I don’t have the all the answers. That is the first thing everyone who does not want to be labeled a fraud should honestly admit. No one has all the answers to all of life’s questions. But if a person is to receive payment for services rendered that person should know if the information and services they are providing is true, accurate and of value to the buyer. Wouldn’t you agree? To take another person’s time and money in exchange for services rendered means that the receiver of the funds must demonstrate to the client that the information is factually true and accurate as to the best of his ability to know…

Now this leads into a very gray area… If everyone in a certain society is doing something in a similar way, and if that way does not perform as presented to the buyer, is the information contained in the presented way fraudulent? This is very worth your taking the time to think about. I hope you do think about the above questions because within your answers lies a critical key to your success as a trainer of American Kenpo, in my opinion..

“Presented to the buyer” as I intend it here means that the seller or service provider is directing the thought processes of the buyer… The buyer is paying to be taught and the seller is providing the information therefore the buyer must trust the seller. Because the buyer is trusting the seller and the seller is presenting the information to the buyer – the buyer’s thought processes are being controlled by the seller. This means as the seller presents the information the buyer will understand it and accept it as truth. So the way in which the information is presented to the buyer plays a big role with whether or not the information is truthful. (I’ll give some examples of this a little later in this blog)

So for our purposes the question becomes; if the service provider (American Kenpo instructor) presents information to the buyer (Student) and the seller has not tested the information for himself to attain the validity of the information but he repeats the information as it is commonly taught within the American Kenpo community is he guilty of fraudulent behavior?

“…Tested the information for himself…” What am I saying here? Of course you tested the information you were given during your learning of your American Kenpo, we all do, we run through our material all the time. I know my stuff works, how about you? Do you know your stuff works? Really? So if I came at your head with a real stick at a normal speed using all the force I can build up and you were to perform Obstructing the Storm you could pull this off? Right? I’ll bet the truth is more along the lines of you would avoid doing “that one” because you know “that particular technique” would not work in a real fight. Question to consider: Do you teach the technique at high speed using soft rubber or foam sticks? Do you come at the student with no stick or if using a stick, do you move real slow? Or do you – just make sure the student knows the technique for their belt testing… I think the real question I am asking is this; Have you ever tested the information contained in Obstructing the Storm for yourself and for real? Have you allowed someone to come at your head with a real stick at real speed so you can test the validity of this technique? If not; are you guilty of fraudulent behavior… OR are you a fraud?

Just what is the technique Obstructing the Storm teaching anyway? So many of our techniques are really training sessions in disguise – is this just another training session? If so, have you listed out the lessons (principles) it is supposed to teach and have you made sure (by going through all the “what-ifs” you can think of) that the student has learned everything you can teach him from this technique? Including that it will work in limited circumstances? And have you shown your student when it will work and when it will not work and have you shown the student the timing necessary for the technique to work? If your student takes this technique to heart and believes it will work as outlined, that is, as commonly taught in the American Kenpo community, and your student tries to use it on the street and gets his head caved in… Will you pay his medical and or funeral bills because your fraudulent teaching caused him to possibly be injured or killed?

Who’s responsibility is it to check on these things anyway…?

In my opinion; You (the buyer) are responsible to check up on these things. When you bought your training from another individual. You were and are the buyer of your training and therefore you are the ultimate decider of what is truth and what is fraud. If you do not ask the right questions to uncover the truth about what you bought and are selling then you are guilty of retransmitting false information to your buyers of your information. If you are not careful you will be labeled as a fraud… But why should you be labeled a fraud … all you did was repeat what you heard or what you think you were told….

Are you a fraud and do you know you are not?

Take my advice, don’t be a fraud. Just because you are a good person, do not believe for a moment that you really know what American Kenpo is all about just because you have a black belt. Test what you think you know. Be creative, think, discover and uncover the truths about our system. Yes, it has strengths and weaknesses. And believe me when I tell you the answers to our weaknesses are also found within our system. Do not accept the techniques as they are written, do not just do your forms the way they are written, stop and think, what are your techniques and forms really trying to show you. Certainly not the obvious, this I can assure you.

Above all else, you owe it to yourself to get with real trainers of American Kenpo. Do not accept the fraudulent trainers just because they are out there with their schools trying to separate you from your money. Thousands of people have graduated from American Kenpo schools and other martial art schools who have trained themselves or have been trained by both the ignorant and the real out and out martial art frauds. There are now a lot of people wearing black belts, with some of the belts having lots of red stripes or bricks attached to them, who are really nothing more than fakes in the truest sense of the word. These uniforms and fancy store fronts do not make them great although they may look professional. Do not sign up for lessons just because the school is in your home town. 90 percent of these people don’t know how to use American Kenpo in a fight, they only know how to teach it in a classroom, and many cannot even do that right.

Most of the fakes, when required to actually fight will revert back to street fighting techniques. Why? It is because they are frauds. If you really want to know if the man your training with is not a fraud, fight him. If he does just about as well as you do… and your untrained… get away from him. Why take lessons from a person who is no better at self-defending then you already are? Perhaps he should hire you to teach him…

Remember real trainers of American Kenpo exist, but you’re not going to find them on just any street corner… You have got to do the research to find them. You may have to travel to be with them. And you may have to pay the higher prices for their (your) training. But this is the price of admission if you want to be a great fighter and possibly a great trainer. To be a great fighter/trainer you must train with the great trainers of our American Kenpo society.

This issue, the ability to defend yourself, brings up some very interesting questions: Do you have the right to protect yourself in any way you feel is necessary? Are you protected against assault charges, criminal or civil lawsuits brought against you by someone you injured while defending yourself? If you are threatened with bodily harm, are you justified in taking any action necessary to protect yourself, your significant other or your personal possessions?

Everybody who trains in the martial arts should be aware of court rulings and certain laws that might affect their actions. There are not many simple, clear-cut rights as you may think. Depending on the state or country that you reside, using your martial arts skills may lead to an arrest, or a costly and complicated lawsuit. There are legal consequences in defending yourself. Remember this; in a court of law, it is assumed that you are aware of the legal limits of your actions. There’s a common legal saying, “Ignorance of the Law is No Defense.”

As a martial artist, if you ever have to defend yourself using physical force, and in doing so it lands you in police custody, you should immediately seek the aid of an attorney. When a martial artist, especially a Black Belt is accused of excessive force in self-defense, the standard is usually higher than that of a novice practitioner, a non- martial artist, and a reasonable or prudent person. Many courts believe that it is only fair that one with unique skills is held to a unique standard.

Many martial artists go through years of extensive training, some make it into the black belt ranks, but few spend the time learning the assault laws that could ultimately affect them, or for that matter, the type of force that they are allowed by law to use on an attacker.

Throughout North America, most states allow its law-abiding citizens only one type of force to be used in self-defense. That type of force is one, which is necessary to fend off an attack and prevent injury. Universally, there are three types of force used: reasonable, excessive and deadly.

Reasonable force is that force which a reasonable person thinks is necessary under the circumstances, to stop the threat and prevent further injury. Example: An assailant confronts you and advances forward. He then directs a punch towards your head. You react by dodging his blow, causing him to miss the intended target. You then follow up with a kick to his abdomen. He immediately falls to the ground and ceases his threatening actions. At this point no further physical action is required of you, other than making an effort to notify the proper authorities and reporting the incident.

Excessive force is using any force above and beyond the force required to stop the threat. Example: An assailant attacks you, and you are able to block, and counter with a reasonable amount of force. The attacker falls to the ground and is temporarily immobilized. At this point, you kick or punch him several more times.

Deadly force is any force used with the purpose of causing, or knowing it can cause a substantial risk of causing death or serious bodily harm. Example: Taking both the Reasonable and Excessive use of force into consideration, basically any technique used after reasonable force without justification, may be deemed deadly depending on the severity of the injury you caused.

For starters, self-defense is not a right, but a privilege – a privilege that can be lost in a variety of ways. The privilege of self-defense and the use of force towards another person are justifiable only when a person reasonably believes that such force is immediately necessary for the purpose of protecting himself/herself against the use of unlawful force by such other person on the present location. It is not a defense to use self-defense when committed in a fight or scuffle entered into by mutual consent. A person in court claiming the privilege of self-defense must also establish that his or her belief in the necessity to use physical force was sound thinking, with common sense and not excessive.

One who provokes or initiates an assault cannot escape criminal liability by invoking self-defense as a defense to a prosecution arising from injury done to another. The right to self-defense is only available to the one who is free from fault. A good point to remember is, while you are defending yourself and the assailant’s threat stops, your use of force must also stop. If you continue to use force after the assailant’s immediate threat has stopped, then you may be criminally and or civilly held liable for any injury the assailant sustained after the threat was no longer present.

As martial arts instructors, regardless of style, this basic standard of martial arts and the law applies to all. Therefore, we must reevaluate our own self-defense techniques that are taught in our training dojos. Is it necessary to teach our students to go above and beyond the force that it is required by law? From personal experience, I have witness at demonstrations, seminars, and at tournaments, individuals performing their self-defense techniques. And in almost all occasions, the defender took extra measures to continue to kick or punch, and even conduct bone breaks to the attacker even after the attacker was completely immobilized. Is this what we want to teach our students, or portray to the public that martial artists are ruthless? A vast majority of the public already perceives martial artists, especially black belts as walking deadly weapons. It is imperative to change that view. It is up to us as instructors to change that perception. The public must be taught that we can restrain ourselves and only take the necessary actions to stop our assailants. Ultimately, a jury of your peers will judge you in a court of law. Wouldn’t you want them on your side?

Let’s rethink for a moment and ask ourselves, how can we continue tradition and still comply with the 21st Century laws. Today’s martial art instructors must take a responsible approach to teaching self-defense techniques, to include choosing the right words to describe the technique’s purpose. Don’t forget that you as the instructor may also be held accountable for your student’s actions, especially if what you’re teaching is not within the limits of the law. Let’s face it, we live in a litigate society and the laws commonly govern everything we do. For those of you who remember my McDonalds incident back in 2005. How is it that a guy attempts to rob the place, puts a gun to my head, threatening to kill me if I didn’t comply and instead I  drop him within a blink of an eye, hitting him only once. He sustains a broken arm, collar bone, wrist as well as suffering a back and neck injury…yet I was the one who got into trouble??? Is our Kenpo training…even as simple as a parry/block still considered deadly force?? Kenpo is powerful, yes…but is it Kenpo itself that we study a deadly force, or are we deadly weapons who have been trained to use deadly force even if we use what we THINK is minimal amount of force when in reality, in the peoples eyes(third point of view) are STILL even considered deadly? You decide!

To execute the American Kenpo system correctly the student must understand why SGMA Parker created it and how did he design it. Sometimes it is helpful to look at what was left out of the system to see more clearly the purpose of our art form and to better understand the information that was put in the system. For example; Why did he not include techniques that enabled us to apply submission holds? Why did he not show us how to apply joint locks to force our opponent to tap out? Why do we focus so much of our studies to foot work and the ability to move about the fight venue? Why did he want us to know how to break locks and holds applied to us, such as full nelsons, half nelsons, and wrist grabs but did not make techniques available to us to use these same tools against our attackers? Why do we have so many defensive techniques against the stick or club? Why do the few ground techniques that we have show us using our kenpo strikes to enable us to get up off the ground quickly instead of rolling around with him and eventually mounting our opponent and pounding him or her into submission? Why are we taught to be so violent to our attackers and to get the attack over with as quickly as possible? Do we do these things just because it is a good idea and we can? Or, did Mr. Parker personally select to leave out these particular pieces of information from his American Kenpo system because he felt the information he chose to include within the American Kenpo system would best enable us to fight ourselves out of a chaotic gang style situation he envisioned…

What we – as members of his martial art system – need to learn and practice is how to use our 8 methods for modifying techniques during the formulation phase of our training and to understand that these methods along with our proper posture principles and a knowledge of grafting skills give us license to change our personal American Kenpo in any way we wish to change it. Therefore, you as an individual, will want to learn how to modify your own American Kenpo techniques while under attack. In fact, YOU are suppose to change YOUR techniques as the defensive situation YOU are in warrants you to do so. This is the formulation skill set we are all wanting to achieve, to be able to modify the American Kenpo system at will and on the fly during a defensive situation.

That is what this article is about – how wrong it is for anyone to drop or modify Ed Parker’s Basics, techniques or the Forms he laid out in his American Kenpo system and to teach their students a version of American Kenpo that is different from what Mr. Parker was teaching. American Kenpo is Mr. Parker’s art even if he is no longer living and cannot force anyone to comply with his programming. If you mislead your student deliberately in this way you are adding to the degradation of Mr. Parker’s art. Don’t tell me you are a Parker loyalist, because if you deliberately change his system I know you are not. I would even go so far as to call you a fraud. Because of your actions your student will busy themselves learning the martial art information YOU have decided they must learn and will not take the necessary time to fully comprehend the information Mr. Parker – the founder of our art form – wanted them to learn. Perhaps you are as good in your martial art as Mr. Parker was in his… But, maybe you’re not. Do you really want to teach your students your way calling the art American Kenpo? Or would you prefer teaching them Mr. Parker’s way? Or… Maybe you are a fraud and you want it that way? How else are you going to make a living except by defrauding people who really want to learn American Kenpo…

Honesty requires you to tell your student that you are not teaching them American Kenpo if you change the system from what was recorded in volume 5 of Mr. Parker’s Infinite Insights into Kenpo book series. In my opinion, you cannot even use the name American Kenpo in any of your literature or advertising in full or in part if you knowingly and deliberately modified his system. I maintain that if you really understood and practiced Mr. Parker’s art as he intended and as is laid out within his historical records, you would be too busy learning how to read motion and choosing the correct counter measures that you would not have time to fool around with modifying his system or adding in the fighting skills of other martial arts.

Remember too that our modern goal in American Kenpo is to take our students up to black belt rank, 3rd degree black maximum. Why just 3rd degree? Because that is all the farther Mr. Parker wrote out his manuals at the time of his death in 1990. At the rank of black the student is said to have had the core material of American Kenpo taught to them and is now ready to learn how to really use the system as Mr. Parker envisioned it to be used. This means the student is not really a fully functioning black belt in the traditional sense of the word. In today’s modern world once the student achieves his black belt rank in a full service American Kenpo studio all that he can say is “I know the programming of American Kenpo” he or she has not been shown fully how to make it work out in the street. Unfortunately, many students believe that a modern black belt is the same as a traditional black belt. This is not the truth. A traditional black belt was a fully trained fighter. Truth is, modern black belt holders, unless they are trained by an expert instructor and have put in a lot of extra hours of mat time are not able to use American Kenpo efficiently. They know just enough self defense information to get themselves out of basic self defense situations. They are not ready to handle themselves in the type of gang attacks as was envisioned by SGMA Parker. In the traditional sense – having a black belt in American Kenpo meant that you were street ready, gang ready, Parker ready.

Traditionally, American Kenpo only had three belt colors; white, brown and black without degrees above black rank. During that time in our history Mr. Parker’s goal was to make you a fully vested fighter by the time you reached black because there was no higher rank available. Later, when the system was modernized, the different colored belts came into being and the goal for black belt rank was modified. If you as a student train with any modern American Kenpo instructor you are being trained to understand the programming of American Kenpo by the time you reach black belt status so that you can then begin your training on how to actually use the system as you go up through your 1st, 2nd, and 3rd black belt ranks.

Certainly, a black belt rank student of today cannot have within our modern American Kenpo programming enough knowledge to change the system. Notice that the only people who attempt to modify the American Kenpo system are those that went through the system under SGMA Parker directly and which have started up their own martial art organizations. These people usually state in their business names and it is understood, that student who graduate within their systems are learning the art as the Master of the organization is teaching it and not necessarily as Mr. Parker would have taught it.

It is reported that Professor Chow, Mr. Parker’s instructor, had a motto for his school that said; (paraphrased) “We in Kenpo Karate use what works and disregard what doesn’t. “ Although at first glance this motto would seem to imply that you should disregard anything shown in Mr. Parker’s system if it doesn’t work for you. But what this says to me is that we must first totally understand the complete system, before we can disregard any part of it.

Everyone, it seems to me, is in such a rush to come to judgment these days. We all want to learn what we want and then discard that which we do not understand. And then sometimes… we want to replace the discarded information with information that we also do not understand how to use. So before we really get good in one area of study we are off in some other direction learning something else. Remember all ideas are simply that; ideas. The only way an idea becomes of any value the idea must be applied and proven usable. Mr. Parker already assembled a group of ideas that have proven themselves to him as being usable. He assembled those ideas into a self defense art he called American Kenpo. Therefore any idea, or what we can easily call a basic in this text, that is discarded by you is tinkering with the flow of ideas Mr. Parker had developed. If you believe in Mr. Chows motto and start disregarding that which does not work for you… Ask yourself; Why does it not work? Is the idea really a bad one? Did Mr. Parker make a mistake, Or, do you simply not see or understand how the idea is to be used?

I will give you an example of how this works. For you to understand this example you will need to know two techniques; Dance of Death and Locking Horns. If you do not understand how these techniques are performed you may skip ahead a couple of paragraphs.

Most people I talk to do not understand that these two techniques can be related. Some instructors will tell you that Locking Horns is nothing more than a Category of Completion technique. Yet I will tell you that if you execute Dance of Death poorly and let your left blocking arm drop too soon to pick up the opponents leg it is possible for your opponent to grab you in a reverse choke from above. If you insist on throwing your opponent to the ground as Dance of Death is designed to do you may cause your own neck to be broken… It would be better for you to stop your forward motion and explode upward with Locking Horns then to continue with Dance of Death.

Now ask yourself, what if you do not practice Locking Horns and further let us say you do not believe Locking Horns has any value. What technique would you use to escape from this rear choke hold? What if your instructor took Locking Horns out of the curriculum because he or she did not believe it had value, is that fair to you? Now that you see the two techniques side by side, can you see which movements of each technique are matched and which are different? Do you see where the momentum of Dance of Death does not need to change even as the opponent applies the choke and you switch over to Locking Horns?

The example above is using two techniques in comparison. But I could just as easily used two basics or even compared two Forms and gave you the same results. The above questions can be asked and answers can be found within the complete American Kenpo system but only if the system is not modified and not taught differently than what SGMA Parker intended. If an instructor takes things out of the system the system becomes broken. If the instructor adds something into the system that was not designed to be in it then the system becomes bastardized.

Think of these things. The next time you say that you are a loyal follower of Ed Parker’s American Kenpo and yet you know in your heart that you learned a modified version of the art and once having learned of the modification you still insist on claiming your belt rank… Or once you know your instructor did not teach you the entire American Kenpo system and you did not go back and putting in the missing pieces with fresh training with a new more qualified trainer and you still want the next belt rank up… How loyal are you? What is your motivation and are you really willing to deceive yourself in order to gain rank that is not qualified?

The above example and questions practically demands that if you are a card-carrying member and an instructor of the American Kenpo system that you first understand completely what Mr. Parker was teaching before you can disregard what doesn’t work. If you did not receive the entire programming and you still allowed yourself to claim a false rank then shame on you. Mr. Parker’s art form is based on empty handed fighting skills to be used one on one with a lone attacker or against gang type violence. Therefore it is reasonable to me that students learn this most basic core information to the maximum before they start mixing in other martial art skills. You will only be half of what you can be if you insist on the illusion that you are a qualified American Kenpo trainer of men and yet train using only part of the Parker system…

If we learn to read the motion of our opponent’s offense properly and do not misread and try to utilize a technique that is not suitable to the situation you are in you should see that the American Kenpo system is perfect as a training program for new fighters as it stands for our situational premise. Trial and error within the school setting allows a new student to apply the empty handed fighting they are learning and to perfect which defensive technique(s) goes with which type of attack and which techniques can be modified (What-ifs) or used in a completely different way (formulation) then what was laid out in the written text of our training manuals (the ideal way).

If the student wants ground fighting, stick fighting, knife fighting, grappling, or other mixed martial art skills he or she is free to join another art-form. Or start a new system of their own but no matter where they start their training they must have a thorough understanding of empty handed fight skills. These skills are taught perfectly within the American Kenpo system. SGMA Parker built a training system to teach them these base empty hand fighting skills. It’s called American Kenpo and I suggest you start your martial art training with the best system in existence; American Kenpo and then add to this system the rest of your martial art knowledge.

Falling down, tripping, slipping, being pushed, being swept are all real possibilities. No art can take everything into consideration. Should a technique become broken because of something that is an act of God or because the opponent is simply better then you are …and the kenpoist is to end up on the ground, it is my belief (and I think our required techniques teach us this same principle), that we are to get up off the ground as quickly as we are able and to continue the fight as we have been shown while standing upright. Nowhere in our curriculum do I see any attempt By SGMA Parker to have us remain on the ground. There are no techniques that teach us what to do on the ground within our system except those techniques that teach us how to defend from the ground as we recover our footing and stand back up.

Remaining on the ground and fighting from the ground no matter how violently is a type of wrestling and that is not what SGMA Parker had in mind when designing a fight system for gang defense. Witness that Mr. Parker was belted in Jujitsu. Ground fighting was once a part of Kenpo Karate history. (As opposed to American Kenpo. Two different systems) and SGMA Parker was knowledgeable about these skill sets. Yet, he shows us how to defeat the locks, hugs and holds within his art-form but does not encourage us to use the same methods within the execution of HIS techniques Was this a mere over site on Mr. Parker’s part? I think not.

As an aside, I see only one technique within the Ed Parker American Kenpo system whereas the kenpoist applies a lock, hug or hold and that technique is the Sleeper. The Sleeper when properly executed becomes a neck break and therefore is totally suitable in our art of gang fighting. Once a persons neck is broken they are out of the fight. In my opinion the locks, hugs and holds applied by our opponent to which our defensive techniques defeat are similar in intent to wrestling while standing up. Question; So if we were to lock up our opponent in a standing situation… how long would the kenpoist need to hold onto his opponent? Till help arrives? How would that work in a gang fight? See – SGMA Parker did not make a mistake by leaving out locks, hugs and holds from American Kenpo. No. He knew about them because he taught us how to break them. He made a conscious decision not to have his students get involved with anything other than striking or contact manipulations (which generally end up with more striking). Down, down, down to the ground with the opponent. That is traditional American Kenpo. If we lock the opponent and wait for help to arrive we will be on the ground or jammed up into a corner of some wall intersection. This is NOT where an American Kenpoist wants to be.

Still having difficulty with the concept? Think of the square in Egypt during that protest against their leader… Now that was the type of gang situation Mr. Parker hand in mind. In my opinion.

All kenpoist should learn some ground fighting skills. Just don’t think of your ground fighting skills as being a part of American Kenpo when you use those skills. As mentioned previously American Kenpo is not designed for ground fighting. It is designed for STREET fighting and as such going to the ground with one opponent is not a safe thing to do in a gang fight.

The name; American Kenpo belongs to Ed Parker Sr.. With the use of this name in a discussion the martial artist is connecting his thoughts to Ed Parker’s American Kenpo system for other people to comment on. If the writer is writing about some other martial art then the writer must use a different name so that all who are reading understand the topic of discussion has changed. I’m not being picky when I say this. I feel this is important as confusion is the result of mixing martial art styles into a single discussion. Just because a person writes about Ed Parker does not mean that everything said under the Ed Parker banner fits together well. Mr. Parker’s name is connected to many different subjects and so we must be clear as to which topic is under discussion.

For an example; Kenpo Karate is actually the name of the style of martial art that belonged to William K. S. Chow who was Mr. Parker’s instructor. Mr. Parker also used the name Kenpo when talking or writing about his own personal art. This is completely correct as Mr. Parker was trained by Mr. Chow and therefore it is logical and reasonable that Mr. Parker call himself a kenpoist. He was in fact a kenpoist under Professor Chow. Yet today many people simply write about Kenpo Karate as if they are talking about American Kenpo. These are two distinctly different things. Newer students must be taught this and if they are not taught this then they may become upset when discussions about American Kenpo verses Kenpo Karate come up and they get angry for no proper reason. Ground fighting for example was a part of Kenpo Karate and going even farther back in time was a part of Kempo Jiu Jitsu system taught by Mitose. But it was deliberately taken out of American Kenpo as I was showing in my early comments. So some student s will argue that which is in the Tracy’s Kenpo Karate system (off-shoot of Mr. Chow’s Kenpo Karate) against that which is actually Mr. Chows Kenpo Karate against that which belonged to Mr. Mitose verses the art forms Mr. Parker created called Chinese Kenpo Karate and American Kenpo Karate.

History shows that the name Kenpo Karate and system of Kenpo Karate did not belong to Mr. Parker but rather to Professor Chow so the changes Mr. Parker was making to Mr. Chow’s art form back in the early 60s were being made to a system that was not his to change. Confusion was created in his own school out in Pasadena, California because some of Mr. Parker’s students were following Parker but others wanted to continue Mr. Chow’s way. These issues caused the split between the Tracy’s and Parker and between Chow and Parker. Mr. Chow actually went on to change the name of his art once Ed Parker began getting popular on the American mainland back in the mid 60′s. Bringing this topic forward in time I see these old confusions being brought in today as many people connect the name Kenpo Karate to American Kenpo just because Mr. Parker’s name is also in the discussion. These are two different names which refer to two different arts and so the distinction must be made if friendships and personal development is to go forth and health discussions are to continue.

When Mr Parker started his first school in Pasadena in late 1956 he called his school Ed Parker’s Kenpo Karate. His first book was called Kenpo Karate by Ed Parker. Mr Parker then sold or gave up that business to the Tracy brother along with the national organization that he had formed. He then called his new martial art Chinese Kenpo. After that he got rid of Chinese Kenpo title and went to calling his new understanding of Kenpo as being Kenpo Kenpo as well as several other name changes before he settled on American Kenpo. Which I might add; many believe that the name American Kenpo was inspired by non other then Elvis Presley who was a sometimes student of Ed Parker as well as his employer…

Without going into a lot of history. Let me cut to the purpose of this article. I am writing about Ed Parker’s martial art called American Kenpo and as to whether it should be changed. I am specifically stating how Mr. Parker designed it to be a stand up fighting system against gangs, street fights and violence and that I believe that upon Mr. Parker’s death the system called American Kenpo must not now be changed to ground fighting as is being done within some organizations. I am simply stating that what these organizations are teaching is not, in my opinion, American Kenpo.

The American Kenpo training system is taught in stages with each stage giving the student ample time learn and to practice the basics of fighting the American Kenpo (Parker) way.  As the student becomes more proficient with his new fight knowledge he is advanced through the system until one day he or she is awarded a black belt.  Each student is also encouraged to learn the American Kenpo system well enough to teach it to his own students and is also taught how to adjust American Kenpo system to fit themselves.   After completing the coursework you will come to understand that Mr. Parker wanted you to fight anyway you want to fight.  He expected you to customize the system to fit your particular way just as he expected every Kenpoist to adjust the system.   He wanted American Kenpo to teach you the Principles and General Rules of fighting.   He never wanted you to try and fit yourself into some vision called the American Kenpo way… instead you are to adjust American Kenpo information to fit you.  American Kenpo is a teaching system, that is all.  American Kenpo is not a style of fighting.  SGMA Parker wanted his system of self defense training to live on long after he had passed away.  He designed the system to fit the needs of and to serve people he would never meet.

In short;   Mr. Parker designed American Kenpo to serve you.

A) Work to keep you alive against how you are likely to be attacked by a knife in your homeland and B) If it does work, not put you in prison for murder or manslaughter

While B is important, it only becomes an issue if you survive A. Unfortunately, based on a lot of what I have been seeing taught with my own eyes or encountered while working with the students of these self-proclaimed “knife experts” getting past A is going to be a whole lot tougher than you think. Quite simply, most knife assaults are assassination attempts…how they occur is significantly different than how one “knife fights.” While I express my opinions on other knife instructors elsewhere, what this article is for is to help you avoid some of the more common pitfalls with what is being taught out there.

Oh yeah, one more thing, always remember…it’s your ass on the line out there, so don’t let *anybody* tell you that you don’t have the right to ask about these things or think for yourself.  

Lie #1 You’re going to have time to draw your own weapon
In all the times I have been assaulted with knives, only once was I able to pull my own weapon. And I didn’t carry a folder, I carried a sheath knife that I had repeatedly practiced speed drawing. I could, in a crisis, draw and deploy a knife in just over one second. This is not idle boasting, I’ve demonstrated it in a few of my classes. And yet, despite this incredible rate of speed, when attacked I didn’t have time to draw my knife except for the one time that I leaped wildly backwards to gain space.

That’s because by the time I realized there was a knife involved, I was already being attacked and NO, this has NOTHING to do with lack of environmental awareness so get that out of your head.

Most knife “fighting” training is predicated on the assumption that you have somehow managed to get a blade in your hand. Quite honestly, if you are attacked by either a young punk, a total incompetent or someone who just whips out the knife in order to get you to back off then there is a chance that you might have time to draw your own weapon.

However, if you are dealing with anyone with any experience, street savvy or cunning, you will not be able to draw your own blade when you are attacked. Against such a person, there is just not enough time. He won’t show his weapon before he attacks. That’s because those who are foolish enough to show off weapons in places where weapons are common don’t live long themselves.

And yet that is exactly what you are expecting him to do so you can draw your own knife and defeat him.

Lie #2 It’s going to be a knife “fight”
The problem with what is being taught and promoted as knife work is ” dueling.” By this, I mean standing there toe-to-toe, with the same weapons and trying to kill each other like civilized gentlemen.

Not to be the bearer of bad tidings, but the reason someone uses a weapon on another human being is to stack the deck in their favor. People don’t use weapons to fight, they use weapons to win. The absolute last thing any attacker wants to do is to fight you with equal weapons. If he was looking for a fight he wouldn’t have attacked you with a weapon in the first place. And if he knows you have a knife, he is going to attack you with a bigger and better weapon to keep you from winning.

Personally one of the things that I really respect the Dog Brothers for doing is experimenting with mismatched weapon contests. *That* is a reality. You pull a knife and he gets a club. You pull a club and he pulls a gun. There is no fighting involved, you use the superior weapon to disable your opponent. And you do it before he does it to you.

As far as your attacker is concerned this is not a fight, it is an assassination. He is not going to want to stand there with you and hack it out. Unfortunately, this is exactly the fantasy that many so-called knife fighting instructors promote. The absolute last thing you want to do is to try to “fight.”

Another reason that you need to chase the idea of “knife fighting” out of your head is that in many states there is this attitude that “consensual fights” are best resolved by throwing both of the morons who participated in jail. It is true, you have the right to defend yourself against attack, but if you decide to fight someone, it isn’t self-defense anymore, and if you use a lethal weapon on someone in a “knife fight” that you could have avoided, then you have yourself a gang of problems ahead of you. That is unless you like being gang raped in a prison shower.

Lie #3 “But what if I’m cornered?”
Common sense tells us that knife fighting is dangerous. And yet, like a dog circling a bear’s den — where a smarter part of it knows not to wake that sleeping bear, yet another, more instinctive part is urging it on — many people who train in knife fight have the same torn desires. One of the biggest issues goading these people is Do they have what it takes?”.

Unlike dogs, however, human beings have the ability for self-deception and rationalization. And one of the ways that we human fool ourselves is that we fantasize about situations where we would be able to give ourselves permission to find out if we “have it.” Such people strongly resist the idea that knife fighting is a bad place to go. It is literally as though they are seeking to find an excuse.

One of the strongest indicator of this fantasy mindset is the reaction when they are told to flee instead of fighting with a knife, literally the next words out of their mouths will be “But what if I am cornered and can’t run?” There are many such similar excuses that they can use and they all start with the word but: “but what if I am with old people or children and can’t run?”, “But what if I am out of shape (or infirm) and can’t run?” In all cases, of the millions of possible options available they always seem to focus on the one that requires them to engage in a knife fight.

The truth is, it is incredibly difficult to “corner” someone who is determined to leave. Basically because he will use your face as traction or squirt through the smallest of holes. However, if the person’s desire not to engage in physical violence is stronger than his desire to leave, it is very easy to corner someone. If you ask any experienced LEO, corrections officer or mental ward orderly which they would rather face, a person who wants to fight them, or someone who will climb over them to escape, to a man they will tell you the former. They know the latter will hurt them more and be harder to defeat. That’s because that person is fully committed to a course of action. Whereas a person who has allowed themselves to be “cornered” will still be of a divided heart and therefore not able to fight at full capacity. And that is exactly what it will take in order to survive such a “no win” situation that they have put themselves into.

That is the true danger of this kind of thinking. Because part of you does want to know if you have what it takes and “can do it,” you can unconsciously trick yourself into not taking appropriate precautions and ignoring danger signals. Your pride and ego will blind you about what you are doing until it is too late. Once there however, your life — if it continues past that moment — will be utterly destroyed.

Don’t fantasize about being in a situation where you have to use your knife fighting skills, because you can end up tricking yourself into just such a situation by blinding yourself to possible escape routes.

Lie #4 He’s going to attack you a certain way
I have a demonstration that I do during knife seminars. I find the highest ranking Filipino martial arts player present and I tell him to check and pass my attack. I then proceed to do a well balanced, fast, cautious attack. This is a legitimate and fast attack, and they tend to block it. I then tell them to block the another attack – and aiming for the same target – I do a prison yard rush on them. To this day I have gutted every one of them.

The reason? They are entirely different knife attacks.

Many years ago Don Pentacost wrote a book called Put ‘em down, take ‘em out: Knife fighting from Folsom Prison. In it Don pointed out how actual knife homicides occurred in maximum security prisons. Putting it mildly, he outraged countless martial artists by what he said in that book, who to this day still disparage the book. Except for one thing, that prison yard rush is exactly what I use to gut so many of them. It is not a sophisticated attack, but it is a very common way to attack someone with a knife in the USA.

The FMA are predicated on one basic assumption, that you will be fighting a trained knifer. The problem with that assumption is that not everyone attacks the way that someone trained in the FMA will attack you. This is problematic because the counters of the FMA are designed to work against how people with FMA training will attack you. Against these kinds of attacks, the counters work great.

The bottom line is, in the Western culture, someone who is attacking you with a knife is attempting to murder you. They are not going to be hanging back cautiously in fear of your weapon and your fighting skill. Instead they will usually attempt to overwhelm you and quickly kill you by whatever means necessary. Such an attack is totally different than the well balanced and liquid attacks of the FMA. And that is totally different than how someone from Russia will attack you with a knife. And that is different than how someone from Lithuania is going to attack with a knife. And that is different than how someone from Brazil will attack you with a knife. And that is different than how someone from South Africa is going to attack you with a knife. And that is totally different than how someone from China will attack you with a knife.

I know that those who are selling knife fighting training and others who haven’t seen these other systems will deny it, but: Just because you know how to handle one, doesn’t mean you know how to handle the others. Each are different, and each are equally lethal. And those differences CAN kill you.

Lie# 5 And then he is going to passively stand there while you carve him
Just like in the magazines and in the training drills.

What few people realize is that a wild defensive flailing while holding a knife, is just as dangerous and damaging as an intentional strike. In fact, it is often more dangerous because of its unpredictable nature. If you are indeed tearing someone up, his defensive moves can hurt you badly — especially if he is flailing around trying to stop your next attack.

I have seen a serious over emphasis on defense before closing and a serious lack of emphasis after closing — either one will get you mauled, if not killed.

BTW, this is over and above the fact that he might not be willing to let you carve him and he might do something different after his initial attack fails…like attack again in a different manner. Or if his first one did succeed to attack again.

Fights are never static…and his ability to move is his ability to hurt you…and do it before you have a chance to do your really cool moves.

Lie #6 Trapping and stripping
Defanging the snake is something that is commonly taught at higher levels. Subtle and complex moves are drilled into the advanced students so they can either knock the knife out of their attacker’s hands or carve the knife out of his hand.

There’s just one problem with it, you have a snowball’s chance in hell of making it work. The truth is these are what we as Kenpoists call “DCCD” or “green moves”.  They have very little to do with actual knife defense and very much to do with keeping the student involved in the system and paying money (which in the U.S. is green, ergo the term green move). Such moves rely on the attacker moving “just so” and thereby putting you in the perfect position to do the move.

The thing is even the older masters tell you that these moves are purely opportunity and chance. And yet, these moves are often over-emphasized at the expense of more effective altercation ending moves. In short, they train in elements as though they were the most important element or the highest degree of the art. Call me silly, but I feel that getting out alive is the best proof of skill, not how many subtle and complex moves you know.

In truth, unless an attacker is drunk or pathetically slow the odds of successfully catching his hand and doing all these marvelous joint locks, strikes or controlling moves are very, very slim. Furthermore you are not going to be able to effectively control a wildly struggling opponent’s arm with only one hand. Odds are that he will be able to wiggle free of it and cause you some degree of damage.

This does, however, bring up an issue that I made a passing reference to previously. I often see too much of an emphasis placed on controlling your opponent so you can safely close. The raw reality is that you cannot effectively control someone out at such a distance. While there are things that you can do that will give you momentary advantage, it is nowhere complete control. Unfortunately, I have seen too many people try to establish control so they can enter safely. It has been my experience, that you cannot do this. What you can do is create an opening, enter and then prevent him from countering. But if you attempt to hang back until it is “safe” to enter, then you will take more damage staying back trying to create the perfect solution.

On top of the already unpleasant realities, there is something else that is far more important. Okay, so it’s only important if you *don’t* like taking showers with lots of guys with tattoos. Once you disarm an opponent whether by leverage or your own blade, if you continue to use the knife on him, that isn’t self-defense anymore. At the very least it is attempted murder, probably manslaughter and — if your lawyer isn’t very good — you can possibly go down for murder if the DA is having a particularly bad hair day.

Lie #7 Bio-mechanical cutting
Technically this should not be on this page at all: First because I respect Bram Frank, and secondly — as far as it goes — it is a sound concept. The simple fact is that cutting tendons, muscles and nerves does work. A slash will destroy/hinder motor abilities. There is no argument about its effectiveness.

However, like Jeff Cooper’s well-thought out and considered “Better to be judged by twelve than carried by six” was bastardized by Bubbas and “gun nuts” into a clich?of ignorance of the legal issues, I have seen this idea seriously misinterpreted and bandied about by those ignorant of the laws, precedents and legal nuances regarding use of lethal force. Much of the discussion about using a knife to inflict this kind of wound is the same fantasy thinking as when a toothless redneck, after being called upon his statement of “ah’d jes shoot ‘im,” responds with the Cooperism. Neither of them are taking into account that the law has a slightly different outlook about their use of a lethal force weapon on another human being.

In the eyes of the law, a knife is a deadly weapon. Its use on another human is classified as lethal force. And the only time you are justified in using lethal force — in most states — is when you are “in immediate threat of death or grievous bodily injury.” In other words, if it is bad enough where you have to use a knife on someone, it is bad enough to kill them. If you are at a point where you are just trying to wound someone, you are not in enough danger to justify using a knife.

This is the ghost of the old “shooting him in the leg” misconception so many people had. People would shoot an intruder and then tell the police that they were only trying to wound him. This left them open to all kinds of criminal charges and civil litigation — from the person they had shot. There is a natural hesitation to take another human life. However, when this manifests in seeking to “wound” someone in order to make them “go away” you end up in a very dangerous legal grey area. And the fact that you were even in a situation where a knife was used is going to make that grey area more dangerous. Remember, a knife is considered a thug’s weapon.

Lie #8 Knowing how to stickfight means you know how to knife fight
I have a friend Jonathan Pak who is a physicist. The man is basically brilliant and when he starts talking physics, I shut up and listen (yes, I know RARE, right?), because he knows what he is talking about. Thing is Jonathan and I used to fight with broadswords at the California Renaissance Faire…man probably about 10-15 years ago. These bouts were not only unchoreographed, but were basically wild brawls (it helps to understand that at the time, we were both young — conditions known to produce “it seemed like a good idea at the time” thinking). Later Jonathan would go out and study Kali/Escrima. Having experience using a far wider range of weapons than many of his fellow kali students gave him a slightly different perspective. One day while discussing this very subject he said:

People claim that a stick is an average weapon. That it has similarities to all weapons. This is true, it does. But then they claim that if you know how to use a stick you can use all weapons. This is not true. What they don’t understand is that the differences are just as important as the similarities.

Give that man a cigar…although I might tweak his last sentence to read “what they don’t want to understand.” Just because you are proficient with one type of tool doesn’t automatically mean you can translate that skill to another weapon. And yet a great many people tell themselves that this is the case, in fact, they rather emphatically insist is it so. Apparently the appeal of being a “master of all weapons” is greater than being proficient with just a stick.

The simple truth is that different weapons handle differently. The have different weights, different sizes, different timing, different requirements and different uses. There are indeed certain similarities, but unless you want to end up kneeling in a dark parking lot trying to hold your guts in, you had better stop telling yourself about the similarities and start looking at the differences.

To begin with a stick doesn’t have an edge. With blade work the point and the edge are critical components, but not necessarily so with sticks. Edge control is pretty much the indicator between someone who knows how to use a knife and a stick jock trying to tell you that he knows knife work. If you know what to look for you can spot the difference with just one move — even if it is a fast one. In fact, the faster the move, the more obvious it is.

The physics of a stick do not require this exactness of edge control. This is because a stick is an impact weapon, were as a blade is designed to cut, slice, stab and sometimes, hack. If you do not have your edge on target, then you create a totally different set of physics and reactions other than the one you want.

If you are learning stick fighting then accept that you are learning stick fighting, that is a legitimate pursuit. If you are learning knife work, then you are learning knife work…while there are similarities there are radical differences. Don’t tell yourself or allow yourself to be told different. If you don’t believe me, try working out with a wide variety of weapons and do the exact same move. These differences especially become manifest when your weapon encounters flesh.

Lie # 9 Knowing kali makes you a knife fighter
Kali, Escrima, Arnis, FMA, all of them have the aura and mystery of being weapons based arts. Deadly, savage arts of the Filipino warriors. Lurid stories about guerrilla actions against Japanese invaders, duels and death matches that the founder of the style was involved in abound.

Quite honestly what these maestros survived is incredible and is more than worthy of kudos. These older gentlemen survived a totally different culture, socio-economic environment, time and, in some cases, a World War and foreign invasion of their homeland.

That having been said however, just because the founder of the system or lineage was a walking piece of bad-assed real-estate doesn’t make you one.

They weren’t knife fighters, those people were survivors. It’s what comes from living a hellishly hard life. While they had physical skill that helped them, what kept them alive, what allowed them to strike fast enough, hard enough and brutally enough wasn’t their art — it was the commitment not to die. It was that grim savagery to do whatever is necessary and to do it faster and harder than the other person that kept them alive. In the lexicon, they had “heart.”

Their art just allowed them to do that faster.

Knowing an art doesn’t give you that kind of commitment, that kind of ruthlessness, that kind of grim endurance or that willingness to descend into savagery to stay alive. Just knowing the art doesn’t make you a knife fighter. You have to have “heart” as well — that willingness to wade through hell and come out the other side.

Lie #10 Grappling with a knife
I was at a Kenpo school last year with a group of fellow martial artists teaching “street knife work.” While demonstrating an empty-handed with one of them, he tackled me and took me to the ground (This is no big deal as when I do demo’s I don’t allow “courtesy attacks.” I insist people attack me like they would were it a real fight — this occasionally means that I get slugged or taken down. This was one of those times). Anyway, when we hit the floor I realized that there was no way I could contest this guys strength, he was a bull, full of muscle and grappling skill. The thing was I had landed next to a practice knife that I calmly picked up and dragged it across his throat.

We stood up and his eyes were the size of saucers because he realized what the significance of what had just happened. A knife had come out of nowhere and had this been real, he would have been dead. The amazing thing was that there were only a few other people there who did too. One of the bigger proponents of grappling stood there and said, “He tackled you.” To which I replied, “Yes, and I slit his throat” “But, he tackled you.”

In their minds there was no difference in the levels of damage. The fact that I had been taken down counted the same as a knife across the throat. Personally, I’ll take getting slammed to the ground any day over getting my throat slit.

The myth of grappling is that it works everywhere. The fact that it proved so successful in the UFC ring has blinded many people to the fact that there are critical differences between fighting barehanded and fighting with weapons. While empty-hand fighting might easily turn into an endurance marathon, where size, strength, physical shape and ability to endure punishment significantly influence the outcome of an altercation, that is not applicable to weapons work. In that arena, every man bleeds the same.

Oh yeah, remember how I said bio-mechanical cutting did have validity to it about the damage a knife can cause? What makes you think you can keep on fighting with that kind of damage being done to you? All a guy has to do is cut you a few times to seriously reduce your ability to move and then wait while you bleed out. Now the really bad news, being pumped up on adrenalin is going to make that happen faster, the higher your heart rate, the faster you bleed out and lose strength. All he has to do is out wait for your strength to fail before finishing the job.

Do not attempt to “grapple” with a knifer. Once on the ground, you are not guaranteed to be able to control his knife arm well enough to prevent him from carving you up. If it were a barehanded fight, then you can often prevent him from being able to generate enough power to effectively strike you, but a knife doesn’t need power, it just needs to touch you. And if you are attempting to control his arm while on the ground, he will wiggle free and repeatedly cut you until you can no longer continue to resist.

Now for the fun news, I know of a small knife that has been manufactured that is called the “clinch pick.” A small concealable — and easily accessible — knife,  that can be rammed into a grappler’s guts and chest three or four times before the grappler knows it is there. Where it is carried makes it nearly impossible for the grappler to prevent its deployment. When you realize he has it, it is too late. I love mine J

Lie #11 The knife is an extension of your hand
This lie is most often promoted by empty-handed stylists who insist that they can teach you how to either defend yourself against a knife or to use one. Unfortunately, many people who started out in such systems have transferred over to supposed blade arts and continued promoting this often misinterpreted saying.

Empty hand fighting is not the same as weapon fighting — it requires different body mechanics, different ranges , different timing and — most importantly — an emphasis on movement that is not found in most kicking and punching arts. At least not in how they are taught in Westernized countries.

This emphasis on the hand largely stems from the sports influence of modern martial arts. However, the problem is that most empty handed fighters lack the understanding of how to generate force from a moving state, instead seeking to generate force from a stationary/rooted stance and a twisting the hips. While this works for barehanded fighting styles, it fails to address the needs of weapons fighting.

It is my personal belief that the idea that the “knife is an extension of your hand” encourages a lack of bodily movement, instead relying on the hand to do all your work for you. In these circumstances you’re not being cut relies on you speed and reflexes, rather than more reliable means. Basically, because you might not be fast enough to counter, parry or block what he is doing. I further believe that this lack of motion largely stems from attempting to extend — whether unconsciously or intentionally — the thought process of empty handed fighting into a field where it does not belong, or work.

For reasons beyond the scope of this article, I prefer the more encompassing and flexible term: The knife is an extension of your will.

What I will say is that if it is an extension of my hand, my body may or may not move. However, if it is instead my will, everything in between my will and my knife will be likely to move to achieve my ends. And that is far more effective for staying alive.

Lie #12 There is such a thing as a master knife fighter
Despite all the fantasy self-defense scenarios so-called “knife experts” concoct in their minds and are always talking about — where they would be justified in using a knife on another human being — the flat-out truth is that in 99.9% of the times that a knife is used on another human being it is a criminal act. Not to burst anybody’s bubble here, but those famous challenges and death matches that the old maestros engaged in were wildly illegal — both in the United States AND in the Philippines.

Now having said that I will be the first to point out that hot-headed, young dudes looking to prove themselves will often engage in extremely stupid, dangerous and criminal behavior in the name of pride or anger. But you know what? If they live, they often wind up in jail, if not prison. The law tends to frown on fights, much less duels.

There ain’t no such thing as a professional knife fighter. Nobody gets paid for knife fighting. On top of this, you don’t survive multiple knife fights without getting carved up pretty badly yourself. But most importantly, long before you stacked up enough murders to be qualified as a “master knife fighter” you would have found yourself on death row.

So look long and hard at anyone calling themselves a blademaster, knife fighter or knife fighting expert…because more likely than not, it is a self-imposed title that has no bearing on reality. And if he were such a master knife fighter, how come he ain’t got more scars and isn’t in prison?

Lie #13 That this is a “fight” at all
If you want to live, you don’t go in with a “fighting attitude” to any altercation involving weapons.

Weapons take it out of the arena of fighting and put it in the realm of combat.

And if you aren’t ready to go there, there is no shame in that. But don’t let your pride or anger push you into there, because the rules are totally different, and if you don’t know that, then you are the one who is going to get hurt.

If you see a weapon deployed, run. If you stay, don’t even think of fighting…someone is going to get seriously hurt if you stay. Now the question is, will it be him or you? Or both?

Lie #14 Expect to get cut
Remember that thing called bio-mechanical cutting? I said the major problem with it is on the legal front, but, on the “a knife is going to do a shitload of damage to you” front there’s a lot to be said for it. What amazes me is that some people can talk about the damage that their knife will do to an attacker, but at the same time blurt out the old cliché of “expect to get cut” as though getting cut were only a minor inconvenience.

HELLO! Wake up and smell the coffee!!!!!

Where I really hit the roof on this mindset is when I see someone who comes from a empty hand fighting system attempt to “fight” an armed opponent in the same way that he would an unarmed opponent.

The thing is, these same people are the ones who often talk about “expecting to get cut.” And then, having said that, they take no effective measures to prevent it from happening! I have literally seen such people wade into a cuisine-art.

Now who ever came up with that term originally was speaking about a very important idea. That is that you will be cut in a blade altercation and that you need not to panic when it happens and that you must continue on to the best of your abilities in order to increase your chances of survival. When I teach my students, I say “expect to get cut”, this is what I mean.

However, like the idea of biomechanical cutting has been bastardized by people into a dangerous misconception, so has this one. In fact, from having watched people who study so-called “blade arts” many of them have apparently taken it to mean allow yourself to be sliced up, making no effective defensive moves in order to try to get in one good hit. Apparently, if you nick him once to his twenty seven slashes, it is an acceptable exchange rate.

The other side of the pendulum swing is however, overly focusing on trying to control his knife arm before entering. Hanging back and trying to catch this fast moving blade so you can safely enter is one of the best ways I know to make getting cut a self-fulfilling prophecy.

This is what really results from trying to extend a “fighting mindset” into weapons combat. It simply just does not work. Would you like to hear our philosophy on this subject?

Trade a cut for a kill, but nothing else.

That’s the difference between fighting and combat.

Lie #15 The FMA are the ultimate knife fighting systems
Let me lay it out on the line here. When it comes to knife fighting, they are all freakin dangerous.

There is no “sun source” of knife fighting. There is no land of ultimate knife fighting arts. There is no race who hold the monopoly on the “right way” to use a knife. As I said, I have seen several knife fighting systems from places and what I will tell you is that each of them will make you just as dead, just as quick.

What I will be the absolute first to admit is that the FMA in particular, FCS (Filipino Combat Systems), have done wonders for organizing and explaining the ideas behind how they do what they do. And for that I take my hat off to them. And I salute and respect the skill and prowess of their eskrimadors, kali gurus and arnis masters such as Tuhon Ray Dionaldo. But I draw the line at even sitting quietly when someone tries to elevate one group of fighting skills above all others so they can swagger around saying that they study the ultimate “knife fighting” system. (Not that FCS groups do this). This above my immediate gag reflex when someone — who has never faced a knife in the hands of someone who wishes him ill — swaggers around and tells me that he knows everything there is to know about knife fighting because he studies under (fill in the blank).

There is no right way, one way or only way to use a knife…and the more you know about all the different ways the more likely you are to be able to come up with an effective counter if you are attacked in one of those ways. But if you have only studied one system, the odds are against you being able to come up with something that works. And I have to tell you, although Western practitioners like to claim that the FMAs do, those arts don’t cover all the ways a knife can be used on you. There is literally a world full of differences out there.

I have said it before and I will say it again: *Nobody* has a monopoly on the truth about knife fighting. The whole of the subject is just too big. Everybody has a slice of the pie. And learning what they have to say about it and how they do it where they are from is the best way for you to increase you chances of survival.

Lie #16 It’s easy to disarm an armed opponent
Every time I hear someone say this, I cringe. Because A) they have just told me that they have never dealt with someone intent on trying to kill them. B) Odds are that they are a bully and braggart. And C) If they are teaching people this nonsense they are going to get someone killed.

In a very real sense, someone standing there brandishing a knife is not trying to kill you…he is trying to scare you away. Now I will admit that it is often easier to overwhelm such a person because he is not in attack mode, but it is never easy. Such people can be surprised and often they cannot react in time. However, someone who is genuinely intent on attacking you with a blade is *never* easy to disarm or overcome. And promoting this lie is literally begging to get someone killed – especially if they encounter a committed attacker.

The problem that I have encountered with bullies is that they are very selective on who chose to bully. I have seen individuals who have savaged weaker opponents — as if by magic — disappear when trouble starts with true hard-cases. These individuals may have taken blades away from intimidated kids, but somehow they never seem to be around to try it against someone who is an experienced and hardened street dude or former convict.

So again, proving that the exact choice of words is important we are left with a small, but important modification of what is commonly taught and what needs to be said: The concepts behind disarming an armed opponent are simple, they are not, however, easy — and neither is the actual disarm itself

Lie #17 You can successfully fight an armed attacker
This entire article has been dedicated to disproving this lie. The main reason it is a lie is that you cannot “fight” an armed opponent. You can survive against one and you might even be able to successfully put him down before he causes you any major damage…but, whatever you do, it must be fast, effective and brutal. If it isn’t, then you will not stop him before he causes you major damage.

You cannot stand there and engage in a long, drawn out contest with an armed opponent. If you try to do so, you will lose. It is not a matter of if, but of when.

Simply stated, everytime he touches you with the knife he will cause serious damage. How can you hope to launch a long drawn out retaliation against him when every time he touches you he causes “biomechanical cutting” on you? You are going to bleed out and cease to function long before your strategy comes to fruition.

Lie #18 Drills teach you how to knife fight
Drills teach principles. They teach ideas. They are the map, not the territory. I say this even with our Kenpo techniques…techniques, technique lines are ALL drills.

Unfortunately, many people mistake the map for the territory. One of the most unrealistic tendencies that drills teach is they do not teach you proper ranging. The object of an attack is to stab/slash your partner. However, often in training you will see people standing back ranging their attack against their partner’s stick or their training knife falling at least a foot short of their partner. Furthermore they are not attacking with the same commitment and force level that a real knife assault will occur with. Therefore the training drill, while important is missing several critical components.

Lie #19 You can use a knife on another human being without legal repercussions
I have seen videos by so-called “knife fighting masters” who actually show people how to slash someone with a knife just because they’re tried to simply punch you. I have also seen videos where after disarming their attackers with several slashes to the arm, these knife killers proceed to slash their — no longer armed — attacker to ribbons. I have stood in a convention hall and seen a martial artist doing a demo, leap back while slashing the weapon arm of his attacker, and then .. after “defanging the snake,” he leap back into range and executed a disemboweling move on his … now… unarmed former attacker. Later, when I asked him about if he understood that any student doing that move would be committing manslaughter instead of “self-defense” his eyes bugged out because he’d never considered how that move would be viewed in court. When I worked at the legal services firm, I have stood in a room with attorneys and use of force experts and watched a tape on knife fighting where a supposed “expert,” not only starts a bar fight, does a suicide move that would have gotten his throat slit and then kneels down and stabs a downed opponent — in front of witnesses! Actions that everyone agreed would be prosecuted as murder.

As such, don’t even get me started on the jack-asses who insist their students cut a person multiple times because “one cut may not stop him.” Unfortunately, this kind of training often goes awry when the attacker attempts to withdraw and the knife fighter keeps on slashing, even after the ex-attacker has turned his back on the knife fighter. Now, this once upon a time attacker has been slashed many times after he was disarmed and is slashed more on his back while attempting to retreat…guess who is going to go to prison for attempted murder?

A knife is considered a lethal force instrument…and the use of lethal force is *very* narrowly approved. If you use one another human being you had better damned well be firmly within those parameters…if not, then you are — in the eyes of the law and society — the bad guy.

Before you even think of picking up a knife for “self-defense” go out and take a course on Judicious Use of Lethal force. Do NOT take any knife fighting experts word on the subject, go to the source lawyers and expert witnesses on use of force. Now, I’m not an attorney, I can’t tell you what to do, everything you do is on you. Learning knife defense or any martial arts for that matter puts you in a whole other category when it comes to the eyes of the law….educate yourself not only with martial arts, but with the law….trust me when I say this.

It is my humble intention to examine with open eyes an accurate account of the history and actions of our notable predecessors as well as a clear analysis of ourselves and our contemporaries with the ultimate intent of moving steadfastly toward an inspiring future. My famous teacher, the late Grand Master Edmund K. Parker Sr. stated it wisely when he said: “Old knowledge bring serenity, new knowledge brings progress.”

It is my firm belief that if we ever come to the point that we think we have all the answers then we have crossed the threshold into self-delusion. Once we lose the ability to learn then we have begun moving away from life, toward death. So, I welcome all to join me, whether here, or on the mats and share the discussions openly and freely. It matters little whether we agree or not on every particular issue but more that we each respect the others right to form and express individual opinions.

A friend once told me that: “Opinions are like armpits; everyone has at least two and they can become pretty smelly…” With that said partially in jest, my real point is that we need to stay humble enough with each of our viewpoints to keep the discussion open and constructive yet still be willing to agree to even disagree at times.

I look forward to some very stimulating and inspiring interaction by those out in the martial arts world who either have something to ask, or something to add. Whether you are a non-martial artist with a curiosity, a novice seeking accurate information and  insights, a seasoned practitioner, or a true Master with enormous experience; let’s keep it real and seek the truth as we share our love of Kenpo.

Salute,
Maurice A. Gomez Sr.
Chief Instructor
MG Kenpo Academy

Let me start off my saying that this was probably an evening that I’ll always remember the most. For one, our power was knocked out since Wednesday due to the high winds. I wasn’t sure if we were still going to be able to have the test but on Saturday morning we had partial power restoration. It wasn’t the best because the power lines were re-energizing so we barely had enough power to use a toaster.

I decided that we were still going to hold the testing,  since the kids were during the day until the early evening, but I was still worried about the adults since there was a chance it might be too dark to see anything. The little tigers test went off with a bang and they rocked the test showing what they do best and I was certainly proud of each of every single one of them.  The juniors test continued on  afterwards and Christopher and Maraya displayed a fine example of Kenpo. Their performance was top notch and  they showed true heart. Congrats to the both of them as they moved on to their next rank.

…The adults testing was truly a first experience for me. It was the first and hopefully the last belt examination we’ll have to do practically in the dark. We were close on pulling the plug on the test and postpone it till next week, but I knew that they all had the determination and desire to not care what the lighting conditions were we proceeded anyway. We had no heat, hardly any power and just a lamp in the corner of the room that gave just enough light to see each other. It was almost 4 hours of testing as I took the adult through each phase of the curriculum. Did I mention that it was freezing? In order to prevent that, we just had to keep moving and that they did. I was so proud of them because despite the conditions, they didn’t let that hold them back and they worked it harder than I ever seen them work it before. Vladimir was like a firecracker, his speed and power was remarkable. Tony was also powerful and explosive. Keith showed skill and his newly developed fluidity of motion, it was beautiful to watch. In the end, I was more than happy to kick them to their next rank. They truly showed me what they’re capable of doing, even in the dark.  So congrats to all, I love you guys and I’m very proud of each and every single one of you.

Congrats to:

Christopher Canales – Jr Blue Belt
Maraya Hernandez – Jr Yellow Belt
Maurice Gomez Jr. – Little Tiger Purple Belt
Maison Harper – Little Tiger Orange Belt
Lucino Jaimes – Little Tiger Yellow Belt
Humberto Jaimes – Little Tiger Yellow Belt
Vladimir Svorobovic – 2^nd Degree Brown  Belt
Tony Cocha – 3^rd Degree Brown Belt
Keith Yount – Blue Belt

I have learned during my years of teaching that students learn better when life skills are discussed while experiencing a real situation. Students do not learn well when you talk theoretically about life issues. You have noticed me many times jumping on situations that occur in class and discussing it openly in front of all the students on how to best deal with it. I give the students ideas on how to possibly avoid or how to deal with these issues. As a student proceeds from white belt to black belt the student experiences almost every possible emotional situation. As the student faces these experiences they are coached and given skills that help them deal with them in a positive and productive way.

One of the most important life skills that are taught in karate is learning to deal with fluctuating motivation. As the child trains in karate they experience the motivational roller coaster. We adults understand the importance of this skill because we deal with it in many areas of our lives on a daily basis. I teach students how to work through motivational highs and lows by first letting them know that these obstacles are coming. I tell them that everyone experiences this problem and must know how to work through it. I give them thoughts and ideas that will help them deal with this upcoming problem. But at this point, this is just theory to the students. As I have said before, no one learns by theory, you learn by experiencing. Then as the student starts to experience this situation, I remind them first that they were made aware of this upcoming dilemma and them I give them concepts on how to deal with it. One of the most important skills that we adults have learned and understand is developing the ability to grind through tough times. A young person has a hard time learning these skills without being coached while they are experiencing these low points of motivation. After the student gets through these periods I review the situation and reinforce the successful strategies. It takes a student several of these situations to develop the skills to successfully learn the ability to grind through low motivational periods.

So how do you grind through difficult situations? I was originally taught by my parents and coaches that you give it 110% or don’t do it at all. I guessed it worked, but I’m not so sure. I may have quit things in the past because I lost motivation and I didn’t want to give it a 110% at the time, I just don’t remember. The point is I don’t believe in this philosophy. Routine is more important than giving it a 110% during low motivational times. There are times I am not motivated to go and work out and even work on my own material (which is pretty often) but If I don’t do anything at all, I become weak and get out of shape or I get slower or feel sluggish. It becomes almost impossible to get back to training. We adults see this type of situation happen all the time. I have experimented with this (humor statement). If however I continue to keep going during this low motivational time and just half heartily go through the training, I of course don’t get better but I also don’t regress much either. Then when that motivated moment comes I instantly start seeing improvement. I have not learned how to summon that motivated moment on command yet, but when it comes I’m ready. Instead of taking months to get back to where I was before I quite training, which in itself is extremely disheartening, I see instant improvement.

I see this situation play out over and over in the dojo. I have seen students of all ages take breaks with the intent of coming back soon and I have seen students go through low motivational periods with half hearted efforts. The students that take breaks almost never get back. Or if they do, they are so disappointed that everyone in their class has moved ahead of them that they give up and quit. As far as the students that grind through, they are pumped when the motivational point comes back. They are off and flying, hardly missing a beat.

There are two low motivational periods during the year. The first one is the period going into the summer and second, you guessed it, the period going into the year end holidays. The reasons are obvious, their minds are not on martial arts because they are looking forward to the break in the school routine, the weather change affects them, and generally their minds are all over the place. After the summer and holiday break, within a week or two, the kids get refocused and are motivationally locked back into their training.

Here is the Parent’s burden. What does a parent do when their child starts asking to take a break or even asking to quit during these periods? Parents know that discipline and dedication are developed by grinding through these low periods. They want their kids to learn that changing directions every time they get bored or loose motivation that this develops a horrible habit and can lead to unsuccessful lives. However, the parent does not want to force their child to do something that they really do not want to do. This does not teach a child anything. And to add to this, the grind of dealing with a complaining kid and the effort of getting them to the school also become very difficult. So how does a parent know what to do?

Here are some ideas that may help. First, recognize the time of the year. This will answer a lot of questions. Second, how is your kid acting in class? If they seem emotionally down for several weeks at a time, they need a break. Don’t worry; I most likely will bring it up to you first. If however they are having fun in class, then they are simply moving through a low motivational period and are just whining on the way to class. Remember, I have been through this a million times over the last couple of years. You may have noticed that my teaching techniques change during these times of the year. I lighten up a bit and do a few more games in class. These times are difficult, so I make it more fun during this time because I know that keeping the student’s routine is the highest priority. I know the routine is the secret of success. Missing random classes or taking a short vacation is not a problem for the student. The key here is keeping their overall routine. Yes their martial arts growth slows down, but when the summer and holiday period is over their skills start instantly growing versus having to take a period of time to get back to where they were before the break.

In conclusion, routine is the secret to success. This is what needs to be taught to the student. The difficult part is being able to tell if your kid is simply going through a temporary low motivational point or has genuinely lost interest in martial arts training. So my suggestion is when you are experiencing this situation is that you come by and talk to me. I will give you my honest opinion. Some parents might think that I will tell them they should keep their child in for my financial reasons. Trust me; my personal sanity comes before my financial stability. Nothing drives me crazier than having a student there that does not want to be there. Those of you who have known me for any length of time can attest to this.

So how do I feel about tournament competition? I actually agree with most of what is said by the instructors who are against competition. However, I strongly believe that all students should participate in a few competitions per year. Although, the focus of my school isn’t about tournament competition, I do insist and try to get my students out to at least a few tournaments a year but it’s strictly optional. The number one reason that most people enroll themselves or their children in martial arts is to develop the ability to defend themselves. So I take that very seriously. I do everything I can in the class to prepare my students for the possibility that someday they may need to defend themselves in a life and death situation. The one thing I can’t do in a regular class is put them in real self defense situations, only staged ones. I am unable to bring out the stress, anxiety, fear, adrenalin pumping through their system, narrowing of vision, chaos, shortness of breath, fatigue, and other extreme emotions that one experiences in a real self defense situation. The students psychologically know that everything in the class is controlled and there is little or no danger. No matter what I say, I cannot bring these emotions out while we train.

Training without experiencing these emotions is weak at best. The closest we get to these emotions in the school are at belt exams. But even these emotions are different than what you experience when someone is trying to hurt or kill you. So the only thing we can offer that gets close to real combat without actually being in combat is tournament competition. The uncertainty in this situation brings out the emotions I mentioned earlier. Even though the student understands that this is somewhat of a controlled situation, they still know there is some physical risk. The student doesn’t know who they are going to meet, what the opponent is going to do, or how they are going to react. It is very stressful. Though this is not exactly what a self defense situation is like, it has many similarities. Yes, many techniques have been illuminated for safety purposes; but you are still using many that are used such as kicking, punching, and blocking. This platform gives you an opportunity to try your skills in a stressful environment that is somewhat close to a real battle. It is the mind that helps a student win battles. Without it, the physical skills will only take them so far. Competition gives the student the ability to practice over and over the mental aspects that are required to defend one’s self. A student needs this mental training on a regular basis.

This mental training that a student gets from martial art competition is not the same as what a student gets from competing in baseball, football, soccer, or other such games. There is a big difference between playing a game and defending yourself from someone who is trying to hit you or worse.

So what about the other negative things that some instructors say about competitions? Isn’t this the way the world is anyway? Our students need to learn techniques to deal with these types of people and situations in a “mock world” competition. Then they will have the skills that are needed to be successful when they enter the “real world” competition. Is this a great simile or what?

Look, forget about the winning or losing. Those things take care of themselves over the long haul. It is the mental training that is important. A student is only partially training for self defense if they never compete. In addition to better being able to defend one’s self, competitions help motivate the student to train harder in class. Without it, students tend to just go through the motions at times. You wouldn’t go to the driving range without ever playing the game of golf. You wouldn’t go to the batting cages and never play the game of baseball. So why would you just train at the school without testing your skill and seeing how your mind is going to react.

When you go back to the roots of martial arts you will find the sole purpose was to be able to save your own life while probably taking the life of your opponent. It was life and death sometimes on a daily basis on the battlefield and whatever techniques worked were added to the others that kept warriors alive!

These techniques then became the foundation of the different types of martial arts that are found in all parts of the world across the ages. Whether it was the Spartans in ancient Greece, the Shaolin monks in China, the Japanese samurai or the warriors of the early Koreans the concept is the same, survival.   Some of the older martial arts are still in existence which is a true testament to their effectiveness and longevity.

So fast forward to the present and the quest or desire to be able to protect yourself against all types of attacks or attackers is still very much the goal of many people besides the military or police personal. Unfortunately the expectations of most people are unrealistic to say the least.

The ability to thwart a serious attack especially one that is unexpected is one of the most difficult things to successfully accomplish. Many a high ranking martial artist has found out the hard way that all his training was useless when the adrenaline kicked in and panic took over. Some have even been seriously injured or killed over the years, which highlights the serious nature of self defense.

If an experienced martial artist with years of experience can get himself or herself killed then what are the odds that a novice has in defending himself or herself? A very interesting question with wide ranging ramifications!

So many people from all walks of life enter a martial arts school expecting to learn the secret techniques of self defense and all in ten lessons or less. What a ridiculous concept but an understandable one. With all the movies and special effects it is very easy to see how an inexperienced person can be fooled into thinking that there’s nothing to it.

One quick strike, a well placed kick and a throw over the shoulder and the attacker is left helpless on the ground. Good luck because you will need a lot of it if you find yourself facing a determined attacker or street fighter. This is no joke and anything less than an all out counter attack may be your only hope. Running is the first option that you should employ so a program of running regularly may be the best first line of defense.

If a person is honest with themselves they will realize that ten lessons will not really help them defend themselves and will dedicate more time & energy to truly learning a martial art that may give them the best chance at surviving an attack. But there are no guarantees that come with your lessons and this is a very real thing to consider because one day your life may depend on it.

Other types of people that take up martial arts for self defense will find it too hard, too demanding, too violent and drop any and all desire to continue. This is very commonplace and after a while you will know which people will stay to train in the dojo and which people will drop out after a very short period of time.

The worse case scenario is the person who takes the ten lessons and then actually deludes themselves into thinking that they are now a lean, mean fighting machine ready to take on all attackers. This is a very dangerous state of delusion to be in.

Now here is something to think about! Most martial artists will never get into a fight for their entire lives and will never be attacked. I believe the reason for this is twofold. One, the awareness that you get from your martial arts training keeps you out of harm’s way and the aurora of confidence that you project unconsciously actually prevents attacks from occurring because you are not looked upon as a potential victim.

The wolf or lion does not attack the strongest animals but singles out the weak or injured animals to kill and eat. How do they know from a distance which is the strongest and which is the weakest? There are no obvious signs but yet they are able to tell and act upon their perception with obvious results.

The human predator also singles out the weak and their next potential victim by using a similar type of internal profiling system that picks up on certain movements or cues. This is their business and they are very good at it and also get off on the fear they create.

The experienced martial artist does not appear as a weak person or potential victim which prevents many attacks from even being considered in the first place by the human predator. They would rather go after an  easy victim than a potentially dangerous individual that could possibly cause them physical damage. This self defense mechanism comes about naturally through years of training & conditioning your mind and body.

From what I have seen even, experienced and even teach. Kenpo does seem to be a very good self defense martial art that is direct and dynamic. It does require a lot of physical contact. So be prepared for bruises, aches, pains and other injuries that are associated with a contact martial art that does not pull too many punches.

Most good self defense courses will be hopefully realistic with hard strikes, kicks to knees, gouging, elbows flying and take downs with finishing techniques.

Self defense serves to empower people to not be victims and the martial arts can be the conduit to their growth in confidence and overall awareness. This certainly does not mean that the concept of self defense is to be used as an offensive weapon consisting only of kicks or strikes but of also recognizing dangerous situations and avoiding them if possible.

Screaming, creating a commotion and running are also excellent tools in your self defense arsenal which should be included in any course that is taught by a certified instructor. Unfortunately just because the martial arts instructor is quite qualified in his or her particular martial art does not mean that they are the best self defense teachers available. There is no difference whether you are being taught self defense by a woman or a man in terms of techniques but some women may be more comfortable being taught by another female.

When you sign up for the self defense course make sure you give it the time it requires because if you are not used to physical contact in the context of defending yourself it may be very scary and frightening. It’s better to feel these emotions in a controlled environment and learn how to deal with them than being in a real situation that is totally uncontrolled & unscripted.

Repetition is very important to develop muscle memory and hundreds if not thousands of strikes, kicks, gouges, etc should be practiced in the class and if possible at home. Another thing that should be taken into consideration is that niceness and politeness goes right out the window when you are being threatened or attacked!

Eye pokes, throat strikes, ear compression strikes are all fair targets when your life is on the line. A Kenpo instructor that was teaching at a dojo that I visited many years ago gave his students this pearl of wisdom ” I would rather be judged by 12 of my peers than be carried by 6″ This is a very powerful statement which will have its critics in the liberal end of the spectrum and probably in the legal & law enforcement fields.

Something to consider is that there is a strong possibility that if you have a black belt and you successfully defend yourself but the assailant is injured or killed you will find yourself being prosecuted to the full extent of the law. It is advisable that you research the laws of the state that you reside in that pertain to self defense.

This bias towards black belts might be the result of the Hollywood illusion that has been created to give the impression that a high ranking martial artist can easily disarm or incapacitate an attacker without causing any serious injury to him. Absolutely ridiculous!

Unless the attacker is dead drunk and can’t even stand up any attack and the defense you mount has the inherent risk of serious injury to either party. Now the intellects that formulate these self defense laws may actually believe that a martial artist can subdue an attacker regardless of the circumstances such as the attacker being just plain crazy, has drug fueled aggression or is a real angry person that wants to lash out at anybody that crosses their path.

It’s not going to happen according to the Hollywood script or to the dojo script. Many martial arts instructors are also guilty of this illusion or delusion which may be a more accurate description. Many an experienced martial arts instructor that I have encountered have advocated certain techniques that were guaranteed to subdue anybody or any type of attacker.

To prove their point they demonstrated the various techniques on a compliant student under controlled conditions. 100% of the time they were able to prove their point showing that it indeed worked as indicated. What a surprise!

The sad part is that many of the students will believe this to be true and this belief could cost them their life. Many of the martial arts instructors teaching have never been in a real fight and have not used any of the self defense techniques to successfully defend themselves. Thus the techniques have been untested and therefore unreliable in the true sense of self defense.

So it is very easy to see how an experienced martial arts instructor can be fooled into thinking that this or that particular technique will work when the chips are down. Since an instructor is usually taught by an instructor it stands to reason that a myth can keep going for many generations especially if there is no critical thinking and trial & error applied to each of the self defense techniques.

An example of what won’t work is the concept that a restraining technique such as a twisted arm or some other type of lock will not work on a determined, crazy adrenaline filled individual. Pain will not be felt in the normal fashion and trying to control such an individual usually requires many bodies on top. But the myth still pervades  that an arm lock , wrist twist or  shoulder lock will be able to control an out of control individual.

Hopefully you will never be in the situation that finds you facing an abnormal attacker and/or street fighter that is enraged and possibly fueled by drugs, alcohol or by both. Your best bet is to run very fast from this type of person to live another day. It may sound pessimistic but I have seen people fight four or five people and it took that many to subdue him! Something to think about.

A strike to the throat or the eyes will cause damage and  rank up there as very effective self defense techniques while also being very dangerous. It’s hard to control such strikes and the potential for permanently disabling the attacker is very high. Also body type, size, weight and strength all come into play when utilizing self defense techniques so it is true that one technique does not fit all situations.

Remember that awareness is your first and most powerful defense tool. iPod earphones in your ear do little to help you listen for danger such as footsteps behind you and being distracted while texting does not allow you to be aware of anything except the little letters on the screen. Use common sense first & foremost.

Find a qualified self defense school and instructor to teach you the basics and maybe this will spark a desire to learn more and maybe even become a dedicated martial artist.