If You Care about Guns, You Should Care about Knives, Too

When we talk about the Second Amendment today, we’re usually debating gun-control laws. Americans aren’t talking much about knives, but we should be.

The Second Amendment is not limited to guns — it includes all “Arms.” In fact, the Founders were well aware that, for the majority of human history, bows and bladed weapons had been the most commonly owned types of arms. Even in our nation’s early days, when rifles and eventually pistols became more common, bladed weapons remained widespread. Bayonets, swords, and hatchets were often required for militia service, and the first forms of arms control targeted them and other bladed weapons.