Friday, November 26, 2010

Is a Pre-Emptive Strike Your Best Defense?

Once again we look at one of the basic premises of traditional martial arts theory.  Historically we are taught that martial arts is a defensive concept and that it should never be used as offensively.  In an ideal world this philosophy or theory is a great one.  In an ideal world there would be no violence anyhow so it would not much matter.  Unfortunately ours is not an ideal world in any aspect of reality so reality has to be factored in to the concept or premise.
Let’s say you have been training in a martial arts style for a while and one evening some human predator suddenly stops you on the street or in a parking garage, threatening you, yelling and all the rest.  You have the presence of mind to stay reasonably calm, set yourself in a relatively stable stance or posture without looking threatening and you try to negotiate your way out of the confrontation.  Exactly what a well trained martial artist should do. 
At some point you realize that the negotiations are over and the aggressor is going to do something violent.  He is bigger, may be on drugs and getting more and more belligerent all the time.  You think you know what his attack will be and you mentally prepare yourself to execute some sort of martial arts technique to defend against this.  You are allowing him, the predator, to execute HIS game plan at your expense.  What if your presumption of his game plan is wrong?  What if your presumption is right but in the process of executing your defense his size and strength as well as his extreme intent on harming you overpowers your defense?  It is important to understand that without a LOT of training and at least some understanding of real world fighting (no referees, no rules, no boundaries, etc.) the chances of your first attempt at defending against an aggressor like this are at best questionable.  If you have the training, focus and determination to instantly go to another technique the second your first try starts to fail you will have a chance.  Unfortunately not many martial artists are trained this way.
So let’s back up a bit to the point where you realize that the negotiations are essentially over.  You are absolutely convinced that there is no way out of the conflict and you have no place to run.  You are absolutely convinced that this predator is going to do everything he can to inflict massive bodily harm on you.  You obviously cannot be 100% sure of what his first move will be.  In reality your option is simple.  Do exactly what the aggressor does not expect you to do.  Move quickly in to him and execute a powerful series of pre-emptive strikes.  Essentially, if you are certain IT is going to happen, execute YOUR game plan before he can execute his.  Pretty basic but rest assured that the shock or surprise of your sudden attack will more often than not allow you to prevail.  The key is focus, speed and most important, effect.
Hal Herndon 2010

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Self Defense on the Street: Defense Against an Attack With a Weapon -- Attack the Attacker!

It is important to understand that there is a significant and critical difference between a holdup involving a weapon and an attack involving one.  This outline deals with the problem of an aggressive attack by a person wielding a weapon.
You are confronted by an attacker who has a knife, a club, a machete, a ball bat or other life threatening weapon.  Your instincts are to deal with or stop the weapon at all costs.  Your instincts, unfortunately, are basically and dangerously wrong!.
Let’s assume, for example, you are being attacked by someone with a knife:  The knife your assailant is about to stab or slice you with is essentially a harmless tool by itself.  Only when a person uses it with harmful intent does it become a threat.  Even then, the knife is only an extension of the person wielding it.  If you think about this for a while you will likely realize that your main focus and effort in this situation should be to stop the attacker, not the weapon.  Without question you must do everything you can to avoid being struck by the weapon.  More often than not running away is the best solution.  Sometimes that is not possible.  Then it becomes critically important that you absolutely must focus on the attacker.   You must, in this instance, disrupt the attacker mechanically.  You will find that under many conditions (drugs, alcohol, some forms of extreme rage, etc.) inflicting pain on the attacker will not be effective.  In many cases he will not feel much of anything.  This is why dealing with his physiology is so critical.
Some ‘food for thought’:  Let’s say in your defense attempt the attacker loses his weapon.  Odds are he will instinctively look for it and possibly even try to retrieve it.  Instinctively you will do the same because you  don’t want him to get it back and use it against you.  Once again a dangerously wrong move!  Once the weapon is out of his hands it is no longer a threat to your safety.  However the attacker will likely still be a threat.  Deal with him and forget the weapon.  If he is distracted trying to retrieve the weapon he becomes a much easier target to deal with.
Granted, if he has friends around they may pick up the weapon and attack but that is another topic for another time.
In essence, too many defense techniques focus on the weapon.  Everything from knocking it away, trapping the attacking hand or hands and disarming the attacker, redirecting the weapon hand or arm and executing a joint lock, etc.  These are all good in theory and they could work in a real life violent confrontation.    What if they don’t.  Then you are off balance, the attacker still has the weapon, is probably not really harmed and, more than likely, the attacker is more agitated than in the beginning.  Not a good place to be.
There are also a number of legal issues inherent in this scenario.  Here is just one:  If you disarm the attacker and use the weapon against him you instantly become the aggressor and the legal consequences can be severe.  Even if you started out doing nothing other than trying to defend yourself and ended up using attacker’s weapon on him you could be charged and ultimately convicted of murder…Frightening but it has happened.  The premise is generally as follows:  If you honestly believe or feel that your life is in danger your options in response are virtually limitless as long as the original aggressor still has the weapon and you do not. 
Hal Herndon 2010

Friday, November 5, 2010

Are Martial Arts and Real World Self Defense Mutually Exclusive?

One of the big arguments these days seems to be whether or not martial arts techniques will work in a real life street confrontation.  Dedicated martial artists emphatically say “yes” and those more street fighting and self defense oriented emphatically say “no”.  I believe that both answers are correct depending on the circumstances involved. 
In order to address this we need to assume that the martial artist involved in the following scenarios has trained seriously and for a long time but may not have been involved in sudden, unexpected and violent real life “street fight” confrontations. 
Consider that there are at least two quite different scenarios for potential “real life confrontations and for our purposes let’s say that you are the aforementioned martial artist and that both scenarios take place in a dimly lit parking lot with relatively few people around.
Scenario 1:  In accordance with your training you are aware of your surroundings and you notice a couple of men loitering near your vehicle in the parking lot.  As you approach them you notice that they appear to be more interested in you than you would like so you start thinking about how to handle the situation (or them) if you are ultimately confronted.  As you continue toward your vehicle one of the men starts moving toward you and asks which one is your vehicle.  You don’t respond and then he starts telling you that he wants your vehicle and your wallet.  His colleagues are silent but are positioned in such a way that you will have to either deal with a physical confrontation, probably a violent one, or find a way to leave quickly.  Here you have a few seconds to make a rational decision.
Scenario 2:  In the same parking lot, a couple of thugs suddenly jump out at you from behind a parked van.  One, the obvious leader, instantly comes up to you and starts yelling about your wallet and your car while he is pushing you violently.  The others close in but do not engage.  There is no time or place to run.  You are shocked at the sudden and potentially dangerous situation and you try to stall off the fear that comes with surprise in these situations.  Your mind will not focus on anything but having a serious problem.  All of the training and self defense techniques you have learned over the years have suddenly disappeared from your conscious thought process. 
In Scenario 1 you have time to think and plan so what you have learned and trained for will most likely work or at least give you an advantage, assuming that you have trained properly.  In Scenario 2, however, psychologists have determined that most, if not all conscious thought and the ability to think rationally will be non-existent.  The brain reverts to what is often called the reptilian state or a “fight or flight” mode where reacting with pure primitive instinct and violence or running are the only options.
A great deal has been written and discussed on this topic in recent years.  There are indeed ways to train so that you will be able to handle either of the above scenarios.  A good, solid martial arts background and training is excellent and can do nothing but help in a violent situation (as long as you don’t get cocky).  However “cross training” in how to handle yourself instinctively in a totally unexpected real life or death street confrontation can give you an edge that most people don’t have.  It all seems to boil down to understanding the reality of the possibilities and being open minded enough to prepare yourself for both.
Hal Herndon 2010

Monday, November 1, 2010

REAL WORLD STREET FIGHTING FROM A MARTIAL ARTIST’S VIEWPOINT

In trying to sort out traditional martial arts training (particularly in the U.S.) in comparison to all the developing information and dialogue on “street fighting” (by definition not a sport) and even MMA (by definition definitely a sport) one has to try very hard to be objective.  This is particularly difficult for someone who has trained regularly over a long span of time in an extremely effective and potentially devastating martial art.  At the same time, however, in delving through the plethora of developing information, videos, books, blogs and other dialogue on “real world” fighting vs. martial arts training one really has to start looking and looking with a constructively critical eye.
Amongst the ever increasing volumes of information on “street fighting”, generated by numerous parties with varying backgrounds and experiences and from different parts of the world there seem to be a number of commonalities.  These commonalities make the situation very different from what is experienced and/or learned in most martial arts schools, especially in the U.S.  Among these are the following:
                A street fight is usually an unexpected act of violence.
               When confronted suddenly and unexpectedly with potentially life threatening violence, one’s ability to think rationally is badly impaired and often not existent.  All of the martial arts techniques one has learned over years of training (most of which require fine motor skills) are not able to be remembered, much less utilized.
                Street fights are totally chaotic and unpredictable.
                Street fights are extremely dynamic (i.e., the involved parties move around throughout the conflict, either to gain an advantage or to escape further abuse).
                There are no rules of any kind, no morals and little to no conscience involved.
                There is no referee and it is unlikely that anyone will step in and stop the fight regardless of what is happening to either party and law enforcement will likely get there too late to help.
                There are certain legalities that come into play, usually after the conflict is over.
                The original aggressor may well have friends nearby who will jump in and engage in the fight if the aggressor seems to need help. 
               It is fair to assume that the attacker (and/or his friends) may have a weapon.
                The physical environment (i.e., pavement, curbs, walls, chairs, bottles, etc.) can be used by either party to gain an advantage or to end the conflict.  He who is generally aware of his environmental surroundings will have a distinct advantage if he is willing to utilize it.
It is evident to this author that serious martial artists have at least some obligation to themselves and to their students to look into this aspect of self defense or self protection.  It is quite easy to incorporate many of the principles touted by those who engage in real world fighting into a viable martial arts program without “violating” tradition or protocol.  All it takes is a little study, a bit of cross training, a willingness to adapt and, most important, an open mind.  One of the keys may well be to fully understand and accept the fact that a pre-emptive strike, under many conditions, may well be the best defensive move one can make.
Hal Herndon 2010