I suspect that a minority of people have always had a tendency to stab each other. Urban gang culture is nothing new. I remember the banning of "flick knives" in the Teddy Boy era, maybe a reaction by the government of the day to media publicity, "something (anything) must be done", or seen to be done, to give the illusion that the government of the day is in control of events, rather than the other way round. Probably the fact that almost every schoolboy at the time had a penknife, and probably most adults too, went over people's heads as they went about their daily business, not-stabbing each other. Probably more people had a practical use for something like that then, as people used to fix things rather than being a bit helpless when confronted with things today that don't work.
It might be argued that a spring loaded knife which opened at the touch of a button could more likely be seen as a concealed weapon than the average folding knife (and maybe more likely to cause injuries to the user if not carefully handled) and might also be seen as a symbol of status by certain groups but it's a sort of removal of choice. It turns on its head the argument that you used to need a reason not to be allowed to carry a knife, eg you were a known scrote, probably up to no good, rather than have to justify a reason to have one, which suggests that today we are all scrotes, up to no good, unless proved otherwise.
Not that I have aspirations to be a latter day Crocodile Dundee who when confronted by someone with a knife produces an even bigger one, saying, "Call that a knoife? THIS is a knoife, mate!" No, I just want to be left in peace to have in my pocket my trusty Swiss Army Knife ready for use if I need to trim a cracked nail, pluck a stray eyebrow hair, tighten a loose screw, yes, even slice open an envelope with a blade without risking being shot by a SWAT team, or being instructed to put that tweezer down SLOWLY and put your hands on your head. Am I asking too much?
After all, the death toll from, for example, motor vehicles both by direct contact and from the outflow from exhausts is massive by comparison with knife crime but somehow it is tolerated. A life lost no matter by what means is still a precious thing to the owner and their family but there needs to be some sense of proportion.
