Deadly techniques - are you prepared?

[Hwa Rang Warrior]

Are you ready for the psychological fallout that may occur when you take a life or have somebody try to take yours? There's more to a life and death encounter than surviving, you have to be able to live afterwards. Any comments about this from LEO or military people who have had to take a life? I would say they're probably better equipped to deal with the aftermath of that sort of thing than with your average Joe.

Speaking from an average Joe point of view , how often would one come across this situation??

Also for those who have been trained in the military where taking a life is nesissary do you ever take a life when your training? Probably not (at least not on purpose) So although a military person might still be more prepared that first time would still be a shock

[ravenzoom]

My sensei spoke to me about this today. He said, if someone tries to kill you it's better doing 6 years in jail than laying 6 feet deep in a coffin. When I think about it, I agree. The judge might say you went too far in self-defense, but it's hard to tell when you fighting for your life.

[lordtariel]

I'm not saying you shouldn't defend yourself, it's just that nobody talks about the emotional ramifications of killing someone, it's all about technique. Most people say, "this technique can kill someone so be careful using it." That's it, end of story. No talking about what will happen after the fact either legaly or mentally. Going over this stuff is not necessary for survival(the most immediate issue), but the more prepared you are the better. Look at all the cases of PTSD(Post Traumatic Stress Disorder... I think.) that are out there. Being in that violent of a situation can really mess you up. Blackbelt had a great article about this sort of thing a couple of years back(wish I could remember what issue).

Edited May 24, 2007 by lordtariel

[lordtariel]

Also for those who have been trained in the military where taking a life is nesissary do you ever take a life when your training? Probably not (at least not on purpose) So although a military person might still be more prepared that first time would still be a shock

This is my assumption as well, but it's also why I asked for the opinions of such people.

[Rainbow_Warrior]

The only way to be prepared...is to kill people...And that is not a nice thing to do....

Just the people who killed before (ie : war veterans) are prepared in some way to deal with that.

[bushido_man96]

Are you ready for the psychological fallout that may occur when you take a life or have somebody try to take yours? There's more to a life and death encounter than surviving, you have to be able to live afterwards. Any comments about this from LEO or military people who have had to take a life? I would say they're probably better equipped to deal with the aftermath of that sort of thing than with your average Joe.

This is a good question, lordtariel, and a hard one to answer. Even the people who you might refer to as "professionals" still have to deal with this. There isn't a very high percentage of LEOs out there that have really actually had to dispatch somebody. When you compare the stats, to the number of LEOs employed, and the number that have actually had to take a life.

I think that ps1 and USCMAAI made very good points in their posts, about being justified when using the techniques. Level of force has to be kept in mind.

Here is a different scenario for you. My dad, when he was an LEO in a small Kansas town, had something very bad come down on him one night. Bad guy, with a gun pointed to my dad's head, at close range, and my dad with no weapon out. He had to talk the guy down, and he managed to do it. He lived with that pretty well afterwards. He told me that later on, he met up with that guy on the street, off-duty, and had a real heart-to-heart with that individual. That is definitely not a situation that I would ever want to be in. I don't know if it has anything to do with this thread, but it is something to think about. If someone is intent on killing you, do you really want to be the victim? Should you feel sorry for them? They won't to you.

[gzk]

Another point - I wonder what "deadly technicians" would do in a situation where the attacker's intentions are not clear. Are you going to tend to rely on deadly techniques, and kill someone who was not a real threat to your life, or, not use them and be incapable of defending against dangerous but less than lethal situations? I see so many martial artists saying "Oh, I would just rip his throat out or gouge his eyes" or whatever, and that's fine if there is reason to believe the other guy wants to kill you. If not, wouldn't you be better served by incapacitating but non-lethal techniques?

[ps1]

Another point - I wonder what "deadly technicians" would do in a situation where the attacker's intentions are not clear.

This is always the question isn't it? Do you ever really know anyone's intentions? In Iraq, you're a driver in a convoy. You see a father push his child into the road in front of you. Do you stop? Stopping would hold up the convoy and make you and your soldiers suceptible to ambush. Rules of engagement tell you that stopping is the wrong thing to do and that you should hit the child. But it goes through your mind, "what if it was an accident? What if the dad was reaching for his child trying to stop him from going into the road? What if..what if...what if..."

Clearly this is a disturbing and extreme example. But it's a real example. You will never KNOW the intentions of anyone. You can only make your decisions on perception. That's why the saying, "perception is reality" rings so true.

Are you going to tend to rely on deadly techniques, and kill someone who was not a real threat to your life, or, not use them and be incapable of defending against dangerous but less than lethal situations? I see so many martial artists saying "Oh, I would just rip his throat out or gouge his eyes" or whatever, and that's fine if there is reason to believe the other guy wants to kill you. If not, wouldn't you be better served by incapacitating but non-lethal techniques?

I think I see what you're saying here. I would say it goes more toward what a person considers "deadly techniques." When I say I would use deadly techniques, I am saying that I would make sure the opponent is incapacitated and not able to continue their attack. This may entail a single punch to a vital area, an elbow strike, a rear naked choke, breaking the knee, or finding a make shift weapon. Whatever is necessary to ensure my survival, or the survival of my family.

[Kajukenbopr]

i know how to snap someone's neck and i know certain points that cause certain death. that doesnt mean I will kill someone in a "self-defense" situation; it doesnt call for it.

you could be ready for it, I would call that person a "psycho".

you know ultimate power; show it by enforcing self-control

[ps1]

Since the title of the thread is "deadly techniques-are you prepared?" Let's try to define a little about what that means. I say this because I'm not convinced we're all on the same page about it. I'm going to use the following post as an example. I'm not trying to pick on you Kajukenboper, yours was just the closest one.

i know how to snap someone's neck and i know certain points that cause certain death. that doesnt mean I will kill someone in a "self-defense" situation; it doesnt call for it.

I get from this post that a "deadly technique" is purposefully causing someone to die. That is, you break their neck/ use the 5-point-palm-exploding heart technique or any other method you feel WILL cause death to the opponent.

I look at a "deadly technique" more as a matter of using "deadly force." That would be any type of lateral vascular restraint (chokes), weapons (make-shift or otherwise), and even certain types of empty hand strikes (gouges, stomping a downed opponent...). The exact techniques would vary from state to state and even local court district to local court district (as court rulings are what sets precident for what is deadly or lethal force).

What are some other opinions on this? What do you think of when you hear the term "deadly technique?"