KNIFE NEEDS OF THE MANY
Do 21st -century soldiers even need knives?
I don’t know about the Navy or Air Force, but there’s controversy on this topic in “Big Army.” Some commanders don’t allow troops to have personal knives. Others allow only work-related models, such as electricians’ knives.
Reports often surface that due to improved weapons and logistics, even those who might need knives need nothing but small knives—the kind that fit behind body armor or otherwise ride somewhere out of the way—because, these days, knives supposedly are used only to open MREs (meals ready to eat). No bushcraft/survival ability is required. Close combat with a blade is said to be so rare that the possibility can be disregarded. Yeah, right—unless you’re the guy caught without a gun or out of ammo in the face of the enemy.
Smaller knives can be effective weapons and are the
