{"id":176,"date":"2011-08-03T00:35:33","date_gmt":"2011-08-03T05:35:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hcsblogdotorg.wordpress.com\/?p=176"},"modified":"2011-08-03T00:35:33","modified_gmt":"2011-08-03T05:35:33","slug":"the-martial-cane","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thetacticalhermit.com\/index.php\/2011\/08\/03\/the-martial-cane\/","title":{"rendered":"The Martial Cane"},"content":{"rendered":"

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The Martial Cane\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

You know\u00a0life is a journey, and you have to enjoy the trip more than anticipating getting to your destination. Recently I have had to start using a cane more and more due to my injuries, being\u00a0a\u00a0still, relatively young and vibrant man,\u00a0 it has really opened my eyes to another dimension of the “Complete Arsenal” of the Civilian Operator. I had studied stick fighting in the past, but really it was a cursory study and I focused more on firearms training than any other “ancillary” training. Once I got deep into firearms study, however, I found myself going back to the stick\/knife training of Pekiti-Tersia\u00a0for my footwork (ala Tom Sotis). I soon found, that the entire spectrum of my training, including knife and empty hand,\u00a0was connected by simple combative principles.\u00a0One of the principles that connected them\u00a0was Displacement..you can call this “Getting off the X” “Inquartata” “Getting off the Line of Attack”\u00a0etc..it all amounts to you moving and not standing still like a statue and getting stabbed or shot. We will come back to this.<\/p>\n

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Now that I get to carry a 40″ piece of hickory around with me all the time, I have come back full circle in studying the art of the Martial Stick\/Cane. To be honest, I do not look at having to use a cane as a disadvantage, but rather as an upgrade. Let me explain. Before, I was a Bipod, now I am a Tripod. Before,\u00a0I would look rather funny toting a 40″ piece of lacquered\u00a0Hickory around with me with “shark teeth” cuts, now it is accepted. So in essence, I am more stable and better armed..I call that a major Upgrade! The philosophy of the “Layered Offense” and “Complete Combatives” rest in the ideal that the more weapons you have the better off you are, AS LONG as you have a simple combative\u00a0system to use and integrate\u00a0all of them under the stress of combat.<\/p>\n

Before we go any further on this subject (or any other “ancillary weapon” topic)\u00a0I think it is important to understand and\u00a0have no illusions\u00a0about the brutality of street violence. No mater how well-trained\u00a0you are, either with a stick, knife or empty hand, Never bet your life on that alone..if possible for your location, your\u00a0Sidearm should be your Primary Weapon. Not saying some people I know could not do serious damage or kill with a stick\u00a0or knife, but why test fate? If you can obtain a CCL\u00a0in your state, Get It!! \u00a0I have seen human beings do terrible things to each other..I have seen human beings take amazing damage and keep operating..I have seen\u00a0people stabbed and slashed and they\u00a0kept coming, I have seen them get their heads bashed in with a baton and keep coming..I have NEVER seen anybody take solid shots to center mass or head\u00a0from average handgun distance with\u00a0a center fire\u00a0pistol and survive. Tote a Pistol, first and foremost, then layer your other weapons\u00a0on top of that. Rant Off.<\/p>\n

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When we talk about “ancillary weapons” we are going with the premise that they\u00a0SUPPORT the primary weapon. So how do these weapons support our sidearm? The simple answer is by creating an initial “first strike” and giving you space and time to draw your weapon. As we saw in the “Listerine” ECQ\u00a0article, most handgun engagements are up close and personal affairs, with space being a premium. A Cane, because of its length and striking power is an ideal “first striker”. By using standard combative strikes and blocks\u00a0(face smash, overhead smash, standard stick guard) we can accomplish a potent first strike into the assailants\u00a0nose or face. We can also block most forms of punches and kicks using a two hand guard position. Going back to the Complete Combatives principles that connect all our weapon systems, we need to inflict as much pain as we can on our attacker in the most efficient way possible, striking “soft target” areas of the attacker: face and\u00a0groin\u00a0are good places\u00a0to start.<\/p>\n

Now we have think about the most important aspect common to all our combative systems: DISPLACEMENT,<\/strong> or for you folks who like common language: Getting your ass out of the Kill Zone!!<\/em>\u00a0There are several ways to accomplish this, the simplest way is by running the opposite direction obviously, but since combatives need to also\u00a0be efficient, there is a couple of better methods:<\/p>\n