NOTICE TO READERS FROM GERALD CELENTE:
As we had forecast, and is now a fact, as the global economy declines, crime and violence will rise.
“When people lose everything and have nothing left to lose, they lose it.”
By the escalation of crime rates across the globe, they are losing it.
Beyond how to survive and thrive economically during the “Greatest Depression,” as conditions deteriorate, it may be a fight for your life.
When the fight breaks out in the real world, it’s not like what you see in the movies or on TV.
The following article by Bradley J. Steiner is a close combat lesson on how to fight for your life with a knife if you are attacked. Please note the following article contains strong graphic content.
Some people may find it not their cup of tea, and they may not want to read it.
For men and women who want to read on, it is a true close combat lesson of survival.
KNIFEWORK
“Knifework” is the term I prefer (used back in WWII, in fact) to the more popular “knife fighting.” In fact, with the exception of low-lifes who creep around alleys and bars in seedy of neighborhoods, knife fighting, per se, just about never happens.
One of my beloved mentors and colleagues, the late Col. Rex Applegate, was the Office of Strategic Service (OSS) close combat trainer of more than 10,000 fighting men during WWII. Fairbairn, along with his partner Eric Sykes, developed the world famous Fairbairn-Sykes Commando Knife.
Before WWII ended, Applegate and Fairbairn had collaborated on development of what is today known as the Applegate-Fairbairn Fighting Knife. Applegate’s training and experience in every aspect of close combat, as well as Fairbairn’s, was quite probably the most extensive and intensive in history.
It is highly unlikely that you live where you would be legally permitted to carry a true combat knife on your person. In fact, concealed weapon permits do not allow the bearer to carry a knife – only a handgun.
In Western society, the knife is generally regarded as the “bad guy’s weapon.” Often it is just that… but not because of anything sinister about a knife. It’s because criminals know the value of a knife, can obtain knives easily, and some have no compunctions whatsoever about maiming or killing innocent people with a sharp blade.
I insist that private citizens who aspire to a realistic ability of defending themselves must establish a willingness and readiness to use a knife whenever necessary and possible to defend innocent life.
Inside your home, as far as I am aware, you are free to own any kind of combat knife you wish. The laws in the United States do not prohibit purchasing, owning, and keeping in one’s home knives designed for close combat use. So…
You certainly can acquire and keep in your home or apartment several combat knives. The proven Fairbairn-Sykes Commando Knife and any of the Randall-Made Combat Knives are excellent. I am also partial to the original Ek Commando Knives (the ones manufactured and sold prior to the closure of the company). The U.S.M.C original Ka-Bar is another good choice.
Some of these knives are costly, but I always tell my students, “Save money on neckties and other assorted junk; do not skimp when it comes to weapons. If you ever need a weapon, you will need it real bad, and you’ll be glad that you got quality.”
As far as carrying a knife is concerned, the situation becomes more of a problem. You definitely should check with law enforcement where you live for the latest information. I believe, but am not 100 percent certain, that no fixed blade knives may be carried on the person. Folding knives that possess blades not exceeding the permissible length (I think it’s 4”) are okay. In trained and practiced hands, they make excellent weapons. They must be lock-blade, however.
I train students to open their folder and keep it concealed behind their leg if or when they anticipate an unavoidable attack. Or, if holding the weapon in the open position is not practical, take hold of the closed folder, hold it securely, and use it to strike sharp blows with either end that protrudes from your closed hand. This in effect is using the folder as a “yawara” hand stick. After striking once or twice and disorienting the adversary, snap the blade open and locked. Purchasing a lockblade folder that has a nub welded to the blade, so that it can be flicked open one-handed, is a good idea.
A short-bladed (4” or less) knife should be used to slash and stab at the facial/neck/throat area. This is a very vulnerable target area even to a short blade. Wounds here cause profuse bleeding. The bleeding can cause panic in some cases; or, if the forehead is slashed, blood will run down into the eyes and impede the attacker’s vision, making him a convenient target for a solid kick in the testicles or to the knee. Then you may be able to escape.
Fixed blade combat knives (or even kitchen knives) should be used to thrust deeply into the abdominal area. This is a shocking wound, and several may be delivered or, better yet, once the blade has penetrated it may be ripped across the stomach area, literally slicing the internal organs of the adversary in a manner similar to “hara kiri.” Stabs to the eyes, throat, and heart are always effective, but the abdominal cavity is big and easy to attack first.
One option I believe is excellent is a utility knife. The best source is a Home Depot type store, where a wall full of different models can be seen. These knives are not “knives” per se, since their blade is merely a razor blade. But the damage these babies can do is terrific! The leverage you enjoy when driving a gashing hack across an attacker’s face or neck is terrifying… and you can quite literally cut through to the bone. Used without pressing the blade into action, these tools make superb yawar sticks, since they come in steel manufacture and are ergonomically designed. One should be in every woman’s handbag.
If you carry a handful of gravel in an outer pocket, throw this into an attacker’s face, then kick him before accessing your folder and snapping it open for action.
One of the great advantages of a knife over a stick is the psychological reluctance – outright terror, in some cases – that almost everyone in the world has toward being stabbed or cut. A great advantage for you.
Squeamishness about cutting or stabbing flesh, drawing blood, and the generally messy results of closing with someone and using a knife on him must be overcome if you are afflicted with it.
Remember: When fighting for your life or to protect your loved ones, you must be 100 percent prepared and willing to do whatever it takes. And you may console yourself by remembering that the only time you will ever use a knife against a living person is when you have been forced to do so – by that person.
by Bradley J. Steiner
