AW: [ RadSafe ] Sellafield reprocessing plant 83,000 liter plutonium leak undetected for 9 months

[Gerald Nicholls]

Or, stop manufacturing kitchen knives with points...  See:

http://tinyurl.com/8t8ay 

British Medical Experts Campaign for Long, Pointy Knife Control

By JOHN SCHWARTZ 
Published: May 27, 2005
Warning: Long, pointy knives may be hazardous to your health. 

The authors of an editorial in the latest issue of the British Medical
Journal have called for knife reform. The editorial, "Reducing knife
crime: We need to ban the sale of long, pointed kitchen knives," notes
that the knives are being used to stab people as well as roasts and the
odd tin of Spam.


David Corio for The New York Times
Manufacturers are urged to redesign kitchen knives with rounded tips.

 
Full Text of the Editorial (BMJ.com) The authors of the essay - Drs.
Emma Hern, Will Glazebrook and Mike Beckett of the West Middlesex
University Hospital in London - called for laws requiring knife
manufacturers to redesign their wares with rounded, blunt tips. 

The researchers noted that the rate of violent crime in Britain rose
nearly 18 percent from 2003 to 2004, and that in the first two weeks of
2005, 15 killings and 16 nonfatal attacks involved stabbings. In an
unusual move for a scholarly work, the researchers cited a January
headline from The Daily Express, a London tabloid: "Britain is in the
grip of knives terror - third of murder victims are now stabbed to
death." Dr. Hern said that "we came up with the idea and tossed it into
the pot" to get people talking about crime reduction. "Whether it's a
sensible solution to this problem or not, I'm not sure."

In the United States, where people are more likely to debate gun
control than knife control, partisans on both sides sounded amused.
Wayne LaPierre, executive vice president of the National Rifle
Association, asked, "Are they going to have everybody using plastic
knives and forks and spoons in their own homes, like they do in
airlines?"

Peter Hamm, a spokesman for the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence,
which supports gun control, joked, "Can sharp stick control be far
behind?" He said people in his movement were "envious" of England for
having such problems. "In America, we can't even come to an agreement
that guns are dangerous and we should make them safer," he said.

The authors of the editorial argued that the pointed tip is a vestigial
feature from less mannered ages, when people used it to spear meat. They
said that they interviewed 10 chefs in England, and that "none gave a
reason why the long, pointed knife was essential," though short, pointed
knives were useful. 

An American chef, however, disagreed with the proposal. "This is yet
another sign of the coming apocalypse," said Anthony Bourdain, the
executive chef at Les Halles and the author of "Kitchen Confidential." 

A knife, he said, is a beloved tool of the trade, and not a thing to be
shaped by bureaucrats. A chef's relationship with his knives develops
over decades of training and work, he said, adding, "Its weight, its
shape - these are all extensions of our arms, and in many ways, our
personalities." 

He compared the editorial to efforts to ban unpasteurized cheese.
"Where there is no risk," he said, "there is no pleasure."


Gerald P. Nicholls
NJ Dept. of Environmental Protection
609-633-7964
gerald.nicholl at dep.state.nj.us

>>> "Sandy Perle" <sandyfl at earthlink.net> 05/31/05 11:26AM >>>
On 31 May 2005 at 9:39, Doug Aitken wrote:

> focus on a major killer.......

Let's ban the automobile while we're looking for a "Zero Death 
Probability"!

-------------------------------------
Sandy Perle
Senior Vice President, Technical Operations
Global Dosimetry Solutions, Inc.
2652 McGaw Avenue
Irvine, CA 92614 

Tel: (949) 296-2306 / (888) 437-1714  Extension 2306
Fax:(949) 296-1902 

E-Mail: sperle at dosimetry.com 
E-Mail: sandyfl at earthlink.net 

Global Dosimetry Website: http://www.dosimetry.com/ 
Personal Website: http://sandy-travels.com/ 

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