Classic Karate Confrontation

Credit to Jonathan Bluestein at "The Rum-Soaked Fist" for posting this one.

According to the article in The British tabloid "The Sun", trouble maker Les Andrews confronted Gulf War veteran Jason Smith, 35 at his residence. Smith's wife and infant daughter were in the house at the time. The article states that Smith is trained in Karate and Jujitsu.
In my opinion, Smith takes an inordanite amount of shit before he takes this guy out. He patiently demonstrates to his neighbors that he is not the aggressor, as the guy is close enough to give him a head-butt or knee strike. Smith waits in the at-ease position a little too long, but he unloads on the idiot with classic left-hand Karate reverse punches.
Oh what a treat it is to see the punk slink and crawl out of Smith's yard.
At the time the article was printed, the video had 200,000 hits, currently on YouTube the hit count is 3,195,643.

Punks beware of Martial Masters with Beer Guts!

Canadians Struggle With Self-Defense Issues

David Chen tied up a shoplifter


Canadians are facing legal issues regarding self-defense in these changing times-
From The Montreal Gazette:


TORONTO — A Toronto man escorting his girlfriend to her home Sunday night discovered signs of entry to her house and, fearing for the woman's mother sleeping inside, searched for intruders. A man was found hiding, Toronto police said. An ensuing struggle left the intruder bleeding from stab wounds.
As frightening as the incident was, it is the charging of the boyfriend with aggravated assault, punishable by 14 years in prison, that makes the case stand out in a clutter of urban crime.
It is the latest flashpoint in the debate over self-defence and protection of property after a number of high-profile cases across Canada brought a clamour for clarity and change.
(snip)
"The man was charged because it is alleged the stabbing was excessive," said Const. Tony Vella. "It is alleged that he stabbed the man a number of times. He's fortunate to be alive."
Key to the case is that the multiple stab wounds were inflicted both inside the home and outside, Vella said, suggesting the occupants might have been able to close the door once he was outside and call police.
(snip)
Recent self-defence cases have not gone well for prosecutors.
Last month, Lawrence Manzer, of Burton, N.B., had a mistrial declared in charges stemming from a confrontation with intruders on his neighbour's property. Sloppy paperwork was cited as the reason.
The same month Kim Walker, a Yorkton, Sask., welder, was sentenced to eight years after a jury declined to find him guilty of murder for killing his daughter's boyfriend whom he deemed to be destroying his drug-addicted 16-year-old daughter. He was found guilty of the lesser charge of manslaughter.
In May, Joseph Singleton, 46, a farmer in Taber, Alta., had his charges — for assault with a weapon and assault causing bodily harm, after he wounded a man who had just burgled his house with the blunt end of a hatchet — referred to an alternative measures program.
In March, prosecutors dropped gun charges against Ian Thomson, 53, of Port Colborne, Ont., who shot at three masked men caught firebombing his home while one yelled: "Are you ready to die?" The Crown said there was no reasonable prospect of conviction.
And last October, David Chen, a Toronto grocer in Chinatown became a celebrity when he was acquitted of charges after he tied up a repeat shoplifter in a citizen's arrest.
(snip)
"The courts have repeatedly said the self-defence sections of the Criminal Code are incredibly complicated. The provisions are really complex and are in need of an overhaul to simplify them,"

Video Review: Tim Cartmell's "Standing Grappling"

It's amazing how things can come full-circle.
In my martial training, I started out as a wrestler, and most of my fights went to the ground. In Tae Kwon Do I trained kicking techniques for years. Later in Kenpo we practiced nasty hand strikes and Western Boxing. Aikido and Small-Circle Jujitsu re-introduced grappling techniques. The last ten years have been spent practicing the Chinese Internal Arts, and in an amazing way, it has brought me back to wrestling.
Attending seminars with Tim Cartmell has been a revelation in martial experience. Tim is undoubtedly the best grappler I have learned from, and his background in traditional Chinese Martial Arts is legendary. Many of you know that Tim has become a skilled competitor and coach in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu as well.
In his video "Standing Grappling", Tim covers escapes and counters to many of the most common grappling techniques seen in common street fights. These include things as simple as wrist grabs, but the meat of the video is on dangerous techniques such as headlocks, chokes and body locks used to slam an opponent.
Tim first introduces the proper way to properly perform these chokes, headlocks, etc. Then he shows how to prevent someone from gaining such a hold on you, and
how to escape if you do get caught in these types of holds and locks.
The difference in Tim's method is that he asserts that striking, kicking and elbowing will simply not cause an extremely strong opponent to release their grip.
Instead, Tim demonstrates very logical and scientific ways to use body leverage that nobody can resist. For instance, he suggests you can not use isolated muscle groups in the arms alone to break holds. Through subtle angles and body positioning, you can force your opponent to have to contend with your entire body weight, the use of torso, back and waist in unison as opposed to isolated arm muscles.
Within each counter-technique is redundancy, that is a "plan B" for every attempt. What to do if the first part of the escape is not successful. What to do if the opponent changes his tactic or positioning. And what to do if the opponent maintains the lock on you after you have successfully thrown him and you both go down together.
There are plenty of opportunities to loosen the hold, strike the opponent and get away. But Tim sticks strictly to grappling techniques that work and can be practiced safely with training partners at near-full strength. Options to many of the techniques include breaking the hold and getting away, or following with a submission such as an arm bar, shoulder lock or choke.
There is probably nothing more dangerous in a street fight as being choked out or slammed to the ground on a hard surface. In "Standing Grappling", Tim demonstrates some very common-sense methods to defend yourself if you are ever caught in a head lock, body lock or choke by an opponent that may be bigger and stronger than you.
Great stuff, and it includes many out-takes of Tim with some incredible BJJ competition moves, and his students at "Shen Wu" sparring and grappling with many of these techniques. I highly recommend this video;
Tim Cartmell's "Shen Wu" website is at this link
and all his videos are available here.

Sensei Strange Resolves Conflict

I hope everybody can take the time to read this short piece by fellow Dojo Rat Sensei Strange, Here's the LINK.
Strange, who's Mother calls him "Eric", is my long-distance drinking buddy and fellow internal martial arts practitioner, as well as being a magician!
In the true spirit of Budo, Sensei Strange resolved a potentially serious situation with compassion and martial arts skill.
This story should serve as a lesson to the adepts of overkill and armchair UFC-types, please go to the link and have a look.
I shall hoist (another) cold Beer in your Honor, Sensei Strange!

Wolf Pack

The worse the global economy gets, the more we are going to hear stories like this. At first glance, a martial artist might think "Hey, I can't use lethal force against these guys, they're just kids". But the bottom line is, they almost killed him. I also think this is a clear example of why you can NOT rely on submission wrestling/grappling techniques as your primary self-defense art. There's just too many attackers. I've been in two different gang-type fights with multiple attackers; has anybody else? How would you handle this?

Beaten to pulp by kids over smokes
REBEKAH CAVANAGH
May 7th, 2009
BASHED: Glenn Lambourn bears the scars of the attack. Picture: CLIVE HYDE

A TERRITORY man was beaten to a pulp by a gang of more than 20 teenage bike bandits - some as young as eight - because he had no cigarettes to give them.

Heavily bruised and suffering a fractured eye socket, broken jaw and shattered teeth, Glenn Lambourn was still shaken when talking to the Northern Territory News about the vicious street attack.
"I thought I was going to die," he said, his voice trembling. "They just kept smashing me over the head - I was on all fours and they surrounded me and kept laying the boot in flat out.
"They just did not stop - I felt my teeth go.
"All I could do was try and run but I kept falling."
Mr Lambourn, 35, said he had been drinking with friends at the Palmerston Tavern in Palmerston CBD when he left and walked towards University Ave to catch a cab about 9.30-10pm on Sunday.
He said the kids - all of Aboriginal appearance and believed to be aged between eight and 14-years-old - approached him on their bikes near the skate park and asked for a cigarette.
Shortly after he said he did not have any, he said he was whacked over the head from behind with a lump of wood "thicker than a stubby", knocking him, face-first, to the ground.
The gang then piled on top of him and repeatedly kicked him in the head, he said.
The truck driver said he managed to get to his feet and tried running, but they chased him - and when he ran through a tunnel that goes under University Ave they pounced on him again, this time picking up one of their bikes and smashing it into the side of his face.
The father-of-one finally managed to escape and was taken to Royal Darwin Hospital in an ambulance.
He said he will undergo surgery to his face where steel plates will be inserted to repair the fractures later this week.
"I'm going to end up with a big bloody scar down my face," he said. "And my teeth are f.....! I can feel them rattling around my mouth."
Mr Lambourn said he would like to see the thugs, who he described as "gutless and callous" locked up,
"But I know that is not going to happen," he said.
He said he lost all faith in the court system after his younger brother was beaten to within an inch of his life interstate and the offender, who was initially charged with attempted manslaughter, ended up walking free.
Mr Lambourn appealed to anyone who witnessed the assault in the Palmerston area on Sunday night to call police on 131 444.

LINK

Jab-Cross-Hook Drill

In this video, we introduce our Boxing Coach, "Mr. T".
As most of us who have done years of Karate know, Karate punching is usually a heavy, rooted, chambered power punch. This is often seen in impressive displays of board and brick breaking. It is however, sorely lacking in mobile, practical hitting skills.
When Mr. T. joined our Dojo of misfit marshalists a decade ago, he brought with him years of Boxing skills (as well as some Kajukenbo).
In short order, our practical hitting skills improved significantly. The Jab is the engine that drives the car. The Cross is pouring on the gas, and the Hook is the car running the poor bastard over.
If you are practicing Karate right now, experiment with these hitting patterns. We start with one side foward, run the pattern- Jab, Jab-cross, jab-cross-hook. Go for one minute, then switch sides and go for another minute. Finish with another minute on the side you started on. You've just fought a three minute round- it's a great conditioning blast. Work your weak side to bring it up to par with your strong side.
What these drills will do for you is to give a more mobile, active hitting posture and skill.
Next Dojo Rat video - The Jab- Hook combo, moving to flank the opponent.