|
|
by Bradley J. Steiner, American Combato
Over the past 20-30 years we have caused a few people to wonder what, exactly, is it that “gives” with us. We incessantly refer to the teachers listed in the title of this piece as though they were the be-all and end-all of close combat and self-defense.
Are we not aware that their methods and courses are from the 1940’s and 50’s, and that now—in this 21st century—“martial arts” have grown beyond those WWII programs? (By the way, if the WWII methods are “outdated” then virtually every method and system of classical karate, taekwon-do, jujutsu, etc. is hopelessly ancient! The 1940’s are certainly closer to the present time than the 300 to 2,000 years!)
We suggest that anyone who hears someone in the martial arts field sneer at or downgrade the WWII masters, simply ask to see the background, credentials, record of experiences, and combat history, etc. of the detractor; he whose “brilliance” and “superior modernity” (hah!) supposedly surpass that of these real-life veterans of the real world, and of the harshest wartime experiences this very real world has to offer!
Men who have not only been and done, but who have trained tens of thousands of others who also have been and done—successfully—in the arena of REAL COMBAT.
We unapologetically hold up the WWII experts as The Authorities whose core principles and tenets are no less valid today in this 21st century as they were during WWII, in the last century.
Every single one of those teachers that we have been strongly influenced by, and whose wartime methods are part and parcel of American Combato have been in actual combat.
They have formulated doctrine based upon real combat experiences (theirs and that of many others), have trained many thousands of actual, honest-to-goodness fighting men—fighting men who used that which they had learned from them in actual wartime combat, and have brought the art of individual armed as well as unarmed combat from the feudal age to the modern age.
The teachings of these men, moreover, was so successful during WWII that it was adopted directly by the FBI, and other federal agencies, and by state and city police departments nationwide, in the USA.
Military, law enforcement, and intelligence organizations in the U.K. have also been directly and greatly influenced by the excellent methodologies of these men.
The human body, and the environments of urban and suburban as well as rural societies have not changed essentially since the 1940’s, and probably will not change much for another two hundred or more years (if mankind does not blow itself off the planet).
Those men we constantly allude to, and their methods, remain state-of-the-art as far as their core principles are concerned, and serve today as the springboard off of which has been launched all authentic, valid, reliable, present-day combative methods.
In fact the validity of additional combative methods may be ascertained very accurately by holding them up to the wartime (i.e. Applegate) standard, which we have published and discussed numerous times, elsewhere.
THAT’S why we have for decades, and will continue to, emphasize the tremendous value and importance of the works of these men for all whose interest is self-defense and close combat, exclusively.
The classicists and sportsmen are no less legitimate in their objectives as we are in ours; but there is a big difference between us, and this we hope to enlighten seekers-after-combat-doctrine so that they understand.
We respect those who are avid competitors and who love the classical disciplines, but theirs are not total close combat methods, and those in search of practical combatives training have a right to know this, and need a venue via which they can learn and practice what they are looking for.
We have no illusions about converting antagonists to our position, and we have no desire to try. But we do hope that we can reach, educate, and benefit those persons who are looking for honest, no-frills, practical close combat training.
P.S. We have trained in jiu-jitsu, taekwon-do, ch’uan fa, varmannie, and kenpo-karate. All of those arts contain gems of techniques which, when selected and included in curricula along with the WWII methods (because they were tested against and have met the Applegate Standard) enhance, increase, and build upon the practical repertoire for which the WWII Masters have laid the foundation.
(photo source: National Navy UDT SEAL Museum)