Ok, this posting touches on one of my peeves,
and I think it goes a long way in getting people to look at edged
weapons in a more realistic manner. I would say that about 95% of the
people that I have come across in the martial Arts look at dealing with
blades in a dangerous and extremely unrealistic manner. Essentially
they are learning how to get themselves killed. I will take any
opportunity I can to get people to open their eyes.
William
I
still come across people with the flippant attitude that defending
against a blade is as easy as just kicking it out of someone's hand.
I'll always remember the TKD instructor who proudly claimed that his 15
yr. olds could accurately kick a knife out of the hand as a realistic
reliable defense. This type of attitude is the very reason that I
started this thread in the first place. People who think that dealing
with a blade is so easy, or just a matter of doing technique A, B, or
C. You have no margin for error in going against a bladed attack. The
bottom line is that you have to train the best you can, as
realistically as possible to increase your %'s of successfully
countering an attack. There are no certainties.
One thing that
really helped open my eyes a long time ago was seeing a Coroners book
that had hundreds of pictures of people that had been killed with
different types of edged weapons/tools. Seeing what a sharp implement,
even a small knife, can do to the human body is an eye opener. Slashing
attacks can be gruesome and open up ghastly wounds immediately. Thrusts
often just look like little slits, but do major damage internally.
When
I come across this type of attitude, I'll casually ask them if they
want to try kicking the blade from my hand. I'll start out with my
blade hand forward and let them try. Of course I don't just hold it
still out there for them to target, I use my footwork to move, feint,
and gain angle on them all the while keeping my blade moving in
changing patterns. At first I'll just stay outside and try to get them
to kick. Every kick that comes into my range is either slashed our
stuck with a thrust. After I have tenderized the leg a bit, I'll move
in behind a kick and close to finish. Sometimes I'll get the response,
"well, you know how to use a knife, the average person doesn't". To
which I say; "Ok, this time I'll attack in the way that you'll most
likely encounter out in the real world". Then when they turn to go back
on the floor I run up behind them and "shank" them a bunch of times on
the back and sides of the body or neck. Not scientific, but a knife
attack your most likely to encounter. This usually throws them off and
they start thinking that I'm crazier than I really am...almost. After
they have re-gained their composure, I'll also show them that not all
knife attacks come with the blade held out front. We will go again and
this time I have my live hand forward and the blade to the rear and
close to my body. This doesn't present a weapon for you to target or to
immediately try to gain control of. You have to get past my live hand
which will be sweeping, grabbing, trapping, gouging, or eye jabbing as
I enter to distract and/or clear the way for my blade to come pumping
in. My point is that I want them to start looking at the knife in a
more realistic manner. Not just some innocuous implement that they
think is so easy to knock out of an attackers hand.
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