As of late, there has been alot of argument and conversation about small, pocket pistols and revolvers for self-defense. People have ranted that either they will work or they won’t in a street fight..I have to laugh because I think folks (like always) are missing the point.
This article is not meant to persuade you one way or another on the subject, in fact, it is not a GUN article..it’s goal is to illuminate the REAL topic that needs to be discussed when we are talking about carrying a gun for self-defense; Let’s Get away from WEAPON focused verbage and start talking about some FIGHT focused issues, which can go by many names:
- ECQ (EXTREME CLOSE QUARTERS) Fighting
- Combatives
- Up Close and Personal Fighting
- Bad Breath Distance Fights
- 0-5 Feet Gunfighting
- Stomp your Ass, Bite your Ear off Brawling
- Kicked in the Balls, Dirt in my Eyes, Bar Parking Lot Fight
These are just a few so you can get the picture. You see, as many of you already know, the statistics show if you get into any kind of brawl, it is going to EVENTUALLY get close..I say”Eventually” because yes, you may do everything right and keep your reactionary gap and have awesome situational awareness, but sooner or later, that asshole that wants to rob you, rape you or kill you, has to get close (within “touching” feet) to do it. Despite popularly held beliefs, MOST criminals like to get real close so they cannot miss, and their weapon can do the most damage.
Most combative training out there that is worth it’s salt teaches you to GAIN distance through striking, kicking, eye gouging, etc The reasoning here is that you can also disorient your enemy (striking at his eyes, throat, nose) while at the same time gaining enough distance to run away (yeah, sometimes retreat is your best option!) or access and draw your weapon without him fouling your draw or grabbing your weapon and killing you with it (retention). The point to understand here folks is that if this asshole sees you reaching for your waistband or inside your jacket, etc, he is going to assume you have a weapon and he is going to try to stop you, then, the real fight is on..because as the old adage goes, there is always a knife or gun present at the fight you are in: YOURS.
I want to take a quick timeout here and let the reader recognize something: This is turning out to be more of a FIGHTING article than a GUN article, huh? I have not one time discussed anything related to gun fundamentals yet have I? The reason is simple guys: When you are in a fight for your life, just having a gun does not solve your problem…you must be prepared to FIGHT and drill frequently on these “other” skill sets I mentioned.
Lastly, a word about combatives. The bottom line is no matter what weapon we happen to have ON us or AROUND us, we have to survive..if this means beating your attacker over the head with a tire iron or stabbing him in the carotid artery with a bic pen, do it. Too much training out there is gun focused..get away from and out of that type of thinking…it will box you in to a mentality that is not well-rounded for reality. Learn to fight with your hands, feet, knees, elbows, head, knife, stick, rock, etc..then a gun or two.
I have talked a time or two about the Combative Continuum guys and here is another chance to re-iterate it. When we put Combatives into our tool box, we are not just learning another way of fighting, we are learning a SYSTEM that transcends platforms. It gives us “one way” of thinking to apply to empty hand, stick, knife and gun skills. Also, more than that, it gives us the “Whatever it Takes”mentality to win a fight and does not lock us into a specific training dogma as most martial arts do.
In Part II we will discuss more in-depth Combative Principles.
(NOTE: You may have noticed all the Kelly Mccann pix..that is because I am a huge fan of Kelly and his method of training in Combatives…any of his DVD’s or Books are worth your time and money.)
Stay Dangerous!