Certain Victory in the Spiritual Conflict Ahead

 I wrote the following in 2012 for another blogsite:

Since the election, I've noticed that as the initial finger-pointing and blaming ebbed, it gave way to hand-wringing and moaning. Then, some folks remembered God's sovereignty and adopted an attitude of somber resignation.

This past November's post-election trauma have displayed a higher intensity, but essentially remain the same. The appeal to placing one's hope in God rather than man has come AFTER the hopes placed in a candidate failed. The cycle repeats every four years.

What if, instead of making God's sovereignty our fallback position, we made it our first priority now and through the next four years? This would require us to take Christ's command to disciple the nations seriously (Matthew 28:18-20).

I really like this Gospel song, "The Kingdom is Coming" because it expresses the attitude of the Church militant going forth to conquer in the name of the King. Mary B. Slade wrote the words in 1876, and Rigdon M. McIntosh composed the melody. (CLICK HERE to hear the melody.)

From all the dark places of earth’s heathen races,
O see how the thick shadows fly!
The voice of salvation awakes every nation,
Come over and help us, they cry.

Refrain:
The kingdom is coming, O tell ye the story,
God’s banner exalted shall be!
The earth shall be full of His knowledge and glory,
As waters that cover the sea.

The sunlight is glancing o’er armies advancing
To conquer the kingdoms of sin;
Our Lord shall possess them,
His presence shall bless them,
His beauty shall enter them in.

Refrain

With shouting and singing, and jubilant ringing,
Their arms of rebellion cast down;
At last every nation the Lord of salvation
Their King and Redeemer shall crown!

Refrain

Alpha Dominance: Don't Get Sucked In

 It has been a while since I've posted here, but I ran across this excellent video that shows how the contest for alpha dominance leads directly into violence. Note how the video shows the shove as a trigger for physical violence. Sometimes, however, the shove is preceded by poking with the index finger.

Social Distance in Martial Arts

I'm taking a little break from the knife fighting series for this [tongue in cheek] public service announcement.

Protocol for avoiding contamination by the Covid-19 virus requires that you keep social distance from others. So good to see judo practitioners at L'Ecole Polynésienne de Budô  observing this protocol.

CLICK HERE

I Rethink Knife Fighting, 3

Continued from "I Rethink Knife Fighting, 2"

First Scenario: As the stranger approaches, he produces a knife and demands your wallet, watch, etc.

He means to gain  compliance through the threat of violence. "Gimme your wallet, m*****f*****, or I'll cut your ******* heart out."

Now, most self defense instructors will tell you that it's better to lose your stuff than to lose your life. Okay, true, but where do you find the written guarantee that if you hand over your stuff he will not kill you anyway? And the company of friends/family members increases the risk to you and to them.

It's a hard decision that you must make beforehand. If you opt to use your concealed knife, I will tell you where my present thinking takes me.

First, I would assume the non-aggressive defensive position, which gets my hands up in a position where I can thrust with the knife. Yes, the bag will hang from my hand, but if I practice wielding the knife this way, it will not distract me.

Then, I must do two things simultaneously. (1) I must thrust the knife into a vulnerable spot that will cause injury as I (2) pass his knife.

My objective is not to attack his knife, but merely to get past it long enough to inflict real damage on him. A distraction, such as throwing keys, coins or my wallet into his face may give me just the split second I need to move past his weapon as I stab.

I direct my knife to a place that will cause real damage (eyes or throat seem like likely targets). True injury will cause an involuntary reaction and allow me to continue my preemptive attack until an opening for escape appears.

DISCLAIMER: I've never encountered a situation like the one I just described. I have merely taken what I know about unarmed defense and applied it to a mugger armed with a knife. You must decide your own course of action, and then you must train for it until it becomes almost reflexive.

I intend to cover another scenario in the next post.

I Rethink Knife Fighting, 2

Continued from "I Rethink Knife Fighting"

Okay, now you & I have a way to carry a knife at the ready without attracting undue attention. Now, I think I should address the difference between knife fighting and fighting with a knife.

In the minds of many, a knife fight involves two guys squared off, and dueling like the 3 Musketeers, only with shorter blades. That's not how knife encounters happen in the real world.

  First of all, predators do not want a knife fight. They do not want a fight at all; they want to exert their power over easy prey. The predator wants to use the knife to kill or intimidate his victim.

If he intends to kill you, you won't see the knife until after the attack . . . if you see it at all. If he intends to intimidate you, he will brandish his blade as he demands your valuables. In this case, he may not hesitate to kill you if you do not comply, so your life is in jeopardy either way.

Your best defense against a knife is the same as your defense against any violence: avoidance. Use your inborn Distant Early Warning system. 

That said, I want to move on to the likely scenarios where you may have to use your camouflaged blade. I intend to do that in the next post. 

I Rethink Knife Fighting

I have not written a series in quite some time, but this topic will do better as a few posts of short to moderate length than one long post.

In recent years, I have shied away from the idea of training in knife fighting because:

1. If attacked with a knife, you ordinarily do not have time to draw a weapon of any kind;
2. In the rare case that you might have time to access a weapon, I prefer my .45 forl reasons.that should be obvious.

However, a recent email from Jason Hanson has caused me to rethink carrying and using a knife defensively. This would apply especially to those who find themselves in situations where legal prohibitions to firearms make it unwise to carry them.

Here is the relevant substance of the email:

Soon I’ll be heading overseas for work.
I won’t be bringing a gun or even a knife to the place I’m going.
But, I certainly want a knife on me while I’m there. (A gun is highly illegal and not worth the risk.)

So, how do I plan to get a knife?
Well, I’m not meeting someone in a back alley at 3am to get a fixed-blade knife that could’ve been used in a murder… that’s Hollywood stuff!

I’m getting a knife that I can “hide in plain sight.”
In other words, as soon as I get to this country, I’m going to the local grocery store.
I’m going to pick up a small knife used to cut fruit.

This knife will have around a 3-inch blade and I will buy one with a pink handle if there are any.
As I’m doing my shopping, I’ll also get something such as an apple, a pear and a few other food items.
I’ll carry these around in a paper or plastic bag, whatever is easiest to get my hands on.

The beauty of plastic bags is that you can have the knife in your hand and have the bag wrapped around your hand so that the knife can’t be seen.
If I were ever stopped by police, I could just let the knife in my hand go and it would fall into my bag. (The way the knife is carried, it’s already pointed down into the open bag.)

I don’t really expect any trouble where I’m going, but I do want to be prepared.
And, if I happened to get stopped by police, they’ll find a “dumb tourist American” who’s got his lunch on him with a pink-handled knife in it.

And, they won’t give it a second thought.
How do I know?

Well, let’s just say in my kitchen right now there’s a “souvenir” pink knife that’s sitting in my drawer.

So, if you’re traveling overseas at all, don’t worry if you can’t bring a gun or knife with you.
When you get there, all it takes is one stop to the local grocery store and you can usually get everything you need.

Just be creative and hide things in plain sight (email rec'd from thespy@spybriefing.com on 2/11/20)

I hope this opens up some possibilities in your mind as it did in mine. In the next post, I want to make some comments on this that involve application.

A Man Who Stood in the Gap

An article on the Concealed Nation site relates the shooting which led to the death of Elvis Garcia. He was the father of two and known as a good neighbor and a protector. Perhaps the latter reputation made him the target of a gang shooting.

The article quotes the Chicago Tribune:

Around 3:45 p.m. Sunday, when he saw some neighbors outside his home in the 10000 block of Avenue M, it only made sense that he’d strike up a conversation.

A short time later, Chicago police said, two gunmen drove up and started shooting at the three men who’d gathered in the street. The other men, ages 20 and 27, also were shot, but Rocha says home surveillance video shows the attackers kept firing at Garcia.

Though mortally wounded, he had the determined heart of a sheepdog, as the Concealed Nation article reveals:

Garcia was shot twice and fell to the ground. Still, he found the strength to draw his handgun and fire back at the attackers.

He fired one round, shooting and killing one of the two suspects.

The other suspect fled in the vehicle but was later found and arrested.

I do not know Elvis Garcia's relationship to God, whether he followed Christ or not, but his final acts stand as a challenge that I remain true to my calling as one of my Lord's sheepdogs.

You may read the entire article at the link below.

Concealed Carrier Dies After Fighting Until The End During Gun Battle In Chicago

A Timeless Knife Design

You don't doodle on the Mona Lisa to improve it, and you don't paint flames on a Rolls Royce to make it cooler. A classics is a classic, and I hope it will encourage you to see a design that works as well now as it did before the middle of last century.

The London Daily Star carries this article: Soldier stabbed ISIS terrorist to death with WW2 fighting knife in Afghan ambush

A British special forces member found himself in hand-to-hand combat with two ISIS militants. He used his Fairbairn-Sykes fighting knife to kill one, and the other took off running.

A Near Tragedy of Errors.

"A Cautionary Tale for CCW Permit Carriers" describes an actual event in which an armed citizen could well have killed a plainclothes officer by mistake or been killed by a uniformed officer who arrived on the scene. 

Some good lessons here.

Warning of a Coming Punch

The stranger approaches and engages his mark in conversation. Then, almost without warning he coldcocks his victim and begins to rifle his pockets. The key to avoiding this scenario lies in that little word almost.

Most people cannot change from conversation to attack mode without an accompanying change in tone of voice. Vladimir Vasiliev (Systema) has constructed a drill base on this.

"Follow the Gleam" -- A Song of Christendom

"Follow the Gleam" is essentially a song of Christendom. It acknowledges the King and challenges the listener to extend His rule over all the world.

My mother used to sing "Follow the Gleam", and I found great appeal in the combination of knightly ideals with a lilting melody. Although it originated in a song writing contest of the Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA), I think it reflects the character and mission of Christian manhood.

According to Kihm Winship, the inspiration for the song came from Arthurian legend. Specifically, it originated from . . .

Tennyson’s 1889 poem, “Merlin and the Gleam,” about the quest for the Holy Grail, which ends:

“O young Mariner,
Down to the haven,
Call your companions,
Launch your vessel,
And crowd your canvas,
And, ere it vanishes
Over the margin,
After it, follow it,
Follow The Gleam.” (Read, Seen Heard)

In later life, the lyricist Helen Hill Miller wanted to cut all ties with the song, presumably because she had abandoned the faith of her youth. By way of contrast, composer Sallie Douglas Hume regarded her contribution of the melody as a high point in her life. (To hear the melody, CLICK HERE)

Here are the lyrics:

To knights in the days of old,
Keeping watch on the mountain height,
Came a vision of Holy Grail
And a voice through the waiting night.

“Follow, follow, follow the Gleam,
Banners unfurled o’er all the world;
Follow, follow, follow the Gleam
Of the chalice that is the Grail.

“And we who would serve the King,
And loyally Him obey,
In the consecrate silence know,
That the challenge still holds today:

“Follow, follow, follow the Gleam,
Standards of worth o’er all the earth,
Follow, follow, follow the Gleam,
Of the Light that shall bring the dawn

Armed Volunteers Provide Church Security

"There's no scripture that shows me that we need to keep weapons out of the church. There is scripture that says we are supposed to protect the flock.” (Pastor Frank Pomeroy, quoted in article linked below)

Bless those who shoulder the responsibility.

Guns and God: Growing number of churches want armed security

Bertucci Field Watch

I can confidently say it's the best watch I've ever owned. The price has gone up $10 since I bought mine seven years ago, but I remain convinced it's a great deal.

 

I've changed the battery three times since I've owned it, and it keeps incredibly accurate time. I now need a new strap, and it looks as though they have one to fit my my oversized wrists.

Here's my original post from another blog in December 2011:


A couple of years ago, I bought a Marathon watch, because that company makes the watches for the U.S. military. Their watches overall may be as great as their hype, but mine quit, and that sent me on a search for an affordable replacement.

I looked at several possibilities, and I compared customer reviews. Finally, I settled on the Bertucci Field Watch, and ordered one last March.

I have not been disappointed.

Okay, maybe its solid titanium case means that it's overbuilt. But I wanted a rugged watch, and solid titanium is a good start.

Also, the virtually unbreakable bars that retain the strap are molded right into the case. Ergo, no more lost watches due to failure of the retaining bars. As a bonus, the one-piece strap is much easier to install and remove than the standard watch strap.

One feature I really like is that the crystal is inset, which protects it from impact. I like that because I've damaged many a watch crystal in my usual ramming around -- and that includes the high impact plastic crystal on my Marathon (which put it outside the warranty).

Also, this watch is big -- bigger than the pictures seem to indicate. That's because of the really wide wrist band. Bottom line is that it "looks right" on my big, beefy wrist.

And speaking of my beefy wrist, most wrist watches give me a sore spot where the stem abrades my skin. The Bertucci has the stem offset at 4 o'clock (instead of the more common 3o'clock), and it's slightly inset as well. Result? I can wear it, and it doesn't wear on me.

As to the watch's primary purpose, I can say that mine keeps fairly accurate time. I just reset mine to nist.gov time, and found that it had lost 3 seconds over about 2 weeks.

How about minuses?

Well, the extra-length nylon strap is thick, wide and rugged, but still a little too short for my wrist. I fixed it by punching another hole and installing a grommet which almost matches the grommets around the other holes.

Another problem with the strap is that it absorbs perspiration and does require occasional washing. This may be true of all nylon straps, but this is my first, so I can't say.

The black finish on the buckle wears, which you may consider a minus, although I think it adds to the rugged appearance of the watch.

At $99 (and free shipping), the watch is not cheap, but I think the Bertucci offers the benefits you'd find in watches that cost several times more. For me, it has been a good choice.

If you'd like to know more about the Bertucci Field Watch, I suggest you click on the link above and check out the customer reviews.

Can You Really Gouge Out an Eye?

I have never shown the actual technique for gouging an eye in the WARSKYL blog. This article by Tim Larkin of Target Focus Training does not give the actual technique, either, but discusses something that is actually more important: "What is at stake?"

“You can't gouge my eye out. Go ahead, try”

He loudly proclaimed this to the assembled gaggle of men as he squeezed the lids of one eye as the other guy tried to “gouge it” …and he was right the other guy couldn’t do it.

The guy tried to get in there and gouge his eye out. I wouldn't say he was completely committed, but he was giving it a good effort but to no avail. They stopped after a couple of seconds and then the guy just pushed him away and arrogantly dismissed him.

Now people paid attention to this guy with the “inpeneratable eye” because he is a Tier One combat decorated operator. He’s from the US Army’s Delta Force and well known in the tactical training world.

Not a bad guy, but again, misinformed.

I've heard variations of this “you can’t gouge my eye in a real fight” for years. And this is not just limited to eye gouges.

The statements usually are crafted like this; combat sport practitioners say “You can't do x”, and the Reality Self Defense gurus will say, “Oh yes, you can!”

So who's right?

Well, my impulsive answer is they're both wrong, but to be fair, here's the answer.

It depends..

Because both sides rarely ask the correct foundational question:

“What are the stakes?”

When that Delta Force operator squeezed down on his eye, shutting his eye closed, and the other guy tried to get his thumb in there to no avail … everyone watching nodded their heads and agreed eye gouging doesn’t work. But noone asked….What were the stakes?

Was anybody's life on the line?

Was anybody devoid of choice?

The answer is to all of the above is…. NO!

In a training demo of course it won’t “work”, that is unless you're a functioning sociopath who would just take out another person's eye just to prove a point. But the dangerous problem is uniformed people look at a canned scenario like that and think, “See, eye gouges don’t work”.

Then you've got the guys that I'll kindly call “Reality Self Defense Experts” who sit there and say that combat sport practitioners are all vulnerable to their “deadly techniques”, but that they can't show their “deadly techniques” in the ring...which of course is a bunch of crap.

The reason you won't ever take anybody's eye in a “fight” is because a “fight” does not have high enough threat level. Whereas in a life or death, violent struggle, numerous examples exist where eyes came out, throats were crushed, joints were ripped apart, and all sorts of horrific acts of violence occurred.

So you constantly have to ask yourself, what are you training for?

Slow Motion Training

I have previously written about the value of training in ultra slow motion. (See here) Today, I want to share some material that corroborates this. It comes from an email I got from Tim Larkin's Target Focus Training.

Speed, it's the one training method in my business that is constantly misused by combat sport/self defense trainers.

They introduce speed way too early in the process.

What's interesting is to look at the best of the best performers/athletes across the board in many different sports/performance arts, the one constant training methodology that produces the top performers in all these disciplines use speed in a very different way.

Last night I was hanging out having dinner with my good friend, Steve Sims, concierge to the world’s ultra wealthy, author of “Bluefishing” an amazing guide to connect and have amazing people/experiences in your life.

Steve told me about a recent motorcycle racing course he did with some super bike and motocross experts.

What was interesting was the instructor took them to his training center in the middle of nowhere and ran their own course on motorbikes that wouldn't go any faster than 60 miles an hour.

Why?

Now Steve likes to go at 150 mph plus at the track on his super bikes. It fascinated me why he went to these experts who put him on a motor bike that only goes 60 miles an hour.

The answer he got from this world class motocross instructor was, “If I can teach you to ride fast on a slow bike, it's going to be so much easier when you get back on your super bike.”

The wisdom in that is amazing.

Steve told me that he can't wait to get back out on the track at full speed after spending the last couple of days doing slow work on the other bike.

He said his control and his ability to see the lines and hit apexes perfectly is so much better than before the course.

He can't believe by going slow how much he learned.

Steve paid a hefty fee to attend this motocross course to learn this info but you get the same critical principles….free!

If you take advantage of my free masterclass...

Module three of my masterclass deals specifically with this phenomenon.

Not only will you hear from motocross and superbike champs, but also other top performers in the music industry, baseball, soccer, tennis, all of them use a variation of this crucial methodology.

And yet very few people in the world outside the elite performers know of it. So take advantage of my masterclass as this is just one of the modules and I unlocked so much more.

This information is critical to your self protection and it's absolutely free.

BTW, I have taken the free course, and I think it's worthwhile. I have no financial connection to TFT, and this is not a blanket endorsement of every aspect of TFT training.

Principles of Personal Defense: Review of Ch 7

Surprise 

 “The unexpected is disconcerting. A disconcerted felon is momentarily less in charge of his own thoughts than the moment just before or just after.” (p. 41) In a speech, Cooper once related that just saying, “No,” to a felon’s orders induces a moment of confusion.

Sometimes, you can create surprise by cognitive dissonance. “Did they tell you your mother called?” Any such question that creates a mental disconnect with the current situation can provide the split-second distraction you need to act.

 A predator expects a victim he grabs will try to get away. It will surprise him when you step in and let him have it.

On this subject, the Colonel says, “. . . I can point out that in every single successful defense against violent attack that I know of -- and I have studied the matter for nearly three decades -- the was totally surprised when his victim did not wilt.” (p. 42)

I would add that if you display the traits of Alertness, Decisiveness and Aggressiveness, your defensive actions will necessarily embrace the element of surprise.

Kalah Knife Defense

Some time back, a reader with the username "Jaqueline Black" (really cool, right?) recommended that I look into the art she has trained in, called Kalah. It comes from Krav Maga, and I like what I've seen. I think maybe I'll write some future posts on the system, but today I want to show you a knife defense video.

Most martial arts knife defense techniques presuppose a committed, single stab. Real knife attacks do not happen like that. With that in mind, watch Idan Abolnik teach a more realistic approach.

Principles of Personal Defense: Review of Ch 6

Ruthlessness 

When you come under assault, you can’t rely on halfway measures. Your attacker intends to injure or kill you. You must do whatever it takes to stop him.

In this chapter, Colonel Cooper states what should be obvious: if you hold back because you’re afraid of hurting your attacker, you will just make him mad. A violent predator deserves no consideration.




When I was younger, I found myself the victim of frequent beatings by bullies. Rage helped fuel my aggressiveness, and I think it was indignation that taught me ruthlessness. Anyone who would take away my own dignity deserved no consideration in my sight.

To be sure, the law forbids you to continue your counterattack once the orc no longer presents a threat. However, until the point that you can escape or until you neutralize the threat, you pity him at your own peril. (I have written about the ethics of ruthlessness HERE.)

Principles of Personal Defense: Review of Ch 5

Coolness 

As you have seen, Jeff Cooper bases the aggressiveness of self defense on indignation, anger and rage. But he does not mean loss of control. He alludes to Kipling’s poem If.

    “If you can keep your head, when all about you are losing theirs
        And blaming it on you . . . ."

Coolness allows precision under attack. He illustrates with a story of a former student who faced a couple of killers armed with a shotgun and an automatic weapon. Precise shots from his handgun brought both of them down.

Cooper calls coolness “a matter of will" (p. 31), and he advocates playing team sports like football to develop it. However, he maintains hunting medium and big game as the best means to cultivate coolness.

Kelly McCann calls coolness “rage with reason”. (CLICK HERE to see him discuss it) For my comments on his video, CLICK HERE.

To me, remaining cool under attack requires that you control adrenaline stress. I have written about that HERE.

Principles of Personal Defense: Review of Chapter 4

Speed 

On this topic, Cooper quotes Napoleon, who said, “I may lose this battle, but I will never lose a minute.” The Colonel then makes the point that in self defense, one cannot afford to lose a second.
At one point, he mentions reaction time. If you move first, you have the advantage that action time beats reaction time. (For a video explaining this, CLICK HERE) In the movie, The Magnificent Seven, Chris uses this principle to discourage Chico, a young gunfighter. (To see, CLICK HERE)

Therefore, speed goes hand in hand with decisiveness. Once you have determined an attacker’s intentions, your quick action will put him on the defensive. After that, you must repeatedly follow up with further actions until you neutralize the threat.

Comparing it to a sports game, Cooper says that if you’re off-sides, there will be no referee to call it. He says, “The perfect fight is one that is over before the loser really understands what is going on.” (p. 26)