Ha! Dangerous territory. Almost like saying cinder block chopping is encouraged.
If I'm beating on anything other than wood, I'm not expecting a refund when my knife breaks.

I appreciate the posts, KG. Often one can get lost with all the info that is out there. It's good to know you've covered almost all the angles when thinking of what steel to use for a knife. My hope was a post indicating the pro's and con's so that anyone lurking might get a bigger picture. With all the talk of the "super steels" one can't help but wonder. I have also heard of some new tech for knife sharpening. I think that will play a role as well in the near future.