It is often said by martial artists that if they use the skills they have practiced for years in training in a real street self defense situation then their actions will be perfectly justified because they will be doing so in “self defense”.
To my mind, this is a very dangerous attitude to have if you are a martial artist. The consequences of such a generalized viewpoint are that martial artists begin to believe that every technique they practice in the dojo is a perfectly valid response to any situation that happens on the street. Thus we have those who think it is okay to break the arm of a drunk who took a wild swing at them, we have those who think it okay to break someone’s neck from behind or retaliate to being pushed with an over the top flurry of strikes, and all because their instructor told them it was okay to do so because it’s “self defense”.
Such an ill- thought out and gung-ho attitude is clearly counter-productive to what self defense actually is. Self defense is not only defending yourself in a fight it is also protecting yourself from the consequences of that fight and that is something many martial artists never even think about while they are annihilating, or intending to annihilate, the next person that attacks them on the street.
Responding to a situation with over the top techniques like the ones mentioned can actually put you in more danger than not responding at all. In a lot of cases, an untrained defendant who’s first instinct is to run from the attack and not look back will actually be protecting themselves more than a trained martial artist who chooses to stay at the scene and face or beat down an attacker. I think many martial artists in this situation will choose the latter option because they think they have something to prove to themselves. They might be thinking to themselves that this is what they have training for all these years, the mythical street situation is now a reality and now its time to put all the training to the test- can I measure up to the challenge?
Such thinking is obviously natural in a way. I don’t think there is a martial artist out there who has never wondered if they could use their training to overcome a real opponent, but it has to be remembered that this type of thinking is ego-based, and as such it isn’t really designed to keep you out of trouble, only put you in it, as the ego has a habit of doing.
Real self protection then is about swallowing your pride and doing what’s best for you at the time and if that means running from an attacker or toning down your response then so be it.
But why should you tone down your response or run away from a person who is trying to really harm you? Don’t they deserve to be punished for doing so? Maybe, but here are two very real ramifications of violence that you should consider and bear in mind at all times:
1. Legal Repercussions. If you get into a fight you can almost certainly expect the police to get involved at some stage (although not during). If the police get involved the officers in charge will look at the situation and the damage caused to either person (or persons) and they will decide who the aggressor was after interviewing any witnesses there may be to the incident. If you are standing and the other guy is not, you will most likely be viewed as the aggressor. Even if it is established that you were not the aggressor your response to the attack will be gauged and if it is found to be above an acceptable level of force then you can expect criminal charges to be brought against you. In both cases you are screwed. If charges are brought against you then you will be brought to court and from there you can expect some kind of penalty, either a fine or a jail term or a suspended sentence, not to mention the possibility of a civil action that will result in you paying damages to the other guy (even though he attacked you!). The consequences of this are also many, including a black mark on your record. There are obviously many variables in these cases but you always expect negative consequences of some sort.
2. Revenge Action. Even if the law does not get involved in the situation, you can still pretty much expect further consequences which means you will be spending quite a while looking over your shoulder and wondering when the revenge attack will take place. I know of countless cases were someone who has being assaulted and hasn’t went to the police, but instead have ambushed their attacker at a later date (more often than not with a weapon) or went even further and paid someone else to do the job for them, a situation that usually results in a severe beating and even broken limbs.
Those are two very real ramifications of violence that you should think about the next time you’re practicing that neck break technique in the dojo. I’m not saying you should stop practicing such techniques, I’m just saying, for your own good, that you should either file such techniques under art or at least be aware of the consequences if you were to actually do such a lethal technique on an opponent.
There will of course be situations were a lethal response is justified, but such situations rarely if ever arise in the life of your average person. Most altercations on the street are drunken brawls or escalated arguments that can be stopped with little use of force. This is what I don’t think many martial artists, especially those who train in brawling systems like MMA, don’t understand when it comes to self defense. They think they just have to stand toe to toe with an assailant and trade blows, the quickest way to step over that line the law says exists. Control never seems to come into it and as I have already stated, this is a dangerous attitude that is sure to land you in trouble some day.
Street self defense is about only responding to an attack with enough force to stop it and no more. Anything after that and you’re playing with fire.
Just don’t complain when you get your fingers burnt.
Now, having said all that, there is a flip-side. Contemplating the legal repercussions of defending yourself can be very unwise because it can cause indecision which will inevitably lead to defeat. In the end you do what you have to do to stop the attack, even if that means stepping past boundaries set in place by the law. It’s your life at risk in the end and that is more important than any law.
Further and Recommended Reading:
Streetwise: A Complete Manual of Security and Self Defense
The Self-defence Manual (Summersdale martial arts)
