What hurts more a knife or gun?

Answer 1

Having known a fair number of people who have been shot and stabbed, the answer is as varied as the victims. It seems it depends greatly on the situation and the location of the attack/injury.

Most of those I've known who have been shot were not fully aware they had been shot. The only one who I've know who realized quickly that he had been hit with a bullet was a friend and fellow soldier who served in Vietnam. It was the second time he had been hit by enemy fire, he was dropping into an LZ and got hit in the upper thigh. He said he thought a stick had gotten kicked up by the helicopter blades and didn't realize a sniper had tagged him.

I've know several who were cut or stabbed (shanked) as well. One that comes to mind was a disagreement I witnessed personally while in Germany. Two soldiers in our unit got into a disagreement over a local girl. Juan (not his name) followed Ben (also not his name) out of the NCO club to continue the argument. Juan was a smallish Chicano man, Ben was one of the largest men I have never known (we lifted together, and Ben could bench-press twice what any of the rest of us could). When Juan got frustrated that Ben was not going to give in, he pulled out a straight razor and started slashing at Ben's chest. Ben thought Juan was poking him with a finger, which did not make Ben happy. He reached out, grabbed Juan by the head (Yep, hands that big), picked Juan up, and tossed him into the wall of the NCO club. The argument was ended, and we had to convince Ben to go to the medics to get stitched up. He literally did not believe us when we told him he was bleeding.

I don't know if it is shock, adrenaline, or some other factor that keeps people from realizing they have been shot or stabbed. I suspect there are some who realize it when it happens. I just have not known any.

Long term though. Those I've known who were shot, wish they had been stabbed. The tissue damage from a bullet ripping through your flesh at high velocity is far greater than what can be accomplished with a blade. Anyone who has hunted knows when they see a bullet track through a kill that had the animal lived, the pain of the track as well as the jelled flesh surrounding the wound would be incredible. Most bullets travel at over 1,000 fps. I knife moves only as fast as the hand that wields it. Anything moving as fast as a bullet will traumatize the flesh around it in at least a 2-3 inch diameter. Biggest knife I ever saw was a Deutsch Zweihander (German two-handed sword) - 3" of steel, four feet long. A 5.56mm round from an M-16 can hit a person in the heel and exit the head (M-16 rounds tumble and follow bones).

Said a lot here. Need I say more?