The bottom line with respect to punching teenage girls

1. You must obey a lawful order by a police officer, and you can't shove a cop without risking getting punched.
2. If you think your age or sex give you an exception, see above.

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Should Law Enforcement Train in MMA?

This story gave me pause. It’s a story of how the El Paso police are now training to counter criminals armed with mixed martial arts techniques, because, “The criminal element is watching this and learning” (MMA).

This strikes me as interesting because of my background and experience leading a training program for police officers, and because of the foresight it shows. MMA is now constantly touted as the “fastest growing sport in the world,” and I’d bet almost all teens could identify Brock Lesnar or Anderson Silva, but not identify a single world champion boxer. In their opinion, “criminals trained in mixed martial arts can be particularly dangerous if they are able to drop, grapple with and disarm a police officer.” I’d agree.

The wisdom of this approach is that the world is changing. At one time, fighting was mostly grappling and punching, and kicking was “dirty fighting” or unmanly. During the 1970’s and 1980’s, the Bruce Lee/Kung Fu craze and the subsequent rise of martial arts flicks by Chuck Norris and Van Damme made kicking a normal part of the arsenal of a street fighter. Defensive tactics instruction has changed from a Judo-centric approach to something with a blend of punching, pressure point and control, and now BJJ.

The idea that El Paso’s PD is adding in specific skills to deal with MMA-influenced criminals is wise, and I’d recommend that most martial arts schools that promote themselves as being self-defense oriented should do the same.

Incidentally, this is an opportunity for MMA schools to earn some extra street-cred and cash by contracting to local academies and police departments.

What do you think?

del.icio.us Tags: MMA,Brock Lesnar,Anderson Silva,BJJ,police,Defensive tactics,martial arts

Newest Live Link – Combat Trainer

If you train in MMA, or are a combat athlete in any discipline, you will benefit from the information at CombatTrainer.com. While this site just started in March of this year, it’s already packed with valuable training information, including:

How to use a sledge hammer for conditioning
A series on developing an explosive takedown
Tire flipping for explosive strength

And much more.

Why are you still here? Check out CombatTrainer.com!

You can follow him on Twitter, too. I did.

Martial arts can never be a way of life

This post by Chiron is very interesting, and may be true for many of us, but upset others.
Money quote (IMO):

My point of view is radically different. Unarmed arts are part of a subset of skills that may be necessary so that I can get back to my family and friends, so that I can look at sunrises and have a good burger. That is life. Anything I do in training is to serve that. Martial arts or combatives or whatever can never be a way of life for me, only a tool to ensure that I have a life to enjoy my way in.

People study and learn martial arts for many reasons, and those reasons can change. Some have a goal, earning a belt, excelling in a sport, or learning to do the splits, and others are attracted to the mystique of something compellingly foreign to their own outlook. Many in the latter camp are also of the belief that they are gaining and learning something more spiritual than physical.
My attitude and point of view has changed over the years, as my aptitude has developed and changed. How has yours?

Why You Don’t Accept Rides From Strangers

I’m guessing this girl didn’t get that safety talk from her parents…
 
Photo: NBC Washington

Man, 85, charged with abducting teen (Fredericksburg.com)

June 10, 2010 12:35 am

BY KEITH EPPS 

A Fredericksburg teenager said she saw no reason to be alarmed March 29 when she accepted a ride home from an 85-year-old stranger. 

Before the 11/2-mile ride was over, the young woman testified yesterday in Fredericksburg Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court, she was "freaking out." 

She said the elderly driver touched her breast and made numerous sexually suggestive comments during the short ride. 

John William Sinnett, 85, of Spotsylvania is charged with abduction with the intent to defile. The charge, which carries a possible life sentence, was sent to a city grand jury following a preliminary hearing yesterday. 

According to the evidence presented by Commonwealth's Attorney LaBravia Jenkins, the girl was walking home from James Monroe High School about 11:30 a.m. when Sinnett pulled up on Fall Hill Avenue. 

Sinnett had been in the Rappahannock Regional Jail's electronic incarceration program since July, when he got a 12-month jail sentence for sexually assaulting a 21-year-old woman in Spotsylvania.

I’d suggest you read the whole thing for more context.

 

What should you teach your children about “stranger danger?”

Lessons that everyone should teach children (and this young lady seems to have the naiveté of a child, despite her legal age) include:

1. Never, ever, ever accept rides from someone, unless it’s cleared with your parents FIRST. In cases where a victim is transported, the chances of survival are reduced. In other words, don’t accept rides from strangers.
2. Make sure they have a cell phone or some means to call for help. Dialing 9-1-1 should be a rehearsed action.
3. As a parent or guardian, cover this information, then drill it by asking “What would you do if ____ happens?” Do it at random times. Ask questions like, “Would this be normal?” or, “Would it be OK if…” Read the newspaper or follow the news and use examples of attempted abductions to as teaching moments. Discuss what the “victim” did right, and could have done better. Ask them to be aware of the potential of these things happening, and to not deny it – accept what’s happening is real, and ACT!
4. Teach that it’s OK to resist and talk back to adults. We ingrain in our children to be polite and proper, but not to scream and run, or be firm and forceful. Teach it!
5. Teach your child that it’s critical to always know where he is. That his or safety is the most important thing. Drill and enforce daily schedules.
6. Explain the safety of groups – the predator wants to avoid one thing: attention. A target is isolated and/or unaware. The sheer numbers of a group makes avoiding attention impossible for a child predator, so use that tactic.

There are many more excellent safety tips and information available on the Web. A great tip sheet can be found on the Elmira Police Department’s site here (good job). More resources:

National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
FBI Publications - A Parent's Guide to Internet Safety

If you have other resources or tips, please comment. Thanks!

Deadly Force at the Southern Border

Photo: WSJ

Much attention has been paid to the recent shooting death of a 15 year-old boy near the bridge linking Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, with El Paso, Texas. Many of us, upon reading the headlines or hearing the lede of the broadcast media were struck with a myriad of emotions: shock, regret, sadness. The age of the boy should elicit that response in anyone with a care for humanity, and the loss of one so young. It should.

The fact that he was shot by a US Border Patrol agent also raises a reflexive response in many. The United States’ immigration laws and enforcement practices are only eclipsed by the BP oil spill as the issue of the day, a political issue to be specific. The reflex among many is to immediately blame the US, law enforcement, or just the agent, for the death, and call it unjustified. The Mexican government has called it unjustified, and asked for an investigation. He was only throwing rocks, after all.

As most of you know, I have a bias toward law enforcement, having worked with them for many years, as I know that they are mostly hard-working, honest, and want to make difference in their communities. I also have a bias toward the rule of law, and against tyranny. That’s why when I read the initial circumstances of the reports, I am withholding judgment until all of the available facts are made known.

What do we know so far? Indisputable facts are that Sergio Adrian Hernández was shot by a US Federal agent, and he was throwing rocks. There is more, but those are the only important facts to this post. It leads to the question of whether deadly force was justified. That will come out.

My question is a generic one: Is a rock a deadly weapon? Specifically, a hurled rock?

This legal site seems to indicate yes. “An assault with a deadly weapon occurs when an individual is put in fear of bodily harm. The harm doesn’t actually have to occur, but if it does, the charge may be changed to assault and battery, which means contact occurred even if no injury did. A deadly weapon can obviously include firearms and knives, but even normally innocent objects, such as a bottle, a pencil, a rock, and a car, can be considered deadly weapons if they have the ability to cause harm. [Emphasis mine- Ed.] Even using an unloaded gun, because it causes fear, may fall into this category. Hands and feet are not usually deadly weapons, but kicking or biting an individual may be sufficient for a charge of assault with a deadly weapon because kicking and biting may cause serious bodily injury.”

A few other examples, in no particular order:

Tulelake teen charged with assault with a deadly weapon
A 19-year-old Tulelake man was charged with assault with a deadly weapon after allegedly throwing a rock at a vehicle, hitting a woman in the face and shoulder, a Siskiyou County Sheriff’s Office (SCSO) news release stated.

11 year old girl arrested on deadly weapon charge for throwing rock during water balloon fight
”Maribel was arrested in April for throwing the rock at a neighborhood boy who had pelted her with a water balloon. The rock gashed the boy´s forehead…”

Suspected shoplifter who threatened guard with rock arrested
Hector Cesar Lopez Olivarria was arrested on suspicion of robbery and assault with a deadly weapon Tuesday afternoon, Carlsbad police Lt. Paul Mendes said.

Prosecutors offer deal in rock attack
The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said some of the young men accused of throwing rocks at Stephen "Tanner" Hansen in July have been given a chance to plead guilty to a felony charge of battery with use of a deadly weapon causing substantial bodily harm.

So clearly, the law treats it that way – a rock can be a deadly weapon. That should be obvious to all, but it may not be, or the face may purposely ignored. Use of rocks as a weapon is as old as human history. It is probably the oldest weapon in use, and has been observed being used by primates as both a tool and weapon. In fact, death by stoning is a commonly prescribed punishment in some ancient cultures, and codified by law. Any disagreement here?

In the case of the Border Patrol, the question is whether it was justified under the circumstances at the time, something which only a thorough investigation will reveal. For some additional perspective, please review this Chronological Listing of Agents Killed in Line of Duty, and read the narratives.

I would also encourage you to watch this video.

Technorati Tags: police,immigration,illegal immigration,rock,Border Patrol,Agent,Sergio Adrian Hernandez Guereca,shooting

A Debt That Can Never Be Repaid

To all veterans, our prayers and thanks are with you.

To those who never made it home, we can never thank you enough.

Technorati Tags: D-Day,WW2,WWII,Reagan

On whether Aikido sucks, and a civilian continuum of force

I recommend you read Continuum of Force and other fun stuff at Striking Thoughts. Please comment there.