Intellectual Integrity

This isn’t working is it! (Note this is a statement not a question.) One of my knife students and I were struggling with the filipino “rolling pattern” we had adapted for knife on knife. There was one section where the technique just did not work. Originally designed to teach machete techniques, when the moves were scaled down to fit a medium sized fighting knife there was a disconnect right in the middle of the flow drill. With some effort we finally figured out how to fix it. Keep in mind that the flow is only important to allow a student to learn smooth transitions. The purpose is not to create a dance.

I am not sure how many instructors will stop in the middle of teaching a technique and admit to a student that its not working, for that student. Intellectual honesty is not rampant in today’s martial arts. It is far easier to take the money and continue on teaching useless techniques just as if everything was copacetic . As I have said before everything works in the dojo. That is not good enough if your student is in a business where people’s lives depend upon his skills, skills he learned from you or I. Repeating a bad technique a thousand times does not make it a good technique, it just ingrains bad muscle memory. Stop lying to yourself and your students, if it does not work in the dojo it will not work on the streets! Fix it.

Rote memorization is only worthwhile if the techniques are worthwhile to begin with. There are several facets to learning a martial art from anyone. Here is my simple prescription.

1. learn to discriminate

2. perfect what works

3. practice it endlessly

4. modify/discard that which does not work

Regarding item number four, you must always practice intellectual honesty and not be afraid of change. One final precautionary note: change nothing that does not need changed, and do not become addicted to innovation for innovation’s sake, always seek simplicity in your moves.

Cuts Both Ways

Cuts Both Ways:

I was reading an article on concealed carry of firearms by Massad Ayoob when an interesting thought occurred to me. I quote Ayoob, “When the defender does not know when the attack will come, the only reasonable expectation of safety lies in being always armed.” Certainly this makes a lot of sense, at least to anyone not of a far left Liberal mentality. This mindset reinforces what we preach about carrying a knife that is easily accessed and that you are completely familiar with. But besides being “always armed,” something else came to mind. Again quoting Ayoob, “ Understand that criminals do not fear guns. They are, after all, an armed subculture themselves. What they fear is the resolutely armed man or woman who points that gun at them. Criminals are predators, and their stock in trade is their ability to read people and body language.”

Every knife or martial arts instructor will tell you that if you get into a knife fight expect to get cut. Based on Ayoob’s article, and a conversation I had with Shiva Ki, I believe that these predators also fear the person “resolutely armed” with a knife. If you get drawn into a knife fight they can expect to get cut as well. This puts a whole new face on the efficacy of knife defense. Remember the old adage of the samurai that says, in a duel you have only a one in three chance of surviving. It does not say surviving unscathed either. Consider the title of our new book, When Two Tigers Fight, one will be killed and the other maimed. I submit that there are not a lot of muggers or rapists who are willing to face those odds or take that chance.

Ayoob’s key word is resolutely! You must be unwavering in your willingness to defend yourself or as Ayoob says, “The person who is unwilling to do so will, in the moment of truth, communicate that vacillation to the hardened criminal.” Such a communication will be your undoing. One final thought, quoting General George A. Patton on the mentality of mortal combat, “No bastard ever won a war by dying for his country. He won it by making the other poor dumb bastard die for his country.” Make your attacker pay the full price for his indiscretion.

A Worthwhile Read

Over the past 40 years I have read every book I could find on knife fighting, the good and the bad. A lot of them were not worth my time and money. Once in a while you learn a trick or two that makes it marginally worthwhile. If you page back through my blogs you’ll hear mostly about the bad books.

“The Sting of the Scorpion,” written by the late Bob Kasper, is one of the bright exceptions! His information is delivered in a clear and forthright manner. There is a natural progression to the topics and Mr Kasper avoids interjecting a lot of personal prejudices. There is no gnashing of teeth or profiling like many of today’s genre’ of knife writers.

Apparently Mr Kasper was the real deal and walked the walk. His thoughtful and realistic approach to knife manipulation is manifested in the knives he designed and had produced by Al Polkowski and Rob Patton. Mr. Kasper’s analysis of the knife fighter’s mindset is excellent. His description of footwork is very good. The only shortcoming in the book is a lack of illustrations or photos to support the text. I realize this would have probably doubled the book in size and cost. All of the basics are well covered and some more advanced techniques are also provided. I do not think that you will find a better book for the price, or maybe twice the price.

The book may be purchased for approximately $15.00 online, through Ebay, or from Paladin Press, the publisher. http://www.paladin-press.com/category/s