Your best self defense may be simply a locked car door!

The best self defense technique pales in comparison to simple avoidance.  Yesterday, a woman was sexually assaulted and robbed when a man jumped into her car as she was driving in a fairly nice shopping area.  He assaulted her, made her go to an ATM and draw money, then had her take him to the nearby mass transit station where he made his getaway at taxpayer expense.  

This could have been avoided by simply keeping the doors locked and windows up as soon as she got in her car until she got out.  This is a basic thing we learn in Executive Protection training...you are your own bodyguard, so do it for yourself!

Best Self Defense Tip Of The Day

Your best self defense with a gun option is to "shoot to stop" the threat, not try to shoot them in the leg to just wound them.  There was a story yesterday of a local man who shot an intruder in the leg because he didn't want to "kill him."  Luckily, it worked out this time.  The problem is the leg is a very small target and may not stop the aggression.  If you miss, or they don't stop, you may not get another shot.  Do what police and military are trained to do: aim for "center mass" (the center of the largest part of their body showing, usually the torso) and shoot until they stop being a threat.  Read the full story here: http://www.kgw.com/news/local/homeownershootsintruder-104321603.html

Best Self Defense...At A Glance?

I've said previously that the best self defense can just be awareness.  Last night a local man noticed his motion light snapped on.  He glanced out to see someone burglarizing his garage.  He chased him down and held the man for police.  Whether chasing him down was a good idea is debatable...but installing motion lights around your house is cheap, easy insurance.  Then...if they come on don't be too lazy to glance out and check.. Sure, 9 times out of ten, it's the local cat, but you may just catch a thief!

The Best Self Defense Is Not Going To Bad Places Where Bad People Do Bad Things

Awareness and avoidance is the best self defense period.  I just heard on the news this morning about 2 shootings in the wee hours of the morning Saturday and Sunday night.  1 of them in downtown Portland, gang related.  A recent high school graduate with his whole life ahead of him...dead and 1 other wounded.  The second shooting was just a few minutes down the road from me in Forest Grove, OR (30 miles from PDX).  Fortunately, no one was hurt...but 2 shots were fired in to a crowd of 30 in a parking lot outside a bar.  

Want to protect yourself?  Easy, don't be in an urban downtown area after midnight, don't be in a bar parking lot with lots of other people...hoping to see a "fight."

Keep Track Of Your Best Self Defense Training In A Log Book

I have been taking advantage of logging my training for years now. In addition to being able to document all your training, writing down your best self defense methods leads to better retention.  Here's a video from the Personal Defense Network that illustrates this.

http://www.5min.com/Video/The-Benefits-of-a-Personal-Defense-Training-Log-Book-433172233

Can Doing Nothing Be The Best Self Defense?

Perhaps, but probably not.  FBI statistics have shown that victims who resist are less likely to be injured than those who comply. The best self defense, according to statistics, is to resist with a firearm. 

I heard a news story this morning that drove this point home.  A man was stabbed with a steak knife and robbed.  There was no logical reason for the criminal to escalate to felony assault or possible murder charges for a wallet.

Unless you have a degree in criminal psychology (even if you do) don't try to get inside a criminal's head and predict their actions ( or expect them to be logical).  Comply if you think that will be the end of it, but always be prepared to resist at the first sign the criminal is going to hurt you.  Stay safe.

Awareness of surroundings when dining out

via AudioBoo