junkie podcast. I'm Joan person and I'm Bob DeMarco from the knife junkie dot com. Welcome to the show episode number twenty two another great one, Bob. We've got four us a knife designer maker if you will but also heavily involved in making it better for all of us knife lovers and knife carriers to be able to do so. But before we get to that. We'll tease that just a little bit want to remind folks that would be extremely helpful for you to subscribe to the knife chunky, podcast, whatever platform, you listen to whether it be apple podcast, Google podcast, Stitcher, tune in Spotify, etc. However, you get your podcast if you just happen to be listening. Please subscribe got a very easy link for you to do. So you can find the links to subscribe in your favorite app, or whatever. Just go to the knife, junkie dot com slash podcast. Subscribe. That's all one word the knife, junkie dot com slash podcast. Subscribe. It would really help us out. And ensure that you get the latest episode of the knife chunky podcast as soon as it comes out. That's right. That's also important to get these podcasts in a timely manner. Because of episodes like this one where we speak with Doug Ritter. Doug ritter's out there, you know, as the progenitor of the Ritter grip. But he's also out there fighting for our rights to carry an own certain knives with the knife rights organization, and you know, if you follow the news at all, you gotta gotta keep up to date, and he's been plugging away in DC making things better for all of us. You wanna get this information in a timely manner? Absolutely as well as lots of other, good information. And just a great interviews that we're having a chance to talk to and couple of great shows coming up. We'll go ahead and tease that before we dive right in the Doug. So coming up now, we'll be speaking with Jeff Blau field from tough knives. We got Kayla Cummings coming up we have gyms. Skelton coming up attention to detail mercantile. That's Douglas s busy tow coming up and some more. We got Elijah Aisha. We're going to be speaking with also stick around and you'll get to hear these podcast. But make sure you subscribe. So they come right to you. Absolutely. A knife junkie dot com slash podcast. Subscribe. Stay tuned. Great interview with Doug coming up next ever start looking for your next knife. Purchase before your last purchases even arrived than you're probably a knife junkie on today's podcast. I'm speaking with survival expert and consultant, Doug Ritter. If you've had even glancing interest in modern folding knives, you've seen his name on the blade of the coveted Ritter grip Pilion a folder of his own design once produced by bench made and now enjoying rebirth with Hogue what you may not know is that Mr. Ritter has been quietly fighting for our rights as knife owners and enthusiasts as chairman of an organization called knife rights, and is in large part responsible for reforming the antiquated knife. Flaws in a growing number states. Doug, welcome to the knife junkie podcast happy to be here. Excellent. Well, I would like to get to know a little bit about you, Mr. Ritter and find out a little bit about go back. Lease Doug, okay. Tell us about your background in survival training. And how did you come up with how how did you become specialized in aviation and marine survival? So at one time in my my younger years, I was a aviation writer writing for VA shin publications on a number of issues including writing for aviation consumer in aviation safety. It was there were I started delving deeper. You might say into the question of aviation survival equipment in that sort of stuff. I built my first aviation related survival kit when I started flying myself in the early irks us being the mid seventies. And my first art. Article ever sold as a journalist was about kit. I built and that was for aviation safety. I soon signed on as contributing editor when I started reviewing products for aviation consumer that resulted in a deeper dive into a lot of the equipment used for survival. And I had started a quick to survive, similar timeframe and everything just sort of grew organically as I became better versed in the issues involving surival with whether you're in an airplane, or or you happen to be out hiking.

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You know, the survival part is similar. I mean, you end up on the ground, and you need to survive until you rescued or or get out. So before long I was talking to groups about survival thrive, especially survival equipment. And then I started writing for some marine publication. Nations, and it just just grew organically. There was certainly no plan. So you were a pilot already. So you had some idea of what what was needed. And you know, what what you would want with you. If something bad happened to you all while flying. So that was kinda you're you're jumping off point. That was the catalyst. Yeah. I'm when when we moved from back east back home to Aaron John I was started flying back here. You know, you fly over errors on there's a lot of of land were no people are. And you start looking down going, you know, this isn't like back east. So I developed my own survival kit. I spent a lot of time doing outdoor sports and camping and hiking when I was younger. So I had to I had significant background in. What it was what was necessary skill set wise in wise, I'm a pretty good researcher. And that that's what led to my writing for the publications. I wrote about about Queant, and that sort of thing. So it also just came together. I mean at the time that I started a quip to survive. There really wasn't any consumer reports for survival gear, you didn't have bloggers and all these other social media outlets. There was no YouTube. This was in the really the infancy of of the internet. And I was the only one doing that. I would take articles that I might do for one of ABA shin publication. Where I might have a thousand or two thousand words to work on something and on the website. You didn't have those limitations could go into much deeper up. Ran we started doing some groundbreaking work in for example, the lifer Africa use that I did were the first ever done by consumer publication on the suitability of the various life rest for purpose. And the result of that ended up with me being invited to join the SAS nine cabin safety group, which basically writes all the safety standards for transport category aircraft. So they're liners and stuff that you plot. It just grew. You know, I didn't set out to become one of the world's leading experts on survival equipment. It just happened. It just happened. Well, were you always a knife guy or was that just a part of your kit? I think I got my first night when I was seven years old. I grew up out on a ranch everybody in school had knives. I mean, it was just you got up in the morning. You put on your pants, you put your knife pocket back in the day. When you went to school with a knife in your pocket. Yeah. Hard for some people imagined today. But I mean, whether it did matter, whether you were male or female, you know, boy or girl, you had a knife in your pocket and most of our our teachers did as well. And you know, I camped I hiked I always had a nice, obviously, one of the most important tools for survival is a good knife. And so that led to a little deeper dive into what works in knives and start going to shows getting to know all the people. In the knife industry, just becoming more knowledgeable. So by my my knowledge base for knives in general was growing and at the same time. I was getting a lot of requests from people asking, you know, what's what's the right knife? What's perfect knife? What nice should I buy? And there was there was often. But at the end of my my response, this knife is great. But it costs a small were or this knife is great. But then have a lanyard over this knife is great. But and that led me to wanting to develop my own is when bench made came out with the original group Killian, I had I had known bench made for years at that point was strengthened with male Pardew whose designer and less they asses from bench made. And I saw there an opportunity. I love the access lock. I'd loved the lightweight. And I proposed that they do a knife with a blade shape, a deep flat grind drop point blade shape that I like the different than they were offering INA premium steel at that time assertive eight which was a new at the time a pretty new high-tech steel who was certainly the top of the ladder in terms of of Saint Louis high-tech sales.

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And they told me I was nuts. Basically, really nobody would buy. Nobody would buy premium steel blade in a inexpensive relatively inexpensive handle. I for a significant up charge because the seal costs so much right? And in the in the end, they agreed to basically be an OEM and produce the for I on my part time, and we would buy the knives from bench mate. And if they didn't sell it was on us. Right. Well, they certainly sold. That's for sure they certainly sold in nowadays. You can go. To any major manufacturer in by, you know, premium nice deal in a relatively inexpensive handle. So I guess I was right about the desire ability of that combination. You know, people appreciate the ability to afford a premium steel in a handle that that works, but isn't necessarily expensive. So what about the original grip tilles blade? Did you feel needed improvement? You'd let grind on the on the Riddick grip looks much taller, and therefore maybe slicer at what was it about the original blade that that needed improvement in your eyes? I guess it goes back to my I really good knife was a Christmas event as as a matter of fact, I literally saved lunch money for a year and a half to Ford to have Chris bilby knife in which we engrave the equipped to survive logo, which was like. The second customer graving that he had ever done so cool, and I carry that knife for years, and I loved the blade shape. And while I love a hollow ground ground blade for many things, it does give up some strengths to a flat. Grind. You. You picked out the big difference between the standard, grip, Chilean drop or clip point blade. And and mine, which is it's very similar in Shaef to Chris's blade, but it has a very high flat grind. And it's as you said slicer, and you know, if from my perspective, you want a pocket knife that slices. I mean, that's the reason we have nice we have nice cut things did not really pry bars. They're not really screwdrivers there to slice this. And I want a slice nuts, and it turned out that. Other people did too or you know, we would be talking about it still today that was twelve going on almost thirteen years ago and people are still buying it. So I guess I did something right? They're incredibly coveted. I mean, I'm coming from collectors standpoint at from, you know, I make a review videos, but my reviews come out of a more of a collector's point of view. And I have really noticed it over the last ten years on YouTube just an incredible amount of popularity for the Riddick grip. Retrograte Ridha grip. No one wants to regular grip. They want the Ridha grip. Well, I'm not sure nobody wants a regular grip. They say I saw a lot of it. I yeah. Exactly. I don't mean it like that. I do mean from collector standpoint, someone who's buying the nice to have to hold onto cherish to have for a long time. That Riddick grip Pilion you people customize them, they do a lot of great things to them. But now there's a new iterations. And you have we'll tell us about the newer iteration that are S K Mark one when bench made a couple two and a half years ago decided that they didn't want to be Aleem, basically for anybody. And and cut us off it will it was it was a difficult time because the money we make on the ruder knives are what allow me the time to do knife writes, which is, you know, a passion of mine so either I had to go get a real job, which probably wouldn't allow me to do knife rights. Even if anyway would hire me or we needed to find a way to produce new Ritter night. And it took a while. I had a lot of offers as you might guess from a bunch of manufacturers who wanted to do. But Jim Bruhns at Hoge is incredible the family and the family run businesses incredible. They have a commitment to the kinds of things that I care about. They they made a strong commitment to knife rights years ago when they when early in in their knife business experience and their quality is just unbelievable for production. And it seemed like a good fit.

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They were committed as is usual with these things took a little bit longer to get it out than every way with like. But you know, the end result is a second generation are S K Mark one that addresses some of the things I would have preferred were different on the original Ritter knife, we moved to land your whole we change the geometry of what we call the able lock a little bit there. They are subtle changes to the handle and the Ergen Amax that from from the feedback. We're getting people we did a pretty good job. Our biggest problem now is just produce. Enough of them, which is which is not the worst problem. That's a good problem to have the fact that that it was well received was was very gratifying. I mean, we'd been out of the market for two years. People were getting crazy prices for the original of our K mart one. I mean, just insane prices, you know, carrier four times, and we didn't know for sure what would happen. What happened is people white? Well, I have one on the way. Cool. It's going to be my first Hogue in my first Ritter knife. So I am very much looking forward to it. Next time we speak. I'll tell you what I think about it. But I can tell you already at love it. Well, look knives are very personal thing. When I give when I give talks about survival quip -ment, I tell people if you're buying a knife, it has to fit your hand and not every night fits every hand. I've been gratified most people like the economics of life. But, you know, the, I've certainly run into people who said, you know, this. I feel terrible. Well, then it's not the right knife for you that's been fairly rare. But it happens. And by the way, you're supposed to grip it with your hand. I mean, how is that not gonna feel good? I find it a naturally ergonomic grip. I've held them. I've never owned one. And yeah, I would I would like to see the hand that that doesn't fit. If you've held the original which forces a standard group billion handle, which is very ergonomic, one of the reasons I like that. I think you're gonna find the new one even better it subtly different. But pretty. Much everyone who holds it was like, okay. This is this is why it's supposed to feel like which is which is a great failing not to take anything for Mel man that was an extraordinary design at the time. Arcus problem is is getting production wrapped up to the point where we can keep up with demand, and and then looking at possibilities down the road. So the knife helped you in your efforts with knife rights. Let's talk about that tell me about the Genesis of knife rights, and what inspired you to start the organization in the first place. So it's all the Wall Street Journal's fault, I say that in all seriousness. Even even though it sounds a little crazy in in the summer of two thousand six the Wall Street Journal ran in article somewhat infamous in nights in the knife community that was on the headline of the B section, and it was all about these evil tactical knives, and it was pretty much written in the same vein as you might re day. Article about evil assault rifle for something like that. It was filled with ridiculous bias language hyperbole facts that they parents pulled out of thin air. It was really a terrible terrible article. And I waited around for a while for the folks at the American knife and tool institute, which at that time was really the only nationwide organization, primarily of members of the knife industry to respond, and they didn't an I traveled to Europe. I spent time in England one time I worked for British car company. So I I had some inkling of how bad things could get. And this was like a shot over the bat in front of the bow by the same ant is who were anti gun anti everything. And I got pissed and decide maybe I should try to do something. I post. It on a few few forms that I was active in and said, he think there's any interest in in a knife owners version of the NRA so to speak and got positive feedback. Got a few folks in in industry and elsewhere to to pony up a few bucks, and we built a website, and sorta waited for all those tens of thousands of people to join up who did. And then in two thousand nine the Obama administration did us a favor when they tried to redefine what a switchblade was for imports and a coalition of groups of which we were the grassroots knife owner part convinced congress dad, the fifth exemptions, the federal switchblade act exempting one hand opening and assisted opening knives from being considered switch lights for the purpose of the federal switch wait at and that was huge for us because that gave us a tremendous amount of credibility.

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It spread our our name to a much wider audience as we got involved in a national fight at congressional level. I mean, it's it's it's ironic, and and and weird that are very first fight was in congress. I mean, that's not usually where you start your your advocacy career as an organization, but it it worked for us. And it was very next year in two thousand ten. That I hooked up with our director of legislative affairs, which is a fancy name for lobbyists Todd wrath ner and Todd and I have been going great guns ever since. I mean, we we worked to repeal liver. Switch way ban ever in the country and New Hampshire passed, the nation's first reaction knife branch law in in Arizona, and you know, eight years nine years later were looking at twenty nine pro knife bills enacted in twenty one saints and onto Anna night Bill in our are seven and a half year journey so far in federal court against New York City New York DA Cyrus venture now headed to the spring court. Maybe hopefully, New York City, that's a that's a big egg crack, I couldn't find a bigger city in the US to sue. Yeah. Up again from your perspective switchblades Bali songs and out the front in such they're so maligned in the public view is this a backlash from sixty four year rebel without a cause days west side story, what white are switchblades would so much more dangerous about a switchblade than a waived knife that opens as you pull it out of your pocket or a any other knife. The there is nothing more dangerous about a switchblade than any other night. I mean, a fixed laid comes out open the issue as you note goes back to the nineteen fifties some terrible often racist oriented perceptions, courtesy of the of Hollywood. And in the popular press who found a cause if you will as a result of hyperbole, and and just made up issues from Hollywood, and we ended up with both the. Nineteen fifty eight federal switchblade act, and you know, less than but less than half of the nation was which way bands of varying degrees. It was never the majority of states. But we still find ourselves fighting those same prejudices courtesy of the nineteen fifties. We've obviously been very successful big picture wise. I mean, there have been a few setbacks of very successful big picture wise in in repealing those. I mean, sixteen civilians with les banned or restricted repeals by us since two thousand ten right now, there are only six states left were civilian possession of a slick blade is illegal. We got thirty three states with no restrictions whatsoever. Forty four allow possession to one degree or another twenty nine allow concealed care. Wow. And and sixteen of those. Those are ones that we've done. So I feel pretty good about having gotten that accomplished along with everything else we've done when you combine that with with the preemption statutes we've pass that get rid of local restrictions. And you know, we can't we came up with a tagline for knife rights few years ago that I think sums it all up, which is were rewriting knife long. America will what is your uproot in fighting for our knife rights with politicians when their concerns are of optics, and you know, balancing, the the diversity of their constituencies. Opinions. We try to approach very rationally cod has a set of trainer knives with no, edges or points. So he can demonstrate that there's no practical difference between an automatic knife, and in any other folding knife, and certainly not any advantage over fixed blade. We're dealing with a pretty partisan politic. Situation in most cases in this country, but we have managed to with almost all our bills gain significant bipartisan support, not because the two sides necessarily agree, but the two sides for their own reasons. Desire to get rid of these problems on on this on the conservative side on the Republican side.

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You might say you've got secondment avocats, you've got people who want freedom to carry whatever arm or whatever tool they want and on the other side of the equation. We have criminal Justice reform, which appeals to folks whose whose constituents are often disproportionately affected by knife arrests, and that sort of thing, and that has that that's a a very different political legis. Slative situation than the NRA. Second amendment community finds itself with firearms. I mean, we we have bills where we have the NRA in the ACLU both supporting our bills, you just don't don't find that in many other legislative situations. And it's something we've worked very hard on. And it's one of the reasons for our success in that, you know, we've got something to gain for everybody involved in this. I mean, does it work all the time? No. But it works. Most of the time. I mean, we we couldn't get twenty nine bills passed in the few years we've been doing this. If we weren't getting bipartisan support, so the knife laws that you seek to reform in a static and forgotten state as you come across them, or are they becoming more and more draconian are people writing new knife laws? Oh, yes. There's about ten. And tonight bills that we've stopped over the last nine years there are there are few. We weren't successful at. But most of what we're doing is rolling back anti knife laws that either came out of civil war era when when many of the southern tier states were trying to keep daggers and Bouli knives. And and that sort of thing out of the hands of of the recently freed blacks, or they come out of the nineteen fifties where we have the switchblade gravity knife bands in that sort of thing so very very little knife legislation. Occur anti knife legislation occurred except for those periods. Not that. There wasn't any. But those are the two periods where when we go back and look at the laws that were repealing. That's that's where that came from. You know, when when we when we repeal the ban on carrying a buoy knife in. Texas in twenty seventeen week when we talked to Texas legislators they were like, what do you mean? You can't carry a buoy knife in Texas. We're like, you know, you go back and look what happened after the civil war. And you see. Oh, well, yeah, we need to fix that. These bands have no rational, no rational basis, let let's let's be real millions of Americans use and carry knives. Every day at home were recreation. Every once in a while, they're awfully used as an arm and self defense, but mostly we're doing with tools tools that are Caisley in our, but which are overwhelmingly used as tools like hammers every once in a while someone will hit someone on the head with one. But on the whole they're used to put nails into wood there you it's frustrating at times. We've certainly had our. Setbacks, but we we just keep plugging away Texas this season. This will be our fourth session in Texas, Texas legislature, only meet every other year, which has its good and bad points. Good point is legislator legislation. Can't get screwed up. Every year. The bad thing is you can't fix things every year. Tennessee took two years Kansas took two years Oklahoma to it's you know, you you keep plugging away one of the secrets of our successes, which don't give up politics chains. People change if you keep coming at it and you keep working hard at it. You know, most times you're going to if if if if nothing else you're either going to wear them down or enough things change that they're going to offer you an opportunity and part of our successes being nimble enough to take care of the opportunities when they offered themselves. So you mentioned up logical. Approach frequently can garner bipartisan support, what kind of public support the does knife rights. Enjoy just from your average Joe not enough. Okay. We we we can always use more financial support.

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I mean Todd night both two thousand miles a year. It is not inexpensive. But the reason we get things done is is we show up most of the people that you're talking to. And we're talking to right now are not an issue. They get it Ives retool. Yep. Casually used as an art. We have had a surprisingly good luck working with journalists from both the left in the right when mother Jones, and and the Washington Post and the New York Times are, you know, running articles that are not particularly bad in actually pretty good in many respects. We're getting our message across just not enough people. Yeah. I'd say what kind of pushback do you get week? We get some of the anti second amendment anti weapon. Push back that. You might expect. I mean, we get a degree of that. It's not unusual for journalists from someplace like mother Jones, or or vice news who who start working with us to to come in with an attitude or or presuppositions about what things are and Todd I'm just trying and educate them, and and generally speaking that's worked out, and it hasn't always been perfect. But when you compare it with other advocacy situations might guns we've done very well. And I think it's because when it comes down to it what we're talking about makes a lot of rational sense. There isn't the the incredible emotional issues involved like there are with firearms. And you know, a a lot of folks on both sides of the divide have pocket knives in their pockets. And and so when we start talking to people it's like. Yeah. Gary pocketknife since I was get. I wish more kids did these days. That's one of our biggest fears is, you know, to to great, except we're losing a generation of kids who are being taught at knives Rowley weapons and not tools, and the irony is we all use knives on a daily basis without even thinking about it in our kitchen, and actually those kitchen knives are the ones that are responsible for the most uses of knives as a weapon, so why not outlaw kitchen knives? And let everyone have their switchblades somewhat. Rationally on irrational subject than the rational thought rarely works when it comes to politics in and that sort of thing where we wouldn't be dealing with many of the issues that we deal with including these irrational in archaic my fluff. But once once knife rights at all of your goals are achieved and the states are back to right. With our relationship with knives will the organization stick around to protect and maintain the gains. It's made. I don't think we're ever going to run out of of work. I I suspect I will be. Six feet. Under was still plenty of work to do advocacy takes a tremendous amount of time in effort, the nature of it is that, you know, we've we've gotten some of the low hanging fruit now for the last few years, we've been working on some of the more difficult stuff, it it becomes easier in the sense that we have this track record that we can talk to politicians that look we fix this over here. And we fixed it over here. And there was no increase in crime. So how about we fix it in your Schnee? And that's that's a good argument. Because of course, they're always a freight of, oh, if we make switchblades legal there's gonna be blood running in the street and all the rest of this ridiculousness, and we can show now with a track record going back nine years that doesn't happen. And as you point out, and we went out, you know, the most common knife used to commit a violent crime. Is a kitchen knife. I'd love to be able to have the money to actually have a study done to crew. It was the ticks, but we just tell people talk to any of your lawn. Trump forcement friends, and they're going to confirm that, and they do I mean, we've had them. You know, we we often get support from long for meant for our bills. Who are like? Yeah. This is really not a problem just better or they're neutral on it. Which is the same thing from our perspective because it means, you know. Yeah. If you wanna pass this Bill law enforcement is a problem with that. Because they recognize that that it's really a non-issue from from from that perspective. Now, you know, New York City is a is a an outlier in that respect where you know, the law enforcement has opposed all our efforts to fix New York's to these abuse of their gravity knife laws to rest tens of thousands innocent knife owners who.

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Just carrying a common pocket, and we'll see what happens. We've got another Bill running in in the legislature to bills as a matter of fact, try to fix it. Again. We've got our case before the US Supreme Court will probably find out on if scheduling works out right will probably find out if they take the case sometime this summer, and then we'll we'll go from there. I mean, we think we've got a good case. But so far the district court in this and the and the second circuit haven't really ruled on the actual merits of the case they've all been dancing around on basically procedural in twisting, the law to to avoid the problem, and to certain extent were were pleased that the second circuit twisted the law so much that they find themselves in conflict with some other circuits, which which gives us the sort of case that the supreme court is often interested were. Or you have different circuits interpreting their rulings in different ways. But I certainly didn't expect when I started knife writes in two thousand six to end up with a case before the supreme court and NFL was going to end. And and if as things developed I started thinking, well, we might end up with a case between before spring court. I always felt well probably be about switchblades in second amendment in something like that. But it isn't. It's about in Beauce of government in New York City. Taking advantage of innocent tool owners who are often using their tool at work and just happened to have it in their pocket when they're sought by a cop who might be able to reflect and disproportionately minority I know that New York is kinda like their stop in over eighty percent on real. I lived there for thirteen years the carried knives all the time. And now. I looked back it with a retroactive fear. I can't believe I walked around with what I walked around with. Then I kept myself blissfully ignorant, so that I could allow myself to carry to carry my knife. And I've heard a lot of stories since leaving. And as you say eighty percent minorities. Well, that's a great excuse. You know, unfortunately, it is it's it's why our bills in in the Saint legislature again received support from the NRA a sale you the AA C P. I mean, it's a problem. You know, governor Cuomo has has vetoed. Those bills twice last Bill passed with one nave vote in either houses legislature any still vetoed. It it's for someone who claims to be in favour criminal Justice reform, certainly as acting like that, and and the rest, go on thousands and thousands of people. Arrested every year in New York City for carrying common pocket knife. Just as you are blissfully ignorant in ninety nine percent of the population in New York City with lead Grint unites, a tool they can go by the store, they think if they combined into story, it's legal, and it is legal in west you run into law enforcement officer who can risk slick it open one of our plaintiffs. Having heard about the issue approach to different cops on two different occasions and asked them whether his knife with legal neither one of them were able to risk flick it open, and so they told him. No, this is legal. And then he got stopped by a third officer who could risk slick it open. And the next thing, you know, he's facing a potential year in jail. What kind of advice, can you give people if they are blissfully ignorant, and they are find themselves at the wrong end of the of the stick when it comes to law enforcement, and they just get someone on a bad day and. And find themselves in jail. What what are the best simple courses of action? They can take to ensure that they don't incriminate themselves for on our website at knife rights dot org towards the bottom. We have a an article if stopped or arrested what to do to protect your knife fronts. It's written by Evan Knapman. Who's one of the leading criminal law attorneys dealing with cases, he's author of by flaws of the US, and it it goes through step by step what you should do. And what you shouldn't do. But look it basically boils down to two things, you know, if you're stop and you're going to be arrested. You need to remain silent. I my right through rain silent. And you need to ask for an attorney. I wanted interning, and you may need to do that multiple times don't consent to search on our membership cards on the back of our membership.

40:09 - 45:09

Cards are the steps remained silent aspirin attorney do not consent to search owes be respectful, polite and cooperative. Don't physically resist that will make your lawyers job so much easier. There's a great video out there that law professors James Duane does. It's called don't talk to the police. I recommend that to everyone knife owner, not if you're stopped arrested, if you're smart, you will politely decline to answer any questions other than producing an ID don't have to you shouldn't anything you say will be used against you. That is the critical step. And it's why our membership cards include this stuff on the back because in the stress of the situation. It's really easy to forget that how important it is remains. So how can people get that card? How can people get involved in support knife rights? They can go. To knife rights dot org. Their links all over the place. Join up we welcome new members. They can sign up for free. News slice newsletter will be having. We'll be launching our ultimate steel spectacular drawing here in about three weeks the bane luck. We'll have one hundred and fifty thousand dollars worth of really cool, customize firearms all kinds of tricked out stuff that folks can win at a certain level. They also get annual membership. Our biggest issue is is it's a great opportunity for folks when really cool stuff just getting the word out that it's there a lot of people have one at this point almost on gonna say close to three million dollars worth of knives and guns and Africans Faris and stuff like that over the past seven. Years while you hear that people knife right knife. Ryan Stott org. We're the ones getting it done for knife owners were forging a sharper future for all of you. Oh, that's good. So I don't want to jeopardize any of your current efforts. But I really wanted. I want to hear some specifics. Would you come back on the knife junkie podcast for a roundup of the legislative season once over to discuss victories in and the rare defeats going out? I'd be happy to have enjoyed this. And it's it's a nice opportunity talk directly to your people who are might people knife owners who care about knives who enjoy them whether they work with him or collect them. This is what we're all about. It's cool. Well, thank you so much, Doug Ritter. I really appreciate your coming on the show. And now speaking with me speaking with us about your background, but most especially knife rights. I think I speak for many many of us. We really appreciate the effort. You're putting into it. And. I know we're all whether we know it or not enjoying the knife rights that were gaining from your effort. So thank you very much. My pleasure figure. You're listening to the knife junkie podcast. If you've got questions or comments, call the twenty four seven knife junkie listener line at seven two four four six six four four eight seven. Thanks for listening to another great interview on the knife junkie podcast remind you that today's podcast is brought to you by audible, get a free audiobook download and thirty day free trial. If you go to audible trial dot com slash knife junkie over one hundred eighty thousand titles to choose from for your iphone, Android, kindle or MP three player. Again. Just go to audible trial dot com slash knife junkie and Bob, knife rights, and Doug Ritter. A lot of activity going on across the legislative world right now involving knifes I know from Virginia to Washington state stuff going on. But we specifically did not talk to Doug about that on today show. Oh, yeah. We didn't want to jeopardize any of the efforts. He's putting forth right now any little thing right now could could change the tide. So we kept away from that. But Doug's gonna come back on and do a round up of the legislative season talk about his victories and some of the some of the victories that are put off to the future. Let's put it that way. Right. And and he's also going announce a special special contest for signing up for knife rights and becoming a member of knife rights, and it's an important thing. I think we should all help dug out because he's at his own expense flying out to DC on the regular to talk to these people. We call that we put an office. And you know, I think he deserves our support was one of those things I think you take for granted, you know, you just you think you're entitled to carry your pocket knife. And you know, you have certain rights, but kind of quickly learned that some of these things are not to be taken for granted and need to support organizations that are standing up for our rights.

45:09 - 47:01

To carry a pocket knife and carry a knife excetera, and like Doug indicated it's much more of a bipartisan effort people on both sides of the can get behind this because everyone's carried a pocket knife. You know, it's not like the gun issue, which is much more polarizing in other words. So our fight is one that does have an end in sight a positive end in sight. So let's all get out there. See if we can support them, and let's get moving. And if you want to go to knife rights and get more information, it's simply knife rights dot org. That's online knife rights dot org. And you can get more information about that great organization, and what they're doing to help us another great show in the canned, Bob, but more to come. Thanks, everybody. For listening to the knife junkie podcast final word from me above final word. Well, I just heard from rob penna. He sent me his new product to test out, and I'll be talking about that real soon. He said, I can I can let the cat out of the bag. I'm very excited about it. I have to put it onto my I'll give you a hint I have to put it onto my new recon one tested out. But I can. Until like it already. But but more more to come on that right? More to come. And I think more videos to in the end you can find those at the knife, junkie dot com slash YouTube. Thanks for listening to the knife junkie podcast. If you enjoyed the show, please rate review with review, the podcast dot com for show notes for today's episode additional resources and to listen to pass deficits. Visit our website the night junkie dot com. You can also watch our latest videos on YouTube at the Nike dot com slash YouTube checkouts over great night photos on the night, junkie dot com slash Instagram. And join our Facebook group, but the knife junkie dot com slash Facebook. And if you have a question or comment emailed them to Bob that the knife jokey dot com or call our twenty four seven listener line at seven two four four six six four four eight seven, can you. Hear your comment or question answers on upcoming episode of the knife junkie podcast.