Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site gatech.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!akgua!gatech!spaf From: spaf@gatech.UUCP (Gene Spafford) Newsgroups: net.women Subject: Self Defense -- possibly offensive (no pun intended) Message-ID: <4052@gatech.UUCP> Date: Mon, 20-Feb-84 01:18:53 EST Article-I.D.: gatech.4052 Posted: Mon Feb 20 01:18:53 1984 Date-Received: Tue, 21-Feb-84 07:58:04 EST Organization: The Clouds Project, School of ICS, Georgia Tech Lines: 144 The following are some general comments and methods on self defense. These may be offensive to some people because I describe some rather sure but nasty methods of stopping an attacker. If violence upsets you, or you are particularly imaginative, you may not wish to read any of this. I won't go into details here, but I have enough background to be pretty sure of what I'm talking about. I also am an avowed pacifist who has great respect for life and I hope none of you ever need resort to any of the actions suggested here. Careful with your flames, please. First of all, you need to decide how much force you're willing to use. In general, in any case where you are threatened with violence and possibly death you should not hesitate to reciprocate in kind. That is, you should be prepared to do whatever is necessary to end the threat to yourself. You don't warn. You don't deflect (as an end). You cripple or kill. Anything short of this just invites more massive abuse by your attacker unless you've had LOTS of training. Every person should consider how far they will go to protect themselves or someone around them. If the moment comes, it is too late to consider then. Hesitation can, quite literally, be fatal. And there is no concept of "fighting fairly" -- if you fight, it is not a contest, it's your life. Why do I counsel such extremes? Because if someone is attacking you, they are very possibly a psycho or on drugs and minor pain is going to do very little other than add to their rage. If you decide to use force, make it count. Furthermore, unless you are very lucky, if you are fighting someone bigger or more experienced than yourself you will probably only get one good shot -- it needs to count. (Often, the best timing for this is to act passively until you are in a position to act.) Next, consider the situation. If you are confronted with a weapon or a group of attackers, you're really better off submitting. The only exception to this is if you have a very real suspicion that you will be killed or severely maimed EVEN IF you co-operate. If that is the case, and you have a good opportunity, take it. The worst that can happen is that you get killed in the attempt...but you may escape a more certain end later on. When you hit, hit all out. In fact, if you imagine you are actually trying to hit a spot about 6 inches beyond where you actually hit, you can maximize the power (that is, you aren't trying to hit the person's nose, you are trying to punch *through* their head). If you make a fist, keep the thumb outside or you'll break it. You can often deliver a more powerful blow with the palm of your open hand (open like you are pushing) but be careful not to hit with your fingers because you can break your wrist. Don't swing your fist in an arc -- drive it straight in, keeping your elbow close to you body. Act crazy and lethal -- you might scare the person away without actually having to hurt them. Now to specifics. Don't depend on a knife unless you know how to use it. It is to easy to deflect and then possibly use on you. A knife which is concealed until you use it works, but is illegal everywhere. Foldup knives (like jackknives) are worthless because they'll just fold up on your knuckles. A fighting knife should have two edges; not many people I know carry such a knife. Knives also tend to get stopped by layers of clothing so most short knives aren't appropriate. Forget Mace unless you intend to follow up with something else. It is possible for an attacker to do a lot of damage while only slowed down by Mace. Besides, the range and dispersal are chancy -- you're just as likely to spray yourself as your assailant. Guns, well, that's a possibility if you've had sufficient training and have a large gun. (I've seen and heard of cases where someone has been shot multiple times with a .22 and still keeps coming.) If your attacker doesn't have a weapon in hand, one of the most effective methods is to blind them. If you place your hands on either side of your attacker's face, the thumbs very naturally are in place over the eyesockets (and will slip under glasses). Don't hesitate -- plunge your thumbs in deeply. This will, at the minimum, disable your attacker. It can kill, too. If you are grabbed from behind, reaching up over your head and back will put your hands in the same position. If s/he values their eyesight, they will be forced to let go of you -- possibly pushing you away and giving you a chance to run. Driving anything like a pen or key into the eyesocket is also pretty much assured of stopping someone. If you have any kind of chemical nearby such as gasoline, perfume, hairspray, laundry bleach -- aim for the face. A very hard blow across the front of the throat with the edge of your hand or forearm is a potentially fatal blow. Don't hold back or else you'll just have an angry, gasping person after you. Usually the blow causes sufficient swelling and reflex problems to induce unconsciousness. A hard enough blow will collapse the windpipe and lead to death. Striking across the bridge of the nose is another way to stop someone. Again, a hard enough blow will cause unconsciousness or death. Most women and many men can't hit hard enough to do this, so it helps to hit with something hard such as a book edge or trashcan cover (edge on). These also work on the throat, as noted above. Hitting the temple area with a hard object also works, as does striking the neck at the base of the skull. If you are going to use something sharp and pointed, like a knife, try for the throat (pierce, not slice). The heart is often too hard to hit due to all of the ribs and the breastbone. A knife in the kidney is fairly effective if you twist to maximize blood loss. People are much harder to kill than tv shows and movies suggest (I know -- I used to work on an ambulance and in an emergency room). There are other places to strike for a crippling or fatal blow, but they are harder to describe or harder to hit, and most don't produce the immediate results you need (for instance, a fatal wound to the liver which might cause death in an hour will still allow enough time and mobility for an attacker to harm you badly). If your attacker is male, there is an obvious target. The preferred method is to reach between his legs from behind and squeeze -- hard. You don't want to be hit as you apply pressure. If you kick and connect, don't stop with one kick. Add one or two more, possibly to the head as well to put him out. Realize that shock alone from this kind of injury can be fatal, so don't ever pull this kind of stunt in anything other than a life and death situation. Also note that some men are less affected by this move than others -- especially someone on certain forms of trendy recreational chemicals such as PCP. Another good method of self defense is to have a lighter in your hand with the flame control turned all the way up. When close enough, set fire to the other person's hair and clothes. Flame it into their eyes. If they knock you down and are lying on you, remember that flame burns upwards and you are unlikely to catch fire from the person on top. If you do this, follow it up with some other attack, because the burns may not be sufficient for you to get away or incapacitate your attacker. I don't think there is any martial art that is effective unless you practice it a lot. I would recommend something like Win Chun (I'm not quite sure of the spelling on that one) or aikido as opposed to karate or tae kwan do, simply because they are easier for small, less strong individuals to use effectively. Finally, keep in mind the basic principles of good self-defense: avoid dangerous situations, don't think or act like a victim (be confident and project it), and try to escape any confrontation if you can. If all else fails, don't hesitate -- fight to win. -- Off the Wall of Gene Spafford The Clouds Project, School of ICS, Georgia Tech, Atlanta GA 30332 CSNet: Spaf @ GATech ARPA: Spaf.GATech @ CSNet-Relay uucp: ...!{akgua,allegra,rlgvax,sb1,unmvax,ulysses,ut-sally}!gatech!spaf