A lecture by a law professor and a former defense attorney on why you should not talk to police officers.

Here I quote one of the many reasons given by the professor why you should not talk to the police (beginning at 21:10 of the video):

“Police make mistakes … innocently, inadvertently, unintentionally. Any statement, no matter how exculpatory it may seem on its face, can be used to crucify you if the police are either willing to lie–not likely–or if they just have an innocent misrecollection of the details of what they did and did not tell you before you told them what you said.”

And here is an example of police officers having “an innocent misrecollection of the details of what they did and did not”:

And here you may view the action in slow motion:

Note that the other police officer at the scene, who witnessed this attack, does not arrest the criminal policeman. The video taken by a bystander and posted on YouTube is the only reason the assaulted biker is not in prison.

More on the subject of talking to the police, from Practical Defense Systems.

Self-defense tip from Thomas Kurz, co-author of Basic Instincts of Self-Defense and author of Science of Sports Training, Stretching Scientifically, and Flexibility Express.

For a complete list of our products, click here.

Avoid large gatherings, especially those that occur on a schedule. They are pickpockets’ place of work and terrorists’ target.

Yes, stay away from crowds, and never mind feel-good declarations like those following bombing at the 2013 Boston Marathon: “The 2014 Boston Marathon will be an act of defiance and courage,” “Let’s show them! I’ll run the Boston Marathon next year as part of the hugest field of runners ever, all of us demonstrating that terror will not triumph!” etc.

When an attack will happen at that event or some other large gathering, and you will be there, you won’t feel so good. Your goal is not to make yourself an easy target, and it doesn’t matter whether the attack is done by self-radicalized morons, a successful job by foreign agents provocateurs, or an entrapment operation gone bad. The bottom line: A crowded place is more likely to be hit than an uncrowded one.

Self-defense tip from Thomas Kurz, co-author of Basic Instincts of Self-Defense and author of Science of Sports Training, Stretching Scientifically, and Flexibility Express.

For a complete list of our products, click here.

Training in an effective self-defense system shortens your OODA loop. OODA stands for Observe, Orient, Decide, Act. In the smallest-scale tactics (i.e., in hand-to-hand combat), the loop boils down to this simple interpretation:

Observe: Be alert. See what and who is around you.

Orient: As you observe, orient and position yourself so as not to be taken advantage of.

Decide: With correct training, you won’t need to decide details of your tactics should you need to apply them. You should make only general decisions such as move on, stay, or leave.

Act: Here, automatic habits formed by training take over—so you’d better train properly. The habits your training automatizes had better be useful, or you will be sorry.

Automatization of fighting techniques is easier if they are simple—it’s best if habits developed in one technique transfer to other techniques—as in Basic Instincts of Self-Defense. This system teaches very simple techniques, consisting of very easy movements. Those techniques can be learned nearly instantaneously and truly mastered in a few repetitions. Thanks to that you won’t need to consciously direct your actions. This cuts down on the duration of your Act.

Ideally, Observe and Orient should be combined and Decide and Act fused together by practice, so the opponent’s action triggers your automatic reaction, without your needing to decide. Even below such a level of automatization, not having to think about your movements improves your reaction time because reaction time is shorter when set on “signal” than when set on “action.” (For example, if you are in a car stopped at a red light and you are thinking “green,” you will move faster than if you are thinking “green: press the gas pedal.”)

Article by Thomas Kurz, co-author of Basic Instincts of Self-Defense and author of Science of Sports Training, Stretching Scientifically, and Flexibility Express.

For a complete list of our products, click here.

Why have I decided to produce Unbreakable® Umbrellas for Real-Self-Defense LLC rather than Kubotan-like key chains or tactical pens? Here are my reasons:

1. An umbrella is longer than a Kubotan or a pen, so you can hit your attacker from a greater distance. (In defense, distance is your friend, at least in the first clash.)

2. Unlike either a Kubotan or a pen, the Unbreakable® Umbrella can be used as a large blunt weapon that doesn’t require precise targeting.

3. When necessary, an opened Unbreakable® Umbrella can be put in the assailant’s path as an obstacle.

4. The Unbreakable® Umbrella can protect you from rain or sun and serve you as a cane too.

The video below, from Arkhangelsk Hapkido Federation, shows good examples for the above points. Particularly, see demos at 1 min 40 sec and at 2 min.

Article by Thomas Kurz, co-author of Basic Instincts of Self-Defense and author of Science of Sports Training, Stretching Scientifically, and Flexibility Express.

For a complete list of our products, click here.

Having an “arm extender” in a physical altercation is better than being empty-handed.

Even if your arm extender is such that striking with it won’t disable the attacker (a rolled-up magazine or a piece of clothing, for example), you can use it to set up a decisive empty-hand action.

Your strikes, by slowing down the attack, let you position yourself to do something disabling to the assailant. If you can’t knock out the assailant, you may have to grapple for control of the assailant’s weapon.

Hitting the attacker makes it easier (not easy, just easier) to grab the weapon hand. It is easier to do this with an arm extender than with your empty hands.

Now, something for you to practice:

Have your training partner take a practice knife and attack you. Your partner should be wearing a helmet with face shield and hand- and forearm protection.

You try to disarm him with your bare hands—without getting a serious “cut” or “stab,” of course. After a few tries, take a rolled-up magazine and try this again. This time strike whatever target is near you (the weapon hand, the empty hand, the face) until you are in a position to disarm or disable your partner.

Which was easier—using an empty hand or using an arm extender, even one as flimsy as a rolled-up magazine?

Hit and grab is easier than just grab alone.
(Videos demonstrating this concept are in Self-Defense Tip #72 and Self-Defense Tip #71.)

Now if, when attacked by a knife fighter, you had your Unbreakable® Umbrella with you, then your defense would be simpler and safer. You would not need to grab the weapon hand. Every whack with your Unbreakable® Umbrella has a good chance to be both disarming and disabling. It does not matter whether you strike the armed hand or the unarmed hand, a kneecap, a throat, or an eye orbit, or whether you stab the trunk. The Unbreakable® Umbrella powerfully applied to any hand, wrist, forearm, elbow, or knee, even to the meat of the limbs or the trunk, leaves a “strong and lasting impression.” In good hands, it leaves a bone-crunching, bloody strong impression. . . .

Attention:
Applying any of the techniques mentioned above is your sole responsibility.

Neither Real Self-Defense LLC nor the author of this self-defense tip, nor persons pictured in this self-defense tip, make any representation, warranty, or guarantee that the techniques described or shown in this tip will be safe, effective, or legal in any self-defense situation or otherwise.

The reader or viewer assumes all risks and hazards of injury or death to herself, himself, or others, and any resultant liability for the use of the techniques and methods contained in this self-defense tip.

Specific self-defense responses demonstrated or described in this self-defense tip may not be justified in certain situations in light of all the circumstances or under the applicable federal, state, or local law. Neither Real Self-Defense LLC nor the author of this self-defense tip makes any representation or warranty regarding the legality or appropriateness of any techniques described or demonstrated in this self-defense tip.

Article by Thomas Kurz, co-author of Basic Instincts of Self-Defense and author of Science of Sports Training, Stretching Scientifically, and Flexibility Express.

For a complete list of our products, click here.

This self-defense tip is about defending against a knife attack by using an umbrella. I will begin with techniques and tactics suitable for the Unbreakable® Umbrella. That’s because these are easier to practice than those possible with regular umbrellas. They are more reliable too.

Because the Unbreakable® Umbrella is as sturdy as it is and can whack stronger than the strongest wooden cane, even as strongly as a metal pipe, the techniques of defending with it need not be precise. They are the same as those for stick fighting.

In the case of using the Unbreakable® Umbrella in self-defense, keep in mind these points:

1. An umbrella’s targets are those for blunt weapons, as shown in the picture below.

Targets and Appropriate Weapons

2. Use strike mechanics that minimize your exposure. So, keep a mobile stance, a good grip, and a “wave” from foot through leg, hip, and shoulder to the Unbreakable® Umbrella. Minimize windup. For single-hand strikes, follow the example of club strikes shown on Self-Defense: Tools of Attack DVD, which comes free with every Unbreakable® Umbrella. (For striking practice on a bag, use a stick instead of the Unbreakable® Umbrella to prevent damage to the umbrella’s fabric.)

3. Use rapid-fire strikes to appropriate targets, as shown in point 1, keeping in mind point 2 (maximal impact, minimal exposure). Here is an example:

As you can see, I don’t bother with such moves as hooking with the crook and other “Cane Masters” stuff. Such moves are predicated on either an already intimidated opponent or a cooperative demo partner. Not that locking an opponent with the umbrella is impossible—it is possible, but only after successfully interrupting his attack and dominating him.

4. Weapon, oops, er, umbrella retention is similar to long-gun retention techniques. Watch this movie showing how to keep hold of your Unbreakable® Umbrella—because it may happen that someone will want to take it away from you. . . .

Keeping Hold of Your Unbreakable® Umbrella

These are the basics as far as using the Unbreakable® Umbrella in self-defense. Self-Defense Tip #55 – The Unbreakable® Umbrella in self-defense – Part II shows videos with a few sensible self-defense techniques, along with some that are too fancy for my taste.

Now, the regular umbrella. Here is a great video showing how to use even a regular, weak umbrella in self-defense:

Cheap Umbrella vs. Knife

Note that the demonstrator, Luke Holloway, doesn’t hit his opponent hard with his umbrella. If he did, the umbrella wouldn’t last for much more than a couple of strikes. Because of the flimsiness of his weapon (regular umbrella), his defenses require accuracy. He has to hit the eyes or the knife-holding hand—otherwise a determined attacker will be unfazed and the attack uninterrupted. So, to use such a weak weapon effectively, it helps to have a few years of practice in stick-and-blade fighting arts.

Now if, when attacked by a knife fighter, he had our Unbreakable® Umbrella with him, then his defenses would be simpler and safer. Every whack with our Unbreakable® Umbrella has a good chance to be both disarming and disabling. It does not matter whether one strikes the armed hand or the unarmed hand, a kneecap, a throat, or an eye orbit, or whether one stabs the trunk. The Unbreakable® Umbrella powerfully applied to any hand, wrist, forearm, elbow, or knee, even to the meat of the limbs or the trunk, leaves a “strong and lasting impression.” In good hands, it leaves a bone-crunching, bloody strong impression. . . .

Attention:
Applying any of the techniques mentioned above is your sole responsibility.

Neither Real Self-Defense LLC nor the author of this self-defense tip, nor persons pictured in this self-defense tip, make any representation, warranty, or guarantee that the techniques described or shown in this tip will be safe, effective, or legal in any self-defense situation or otherwise.

The reader or viewer assumes all risks and hazards of injury or death to herself, himself, or others, and any resultant liability for the use of the techniques and methods contained in this self-defense tip.

Specific self-defense responses demonstrated or described in this self-defense tip may not be justified in certain situations in light of all the circumstances or under the applicable federal, state, or local law. Neither Real Self-Defense LLC nor the author of this self-defense tip makes any representation or warranty regarding the legality or appropriateness of any techniques described or demonstrated in this self-defense tip.

Article by Thomas Kurz, co-author of Basic Instincts of Self-Defense and author of Science of Sports Training, Stretching Scientifically, and Flexibility Express.

For a complete list of our products, click here.

This self-defense tip continues the subject of defending against a knife attack using everyday objects, which began with tip number 69, Everyday Objects as Improvised Weapons of Self-Defense: Rolled-up Magazine vs. Knife, Part I.

In the tip number 69 you can see that a strong whack with a rolled-up magazine at even the serrated edge of a knife still leaves you with a usable improvised weapon. The video in this tip is about tactics of using a rolled-up magazine to defend yourself against a knife.

With a rolled-up magazine, you should aim for the nearest target, striking a blow that will interrupt the attacker’s “program.” If the face is safe to hit with the magazine (the knife is just being drawn, your position permits it), then hit the face. If the knife-holding hand is closer, hit the hand. If you miss it, hit the face or that hand again. Use the rolled-up magazine to distract the attacker and/or deflect the knife, so you can disarm the attacker.

Distract, deflect, and disarm.

Now if, when attacked by a knife fighter, you had your Unbreakable® Umbrella with you, then your defense would be simpler and safer. Every whack with your Unbreakable® Umbrella has a good chance to be both disarming and disabling. It does not matter whether you strike the armed hand or the unarmed hand, a kneecap, a throat, or an eye orbit, or whether you stab the trunk. The Unbreakable® Umbrella powerfully applied to any hand, wrist, forearm, elbow, or knee, even to the meat of the limbs or the trunk, leaves a “strong and lasting impression.” In good hands, it leaves a bone-crunching, bloody strong impression. . . .

By the way, recently our Unbreakable® Umbrella was featured on Operation Freedom, a show of radio station WAAM Talk 1600.

Listen to what Dr. Dave Janda of Operation Freedom has to say about the Unbreakable® Umbrella:

Operation Freedom—Dr. Dave Janda talks about the Unbreakable® Umbrella with its inventor, Thomas Kurz

Attention:
Applying any of the techniques mentioned above is your sole responsibility.

Neither Real Self-Defense LLC nor the author of this self-defense tip, nor persons pictured in this self-defense tip, make any representation, warranty, or guarantee that the techniques described or shown in this tip will be safe, effective, or legal in any self-defense situation or otherwise.

The reader or viewer assumes all risks and hazards of injury or death to herself, himself, or others, and any resultant liability for the use of the techniques and methods contained in this self-defense tip.

Specific self-defense responses demonstrated or described in this self-defense tip may not be justified in certain situations in light of all the circumstances or under the applicable federal, state, or local law. Neither Real Self-Defense LLC nor the author of this self-defense tip makes any representation or warranty regarding the legality or appropriateness of any techniques described or demonstrated in this self-defense tip.

Article by Thomas Kurz, co-author of Basic Instincts of Self-Defense and author of Science of Sports Training, Stretching Scientifically, and Flexibility Express.

For a complete list of our products, click here.

Before I show you how to disarm a knife-wielding attacker, here are a few facts:

A knife-wise attacker can make five or more knife stabs or cuts in one second, each to a different body part, and can maintain that intensity for a few seconds. (By “knife-wise” I mean an attacker who knows about attacking with knives, not necessarily a highly trained knife-fighter.)

With your jacket or other piece of clothing, you should aim for the nearest target, striking a blow that will “interrupt the program.” If the face is safe to hit with your jacket (the knife is just being drawn, your position permits it), then hit the face. If the knife-holding hand is closer, hit the hand. If you miss it, hit the face or that hand again. Your task is to slow down the attack so you can disarm the attacker.

Slowing down the knife attack and disarming the attacker.

The video above presents the concept of slowing down the armed hand with a piece of clothing and using the cloth to lessen the likelihood of being severely cut when grabbing the armed hand. At the instance the cloth is draped over the armed hand, it gives you some protection against getting cut as you lock the arm or wrestle it to the ground.

When the opportunity presents itself, you may grab the knife-holding arm (its forearm to be exact). If you grab it, do so as if your life depends on it—because it does—and pull that arm to the ground. You want to press the knife-holding hand into the ground. Your body should block the attacker from grabbing the knife with the other hand.

Question: What if the attacker has a second knife?
Answer: You are doomed.

Question: What if there is more than one attacker, also armed?
Answer: You are doomed.

And now, for more education, six myths of knife fighting:

Now if, when attacked by a knife fighter, you had your Unbreakable Umbrella with you, then your defense would be simpler and safer. Every whack with your Unbreakable Umbrella has a good chance to be both disarming and disabling. It does not matter whether you strike the armed hand or the unarmed hand, a kneecap, a throat, or an eye orbit, or whether you stab the trunk. The Unbreakable Umbrella powerfully applied to any hand, wrist, forearm, elbow, or knee, even to the meat of the limbs or the trunk, leaves a “strong and lasting impression.” In good hands, it leaves a bone-crunching, bloody strong impression. . . .

Attention:
Applying any of the techniques mentioned above is your sole responsibility.

Neither Real Self-Defense LLC nor the author of this self-defense tip, nor persons pictured in this self-defense tip, make any representation, warranty, or guarantee that the techniques described or shown in this tip will be safe, effective, or legal in any self-defense situation or otherwise.

The reader or viewer assumes all risks and hazards of injury or death to herself, himself, or others, and any resultant liability for the use of the techniques and methods contained in this self-defense tip.

Specific self-defense responses demonstrated or described in this self-defense tip may not be justified in certain situations in light of all the circumstances or under the applicable federal, state, or local law. Neither Real Self-Defense LLC nor the author of this self-defense tip makes any representation or warranty regarding the legality or appropriateness of any techniques described or demonstrated in this self-defense tip.

Article by Thomas Kurz, co-author of Basic Instincts of Self-Defense and author of Science of Sports Training, Stretching Scientifically, and Flexibility Express.

For a complete list of our products, click here.

In the previous self-defense tip, I have shown how to use a rolled-up glossy magazine to deflect a knife or even knock it from an assailant’s hand.

Today’s self-defense tip is about defending against a knife attack by using a jacket or any suitably substantial piece of clothing. Pay attention: The piece of clothing must have enough weight to move whatever body part of the attacker it hits. A silly slap with something as light as a T-shirt may not do.

The video below shows the basic points of using a jacket to deflect the armed hand, or to ensnare it and the knife, or possibly to knock the knife from an assailant’s hand. The rest you can learn by practicing with a partner. Use a safe training knife.

Jacket vs. Knife, Part I

Note: Do not take your jacket off when you know the knife is close and ready. Take if off as you run away or put obstacles between you and the armed attacker. There are exceptions to this rule, as there are exceptions to every rule, and knowing when to make an exception requires good judgment, which comes with experience. Anyway, I show only how to take the jacket off, not when to do it.

Having small change, little notebooks, or other such mass-adding objects in pockets helps make the impact more forceful.

A knife defense that begins with a jacket slap at the attacker’s face or the knife hand must end with a disabling disarm—which will be shown in a subsequent self-defense tip.

By the way, a jacket slap at the attacker’s face is a good move in unarmed combat too.

Now if, when attacked by a knife fighter, you had your Unbreakable® Umbrella with you, then your defense would be simpler and safer. Every whack with your Unbreakable® Umbrella has a good chance to be both disarming and disabling. It does not matter whether you strike the armed hand or the unarmed hand, a kneecap, a throat, or an eye orbit, or whether you stab the trunk. The Unbreakable® Umbrella powerfully applied to any hand, wrist, forearm, elbow, or knee, even to the meat of the limbs or the trunk, leaves a “strong and lasting impression.” In good hands, it leaves a bone-crunching, bloody strong impression. . . .

Attention:
Applying any of the techniques mentioned above is your sole responsibility.

Neither Real Self-Defense LLC nor the author of this self-defense tip, nor persons pictured in this self-defense tip, make any representation, warranty, or guarantee that the techniques described or shown in this tip will be safe, effective, or legal in any self-defense situation or otherwise.

The reader or viewer assumes all risks and hazards of injury or death to herself, himself, or others, and any resultant liability for the use of the techniques and methods contained in this self-defense tip.

Specific self-defense responses demonstrated or described in this self-defense tip may not be justified in certain situations in light of all the circumstances or under the applicable federal, state, or local law. Neither Real Self-Defense LLC nor the author of this self-defense tip makes any representation or warranty regarding the legality or appropriateness of any techniques described or demonstrated in this self-defense tip.

Article by Thomas Kurz, co-author of Basic Instincts of Self-Defense and author of Science of Sports Training, Stretching Scientifically, and Flexibility Express.

For a complete list of our products, click here.

It is summertime and crime is rising—lowlifes are out and about, and you need to arm yourself as best as you can.

I have already written about turning such everyday objects as pencils and credit cards into improvised weapons, for defense or for attack.

This self-defense tip, and a few others that will follow it, are about using everyday objects primarily in defense. I will show only the basic points of using these objects as improvised weapons. The rest you can learn by practicing with a partner.

Rolled-up Magazine vs. Knife

Note: The above video is not about the tactic of using a rolled-up magazine to defend yourself against a knife. Its purpose is only to show that a strong whack with a rolled-up magazine at even the serrated edge of a knife still leaves you with a usable improvised weapon, albeit not for many more whacks.

A knife defense that begins with a magazine whack at the knife itself or at the knife-holding hand must end with a disabling disarm—which will be shown in a subsequent self-defense tip.

By the way, a strike at the attacker’s eyes or a poke to the throat or abdomen is a good move in unarmed fighting too. The poke has to be timed with the attacker’s inhalation.

Now if, when attacked by a knife fighter, you had your Unbreakable® Umbrella with you, then your defense would be simpler and safer. Every whack with your Unbreakable® Umbrella has a good chance to be both disarming and disabling. It does not matter whether you strike the armed hand or the unarmed hand, a kneecap, a throat, or an eye orbit, or whether you stab the trunk. The Unbreakable® Umbrella powerfully applied to any hand, wrist, forearm, elbow, or knee, even to the meat of the limbs or the trunk, leaves a “strong and lasting impression.” And, unlike a rolled-up magazine, it can leave those impressions over and over and over. . . .

Attention:
Applying any of the techniques mentioned above is your sole responsibility.

Neither Real Self-Defense LLC nor the author of this self-defense tip, nor persons pictured in this self-defense tip, make any representation, warranty, or guarantee that the techniques described or shown in this tip will be safe, effective, or legal in any self-defense situation or otherwise.

The reader or viewer assumes all risks and hazards of injury or death to herself, himself, or others, and any resultant liability for the use of the techniques and methods contained in this self-defense tip.

Specific self-defense responses demonstrated or described in this self-defense tip may not be justified in certain situations in light of all the circumstances or under the applicable federal, state, or local law. Neither Real Self-Defense LLC nor the author of this self-defense tip makes any representation or warranty regarding the legality or appropriateness of any techniques described or demonstrated in this self-defense tip.

Article by Thomas Kurz, co-author of Basic Instincts of Self-Defense and author of Science of Sports Training, Stretching Scientifically, and Flexibility Express.

For a complete list of our products, click here.