Yesterday's decision by the Supreme Court in McDonald v. Chicago incorporating the Second Amendment to the states is an important victory in the fight to protect the individual right to keep and bear arms. Congratulations are in order to the Second Amendment Foundation, who was the prime sponsor of the effort on behalf of the litigants, to attorney Alan Gura who developed the case and the strategy and then along with the NRA argued the case before the court, and to all who submitted supporting briefs.

From the perspective of knife owners, this decision, like Heller before it, includes a reference to knives in support of the majority opinion. In this case, it is reference to the abrogation by states of the civil rights of African Americans after the Civil War, prohibiting their possession of a number of named arms, including "dirk or bowie knife."

There is no question that this decision gives those of us fighting for our knife rights another arrow in our quiver, one with a nice sharp point. It sets the stage for further advancements via both legislation and the courts. With the Second Amendment confirmed now as both an individual right and the law of the land, it becomes easier to make the argument in legislatures and elsewhere to remove unreasonable restrictions on knives. The key issue is the term "reasonable."

The court made it very clear that the decision does not eradicate all laws restricting firearms in particular, or by implication, all arms, including knives, in general. What is reasonable and what is not will be decided over the next few years by court cases challenging the inevitable tidal wave of restrictive regulations that will be implemented by those who remain opposed to freedom and self-defense. Some of those cases will inevitably end up back at the Supreme Court. A single swing vote on the Supreme Court could wipe away these gains and could essentially gut the Second Amendment, individual right and incorporated as it now is. Think about that when you vote for your Senators and President.

With this decision we are better armed for the fight for our knife rights, but it does not settle many of the real issues regarding knife sale, ownership, purchase and carry that we deal with daily. It will still be a hard slog through the legislature and the courts to determine what is reasonable and what is not.

We will take a moment to savor the victory, celebrate the success and then it's back to work. New York District Attorney Cyrus Vance, Jr. couldn't care less about this decision, he will continue his assault on perfectly legal knives, innocent retailers and law-abiding knife owners in New York regardless. The battle continues.

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