Had Enough?

I have been thinking of a man who I spoke to this week. He’s not a really tough guy, doesn’t possess martial arts skills and has no visible “look” about him to let anyone know that he loathes “thugs” and has no problem with the idea of taking out an assailant in a very big way. He is certainly not the type to use personal alarms as a deterrent. That would be a little too tame for his tastes. He is of the persuasion that believe an assailant deserves no special or “humane” treatment.

He called me to discuss which of the many telescopic steel batons would be best suited for carrying in his car and for around the house. Having trained in Escrima for many years, I prefer a smaller baton as used in Serrada Escrima. This is roughly measured by dropping the end of the baton in the “cupped” palm of the hand, and optimally extending to the armpit (or a little less). This is my preference, speed kills remember, and the shorter a baton is, the faster it can move. My first batons were longer and extended from the fingertips to the armpit. These are a smidge slower but well suited to the first style of Escrima I studied “Largo Manos”, a long hand style with more sweeping cuts and strikes suited to a longer baton or blade. He chose the 26″ steel baton since the weight was no issue to him, and having no training, wanted to inflict maximum damage with his strike.

We also discussed affordable and high quality butterfly knives or balisong knives. I carry the Jaguar 9 inch (open) razor sharp 440 stainless butterfly knife. I like it’s lightweight handle design and it’s long, false edge blade design, for maximum thrusting and it’s partially serrated as well. These blades make some very nasty wounds which don’t just close back up neatly or quickly either.

Why don’t you just buy a pistol, I asked him? He explained that he was compromising with his wife who did not want any firearms in the home, due to having 3 young children. He and I both expressed that she would feel much differently if a couple of thugs were in the process of kicking the front door in, but agreed that owning an alternative weapon was better than nothing, and would probably help stop a determined attacker, while at the same time honoring his wife’s wishes.

He is going to be on the lookout for a school that teaches Filipino martial arts and mentioned there was one school about an hour away. He hesitated to drive so far, but after much discussion, realized that this isn’t karate or judo and that Escrima schools aren’t so easily found. He realized the value of being taught how to use the weapons he had chosen by a trained professional, rather than a video tape or a book. Although he will have to drive 2 hrs. “round trip”, it would only be twice a week, and wouldn’t be forever. Heck, I learned the bare bones outline of my first Escrima style in one day’s time. It took 6 hrs. with a highly skilled instructor to go through a 12 strike and 12 defense system, and have it down to memory. That’s only 24 techniques and not really a big deal, just the outline. All of the finesse moves like the cuts or strikes involved after a successful block, traps and disarms, footwork etc., can take many years to perform without thought and with speed and fluidity.

Do I think he’s making the right decision? Heck yes, because short of a firearm, which also requires quite a bit of practice to obtain proficiency, so do the Filipino martial arts. Barring a good firearm, there is no other weapon I would rather have in my hand when the chips are down, than about 20 – 24 inches of rattan or steel and my trusty, rugged old butterfly knife.