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Tuesday, Nov. 25, 2003 - 12:53 a.m.

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Love Hotels and Weapons Survey Part 1

Mmm, a quote to start off the day:

"Follow the path of the unsafe, independent thinker. Expose your ideas to the danger of controversy. Speak your mind and fear less the label of "crackpot" than the stigma of conformity."

Thomas J. Watson, Sr.

hmmm, a good quote, yes. Well, today we are back from our wonderful weekend... Jeez I should ALWAYS bitch for pages and pages of entries when I'm down, instead of sparing anyone who may be reading... I have been in an excellently good mood ever since (knock on wood)... though of course my horoscope is concurring:

Here is my horoscope for Monday, November 24:

You remain a bright spot in these autumn days. Like some special friends, you're stimulated by an extra jolt of cosmic fire. The Lion is now free to do the things that come naturally.

You know there is just something wrong with me... I do so much "edit/delete" now after initially writing the start of an entry, so that I don't lose anything to computer hics, that I now am sort of confused by the entry form where I DON'T have to write in every html symbol. I am becoming a (very very novice) html geek! eek!!!!!

Hm, Well, I plan to launch into an examination of the "weapons" issue... that I have promised since writing my weapons survey. But first I would like to bring you this absolutely fascinating article on Japanese Love Hotels, which are now called "Fashion Hotels"... apparently some are even marketed as appealing to high school girls. What is UP with that anyways. Well, yes I was having sex before I quit highschool, but no one was checking me into hotels to do it by the hour or the night, I tell ya, let alone theme hotels. I was a normal teenager, doing it on the bad carpet in front of the tv after the family went to bed, or giving handjobs in hideyplaces in the crooked fence of the housing development, or in the car, watching my mom wash dishes at the kitchen window. Hmm, anyhews, here is the article from Japanzine. I had fantasies of theme rooms even as a teenager (you see, they DO have their demographic correct) and still was talking with ob about the fun of having (or at least decorating) a theme sm B&B. Well, here ya go!

OK, the weapons survey. I guess I'll answer the questions myself and go from there. Actually I shall do the first bunch of questions tonight and do the rest perhaps tomorrow, or it will be too long. Here goes.

Wench77's Weapon's Survey Part 1"

1. What is one weapon that should be banned from airtravel carryon that currently is not?
glass bottles of wine served in first class... I mean, really, anyone could turn one of these into a lethal weapon. Also when Air Canada gives you your meal, they give you cutlery. For some insane reason they have replaced the metal knife with a plastic one, but left the metal fork and spoon. Metal fork anyone? I mean, they take away my nailclippers for god's sake. Which is more dangerous? a tiny nailclippers or a fork??

2. If you were trapped in your bathroom and someone was coming to kill you, what would you choose as a weapon and why?
Well, my bathroom is tiny. If I was sitting on the toilet, and they were in the bathroom door I could perhaps grab their pants at the knee and make them fall. Or hit them in the kneecap with the toiletpaper holder? hah. Actually about the only place I could be in the bathroom where there'd be space for another person to even enter, is if I were in the shower. Fortunately for me the First Aid kit is right above the showerhead, and there are VERY NASTY SCISSORS in there. Very sharp too cuz I dont use them for anything else. Other than that I would say, using the telephone shower to spray very hot water... it would burn esp if you had clothes on that held the water close to your body. Frankly though, I dont have much of a chance... I'd probably slip in the tub and crack my head.

3. If you were trapped in the kitchen, but couldnt reach any cutlery, what item would you use to defend yourself?
Someone said a fork. I dont know. I think forks are cutlery. I think I'd use whatever was closest to my hands. Small cast iron skillet perhaps.

4. What food item in your refrigerator would make the best weapon and why?
I think I'd just try to push over the fridge on someone... being just hopeless with a weapon, I figure the combination of a large bulky falling object, which could become an obstacle to hide behind, and the food falling all over... I'd open the door, would create mayhem in which I could escape. Yes, escape. Other than that, various glass bottles that could be broken off, such as Corona. Any rotten organic freerange eggs might help...

5. Which part of your body do you feel most confident of being able to defend yourself with?
My voice. Yes. if I cannot convince him I'm insane, I can scream like crazy. I am very loud and have great projection. I would back up my voice with my legs... dont they say to get on the ground and kick like hell??

6. What is the weirdest weapon someone has ever threatened you with?
A can of Play-Doh. And not only was it a threat, it was thrown. Those cans have sharp metal edges. Ouch.

7. What is the weirdest weapon you have ever threatened someone else with?Their own words. No that's not fair (actually true)... um, my dog. And that is weird cuz my dog is about as harmless as a pillow. (they could both be used to smother someone)

8. When they say in the USA they have the historical right to bear arms, what did the writers of that "right" mean by arms?Fairly primitive firearms that could only fire once before reloading. I assume they also meant pitchforks, knives, bows and arrows, and swords.

9. According to you, what SHOULD it mean now?Pretty much the same. I don't think it should mean handguns or anything even semi-automatic. The right to bear arms was written into the constitution I believe because it was a republic, a democracy, and in Europe, often only royalty could have arms. It was the idea that the populace could not be bullied by the dictators in charge, and denied the means to defend themselves.

10. What weapon do you find the most terrifying?
Well, I could mention the obvious nuclear bomb, but actually I don't lie awake at night worrying about that. Not that I lie awake at night worrying about any weapons. Um, love. That's a good weapon to hurt someone with. Ok, no, actually, guns. I hate guns. I think they are commonplace enough to be a real threat, are tempting for people to use to show off, sport, or to threaten someone, and they are ridiculously easy to have a horrific accident with or kill someone with so little energy expenditure and complete detachment. They are horrid. Death in your pocket. yup.

11. What weapon do you find the most sexy?
Definitely daggers and other knives. mmm. the glint, the promise of penetration, the intimacy.

12. Have you ever used something commonly considered a weapon as a sex toy?
Most definitely. See #11.

13. What do you normally carry in your pockets, wallet or purse that would be usable for hijacking an airplane?A ballpoint pen in my pocket. In my fannypack, a steel nail file, a small exacto blade. I used to have a swiss army knife too but I lost it. poop.

14. What do you think of someone who has a gun under their pillow?
I think he is a bit crackpot and quite terrifying... wouldn't want him to have a bad dream and shoot his kid, or be the one to have to wake him up. urk! See Charleton Heston and Timothy McVeigh's brother in Bowling for Columbine. I am happy and relieved to say that most of Diaryland respondents agree with me.

15. Do you think a knife is a tool or a weapon? Why?
Before reading our astute respondents answers, I would have said both. But someone was right, a weapon is a tool. It is still both though. There is probably not a knife in existence you couldn't do SOME damage with, but a knife is a darn handy tool, and any outdoors person will tell you it is indispensable for survival in the wilds.

16. What would influence your classification of a particular knife as a tool or a weapon?
I would now classify them all as tools, eh! but some knives are designed so they are not practical for much other than inflicting damage on flesh... they are made so they gouge and tear instead of being useful for let's say skinning something, or cutting cheese or whatever. Most other knives are useful as weapons if needs be, but are handy tools as well.

17. Do you usually carry a knife, pocketknife, swissarmy knife, penknife or somesuch?
Yes. I lost my little swiss armyknife, but I usually have a little xacto with me. It is infinitely helpful from clipping magazine articles, to cutting packing tape, to opening packages, to emergency situations such as clothing caught in wheels or car doors. I have eaten cheese with it, but the swissarmy knife is much more practical for that.

18. Do you consider string or shoelaces to be weapons?
They certainly could be in the right hands, or coming up behind someone. And, wrapped around someone's ankle or neck, and slammed in a car door, you could do some damage as you drove away. yup.

19. If not, why not?see #18

20. Do you think they should let people who can take down someone, or kill with their hands, on airplanes, even if they have no prohibited items?
It might be a good idea to have it noted on the ID of people who have taken particular training, ie as policemen, blackbelts, SEALS trained people etc. See following blahblah....

OKAY, so WHAT the hell was my idea behind making this survey? Was it because I am a conspiracy theorist? A paranoid survivalist? Plotting to take over an airplane? No, it was a mixture of several things. The upstepped airport security since 9-11, watching the movie Bowling for Columbine, and experiences around knives, and people's reactions to all these things.

First, I am fascinated by what the airline industry deems weapons (nailclippers, nailfiles, whips (whips?!!), restraining devices) and those which it does not (ballpoint pens, wine bottles, corkscrews in the hands of stewardesses, shoelaces, people with training in killing with their bare hands). I think "are they just lacking in imagination?... why is it so obvious to them that the knife is a weapon and not the fork?"... and I was curious as to whether y'all were as lacking in imagination as they seem to be. A weapon is anything that you can use in an agressive or defensive manner (as witnessed by those hunks who wrote some answer like "my man-meat love muscle".. no, you didnt write that but you MEANT it, eh! well.. they meant their dick, which is one of the most commonly used weapons in war, as few men leave home without it, and somehow enemies and danger make it work real well).

In general I can see that most of you think that many things are feasible weapons, but need not be banned from airflight. hmm. I am most curious about the people who can kill with their hands question. I am definitely less of a threat with most real and very nasty weapons than someone unarmed who knows how to kill efficiently with his hands... 5 guys like that could take out stewardesses, air guards (or whatever they're called) and even the pilots with no fuss. All they'd have to do is take out one each, while having someone else, in their hands, and threaten to do them next, non? I realize anyone could conceivably kill with their hands, given long enough and with luck on their side, but really, we've just been having a discussion on the bdsm list with a couple SEALS guys and a couple of medical guys... it takes 3-4 seconds on your carotid artery to put you out and not much longer to kill you. ulg. And they worry about nailclippers.

I was also interested to see if there was any link between people who think that guns are something everyone should have in their homes, and also under their pillow/ next to the bed. Cuz face it, if you are in bed and your gun to defend yourself is locked in a case in the livingroom, you are just not going to be using it if you are surprised are you? I, as a Canadian, find the whole "gun in the house" thing to be quite strange. I mean, if you are REALLY going to defend yourself with it, shouldn't it be in a holster on your hip like a cowboy? If not, the chances you are going to be having your hands on it in the case of an unexpected intruder or attack by even a supposed friend is like nil... you're gonna be reaching for the bedside lamp, the bleach (good reply) in the bathroom, the jar of jam or the toaster. Yup. In my opinion, if you're not going to wear it, it shouldn't even be in the house, where some 5 yr old will soon be wearing it instead of you.

Today in the newspaper were two stories of gun accidents. One was a guy who'd been hunting for 12 years, had taken gun safety classes, and been known to be an excellent and safe gunman. He accidentally shot himself in the head in front of his wife and hunting buddy when he was taking the gun out of the car when he arrived at home. No one knows why there was a bullet in it. Only half his head went... he didnt die til an hour later. The other incident was two hunters in a blind shooting ducks. One reached behind himself for a rifle, it slipped in his hand, went off, and shot his friend through the hand and the chest. The victim will live. But the guy felt bad to have shot his friend. Yup. I'm all for guns.

I'm thrilled that people are so feisty and imaginative when it comes to defending themselves with whatever is at hand though! Don't know how often we are really attacked though. I would guess not often, and when it does happen it is often by someone we don't REALLY want to damage... ie when my brothers would get angry and beat on eachother or me... do I REALLY want to stab a fork through or throw bleach at their eyes?!... more about that tomorrow when we get to question #30 about showing your weapon or not.

Skinning knife, copyright 2003 Wench77
Another reason for the "do you carry a pocketknife", "are knives weapons or tools" questions, besides the airline crap, is that I started carrying my nice little skinning knife on my belt. It is illegal to carry a concealed weapon (interesting that... if you have it in your backpack is it concealed? or only if it is in your pantleg?), and also people started saying "hey, you could get arrested for having that"... which surprised me cuz the blade is about 3 1/2 inches long. I got all sorts of advice on legal knife lengths. So as not to get stopped for jaywalking and then have my new baby taken from me for being illegal, I thought, I shall play safe, and be the good citizen I am an inform myself. Getting bogged down in online searches, I finally called the RCMP here.

Bad mistake (well, I did learn that blades up to 4 inches are legal)... they treated me not like some nice lady wanting to stay within the law, but rather like I had called up and asked how much nitroglycerin I was allowed to stockpile in my basement. The policeman was like "why would you carry a weapon anyways".. and when I said it was a tool, something I use to open boxes, eat an apple, slice the packaging on purchases etc, he was like yeah right... you're carrying a weapon and it must be for a reason. There is no reason to carry a knife other than for a weapon.

I said well, most jewellers, department stores etc etc sell Swiss Army knives, and in all sizes and colors, ie for young women, " young beginners" and hikers and everything, including pink ones with toothpicks and tweezers and the biggest blade only good for taking price tags off lingerie. Someone must buy and carry all these thousands of knives. Well, he was totally not convinced about the tool thing, but the more I argued the more he was convinced I was a deranged killer on the loose.

He started saying things like "just you wait, your 3 1/2 inch knife may be legal on the streets, but it is illegal in the subway to have any knife, and illegal in stores and bars, and illegal in shopping malls and .... just you wait..." Now this was all news to me, since the only place I had had my "weapons" (exacto knife and small swiss army) taken from me were boarding an airplane since Sept 11 (I took them in my fanny pack through security onto the plane into the US on Sept 6 of 2001 I did, no problem at all). I thought of when I had bought 8 inch kitchen knives and carried them home on the subway. No security guard was there to say anything. Certainly I bought them IN a store, and carried them through the shopping mall and through the subway. I guess that ranks up with them giving free guns in banks in the States. hmmm.

Me, being the argumentative blabbermouth that I am, brought up these examples. It all ended up with him saying "see you in prison ma'am, yup, it's only a matter of time, see you in prison".

I am so glad that the citizenry is applauded for making sure they don't break the law. I started off sweet miss goodytwoshoes, and by the end of the call I was a convicted criminal just biding her time on the outside til the inevitable bars closed around my life. Wow. Glad they POST the traffic speed limits, cuz if we had to call for those, they would probably be accusing us of wantonly running down grannies on highspeed chases under the influence of acid and two dozen beer.

So, now you know. The RCMP considers knives weapons. Not tools. Not even if they are a two inch swiss army knife with a corkscrew and a magnifying glass. A weapon. And they are illegal on the subway, in bars, shopping malls, and stores. You are forewarned. And if you get caught, you can always write me a note on diaryland from the prison library. Jeezus Christ.

Now, why do people carry pretty knives like that, and put guns in movies, and have way more of them than we need in our homes? Well, many people find weapons sexy. There is the power, the adrenaline, the promise of danger. Yup. Some people might say "it's just pretty", or "I just like em"... but a lot of the time that is a euphemism for "it stirs something in my loins". mmm. Anyhows. I think my knife is pretty. But I have sexier ones.

Play safe and don't cut your fingers.

Well, that is definitely a long enough entry. Yeah. Come back for part two, now, hear?? :)

ciao! xx to me, wenchie.

4:21 amPlease read this entry by Son-shade but have some kleenex huh, it is touching and will make you think about people in your life. thanks. cheers. me.

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previous meanderings - future past

Goodbye Michael. May your next life be kinder to you. - Thursday, Jun. 25, 2009
Taking Care of Your Cows - Thursday, Jun. 25, 2009
Saint Joseph robs the cradle and eats spaghetti - Sunday, Jun. 14, 2009
sticky notes and broken irises - Friday, Jun. 12, 2009
The FOODCOMMANDER - Monday, Jun. 08, 2009

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