Unpopular Opinions

• Karate and other martial arts often have little street value. Want to really defend yourself? Get a gun and learn how to shoot.
• Running away from a fight isn't always cowardly. Sometimes it's just smart.
• Learning pre-arranged forms or kata will not make you a better fighter.
• Training with traditional weapons such as sai, or nunchaku have no practical utility. Like weapons? Learn a live stick fighting art, like Escrima.
• Punching a makiwara (striking post), or shin striking hard objects to toughen your limbs is self-mutilation.
• There are no "good" styles, only good teachers. And truth be told, there really are some bad styles.
• A high ranking instructor once told me that the more skill you have as a fighter the less you'll want to fight. My observations of some highly skilled karateka through the years leaves me to conclude: if only that were true.
• Masters and so-called luminaries in the martial arts are not life coaches. In matters unrelated to training, do not ask them for advice. Ever. They are not equipped to help you deal with your personal problems.
• Colored belts do more harm than good in developing competent practitioners.
• Realizing all the aforementioned items doesn't make you a pessimist. It makes you a realist. Enlightenment is not cosmic consciousness, but the rare ability to see things as they really are.

Legalize It

Nunchucks are back!

Well, they never really went anywhere. But if you happen to live in New York, you are now legally cleared to carry them. New Yorkers are no longer prohibited from possessing the time-honored Okinawan weapons, courtesy of a ruling rendered by a federal judge on December 14, 2018. The story goes that in 1981 a martial arts trainee, Jim M. Maloney, was arrested in New York City following a public demo with the dreaded nunchucks. Unbeknownst to Maloney, nunchucks (or 'chuka sticks') have been banned in New York since 1974. After graduating from law school years later, Maloney began to draft a challenge to the now-decades long New York state ban on nunchucks.

Cops in various municipalities have included nunchaku (Japanese, lit. 'twin sticks') for years as part of their restraining arsenal. A while back I posted about a nunchucks certification program offered for police in California. Nunchucks are currently banned in several states.

Following the kung-fu movie craze of the 70s, nunchucks fever swept the land, with users brutalizing themselves on more than one occasion. I can't blame lawmakers for regarding them as a problem at the time, but times change. With the ban lifted, I don't see an army of nunchaku wielding maniacs tearing up the countryside. It's an interesting ruling in an era of the politicizing of citizens' rights to keep and bear arms of various stripes.

Have Kung-fu Weapons — Will Travel

Somebody was caught about a week ago (5/7) trying to get through security at LaGuardia Airport in New York with a cache of martial arts weapons that he must have been saving for the coming civil war, the apocalypse, or maybe his ex-wife. He had some collection. Really, what was this nut thinking?

The unnamed New Haven, Connecticut resident was arrested after being stopped by Transportation Security Administration officers at the airport’s check-in area on Saturday.

Several martial arts weapons described as deadly, including three throwing knives, a traditional throwing star, expandable throwing star, as well as a dagger were located after the officers detected weapons among his carry-on items, TSA spokeswoman Lisa Farbstein said in a statement.

Expandable throwing star. That thing is more than half-a-foot in diameter. How about that! Does it return to you like a boomerang? In kobudo arts which are taught alongside of Okinawan karate, weapons are rarely thrown. I want to keep my weapons close to me, but not when I'm traveling abroad. Daggers and throwing stars are definitely frowned upon by the TSA.

For the curious, here's the TSA's list of self-defense items that could get you thrown in the pokey if you try boarding a jumbo jet with them. (Click the "self defense" tab if you visit the site.) Note that these may get you through a checking area, but not as a carry-on.

The final decision rests with the TSA officer on whether an item is allowed through the checkpoint.

• Billy Clubs
• Black Jacks
• Brass Knuckles
• Kubatons
• Martial Arts Weapons
• Night Sticks
• Nunchucks
• Self Defense Sprays:
One 4 fl. oz. (118 ml) container of mace or pepper spray is permitted in checked baggage provided it is equipped with a safety mechanism to prevent accidental discharge. Self-defense sprays containing more than 2 percent by mass of tear gas (CS or CN) are prohibited in checked baggage. For more information, visit faa.gov
• Stun Guns/Shocking Devices
  
• Throwing Stars

Any sharp objects in checked baggage should be sheathed or securely wrapped to prevent injury to baggage handlers and Security Officers.

In the meantime, happy traveling!

Nunchucks for Cops

The police department in Anderson, California has decided to include nunchaku into its arsenal of weaponry. Sgt. Casey Day has recently been certified to use nunchaku for dealing with lawbreakers. "These were kind of designed with a different goal in mind to be more of a control weapon, but like I said, it's not like we can't use these as an impact weapon," Day explained. "They work really good as an impact weapon, but we try to emphasis a control tool over impact."

(For the uninitiated, nunchaku belong to a family of traditional weapons called kobudo that emphasized the use of farming implements for self-defense when weapons bans were enacted at various times during Okinawa's long history of dealing with Chinese, Japanese and Western imperialists. Nunchaku were originally used to shear crops, I've been told.)

What the criteria is to be "certified" to use nunchaku is unclear. The type the Anderson police will use will be made of plastic batons connected with a nylon rope. Interestingly, nunchaku are illegal in California. But this isn't the first time that cops have attempted to adopt an Okinawan martial arts weapon into its program. Starting in the early 70s, billy clubs were augmented with side-mounted handles, inspired by the tonfa.

Police defensive tactics, whether they involve weapons or hand-to-hand combat, generally follow the following principles in most municipalities:

• Techniques must be easy to learn and easy to use for a majority of officers.
• Techniques must be practical and workable in most street environments.
• Techniques must easily integrate into department policy and procedures.

With the list of gear cops are required to use now, nunchaku would just make things more cumbersome. Police already have tasers, sidearms, batons, handcuffs, and more recently, body cams to deal with. Nunchaku techniques are difficult and often impractical. Even among experienced practitioners, at times they can be as injurious to the user as the one defending against. I vote no to this idea.


(h/t: reddit/martialarts)


(Note to readers: I realize that "nunchucks" is an Anglophonic aberration for the proper nunchaku. The use of the former in my post title was meant to have mass appeal.)

Too Extreme For The UFC

Years ago I went to an Eskrima workshop that was offered at the karate school that I was attending at the time. Eskrima is a Filipino martial art that employs the use of rattan sticks (among other weapons) of various length, similar to the Japanese jo. Eskrima calls for a pair of sticks to be used in unison (at least as what I had been shown on this day). The strikes, parries, blocks and counters of the style knows no bounds. For sure, any type of weapons training will end things quickly in the real world. For the uninitiated, one hard whack on the knuckles from these things and it's game over.

In the late 80s, students of Dan Inosanto (a master Eskrimador and former disciple of Bruce Lee) developed the Dog Brothers style of full-contact weapons fighting. Practitioners use little or next-to-no protective gear for single and double-stick sparring, but also mock knifework and even chain whipping that combines standup hand-to-hand fighting and ground game similar to MMA complete with tapouts. Matches are often brutal and bloody preceded by the caveat that "there isn’t any suing each other...no one spends the night in the hospital" and at the end of the day "we’re friends."

The credo of the Dog Brothers system, "The greater the dichotomy, the profounder the transformation. Higher Consciousness through Harder Contact," refers to the centering of awareness despite the intense adrenaline rush and pain experienced during a real fight. It is with the hope that the practitioner's lessons "carries over to the rest of one’s life; and should one ever need to use one’s skills that it will be done with a calmness that allows for good judgement as well as good skill."

When the UFC began building steam in the mid 90s, they considered using Dog Brothers stickfighting for airtime. But after viewing a demo tape of DB in action, the UFC decided against it as it was deemed too violent, even for the type of viewership they were catering to. A letter dated 1995 to DB's headquaters reads:

[T]he UFC tournament has pushed the boundaries of what is acceptable in TV sports entertainment. The political foes that this event has attracted, because of the tournament, has made us acutely sensitive to what the limits are on North American television. So it is with great reluctance that I must tell you that stickfighting, such as your group has pioneered in the USA, is just too extreme for the UFC format at this time. We have the utmost respect for your group's skills and fighting spirit. Perhaps like the UFC, your type of fighting is just ahead of its time.

In addition to the stick (30") a DB stylist should be able to handle himself proficiently with clubs, knives, staff (54"), improvised weapons and empty-handed techniques in all ranges and against multiple assailants. Like Filipino arts, empty-handed skills are learned after weapons training.

The Dog Brothers martial arts are not for everyone says the group's guiding force, Marc 'Crafty Dog' Denny. Players could fortify themselves with heavy protective gear, a la kendo, but that would be counterproductive. "The danger and risk are necessary to the transformitive nature of the experience."


(h/t: reddit/martialarts -- link includes mildly graphic video)

Translations of Chinese Martial Arts Manuals

For those into Chinese boxing and weapons systems here's a site written by Paul Brennan that translates into English an impressive collection of original Chinese works by various authors dated from 1875 to 1963 on Taiji, Shaolin, Xingyiquan, among other arts.

Texts include sections on self-defense, saber training, pushing-hands techniques, fitness, diet and philosophy.

Esoteric topics such as breathwork ("energy" or chi) and intent (xing) are discussed in Li Jianqiu's treatise on The Art of Xingyi Boxing (1920):

If you gather energy into your chest, you will gasp and it will not stay for long. If you gather energy into your lower abdomen, it will stay long and not hinder your breathing. It will accumulate gradually until it is abundant. This kind of energy is vast, and is more readily led by the intent.

Explanations and illustrations appear throughout on form and function as well as the differences between internal and external theory. Many of these works emphasize the unity of mind, body and spirit along with encouraging the would-be aspirant to cultivate a proper attitude and moral integrity in relation to the martial arts.

[Note to readers: Chinese martial arts are not my forte; for those schooled in this area I'll leave it to you to decide the value of these texts in today's world.]

Karate or Karate-Kobudo?

Recently I found myself training at a Matsubayashi Shorin-ryu school working indigenous Okinawan weapons: kobudo. The chief instructor asked me to advance with my bo (staff) while paired up with another trainee, so I instinctively stepped forward using a cross-stepping kosa-dachi. I'm told Shorin-ryu stylists don't (or quite rarely) utilize this stepping scheme into their bo training so this sparked some counterpoint on the matter.

The next topic of discussion was much broader: As karateka why should we even bother with kobudo?

Given the vast catalogue of karate techniques one must master there seems to be little time left available for Okinawan weapons training. Kobudo is a martial art unto itself, not something that needs to be hyphenated with karate, a practical form of self-defense. Okinawan karate by default includes kobudo, for the most part; Japanese styles such as Shotokan do not officially incorporate any weapons into its syllabus.

When Tatsuo Shimabuku was codifying Isshinryu karate in the late 50s he began his training in kobudo arts with the eminent weapons master Taira Shinken. Thus Isshinryu karate and kobudo was born. Whether Shimabuku did this keep up with his Okinawan contemporaries who were doing the same (possibly more for cultural than practical reasons) or to distance his new "maverick" style from mainland Japanese stylists who had renounced weapons training is unclear. At any rate, Isshinryu karate that does not include kobudo is not Isshinryu the art, strictly speaking.

An Isshinryu instructor I know with a long list of credentials holds the rank of 5th dan in Matayoshi kobudo, a system that includes sai, tonfa, bo, eaku, kama, nunchaku and some other weapons I'm not familiar with. The principles and methodology taught in the Matayoshi system are somewhat different from Isshinryu kobudo. In Ufuchiku kobujutsu a total of twenty-five weapons are taught. Now that's quite a catalogue. Certainly it takes considerable time to become adept at handling a single weapon, let alone two dozen. The point being is that if you're training in karate and it includes kobudo, something is going to get short shrift -- and it probably won't be the karate.

Surviving a Home Invasion

Has anyone taken measures to ward off the possibility of a home invasion? Certainly, the very thought of one should be horrifying. But what to do? Keep a bat or some other handy weapon in the closet or drawer? Is owning a gun and keeping it at home a good idea if you have young children?

Do you think your studies in a traditional martial art would fare well against an intruder after being awoken in the middle of the night?

I recently received a link to a home alarm systems guide which also includes a story about a woman who was robbed at home after a day of shopping. Fortunately the woman came out of it unscathed but understandably shaken. She offers the following tips:

1. Always keep your head up when walking outside, this lets people know you are paying attention.

2. Never wear headphones in both ears when outside. If you must wear them only use one ear bud so your other ear is free to listen to your surroundings.

3. Try not to carry your purse in your hand, keep it on your shoulder where it is secure and cannot easily be removed.

4. Never unlock your car door until you can clearly see the surrounding area and are sure there is no one waiting to jump into your car.

5. Car keys are an excellent weapon; they are sharp and can be used if someone is grabbing you. If they are poked with the key they will quickly become distracted long enough for you to run.

6. Never be afraid to scream; make the most of the voice given to you and let people know you are in trouble.

7. If someone grabs your arm and you can perform a distraction drill; this can involve many things including stepping on their foot, pinching their other arm with your free hand. When you do the distraction, pull your arm free. If you do not have a free hand, use your knee. You know where to hit!

8. If you cannot use your arms or your knee, head butting is always a great option. This will blur their vision and distract them. At that point you should free your arm and run for help.

9. If you have a free hand, gouge them in the eyes, this will cause their eyes to water and give you the opportunity to run. Punching someone in the nose will always create the eye watering effect.

10. Should you see someone standing suspiciously near or next to your car, do not approach it; walk back into the building you just came from and call for help!

The underlying theme here is awareness. Any additional suggestions would be appreciated.

Choose Your Weapons

I've never been a huge fan of traditional Okinawan weapons (kobudo). After all, karate - the empty hand way - forgoes the need for anything besides relying on the human body as a means for self defense. Kobudo is a bona fide fighting system unto itself, so when it's taught alongside of karate (as it usually is) at least some of its techniques are going to get short shrift. Most schools simply don't devote the same time, energy and passion into this martial art when you already have your work cut out for you in the equally in-depth (and far more practical) system of karate.

For the kobudo practitioner, the trick is to not regard your weapons as something separate from yourself. There's really nothing mystical about becoming one with, or extending ki into your weapons. There's a story about jiu-jitsu master Sokaku Takeda breaking the ribs of a hooligan with the snap of a wet towel when he summoned ki-energy into his makeshift weapon. In medieval kenjutsu the sword was considered a sacred artifact that possessed a life force of its own.

Some karate styles offer a myriad of kobudo weapons. In Isshinryu karate the predominant weapons that are taught are bo (6 ft. staff) and sai (tri-pronged truncheon). I favor the sai because I feel the techniques are reasonably similar to what I've already learned in karate. I also like the idea that the sai was probably developed to counter larger and heavier weapons, such as the sword and bo. Since I've settled on my weapon of choice I decided it was time to spring for some quality sai. So this past July, I put in my order for a pair of Shureido sai, natural black. A Shureido rep told me this was a hot item and that it would take some time before a shipment came in. Three months to the day - on my birthday, no less - my sai finally arrived. It certainly wasn't planned that way, but I'm happy to say it was worth the wait. It was a sai of relief. Sorry, I couldn't resist.

Take It Outside

Today I took my Okinawan kobudo weapons outdoors and went to town. I know that's a bit of an oxymoron, but I'm just trying to make a point. There's just not too many schools that will structurally accommodate the swinging of a six foot bo. In my day I've come too close to breaking the overhead florescent bulbs (also six feet in length, ironically) wielding my weapon with reckless abandon. I like to feel free when I train.

Does your school ever conduct training outdoors? One summer day we took a class down to the beach for a two mile run followed by some basic drills done in the surf while drawing some spectators. Kicking in knee-high water provides a tough workout. Peter Urban, the legendary goju karate pioneer in the States, would occasionally have his uniform clad students run down the streets of New York outside his famous Chinatown dojo. I admit, Canal Street bears no semblance to a nature trail, but I'm sure a group of karate trainees jogging across busy Manhattan intersections was cheap advertising for Urban's school.

Most of the twentieth century founders favored rigorous outdoor training at some point. As a youth Gichin Funakoshi would practice kata during the midst of a raging typhoon to forge his spirit. Mas Oyama spent extended periods in the wilderness performing karate and Zen meditation under frigid waterfalls as part of his shugyo (austere training) regimen.

Fitness guru Jack LaLanne used to run these TV ads during the 70s for his health clubs with the promise of escaping the winter chill ("Baby it's cold outside!"). The classical dojo was not designed as a total haven from the elements - a departure from the insulated, air conditioned modern facilities. As historian Donn Draeger noted, the traditional training hall is "hot during summer, cold during winter; it has approximately the temperature of the environment beyond its walls." I really don't recommend training during extremely hot or cold conditions unless certain precautions are taken. Keeping yourself hydrated is a must during any strenuous activity, especially in the heat. Stretching and warming up the muscles and connective tissues is imperative prior to training, particularly when it's cold.

For me, martial arts training outdoors is ideal. There's nothing like it: fresh air, freedom, sunshine (when available) and if you live in the 'burbs like me you benefit from the surrounding oxygen-exuding plant life. Such is the symbiosis of living on our planet, for now, as long as we don't continue to ravage her natural resources.

Cane Fighting

A British martial arts instructor has been teaching senior citizens the art of the cane. Apparently his lessons have paid off when an elderly woman he teaches managed to fend off the attack of two muggers. "She went to the police station because she was worried about having hurt the boys," said instructor Kevin Garwood, who has been teaching traditional martial arts since the 70s in addition to his walking stick self defense class for about three years. The focus of Garwood's classes are awareness of one's surroundings, planning a route home, and skills that include simple choke holds, joint locks and throws that all incorporate the use of the walking stick. "Before you go out of the house, think about the route. Then even if you are walking slowly, if you are positive and your brain is engaged, you look less like a victim," said Garwood.

Because the elderly tend to be targets for crime, the walking stick makes for a convenient and convincing weapon without appearing too conspicuous. I've detailed some other handy weapons that are generally concealed. The cane as an effective fighting weapon is nothing new and has made appearances in a number of cultures. In Portugal, the fighting cane is called the jogo do pau. In France, savateurs train with la canne. Cannistes wear protective gear and fencing helmets in matches. A similar weapon in Japan is the jo, a wooden staff about four feet long.

At any rate, if you're planning to go out and about with your trusty walking stick in public, do so without any fanfare. As Teddy Roosevelt once advised, "Speak softly and carry a big stick."

*See also:
Way of the Short Staff by Michael P. Garofalo. Exhaustive research and links on cane fighting techniques, history and styles.

Armed and Dangerous

Bruce Lee was my first martial arts hero as he was for everyone else from my generation. Originally he appeared in the short lived The Green Hornet TV series, but when I think of Lee the image that really stands out in my mind is that Enter The Dragon movie poster with his dreaded nunchaku held out in a menacing pose. Of all the traditional weapons (kobudo) I'd have to say that the nunchaku are possibly the most potentially lethal, because of its whip-like action. Like its kobudo relatives, its original purpose was for farming; in this case to thresh grain in the fields. Pre-industrial farming was quite arduous, and it didn't take long for the oppressed but hardened Okinawans (who were banned from using conventional weapons by foreign rule) to figure out that these farming implements could be used as convincing deterrents against a variety of neighboring invaders.

Over the weekend a British lad was killed by some lunatic showcasing his nunchaku skills, and since this occurred at a youth party I'm guessing alcohol was involved. A few months ago a couple of martial-art "retail suppliers" from my area were busted for selling samurai swords, throwing stars and the like to minors. In my day, drug paraphernalia were the hot novelty items, not Asian weapons. Socrates' assertion that kids' behavior has never been worse is probably wrong, but they do seem to be more violent today than ever, especially as one witnesses the increase in use of armed security and metal detectors at public schools.

Somewhere I have a book with an old photo of Taira Shinken - the preeminent Okinawan kobudo master - training with a pair of sai (tri-pronged daggers) while donning some heavy full-body protective gear, possibly for some free-style action. Could you imagine sparring with these things? Supposedly it was US marines that trained in Isshinryu karate who created bo-bo kumite to simulate an actual battle between two bo (staff) wielders. It's a prearranged form, but with some tweaking and a little know-how it can be made to look like a real fight.

Although historically weapons came first in the martial arts, most schools won't introduce traditional weapons until the student approaches a brown belt grade. Karate is a way of life, but I'm not sure what kind of life skills can be gleaned from the practice of kobudo. Regardless, kobudo - like karate - represents a part of the culture, heritage, and history of Okinawa.

Handy Weapons

Most karate styles, especially of Okinawan origin, include kobudo (weapons nee farming tools) as part of their curriculum. While your hand-to-hand combative skills are taken with you wherever you go, walking around town with your prized nunchaku draped over your shoulders to ward off the bad guys is ill-advised. Some of these traditional weapons (such as the nunchaku) are illegal to carry in some US states and abroad. So to assuage the attention that one would normally get from traipsing about looking like a feudal warrior, a line of nifty hand-held devices have been created that are both concealable and effective for self defense.

In the 70s, Tak Kubota of gosoku-ryu karate introduced the Kubotan, a five-inch plastic mini-baton that attaches to a keyring. Kubota originally intended his creation to be used by female police officers and offered an array of convincing pressure-point techniques that could be used to subdue a violent, non-compliant suspect.



Since its appearance, a number of variant knockoffs have been made available to the public that have been modified with spikes or prongs, but the legality of these newfangled doodads are questionable. In the United Kingdom, the Kubotan has been classified as an offensive weapon, but for the most part remains unregulated in the US. An Isshinryu karate instructor from my area teaches one version of the Kubotan called the shu-chu as part of a self-defense course in her school. The techniques are simple and prove to work quickly, as it takes about a second to make uke tap out or drop to the mat.

Some of these items have been influenced by Asian martial arts, but others just hawk the martial arts moniker for hype. Keep that in mind the next time you want to purchase a "ninja" keychain.

Internal Styles

Winning by yielding. Maximum efficiency with minimum effort. This is the distilled essence of internal martial arts. Interestingly, internal styles (which include tai chi, some schools of Chinese boxing, and aikido) are not always presented with combat effectiveness in mind, although their progenitors were bona fide warriors in a league with the early soke of karate and jiu-jitsu. The development of chi or ki (subtle yet highly potent bio-energy connected with breathing) and the ability to blend with an attacker's force are topics that are taught within all martial-art systems, but receive a special emphasis in the internal martial arts. Indeed, internal styles seen as a separate category of martial arts didn't even appear until the late nineteenth century, although its principles date back to antiquity.

Tai chi is quite possibly the world's oldest martial art. It is so old that its origins are lost. The practice of forms is the predominant method of training. The slow, connected movements of tai chi forms give them an aesthetic quality that make them beautiful to watch. In contrast to the typical two-minute kata of karate, the famous Long Form of tai chi can take more than half an hour to complete! Although serenity of mind and fitness are the modern goals for the practitioner of this ancient system, self defense applications do exist and enormous power can be generated through its movements via the summoning of chi/energy.

Like judo, aikido is a modern style developed from jiu-jitsu. Its founder, Morihei Ueshiba, rejected what he saw as the harmful warrior philosophy of his day in creating his "art of peace". The O'Sensei wanted to create a style that was strictly defensive in nature. Circular movements without breaks are used, and focuses on those techniques that keep one from close contact with an assailant. A deeply spiritual art, there is no competition in traditional aikido.

If you do karate and you're a kobudo enthusiast, it may interest you to know that internal styles feature an interesting array of weapons. Sword forms are taught in tai chi. In bagua, specialized weapons include the saber, the spear, and deer horn knives, which have two crescent-shaped blades that are crossed.

Most of the people that I know who have been involved in teaching karate for many years hold the internal martial arts in high regard. The nature and methods of these styles seem to lessen the frequency and severity of training related injuries typically seen in karate, especially as one ages. Pursuing an internal style later in life might not be a bad idea. We're not getting older, we're just getting better.

One Strike, One Kill

Many practitioners don't realize, or forget, that weapons came first in the martial arts. Jiu-jitsu, one of the forerunners of the empty-handed systems, was actually developed much later than the classical choice of weapon of feudal Japan: the sword. The sword (ken) was considered the soul of the classical warrior in both the East and West. Almost any cut delivered during a medieval swordfight was lethal and final. It should go without saying that both the kenshi and chivalrous knight took their training quite seriously.

Weapons are taught alongside most modern martial art systems. On Okinawa, customary weapons were banned on and off for centuries by various invading kingdoms. Ingenuity became the way of strategy and deception and kobudo was born. Since farming was a way of life there, its implements could be used as authentic weapons if the need arose. Kobudo, while considered as an integral part of traditional karate, is really a system unto itself. In Japan, kendo (the way of the sword) is actually regarded as the quintessential budo form, in part, because of its roots to kenjutsu (swordfighting). In iaido, practice involves removing a live blade from the scabbard as quickly and efficiently as possible. This idea brings to mind the gunslinger drawing his revolver from the holster during the wild shootout days of the Old West. Weaponry is yet another aspect of the martial arts that remind us that traditional training's original focus was about life and death.

Police Action

Cops have it rough. Law enforcement agents of every kind must find a delicate balance between dealing with the bad guys and self restraint. One cop I used to know (a black belt) once told me that many years of martial arts training does not always compensate for what goes down in just one day on a New York street. Chuck Norris, stationed at a US Air Force base in Korea as a military cop in the early 60s, dropped a rather large drunken Sergeant in a barroom melee with a single front snap kick to the groin. Crime really doesn't pay.

A modified version of self defense is taught at law enforcement training facilities, but with the provision that the would be defendant can walk into a jail cell in one piece. A police baton was re-designed to resemble the tonfa (an Okinawan rice mill lever) - a nightstick with an appendant short handle attached perpendicular to the main body of the weapon. But it was abandoned when cops found it so unwieldy to use. Cops must feel like they have their hands tied when dealing with dangerous types. When subduing a criminal, for example, choke holds are strictly prohibited, and obviously for good reason. Of course, this all runs counter to what the martial arts were originally designed for. The good guys are expected to play by modern rules.

Women Who Fight Back

I had to laugh when I saw this photo of the young lady performing a hiza tsui on this hapless fellow. Makes you wonder what he did to deserve it! Many of the women I've spoken with through the years tell me they came to the martial arts because of some negative experiences they've had with men. Typically, these unfortunate events happen at the workplace. While kneeing Romeo in the groin will probably get you fired, the alternative isn't too promising either. Personally, I don't have alot of faith in these ethics training programs that some jobs provide.

Being confronted in an unlit parking lot late at night is a terrifying prospect for most women. At times like this, long fingernails, high heels, and hat pins make convincing deterrents. Kobudo (farming implements that double as weapons) is taught within Okinawan karate styles, and household weapons are as quick as they are handy. For women (and men), it's important to understand that brevity is the soul of having an effective encounter with someone intent on harming you. This reminds me of a popular saying depicted on T-shirts from years ago: "Do Unto Others, Then Run!"