Timber!!!

[Gob]

As DIY disasters go, they don't come much dafter than sawing off a tree branch that you've just leaned your ladder against.

But when he was asked to prune a sycamore tree in the grounds of a luxury hotel, handyman Peter Aspinall propped his ladder against the branch he was removing instead of the tree trunk.

He sawed through the branch and it plummeted 14 feet to the ground. The ladder and Mr Aspinall quickly followed.

The 64-year-old broke his heel, damaged ligaments and spent ten days in hospital after the fall.

Yesterday it emerged that Mr Aspinall, who has been off sick since the accident 18 months ago, is suing Egerton House Hotel, near Bolton, for his injuries.

A court ordered the hotel to pay £2,015 after a health and safety investigation concluded that the owners had failed to carry out a 'risk assessment' on the dangers of sawing a tree branch with a ladder against it and should have trained Mr Aspinall and a colleague on where to place the ladder.

The hotel's solicitor, David Walton, told magistrates: 'It is an unusual accident. Laurel and Hardy do that sort of thing.'

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... z0l84axISw

This world is insane!

[Gob]

A Sainsbury's customer was stunned when the store's butcher refused to de-bone a joint of lamb - in case he cut himself.

Businessman John Wilkinson was told: 'My bosses won't let me, in case I cut myself and I'm not insured.'

Mr Wilkinson, 41, bought a lamb joint for dinner at his local Sainsbury's and asked staff at the meat counter to remove the bone.

But the red-faced butcher, who has been chopping meat for three decades, said he couldn't do it.

Mr Wilkinson said: 'I couldn't believe my ears. He's been doing it for 30 years and we were chatting about how he had been teaching all the young butchers how to cut the meat and joints.

'But when I asked him to de-bone the joint, he said he couldn't in case he cut himself with a knife and he would not be insured. He looked really embarrassed.'

Mr Wilkinson took the matter to the customer services counter at the large Sainsbury's store in Penylan, Cardiff, and staff confirmed that company policy deemed it to be 'not safe' for the butcher to use knives on a lamb joint.

Mr Wilkinson said: 'It was just hysterical. I went to the desk and the woman there said it was for the butcher's own safety.'

A spokesman for Sainsbury's said: 'Our colleagues who work on the meat counters are all trained to use knives, but some have not received all of the training to safely de-bone a lamb joint.

'We are sorry we could not help Mr Wilkinson, but hope he will shop with us in future.'

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... z0l85gVjzk

See!

[Crackpot]

And you say the US is nuts.

[The Hen]

US, UK, you're both nuts.

[BoSoxGal]

It's a mad world.

[Gob]

A disabled caravanner who kept a penknife in his glove compartment to use on picnics has blasted the authorities after being dragged through court for possessing an offensive weapon.

Rodney Knowles, 61, walks with the aid of a stick and had used the Swiss Army knife to cut up fruit on picnics with his wife.

Knowles yesterday admitted possessing an offensive weapon at Torquay Magistrates Court. He was given a conditional discharge.

But speaking after the hearing, he said: 'It's a stupid law. Now I have a criminal record.'

Prosecutor Philip Sewell told the court that Knowles was stopped by police when he left a pub on February 24.

He was arrested for suspected drink-driving but a breath test showed he was under the legal limit, the court was told.

But Knowles was charged with possession of the knife, which was found in its pouch in the car glove compartment.

Mr Sewell told the court: 'He told officers that he had the knife for caravanning. He is not working and had no malicious reason for carrying the blade'

Defence solicitor Jolyon Tuck said Knowles, who is a carer for his wife, had used the knife to cut up fruit on picnics with his wife.

'He accepts it was in his car and the law is very clear,' he said. He admits possession of it and he had no good reason for having it.'

Chairman of the bench Robert Horne ordered forfeiture of the knife and £40 costs to be paid.

He said: 'There is no previous conviction history whatsoever and it was not in his possession and was in the car glove compartment in a pouch.'

The retired maintenance engineer, from Buckland, Devon, had no criminal record before the case.

He said: 'The tool was in my glove box in a pouch, along with a torch, first aid kit and waterproofs.

'It is everything I need for the maintenance of my car or if I break down.

'Now I have a criminal record for the first time in my life. I am upset by that.'

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... z0lDWRT2CD

[BoSoxGal]

YOU CAN'T POSSESS A POCKET KNIFE IN THE UK?!?!?!

OMFG!!!!

[MGMcAnick]

YOU CAN'T POSSESS A POCKET KNIFE IN THE UK?!?!?!

OMFG!!!!

I was going to ask the same thing.

I have carried a pocket knife of some kind since Christmas when I was seven or eight years old. Every kid had one. Yes, even in school. No one thought a thing about it. Today I carry a very nice Leatherman Wave. It's a tool that has everything from a saw blade and pliers to a tiny screwdriver. My first Leatherman was a gift from Mrs Mc. When that one was misplaced, I wasted no time in buying another, so now I have two. Yes, I should have looked harder. I use one daily, sometimes several times in a day. https://www.leatherman.com/wave-10.html

Yes there are other multi-tools, but most aren't worth owning. Gerber is another good brand, but I'll never switch.

Leatherman: Don't leave home without it.

On another note, I recall pickup trucks in the parking lot at my high school that had gun racks WITH GUNS installed in their back windows. No one ever got shot.

[MajGenl.Meade]

[Burning Petard]

Delaware says a folding knife with a blade longer that three inches is a dangerous weapon of the same class as a pistol or other firearm. BUT a fixed blade knife, with any length blade is of the same dangerous weapons class, except for those that are necessary for one's employment.

I am not sure, but the Wave may have a knife blade more than 3 inches. So, if you carry the medium size Case Stockman, (main blade 3.25 inches) or the knife I carried for many years, the Case Sodbuster, in Delaware you need a concealed weapon permit.

and a later addendum. If you are a history buff, the Swiss army knife case above, complete with the remarks from the chairman of the bench, explains why Delaware still has separate Equity court.

snailgate

[Econoline]

... a fixed blade knife, with any length blade is of the same dangerous weapons class, except for those that are necessary for one's employment.
snailgate

Whaaaat? So it's illegal to possess a good chef's knife like this, unless you're actually employed as a chef?

[MGMcAnick]

WOW! I'm glad I don't live in Delaware OR the UK.

[MajGenl.Meade]

... a fixed blade knife, with any length blade is of the same dangerous weapons class, except for those that are necessary for one's employment.
snailgate

Whaaaat? So it's illegal to possess a good chef's knife like this, unless you're actually employed as a chef?

No, you can possess it. Just not when you're out and about

[Gob]

Basic laws on knives
It’s illegal to:

sell a knife to anyone under 18, unless it has a folding blade 3 inches long (7.62 cm) or less
carry a knife in public without good reason, unless it has a folding blade with a cutting edge 3 inches long or less
carry, buy or sell any type of banned knife
use any knife in a threatening way (even a legal knife)
Scotland
In Scotland, 16 to 18 year olds are allowed to buy cutlery and kitchen knives.

Lock knives
Lock knives are not classed as folding knives and are illegal to carry in public without good reason. Lock knives:

have blades that can be locked and refolded only by pressing a button
can include multi-tool knives - tools that also contain other devices such as a screwdriver or can opener
Banned knives and weapons
It is illegal to bring into the UK, sell, hire, lend or give anyone the following:

butterfly knives (also known as ‘balisongs’) - a blade hidden inside a handle that splits in the middle
disguised knives - a blade or sharp point hidden inside what looks like everyday objects such as a buckle, phone, brush or lipstick
flick knives (also known as ‘switchblades’ or ‘automatic knives’) - a blade hidden inside a handle which shoots out when a button is pressed
gravity knives
stealth knives - a knife or spike not made from metal (except when used at home, for food or a toy)
zombie knives - a knife with a cutting edge, a serrated edge and images or words suggesting it is used for violence
swords, including samurai swords - a curved blade over 50cm (with some exceptions, such as antiques and swords made to traditional methods before 1954)
sword-sticks - a hollow walking stick or cane containing a blade
push daggers
blowpipes (‘blow gun’)
telescopic truncheons - extend automatically by pressing button or spring in the handle
batons - straight, side-handled or friction-lock truncheons
hollow kubotans - a cylinder-shaped keychain holding spikes
shurikens (also known as ‘shaken’, ‘death stars’ or ‘throwing stars’)
kusari-gama - a sickle attached to a rope, cord or wire
kyoketsu-shoge - a hook-knife attached to a rope, cord or wire
kusari (or ‘manrikigusari’) - a weight attached to a rope, cord, wire
hand or foot-claws
knuckledusters
Contact your local police to check if a knife or weapon is illegal.

Good reasons for carrying a knife or weapon
Examples of good reasons to carry a knife or weapon in public can include:

taking knives you use at work to and from work
taking it to a gallery or museum to be exhibited
if it’ll be used for theatre, film, television, historical reenactment or religious purposes, for example the kirpan some Sikhs carry
if it’ll be used in a demonstration or to teach someone how to use it
A court will decide if you’ve got a good reason to carry a knife or a weapon if you’re charged with carrying it illegally.


https://www.gov.uk/buying-carrying-knives

[Burning Petard]

Possession of a fixed blade knife is not regulated in Delaware. Carry of the knife beyond your home is--as a concealed deadly weapon. It gets vague and touchy when the knife is obvious and visible in a sheath on one's belt, because Delaware is also an 'open carry' state.

snailgate

[BoSoxGal]

I carry my lovely big chef’s knife and a few assorted smaller kitchen knives in a folding bag to my various clients’ homes when I’m tasked with cooking and chopping up fruits and veggies and meat for them - I refuse to struggle with the crap dangerous dull knives many people use in their cooking, it’s no wonder so many folks end up in ERs with knife injuries.

Anyway I wonder if that would be considered carrying a concealed weapon in Delaware? Or for that matter, here - I should check, I suppose.

[liberty]

I hate stainless steel knives; you can’t sharpen the things without a diamond sharper. Give me a high carbon steel knife and a good stone.