FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Martial Arts for the
Civilian
copyright 1994 Chas
Clements
Martial Arts is usually
thought of as a practice for the warriors of the King. Who needs it more
than the civilian Citizen?
My Fellow Americans! In case
most of you have not noticed, you do not belong to an Ee-lite military
fighting force, you can't become a Reserve Police Officer and carry your
'piece' with you and you don't live in a place that allows you to 'go
forth armed'. Well, What's a Mother to Do??
The long time martial arts
practitioner, certainly the police and the judiciary, and the private
security forces would have you trust to the intentions of your fellow
man and fight with your hands. Yeah, Right- I don't eat with my hands,
why should I fight with them. My Daddy told me that a grown man should
be armed and expect the same from others, it makes for a polite society.
Noone enslaves an armed man or steals his property, they don't rape and
abuse an armed woman, there is not an abused armed minority- the terms
are mutually exclusive.
Who better to trust with arms
than the 'moral citizen'; flower of our system- producer of riches,
protector of the weak, holding the treasure of our society for
posterity? No law of morality attaches to the out-law. He has made his
choice to live as not respecting our covenant- no protection of that law
should accrue to the bastard.
The citizens choices about
weapons seem to be restricted to three; concealed weapons, tools used as
weapons, weapons of opportunity (battlefield pickups). Well Friends,
that has been true since the Hideyoshi sword hunts, George III's
disarming of Ireland and before. The King wants his safety- and so do
His men. If you'll take the Kings' shilling, you'll do the Kings' work-
if that is the disarming of your family and friends, so be it. The
citizen is then called upon to be a more devious martial artist- he must
be able to defend himself from the professional as well as from his
fellows.
A concealed weapon is the
usual first choice because it is simplest, your' only enemy is
Authority- if you live a circumspect life, you may carry anything you
care to do and never have contact with someone to whom carrying a weapon
is an offense in itself. A deliberate weapon is a psychological and
philosophical statement. It settles you in the posture of martial
intent- I will defend myself and my loved ones to the death (preferably;
his). It accepts the responsibility of any adult citizen for his/her
actions. It gives you the edge of the proper tool for the job at hand.
It removes the fear of the smaller and weaker of us for the size and
youth and strength of the common predators.
Some of the common concealed
weapons are guns, fighting blades, blackjacks & truncheons and gas or
blinding weapons. The prejudice in favor of guns/gas is a matter of
intent to agress from a convenient distance. That is a convenience that
you pay for dearly! They are hard to 'hide' or disguise. Ususally they
are volatile in themselves; heat sensitive, explosive under compression,
easy to ignite or set off, easy to use by fools. We're not really
talking about arming to confront an active enemy, as one would belt on a
fighting pistol- we're speaking to carrying something day in and day out
for a common non-agressive citizen to defend himself with against the
predators.
Remember that in the function
of the combative distance, the military wants to engage from the
farthest distance, the Police from the middle distance, but the mugger
is right up next to you. Your weapon must function best in the short
distance, leave the defense of Czechoslovakia to our European troops.
The concealed dagger;
double-edged, stout entering point, razor sharp with a secure grip has
been the choice of living civilians for a long time. It affords all the
edge you can get on a good piece of steel, defence against an armored
opponent, and a warm feeling in the pit of your stomach that you're
doing the right thing.
For the 'thump & pump' crowd,
a walking stick about the size of a point shortened pool cue with a
lovely decorative head. Even dogs understand the implications of a stout
stick in the hands of a determined defender. It isn't by accident that
travelers since farthest antiquity carried a long staff and a good stout
knife.
When we conceal our weapon as
a tool, it is good to designate that object as a weapon only and not
utilize it as an actual tool. It gives the psychological posture of the
Warrior. Hammers, knives, steelyards, wrenches, ballpoint pens-wooden
pencils, typewriter roller, letter opener, 'decorative' office objects,
clipboard/briefcase, the list is limited only by your concientious
application of martial intent to your surroundings. Your martial
technique is strengthened by your familarity with your weapon in its
identity as a tool.
It is good to practice daily
in your martial mind with the objects of your life. When assaults come,
the bandit has chosen the time for predation. He sets the tone of the
confrontation with his weapon of choice. He thinks that he can win or he
wouldn't have chosen You. If you have the familiarity of constant usage,
the availa bility in common life and the muscle/mind training of martial
defense, your instinctive choices will be right and your dear old ass
will survive.
The ability to fight with any
object that may come to opportunity is a difficult and dangerous
journey. Combat proficiency with any weapon is a matter of serious
practice and intent, but; the study of multiple weapons art, the
training of the intention to be able to look around for something
appropriate while simultaneously fending off any opponent who is armed
with his best choice in weaponry, and the arrogance of walking naked in
public are beyond my comprehension. It is an interesting scholarly
diversion but not sufficient to stake my families' life on. Even the
most proficient martial teachers that I know carry things about the
body.
The arrogance of weapons that
wound is the supposition of a civilian that he has the resources of a
military or police organization. The military seeks to wound the enemy
so that he will tie up resources of military capital. The police shoot
the same cartridge for convenience. The electronic weapons (body-field
disruptors) don't work on everybody, all the time. They seem to either
electrocute people, or piss them off- with some other reactions in the
middle. The gas weapons are indiscriminate (can come back on you) and
many people are minimally affected by them.
The civilian can't call
back-up, he can't expect members of his 'organization' to defend himself
and his family- he has none. His actions must be definitive in the
situation at hand. His morals are not in question- his intent is not
malicious and he must be able to resolve vicious attack from multiple
opponents. His choice of weapon must have the options of a fight ending
technical application. Big pistols or shotguns, long sharp knives and
heavy clubs seem to work adequately if one is to judge by historical
example. Composite weapons; stick & chain, blade or weight & chain,
specialty weapons such as skin attack weapons or poison are best left to
the devices of real specialists. If you need them, you're leading a
weird life.
|
