Victims of violent crime - including those in the April 16 massacre at Virginia Tech - often are unaware of the potential "weapons" that can save their lives, and much of what they've been taught about self-defense and crime prevention is wrong.The obvious response is the correct one: Ain't nothing like bringing a gun to a gunfight. And ex-"Only Ones" Debbie and Mike Gardner's advice will probably up the odds of an untrained person being killed.
But that doesn't mean we should dismiss their recommendations altogether. To those who take physical and martial training seriously, there is much to be said about improvising weapons from your environment--particularly for those times if a gun is not at hand. That's one of the reasons why I get such a kick out of Jackie Chan movies. He reminds us that just about anything can be used as a weapon, and does so with skill and oftentimes great humor.
In addition to consciously applying the late Col. Cooper's color codes, I recommend a supplemental situational awareness assessment: Look around and see what you could pick up and use if you really needed to, and visualize how it could be best deployed.
[Via KABA Newslinks]