Not long after early men hit each other with fists, they picked up the first weapon, a stick.
Typically when I talk about weapon use, it takes the logical progressing of selection, carry, deployment and use. For early man, the idea of selecting the perfect stick was more simplified than it is these days. They had the good fortune of not being subjected to tactical marketing.
I was lucky enough, at least in my opinion, to actually hit people with sticks early in my Law Enforcement career and see what worked and what didn’t. During my career, I carried the Koga Stick, PR-24, and several different size ASPS. Each stick had its pros and cons, mostly due to carry issues. I’ve continued to be a fan of the straight stick, a tool that in my honest opinion continues to be misunderstood, underutilized, and overlooked. [Read More…]
Volumes have been written about improvised weapons. There are always people who desire tools that fly below the radar at work and when traveling, especially today. Some like to dedicate a great deal of time to thinking about what they can get on a plane. Truthfully, I am more worried about my exposure on the ground between checking my bags and getting them back. Face it: if you are on a plane and there is a problem, you are more likely to be killed in the crash than by someone on the plane.
Recently I taught a pre-deployment course for the military. The students were given a homework assignment. They were told to come in the next day and tell us about one improvised weapon in their room. I was puzzled by some of the answers, which included lamps, irons, and even the TV. I asked the students to tell me which parts of the body they would target with their weapons. Most said the head. A few with the iron mentioned the head, but they said that they could also use the electrical cord to choke an attacker. My thought was that too many people have watched the Bourne movies. [Read More…]
Most people reading this article are interested in personal protection and preparedness. Sometimes people fixate on a specific threat, whether it be an armed attacker or a weather emergency.
They go overboard in anticipation of that one thing happening, to the exclusion of everything else. For example, students show up to a firearms course without the appropriate first aid gear to deal with a gunshot wound.
Let’s talk about some common scenarios and the time you have to deal with them. [Read More…]
If you look in any gun magazine, you’ll find a lot of pictures with people holding and shooting pistols, shotguns and rifles with two hands. Because they are stills, we obviously can’t see people moving.
For most people reading this, we can break our need for firearms down into two areas, home defense and the street. The focus of this article is going to be home defense and the need to move and operate from within using long guns, by “making them short.” [Read More…]
When it comes to martial arts, the arguments over which is best never seems to stop. Many people consider their art almost a religion. And like religions, loyalty to beliefs in martial arts can get out of control.
Similar to those who are secure in their spiritual beliefs, people who are secure in their martial beliefs should be able to consider others thoughts, ideas, and perceptions without necessarily accepting them as their own. You may learn something. [Read More…]
Many people use the phrases “edged weapons” and “knife fighting” interchangeably. That is far from correct, or at least it is if you share the same definitions that I do.
Edged Weapons -Any tool that by design or improvisation can slash or penetrate human flesh.
Knife Fighting – Usually culturally inspired and traditionally taught interpersonal combat using fixed blade knives.
Regardless of which one you think of, lets look at the modern edged weapon threat and what you may encounter. [Read More…]
It was 30DEC99 and my son was a patient at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore. He had been born in September with a serious heart defect. My wife and I were very anxious for several reasons, since he was stable my biggest fear was being stuck in the ghetto of Baltimore for Y2K.
I had secured leave from the police department so that I could take my family to my parents house and watch the world from a safe distance. What worried me then, as it does now with major social events, is not the danger of the events themselves, but the actions of those who are unprepared and desperate.
As we know, Y2K turned out to be a non-event. Either way we had been discharged from the hospital and traveled to my parents house to enjoy the new year. The interesting thing about Y2K was that unlike any other event it was scheduled. We knew the exact time and date and were given time to plan for it. For many, it was their first time dabbling in the survival community, which is now known as the preparedness community. [Read More…]
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