Where’s Your Gun, Rambo? In the Car?

“Guns stolen from cars! This is outrageous.” – civilian “How can police be this stupid to abandon their guns unprotected in a car?” – civilian “I’m wondering why you would ever leave a gun in the car if you’re not there?” – civilian “I never leave my gun in the car.” – civilian “My gun … Continue reading Where’s Your Gun, Rambo? In the Car?

Hey, You Can’t Grab That Stick! It’s a Machete!

Play it again Sam… “You must remember this. A stick is just a stick. A stick is not a sword. The fundamental things in FMA, changed as time….goes….by…” Filipino stick training. Filipino martial arts. When it comes to the FMA stick, it’s kind of schizophrenic. As usual I write about things as they “come up.” … Continue reading Hey, You Can’t Grab That Stick! It’s a Machete!

The “Mister Freeze” Finish – and Are You Training to Shoot Unarmed People?

See something interesting about this photo from a gun magazine? Anyone? Can you spot it? Two guys. Apparently a fight has started. But some readers and viewers haven’t spotted it yet? The bad guy is…unarmed. No knife. No gun. Your eyes may glaze over the fact because we see the likes of it so often. … Continue reading The “Mister Freeze” Finish – and Are You Training to Shoot Unarmed People?

Kathump! A Painful Look at Tomahawk and Axe Training.

Tomahawk, hatchet, axe, Pick a noun. Tomahawk sounds cooler.  The last few years, my Facebook and Youtube pages have been peppered with various superstar guys doing/teaching theee….Tomahawk! Or Axe! I absorb the clips with some amazement, confusion, trepidation and distaste. Am I seeing an audition for Flash Dance or real-life, “Axe Combatives?” The fad goes … Continue reading Kathump! A Painful Look at Tomahawk and Axe Training.

Frigid to Red Hot Fighting – Cold Shooting? Cold Fighting?

Frigid to Red Hot Fighting – Fighting Cold from Red Hot No, fighting cold is not about being mugged in Alaska or just a concern for the 10th Mountain Division. “Shooting cold” is a term thrown around here and there by smart people in the gun training business, but also relates the ambush in hand, … Continue reading Frigid to Red Hot Fighting – Cold Shooting? Cold Fighting?

Personality of the Knife

Knives have personalities. The generic look. The generic history. Military look. Kitchen look. Slashing look. Stabbers. Think of some more! Even the personality of the person carrying or holding the knife changes the…personality of the knife. The personal attachment look. What is the personality of your knife? I think there are several factors in knife … Continue reading Personality of the Knife

Escalation! “I PULL, THEN HE PULLS!”

Trauma and drama. Years ago in a seminar in Kentucky, USA, an attendee, someone with zero martial or martial arts experience, just a regular guy attending a gun and knife seminar, asked… “Someone confronts me over something. Maybe there will be a fight. It’s – you know- getting tense. If I pull my knife to…to … Continue reading Escalation! “I PULL, THEN HE PULLS!”

Words Fail…The Mysteries of De-Escalation.

In this age of widespread interest in de-escalation and verbal skills to defuse any and all encounters, this is a tale about how convoluted and difficult a quick, on-the-spot verbal solution might be. It’s a short story from a case I worked on. A driver pulled his truck up into a handicapped parking space to … Continue reading Words Fail…The Mysteries of De-Escalation.

The Big Filipino Martial Arts Turning Point

   When was this? This big, “Filipino martial arts turning point” for me? Keep in mind, this is just me and my personal view on things. Don’t hate me cuz I’m viewtiful! I started doing FMA in 1986, in among other arts like JKD, and had been doing the classic karate and jujitsu (not the … Continue reading The Big Filipino Martial Arts Turning Point

The Car as a Coffin

     Back in the 1970s, the 80s and even the 90s, this phrase “the car as a coffin” was a warning, a cop-training-phrase, a “word to the wise” about being stuck in the car and being killed while stuck by an outside shooter. The advice was to…       “Get out of the car! … Continue reading The Car as a Coffin