protectivearts

CHUDAN TSUKI

Tsuki (‘thrust’) in Aikido should replicate a knife thrust. We have focused on the high-line (jodan) first because it was a pedagogical thread from kata-dori, but also because a thrust to the face elicits a strong ‘flinch’ response. It is harder to maintain ‘zanshin‘ when pressed with a high-line attack. This morning we moved downContinue reading “CHUDAN TSUKI”

JODAN

Funes the Memorious by Borges, for me, is a poignant reminder of the dangers of specificity – missing the forest for the trees. Funes focuses only on the details to the point that everything is unique – he has no ability to form connections to extrapolate a general pattern. There is a deep lesson here. Concentrate too heavilyContinue reading “JODAN”

SIZE EQUALS DISPARITY OF FORCE

“Defensive Tactics With Flashlights” by John Peters (1982) pp. 156-158. The chart is from Juste David Myers – the work cited was an unpublished manuscript (“Close Quarter Combat” 1982), which doesn’t appear to have ever gone to print. Nevertheless, the matrix shows a presumptive survival ratio based on physical size. Peter’s book primarily is an instructionalContinue reading “SIZE EQUALS DISPARITY OF FORCE”