HOW REALISTIC IS IT?

 By Phillip Starr

For some time now, I've watched and studied numerous videos regarding how “real” knife attacks occur; they're extremely violent and the armed aggressor always turns his hapless martial arts-trained victim into so much dogmeat. However, much as I'm sure the authors of these videos would disagree, I have some problems with their scenarios (based on firsthand experience (which, I'm sure, they all allege that they have lots of...).

Most of these videos begin with the aggressor standing some fifteen feet or so from the victim, knife in hand. He charges forward while the victim awaits his arrival and then tries to defend himself. He is, of course, quickly overcome and stabbed repeatedly. Let me say that after many years spent working in various fields of law enforcement (drug enforcement, special deputy, corrections officer in a state prison and other positions), I have never faced down a bad guy armed with a knife at a distance of fifteen feet. Moreover, I've never known anyone who has been in a similar situation.

The fact is that bad guys don't present the knife at such a long distance as that provides more than adequate warning to the victim that an attack is imminent and tends to accumulate witnesses. Were I the intended victim, I'd beat feet in the opposite direction pretty darned quick! And, I would ask, under what conditions would an armed aggressor have that much room in which to move? Without witnesses...?

For the most part, such attacks happen in areas where there are few witnesses (if any) and the assailant generally doesn't draw his weapon until he's fairly close. This minimizes your chances for running away. It has been my experience that a knife-wielding opponent who draws his weapon while he's still some distance from you WANTS you to see the weapon. He wants to intimidate, to frighten you. In short, he's likely a rank amateur. A pro keeps his weapon hidden until the last second.

That said, an amateur can cut you just as easily as a professional. If you're ever faced with such an opponent, you must understand this. It's well to remember the first law of self-defense; whenever possible, run away. There's no shame in it. You'll save two lives...yours and his. But if you cannot flee or you must not flee (if, for instance, you're defending your loved ones), then resolve yourself to the fact that you're going to get cut. You must also resolve yourself to the fact that you're going to take his life, regardless. It's not a pretty picture.

I'm not going to turn this into a discussion about what techniques to use and so forth; such things generally do little more than lead to urination competitions, but I do have practical advice to offer. First, never (and I mean NEVER) attempt to grapple with or disarm an armed aggressor. If you do, you're playing by “rules” - you're trying to disarm him – and he isn't interested in grappling with you. His only aim is to take your life. And if you'll recall those immortal words from Paul Newman's monstrous foe who was armed with a Bowie knife in the movie, “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid”... “Rules??? In a knife fight?” 'Nuff said about that...

Second, if you have time and opportunity, pick up something to use as a weapon. Ashtrays to belt buckles can work wonders under stress. I recall one little-known kung-fu stylist (I'll call him “Jimmy” although he was Chinese and I won't mention how he'd made a living. Suffice it to say that he'd seen more than his share of armed opponents...and survived), who had studied southern mantis boxing for a good many years providing instruction to my son, Harlan Lee, and a number of his junior classmates. Jimmy favored wearing a western-style belt buckle because such a device is easily and quickly removed from its primary job (holding your pants up) and used as a formidable flail...unless you buy your pants two sizes too large. An assailant armed with a blade might well think twice before walking into that fast-moving chunk of steel. And he'd had Harlan and the others buy such belts and buckles. Their group was from Hawaii where, apparently, such belts aren't in fashion, and I could see the embarrassment on their faces at having to “dress like cowboys.” I was perfectly at home with the idea as I often wore such belts...and hats, and boots!

I recall breaking a student's heart when several of us were at a local bar and he asked what I would do if someone suddenly attacked me. I told him I'd probably throw the ashtray at him before feeding him my bottle of beer. Literally. “You wouldn't use kung-fu?” he asked. I replied, “That IS kung-fu!”

It's also well to bear in mind the part of the scenario that goes down prior to the bad guy pulling out a blade. Whatever the situation, things escalate in stages. You can learn to recognize these stages and understand what's going on...and deal with your opponent in an appropriate manner. It's very rare that someone walks up to you and simply starts stabbing away. That isn't to say that it never happens; I'm saying that it's very rare. You must go beyond simply learning some nice-looking, exciting techniques. It's a good idea to learn how to read a person's intentions and understand something about human behavior. That will do more to keep you alive than any number of techniques.

In my own classes, I taught students the following “guidelines” regarding defensive maneuvers against a knife (or club, or whatever):

1. Attack the attack!.

2. Gain and maintain control of the weapon at all times.

3. Kill the opponent as quickly as possible.

But there's more to these guidelines than meets the eye. The first statement implies that if you in so much as even suspect that your adversary is armed, you should step back a short distance; put some daylight between your body and his hands. This may not always be possible, as in the case of defending your family or other loved ones. Should an attack ensure, attack the attack!

The second statement is probably the most difficult to apply. Acquiring control of a weapon that is held by someone else may look easy on the silver screen but in a real life and death struggle, it's extremely difficult. Moreover, the statement shouldn't be taken to infer that you maintain control of the weapon for any length of time; a fraction of a second may well be all you need.