Let's stay focused on the knife aspects and let the other thread handle the 2A issues.
Does a knife manufacturer's participation in destruction of PD property room firearms that are required by local ordinance to be destroyed impact the quality of the knives made by that company?
Of course not. The quality of the product isn't dictated by anything more than the commitment of the company to produce a product of a specific level of quality.
Ahhh, but is it a smart move to for any consumer product company to get involved in any politically related issue?
Generally not since it alienates some customers.
Is it smart for a knife company that produces a product that is often an accessory in gun stores to get involved in any activity that can be seen as somehow, even peripherally, Anti 2A?
Of course not since it is assured to alienate a significant customer group and create controversy and possibly have an impact on sales.
Did BM think this through carefully?
Apparently not to the point they considered the backlash if the information was made public.
Do we know if the Oregon City Police approached BM at the local facility manager level or the Corporate level?
Not yet and we probably won't.
Do we know if the firearms that were destroyed were all used in crimes and offered back to any innocent owner? (Yes, that strays from the "let's keep this knife related" but it is relevant if we're trying to see if BM actually committed a "sin" or if this is just jumping to conclusions).
Not yet. So we don't know what BM is actually "guilty" of besides being blind to the implications of assisting the local PD in this and we don't know if they knew anything other than they were asked to help destroy firearms used in crimes locally that the PD no longer wanted to keep in Property.
What we know is that BM was asked to help do something that the PD was required to do by local law. That's been established.
Has BM's response provided much detailed information?
We apologize for the confusion and concern that this post created. These were firearms that the Oregon City Police Department had to destroy in alignment with their policies. Oregon City Police requested the use of specialty equipment within the Benchmade facility to follow these requirements, and as a supporting partner of our local police force, we obliged the request.
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Benchmade is a proud and unwavering supporter of both law enforcement and Second Amendment rights. These are commitments that we do not take lightly and will continue to support well into the future.
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When asked for clarity from Oregon City Police Department, Chief Jim Band made the following statement: “When property is to be destroyed, it is the policy of the Oregon City Police Department to destroy property, including firearms, in accordance to our procedures and ORS. The Oregon City Police Department does not sell firearms.”
-Benchmade
Not much more than Oregon City PD destroys instead of sells property room firearms like many LE organizations and they asked BM for help to do so. There probably isn't any more to it than that.
Keep in mind that knife companies often donate knives to their local LEOs and that it is generally understood that there is a very close relationship between local LE and knife manufacturers because of it. Such a relationship makes requests from LEO more probable than with the local garage or metal fab shops.
Was it a carefully thought out action on the part of BM? That's apparent that they were blind to this implication.
Will it have long term impact? Not on the quality of the product, but it might on sales. People have short memories, but nothing is "forgotten" on the internet.
Only time will tell.