Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Re-post from James Keatings pages..

Mr. Keating has posted a nice observation on his nearly daily updated page MAAJAK World
the following -

"Have you noticed a near complete BLACKOUT of news from Japan? Why do you think this is? Have you noticed the news that does exist is always double-talk, confusing and difficult to really grasp? Vague bullshit is what it is. Things are very, very bad in Japan - Beyond what any of us can comprehend. Because this involves the future of life on this planet it falls beyond our chronistic vision capabilities (aka "short sighted assholes that we are). Time is truly a slippery slope when one is focused only upon the present. The terror of today shall soon enough turn into to the sorrow of tomorrow. By then too late to shift the flow of evil things and they shall have their way on this plane of existence.. Have ya noticed the blogs, websites and articles that have all suddenly popped up? Each and every one appears to be of help, claims to be Connected. How so? Mostly psy-ops, mostly its the fabled THEM of screen and legend. To THEM this is all an interesting science experiment. Dis-information and fear is their trade. There is this one Youtube cat called "Dutch".. man, what a scammer, look at the comments.. pleas from reader-believers to give them the real info, real help.. but that DUTCH he just keeps them on a string and watches'em dance while he claps his hands. Otherwise he WOULD help those who ask by providing real data-help over the shit he spits forth. The list of these game playing attention seekers is too long to note. Just be aware of their presence and agendas... take their crap w/ a grain of salt... disbelief has power - just as believing does. Just Tools / use'em."

I feel that a large part of self-defense/self-protection/self-preservation involves using our intelligence and intuition to guide us away from hazards in life - use the gift of discernment, and research your subjects well. Don't take all information from one source as the only 'facts'. Avoid the lazy road of 'cultism' - you are your own leader. As President Reagan famously put it - 'Trust, but verify'.

Sunday, March 27, 2011

Why are more Police being killed

Excellent article from George at MerCop

Why are more police being killed?
from Modern Combative Systems Blog by George

Over the last several days, I have seen this question posed on TV and the Internet. What follows is my opinion on the answer.

Many things have changed in law enforcement over the years, but one thing has remained the same. At some point the officer has to put cuffs on the bad guy and take him to jail, and some will kill to keep themselves from going back to jail. Of course for some, it is a premeditated conscious decision that they are willing to kill an officer. But in most cases, I believe, it is just a spontaneous violent reaction, in a long, long line of them. Our bad guys still grow up in a violent world where you fight for everything. On the other hand, more than ever before, we are getting officers who have never been tackled, punched in the face, or even had the breath knocked out of them by another human. This lack of inoculation to violence is coupled by the strick guidelines for people who wish to pursue a career in law enforcement. These days a defending of yourself in middle school will likely get you suspended or worse. More suppression of the natural reaction to defend yourself even when attacked.

Fast forward and the same person decides a government job would provide a decent pension after 20-25 years of age. Being free of anything in their background that would lead anyone to believe they have a violent streak, they are hired and sent to the academy.

The goal of a police academy, in theory, is to teach the police officer everything they need to know to be effective and to defend themselves and others. The reality is that they have dedicated themselves to protecting themselves from liability, instead of protecting the officers from the dangers they will face. It is not the fault of the academy staff, but rather bosses and politicians.

Firearms training is vital to the police officer, but the vast majority of situations begin with physical contact between the officer and suspect. Most systems for arrest & control or defensive tactics taught in academies become inside jokes due to their lack of effectiveness in real situations. Much of this training relies on pain compliance which is all but worthless on people under the influence of drugs and alcohol, or even against someone with an adrenaline dump. So now they bring no skills with them to the academy, and pick up techniques. So what happens is that they become dependent of things like pepper spray, the Taser, and the gun. It is no wonder why most allegations of excessive use of force involve the use of weapons besides firearms. None of which they are likely to have in their hands when inside grappling range with a suspect. Then one day they encounter a suspect who fights to kill them so they can walk away, instead of all the others who fought so they could run away.

These problems are best dealt with in in-service training, but sadly much of that time is taken with courses on cultural diversity or how to use the new computers in the car. To the bosses who are reading this, you need to also understand that realistic training for your officers will result in loss time injuries. Common sense and prevention will keep these to a minimum. But you cannot prepare for combat without incurring some bumps and bruises.

The other side of the coin is that good solid police who meet confrontation head on and don’t hesitate to use appropriate force, sometimes faster than their peers, are singled out by supervisors. Sooner or later even the most dedicated officer cannot ignore the fact that every time they use force it brings criticism. Eventually this leads to hesitation, and hesitation kills.

So to all those who are wringing their hands over why police are being killed, spare me. Just accept the fact that police need to know how to be effectively violent in the blink of an eye. This officer is not a danger to the citizen. He is an obstacle to the criminal who wishes to harm him and those whom he protects.

Self Analysis by Chirontraining

Here's a great piece, summing up a few thoughts I have nicely:
Self Analysis
A quote - 'So what are the stupid life choices? Almost all social violence happens in four kinds of places:...'

Just started (on another long flight) a book by Mark Hatmaker - No Second Chance. He also stresses awareness and attitude as keys in avoiding the use of violence in your defense. I will review it later (probably next month).

Until then, train hard and train smart.

Thursday, March 3, 2011

Stinger post

Comtech stinger



A useful 'pressure point massage' tool, relatively innocuous, low profile (esp. the clear version in low light) - I recommend getting a few for friends and loved ones. The Stinger also helps to keep those pesky keys from going missing. A great alternative to holding keys in the fist (which can damage your hand as much as an attackers face).

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Long time between posts...

Been busy with career change, studying, home stuff, training, etc., etc.

Here are a couple of cool links for you.

old-guys-in-the-martial-arts



learn-wing-chun-kung-fu



learnmartialartsonline.blogspot.com

From a YKM brother in the Philippines - with the world situation, maybe we need to look at 'self-defense' in a larger light. I do, some people I look up to do (thank you, Mr. Keating) - it's a dynamic, changing world. Don't be afraid to expand your mind, do some research. The old ways work, and can be adapted to modern times.

Drop me a comment, let me know what you would like to see here on the blog.