Irritable_Badger

A few points:

- The tool manufacturers have had many opportunities to make their products safer but they did not. If they don't care about their customers safety then the government needs to step in and do something about it. That's what we pay them for. (This only applies in situations where the "free market" hasn't worked. Airbags and seatbelts are good examples).

- Good on Mr. Gass if he makes some good coin off of his invention. That's the idea behind innovation.

- A bigger issue here is that implementing this great safety feature in other applications has been stalled because SawStop has had to develop, manufacture, and market their own line of saws instead of advancing their safety device technology.

- There is a lot of precedent for intellectual property being purchased by the federal government and the patents discharged. This puts the patents into the public domain and eliminates licensing costs for implementation but still pays the inventor. It is entirely possible, likely even, that the tool manufacturers are pursuing this line through lobbying efforts.

- Safety (especially in the case of something as specific as a single application (table saws)) is a genie that can't be put back in the bottle. No matter who/what "started it" the argument is public now and some measure of safety standards are inevitable, as any argument "against safety" can't be won and only makes those supporting "no safety" look silly.

I like hand plane books.

How often can someone win one of the freebies?

Reference books are always great. When I'm too broke to buy wood for my "next project", learning more about my favorite material is my favorite way to spend time.

I want it!!!

I've purchased several books on sharpening and I'd love to find (win) one that gave useful insights instead of just advice on which fancy new tools to buy.

This is a good thing for all parties involved. While staff at most Woodcraft stores try to be helpful I have found them generally inexperienced with hand tools. For a high-end specialty product like LN this is no good; especially when staff have to take the time to explain the differences between a good tool and a mediocre tool but do not understand either.

Fortunately I'm close to the best Woodcraft store on the east coast (Chattanooga, TN) and I can still go there and play with the LN toys.