Always be Armed

“Inside every granite hewn tough guy is a

defeated man waiting to be carved out! Every
strike thrown, every blow landed is a chip at his
façade until his granite will is but gravel strewn
about the floor”
Start carving motherfuckers and here is a whole
list of tools to get started.
Is The Garrotte a Legitimate Self-Defense Tool?

Some people have a heavy opinion on this issue. They have opinions as to the
legitimacy of the garrotte as a tool of self-preservation. Others have strong opinions
as to the definition of "garrotte."

[I’m not going to debate the spelling, I’m using Col. Rex Applegate’s spelling of the
word and whenever you see me use something different, it’s a typo.]

Some people say, "Well, the garrotte is a..." and then they define it to the exclusion
of anything else. The simple fact of the matter is, a "Garrotte" was an execution
device that was utilized in Spain up until the mid-1970s. A few other countries used
it now and again. And there were many different types of garrottes used as
execution devices.

When someone says, "The garrotte is only a killing weapon..." Technically, they are
correct, but they are not usually speaking of the execution device that was once used
for Capital Punishment, therefore, they are incorrect in reality.

The number one deciding factor is intent. How you use it. You can use some
"garrottes" as a Flexible Weapon with no intent whatsoever to kill.

The garrotte had a couple of different forms. One had a metallic collar that was
placed around your neck and the collar had a threaded hole that a bolt was inserted
through. On the other end of the bolt was a large "T" handle for the executioner.
The condemned was seated in a chair, the collar placed over a wooden post and the
head of the prisoner, then, the executioner began to tighten the contraption until
your neck was crushed or your vertebrae were dislocated, broken or crushed.

Later versions had a blade that ran through the bolt for what was thought to be a
"mercy killing." The blade was slipped between the vertebrae, severing the spinal
cord.

In a pinch, the improvised garrotte could be a seat, wooden post, strong cord and a
metal bar. The noose being affixed around the post and neck of the condemned, the
bar could be inserted and the cord twisted until death occurred. Much like using a
tourniquet and stick.

These are "garrottes." The important thing to remember is, if someone says, "No,
that’s not a garrotte, this is a garrotte..." And they are speaking in absolutes or
anything other than an execution device, they’re incorrect. More on that later.
Other "Garrottes"

So, if we exclude the execution devices, what is left? If we do exclude the execution
devices, any flexible or semi-flexible weapon that cuts the air off by compressing
and/or crushing the trachea, severs (up to and including complete decapitation) the
trachea and other vital structures (carotid arteries, jugular veins, vagus nerve, etc.)
or breaks the neck, we have a list of items that have been used as a "garrotte."

One Point of View: The Debate

I was once involved in a debate with a person who insisted that a "True Garrotte"
would be a "cutter." Meaning, a piano wire or guitar string garrotte. The wire being
so fine that it would cut into the structures rather than compress/crush them.

If we trace the lineage of these hand held devices back to the origin of the word, as I
did above, we see the "Original Garrotte" did nothing of the sort. The "Original"
killed by compression and/or crushing and sometimes neck fracture.

Yet, I consider the "cutters" a form of garrotte because there is modern history to
back that up. However, the "cutter" type of garrotte is not a "true" garrotte. It’s
just another type of garrotte.

The "Cutter"

Back before delicatessens had slicer machines, the cheese was usually cut by a wire.
Yes, a "Cheese Cutter" was basically a wire with two handles. As far as I can tell,
this is where the "Modern Cutter Garrotte" came from. The source is Melton’s
"Clandestine Warfare."

The British SOE and American OSS used these devices, to what degree I do not
know. Some wire garrottes with machined and knurled brass handles (for enhanced
grip) were manufactured and issued. They are in the OSS Weapons Catalog, as well
as other references...

Gigli bone saws were also used as "Survival Saws" as well as "Cutter" Garrottes
during World War Two.
The "Crusher"

"The Garrotte. Thugs in India have long been known for their method of strangling,
called garrotting. It can be executed with a rope, strong cord or a piece of twisted
cloth about three feet long with a noose in one end. This is a garrotte. Properly
applied, it produces a deadly, silent strangle.

Slip the noose over the forefinger of the right hand so that the loop lies down across
the palm toward the little finger. Close the right hand and pick up the free end of
the cord with the left hand, so that the thumb and fingers are on the inner side of the
cord and the end is even with the little finger. Approach the victim from the rear
and, opening the right hand, throw the loop over his head with the left. Use the left
hand to draw the noose through the right hand until it is nearly taut about the neck.
Then close the right hand about the noose at the back of the victim’s neck and twist
as you would in applying a tourniquet. With your hand against the back of his neck
and your right arm stiff, the victim is held at arm’s length and is unable to free
himself from the strangling cord or to reach his attacker. A hard pull to the rear at
this point will make the victim fall backward and cause his chin to fold down over
the cord, thus adding his own body weight to the pressure of the strangle." ~Col.
Rex Applegate, Kill or Get Killed

In the illustration above you can see the finishing position of what Applegate
describes. The right hand is INSIDE the loop, when the loop is pulled tight around
the neck and your hand, a fist is made with the open hand then the fist is cranked
counterclockwise. Much like a stick in a tourniquet. The palm is open and oriented
UP, then closed into a fist and oriented DOWN.
What Colonel Applegate was describing was the method and weapon of the ancient
Thugee Cult of India. This is where we get our slang word of "thug." The word
"Thug" comes from the Hindi verb, "thaglana," which means, "to deceive."

I do not know if the garrotte described above contained a rupee or not. There is
another line of thought that there was more than one way to strangle with a scarf
[rumal]. And that was, a rupee or rupees [coins] were tied into the end of the scarf to
give it weight so it could be thrown around the neck and then the strangle was
initiated. In fact, more than a line of thought, there is proof of this from the period
of British Occupation of India when the British suppressed the Thugee Cult and
executed and imprisoned thousands of Thugs.

Throwing the Japanese Fighting Chain, which is weighted, in such a way that the
chain is propelled around the neck is also throughout Japanese Martial Arts that
focus on the Manrikigusari/Kusarifundo.

In "Kill or Get Killed," Applegate then mentions the "Stick Strangle." This is a
triangular method where the stick is held in reverse grip and inserted under the chin
from behind (or from the front)...John Steyers covered this Stick Strangle in his
book, "Cold Steel."

Then, he addresses other methods of strangulation:

"The Cord Strangle. Another type of strangulation, as old as history in the Far East,
is accomplished with any light cord or wire of good tensile strength, about 18 inches
long. The thinner the cord or wire, the quicker will be the effectiveness. Tie a loop at
each end of the cord, or tie small wooden blocks on the ends, so that a secure grip
can be taken. Approaching the man from the rear, throw him off balance, as with
the stick [strangle], with your right foot against the inside of his right knee. With a
hand on each end of the cord (the cord held taut), bring the cord over the victim’s
head and back against the throat. Cross the hands at the rear of the neck and apply
pressure both ways. Strangulation is quick and silent..." ~Applegate

You will notice that Col. Applegate describes the cord/wire as being taut when going
over the head. During the approach, the arms would not be crossed. After the
garrotte is thrown over the head, the arms would then cross at the wrists/forearms.
Imagine holding your hands out in front of you as if you are preparing to clap your
hands together. Then, with your right palm, touch your left elbow and
simultaneously, with the left palm, touch your right elbow. The forearms are parallel
to one another. That is the motion you make. This also takes a shorter cord/wire to
use effectively. The wrists/forearms are crossed after the loop has been thrown over
the head, not before.

This is actually a weaker garrotting method than having the arms crossed on the
approach as is currently taught in the U.S. Army’s Combatives Manual, 21-150
where the arms are crossed at the wrists/forearms on the approach. Then when the
loop is thrown over the head of the enemy, the arms are jerked apart. This is much
stronger.

There is another, older way of achieving the same position without approaching with
the arms already crossed. It was depicted in the U.S. Navy’s World War Two Hand
to Hand Combat Manual for Naval Aviators, the famous "V-5" manual. This is
shown below.

Notice that as the years passed, not much changed. This is the U.S. Army’s Field
Manual 21-150 marked December 1971. Showing the same, basic method.

In this method, your left hand makes a cross-body movement and is positioned at
the back of the enemy’s right shoulder. The right hand holding the other end of the
garrotte is then looped over the head of the enemy in a semi-circular,
counterclockwise motion and then the arms are pulled apart.
Takedowns, Using the Enemy’s Weight

There are four basic ways to take someone to the ground immediately following any
of these maneuvers.

#1 Pulling straight downward and back.

#2 Kicking the back of the knee and pulling back and down.

#3 Knee strike to the lower back and a pull backwards and down.

#4 A quick turn of the body where you are back to back with the enemy and the
enemy is hoisted off of his feet to complete the crush. This is the movement that can
possibly result in decapitation if a "cutter" garrotte is used.

So, is the garrotte a legitimate tool of Self-defense? That was the original question.
The answer to the question is, it all depends on what type of garrotte you are going
to use really.

I cannot imagine going through the trouble of carrying something with such a single
purpose as a "cutting" garrotte. That is a specific type of weapon and the only
outcome from the proper use of one is death of the opponent, and that is going to be
carried out from behind almost exclusively, as in Sentry Removal.

Any belt, length of rope, cord, a telephone cord, whatever is at hand, can be a
garrotte. You can carry a very strong bandana or scarf with that being carried with
the intent to be used as a flexible weapon. A jacket or light coat can be used as a
garrotte, like the belt, it is a common, every day item. The every day items that are
all around us points to flexible weapons being really viable and valuable Self-defense
tools.

Anything other than a "cutting" garrotte can be used with lethal or non-lethal
intent. So, if you make an improvised garrotte from 550 ParaCord, what you do
with it will be the deciding factor.

Now, we can break this down and go to Part Two, "The Flexible Weapon." Before
we do, here is a series of pictures showing just a few methods. Some are not
"Classical Garrotte" Techniques. They are still very important. It also shows what
can be done totally unrelated to a rear attack, or, a response if the enemy turned to
face you. What if someone were trying to Garrotte you from behind? This shows you
how the weapon might be used against you if you thwarted the rear attack and you
turned to face the attacker.
Rope cannot be banned, and criminals can always find weapons anyway, but could
you defend yourself against these methods? That is the question...

In that last series of illustrations, you can substitute a jacket or a belt and you can
still see the viability of the techniques. You do not have to tote around a "Garrotte,"
and always remember, the criminals don’t have to either.
Blackjacks and Saps

The Quick & Dirty Guide to Saps and Blackjacks

There are 3 basic "loads" in a lead filled sap;

• Lead powder

• Lead shot

• Lead clay, molded

There are 6 basic types of Blackjacks/Saps;

• Round body with a flat or coiled spring in the handle for increased "whip."

• Flat body with a flat or coiled spring in the handle for increased "whip."

• Round body without spring in handle.

• Flat body without spring in the handle.

• Sap Gloves

• Palm Saps

There are 2 basic exteriors;

• Plain

• Basketweave

The most lethal type of blackjack is a round body with coil spring in handle.

The safest type of blackjack that still offers knockout capability is the flat sap with
lead shot and no spring in the shank.

Round 'Jacks concentrate force whereas the flat type spread the force out. Round
saps can actually break bones with relative ease. The introduction of a spring
increases the possibility of this along with the round shape.
Basketweaved leather increases the severity of damage done to the skin, to a greater
degree than a regular finished, smooth leather sap will.

"Sneaky Saps"

The "Palm Sap" was a cylinder of lead encased in leather and had a strap so you
could secure it in your palm with the strap going around the back of your hand.
Invisible at night for sure. Some Police Officers used to simply love these types of
Saps because when used in front of other "Tough Guys," because it looks like
someone being knocked out by being slapped open handed. If the Officer kept the
"secret" well, he would develop a reputation on the street of being able to knock
someone out by slapping them upside the head. The best way they were used was in
a crowd of people causing trouble, taking out the Big Mouth in the group.

The Key Fob Blackjack. This was a miniature 'Jack that had a grommet placed in
the leather on the end...and you could whack someone with your keys in your hand.
Most were only about 4 or 5 inches long. Think of a small Blackjack in the form of a
Kubotan bit with a noticeable "pouch" on the end like other ‘Jacks.

Sap Gloves. I'm sure everyone is familiar with these nasty items. Very good leather
gloves with powdered lead sewn into the knuckles. Most Departments banned these
along with the others to avoid the so-called, "Gestapo image."

Although the years have blurred the terminology, a Jack is technically round and
the Sap is flat. Saps are also called, "Slappers, Slapjacks," etc.

This was indeed an impressive close-quarters weapon that would absolutely put
someone away quickly if it landed accurately and powerfully.

The Blackjack and Sap used to be so popular with Law Enforcement in America
that alot, if not most, Police Uniforms came with a long and narrow "Sap Pocket."
That speaks volumes.

Blackjacks/Saps: Bad to the Bone

If you speak with most Police Officers who have been on the job for over 15 – 20
years, they will tell you that they miss the Blackjack/Sap a lot. They have experience
with these weapons and they know how effective they are if used properly.

In one case I know of, a Patrolman was wrestling with someone, a standing grapple
over a traffic citation and because there was ice on the ground, they both slipped. He
was trying to gain control of the suspect and they were both trying to get to ground
without ice on it to gain control of the situation… In desperation, the Patrolman
slipped the ‘Sap out of its pocket and aimed…and splintered a patch of ice where
the suspect’s hand had been a split second before. The suspect gave up instantly, still
slipping on the ice, on his belly… He knew if he escalated what that Sap would do to
him…it just took the fight right out of him and he never even had to get hit with it.

The "Gestapo Image" B.S. aside, Police really lost an effective tool because of the
brutality of a few rogue Officers in the grand scheme of things. The deterrent value
of the blackjack or sap, once drawn, is not even up for debate. You would have to be
from another planet to not know what you were in for if you resisted…or worse yet,
attacked the Officer. When the round blackjack started, literally, caving in skulls in
the hands of the fearful or brutal, some departments banned them and "OK’d" the
use of flat saps in their place. Eventually, they too fell victim to politically correct
Police Department Administrators and Attorneys.

I have personally witnessed as a child and as an adult, Police Officers use

Blackjacks, and it ain’t pretty folks. These are brutal tools for brutal streets to be
used on equally brutal people. The streets have not changed a bit, they have become
worse, but Administrators and Politicians in Police Departments have all but
eliminated the Blackjack or anything remotely resembling it.

Targeting

The elbow joint, collarbones and groin slaps were all favorite targets… The elbow
being particularly effective if you had someone handcuffed and they started to act
crazy and resisting more. A quick and discrete crack on the elbow joint would bring
them in line quickly, just as a Kubotan thrust into the ribcage with a quick "shake"
will as well.

In close quarters, they are as effective as they are illegal in most places. Even the
small ones pack one hell of a wallop. Much like Brass (and other metal) Knuckles,
they are an instant bust in most locales if you are caught with them with the added
bonus of it being a felony…

The Know-it-alls

I read somewhere where someone said that Saps were good weapons, but they were
not effective against large muscle groups. These people don’t know what they are
talking about.

There are certain things some people will say when speaking about some subjects
and you can tell immediately if they really know what they are talking about.

If you hear that the Flat Sap is not effective against large muscle groups, this is
someone that does not know what they are talking about or they were never taught
how to use one by "The Old School" of Police Officers…

You simply strike with the edge of the Sap instead of the flat of the Sap. It’s really
that simple and very effective. That edge of the Sap will transmit force, cutting
through the muscle [not literally, we’re speaking about pain/damage, not
laceration].

You can tear someone down with the edge of a Sap. I learned these things from the
same veteran Officers who schooled me in the use of handcuffs as metal knuckles
and another LEO-Restricted item, the Iron Claw as a metal knuckle or fistload.

The Slungshot

This is sort of funny. I keep seeing folks who think Slingshots are banned but the
State that banned them does not know how to spell "Slingshot" and instead, the
people think the State has misspelled the word with a "u" instead of an "i."

As I understand it, I’m not a Sailor, but Sailors in times past used to work with
knots and braids just for something to do in the down times when they were bored,
etc.

There were a few different types of Slungshots. They were banned in most States
and you will see "Sand Club" in many States on the banned list of weaponry as well.
A "Sand Club" is just what it sounds like. A Sack of Sand used as an improvised
blackjack. Just like a bar of soap or a lock in a sock, etc.

The Monkeyfist Knot

Sailors would make a Monkeyfist Knot out of hemp rope and they would place a
steel, lead or brass ball, whatever they could get their hands on, inside the knot
before tightening the knot down. After you tie the Monkeyfist Knot, you have two
"tails" coming out, they could add one piece of rope to that and begin a simple
French Braid. Once the braid was of sufficient length, they could double it over and
whip the end with thread. All things a Sailor knows how to do, especially in times
past.

The hand would be placed in that loop and the whole thing became the vicious and
deadly Slungshot. You were "slinging shot." Some people have said that
grapeshot/canister shot was popular and this is where the device received the name.

The device could be swung with maiming/deadly effect. Or, the weighted portion
could be held in the palm and the lanyard was around the wrist, and the weight
could be thrown directly into the face of the other person, this would stun the person
and then rapid and very powerful full-power swings could finish them off.

Immigrant Slungshot

I call this one the "Immigrant" Slungshot because I heard about Immigrant Irish
Railroad Workers "taking care of business" with this one in groups.
One person would be targeted and a group would surround the person to block the
view of witnesses. This had to do with the establishment or the "maintenance" of
Unions and Gangs, etc.

The Slungshot Man would enter the circle and throw the weighted shot in the face of
the victim and then simply pummel them until they were dead or at least maimed
and seriously injured. Remember, this is a weapon that can change a person’s face
forever, in an instant. Your facial structure is crushed. It’s a brutal weapon.

The difference between these two types of Slungshots was not in the usage, but in the
construction of the weapon. The "Irish Immigrant" Slungshot was usually a heavy-
duty leather bag with long straps. Dump the "shot" into it for weight and there you
have it.

Other Improvised ‘Jacks

What was it…Sean Penn in "Bad Boys?" Used a sack or sock of some sort with cans
of full soda in them to bust someone up? Expedient and effective.

Locks in socks, sand in socks…lock on the end of a chain…there are so many

things…the chilling scene in "Full Metal Jacket" comes to mind…

The Jailhouse Blackjack is very well known, a bar of soap wrapped in a towel or in
a sock…like that used in the aforementioned movie.

Steven Seagal wrapping a billiard ball in a bar towel in "Out for Justice," just
another example of a Slungshot/Blackjack that is improvised and very effective.
Hollywood sometimes gets it correct. If you hit someone with these things…you will
bust someone up badly. They’re lethal.

Check out "Fighting Bandanas" for more information on improvised ‘Jacks.

One simple way to make a blackjack quickly is to obtain a fishing sinker, a large
one, a heavy duty coiled spring about 7 inches in length, some ParaCord and black
electrical tape.

Drill a hole lengthwise through the fishing sinker then run the ParaCord through
the length of it and out the other end. Not the cord so it cannot go back through the
lead sinker.

Run the ParaCord through the length of coil spring and when it exits, tie it off
securely and create a thumb loop.

Now, simply cover the entire thing in tape. There you have it.
The picture below just represents some things in the article, obviously the Jay Pee
Iron Claw is not a Blackjack or Sap. It is simply placed in the article so people will
know what it is.
Fistload!

What follows is a rambling modern history of the good, old-fashioned Fistload…

Once Upon a Time…

I saw a Dude get his lights turned off by a rather quick Gent with a Snap-On Spark
Plug Socket in his hand. You won’t see that in Snap-On’s advertising…but it
happened.

This fast exchange was a nice left jab and then a right cross with the Socket in the
right hand. Poof…down he went…

I have seen quite a few things, growing up in a white trash neighborhood full of
assorted riff-raff. Human flotsam… More than I care to remember sometimes.
Sometimes it is hard to look back and remember. The incident above, that was just a
really quick fight. Not a real bad memory…it was a beautiful moment in time if you
want to examine a really fast streetfight. But not everything is so crisp on the street.
Some people just don’t want a winning edge on the street that a simple Spark Plug
Socket or a pair of Metal Knuckles can provide. Other people want to literally
change the way you look, "rearrange the face" as we used to say…

Common Fistloads

Along with large sockets, like for spark plugs, coin rolls seemed to be everywhere on
the street where I spent my formative years. As I wrote in the Brass Knuckle Article,
Knucks were common, right along with the various improvised hand weapons.
There were cylindrical pieces of steel, lead and brass, some wrapped with black
electrical tape…a lot of different fistloads carried by good and bad guy alike.

Some guys carried them constantly, others only when they expected trouble. Some
preferred the common socket that could be explained away if they were caught.
Especially if they were really Mechanics, they would have grease under their
fingernails and other telltale signs that the socket was really not out of place at all.

Others preferred to make purpose-driven fist loads out of various materials.

The Rationale

There are three basic attributes most fistloads have.

• Reinforcement of the fist, solidifies the structure.

• Weighting of the fist.
• Projection from one or both sides of the fist.
A spark plug socket does not have a lot of weight to it, it was basically a reinforcer of
the clenched fist. A cylindrical piece of solid steel, brass or lead would have the same
effect with the added benefit of weighting the fist, i.e.; a harder hit on target.

The third is taking the fistload out of the arena of mere reinforcement and weighting
and into the Yawara Stick realm. Some of the fistloads were larger…and that
opened up more possibilities as the ends projected beyond the clenched fist and
allowed for powerful hammerfist and reverse hammerfist strikes, just like a Yawara,
Kubotan or Koppo Stick are well known for.

Massad Ayoob in his excellent book (which should be on everyone’s bookshelf),

"The Truth about Self Protection," speaks highly of the coinroller.

An interesting Martial Arts Fistload

This one apparently never caught on. I should have bought one, way back when and
used it in Jujutsu Class. Ha!

This is from an advertisement and an article in the February 1984 Issue of Inside
Kung Fu Magazine. "Korea’s Kung Fu: They call it Sib Pal Gee." By Randy
Bennett
This is called The Ka-Wee.

From the article:

"Among Sib Pal Gee’s many weapons, one stands out as being unique to this system:
the Ka Wee. The Ka Wee, a Pa Kua weapon…means literally, ‘movement like
scissors…’

It consists of three metal rods, one short and straight, and two longer (about six
inches) pieces which are curved to fit the palm of the hand. The pieces are joined by
a central pin which allows independent free movement of each piece. Thus, the
weapon collapses to be easily carried or concealed.

At the end of each metal rod is a metal ball which is used for striking and
pinching…"
James Keating’s Stinger

I wrote about this nasty little bugger in my article for Cheapskates. The Comtech
Stinger is simply so inexpensive that you should have one even if you are not a
"puncher." The reason is, they cost next to nothing, they are incredibly strong and
you should familiarize yourself with everything that comes down the pike in my
opinion anyway…

For those of you that punch well, hard, fast and furious…this is the fistload for you.
The older I get, the more I prefer to keep my hands open, using edge of hand blows
and the heel of hand – closing it only around a weapon or perhaps for a
hammerfist…
But the Comtech Stinger is simply awesome; it has a lot of power and will make the
person who focuses on punching with the clenched fist in Self-defense very happy
indeed.

In the Comtech Specificity Series, there was one volume about Push Daggers. In
that tape, years ago now…the Stinger was shown.

There is your link. To the Push Knife of Old…another effective weapon in its own
right but often maligned and illegal…
Well, the Stinger is not illegal yet…not yet. And it has the same excellent attributes
as a Koppo Stick and a Push Dagger…

The pocket stick is the double-ended knife that can only thrust – it cannot cut. The
Comtech Stinger is the Push Dagger that cannot cut, it can only thrust. With no
entry into the body…

You can still grab with the Stinger in your hand, just like a Push Knife or Koppo
Stick…a bag of groceries, an attacker’s clothing or hair, etc.

You can still strike with the palm, the heel of the hand, as you can with a Koppo
Stick or Push Knife without fear of losing it. You merely clamp your fingers
together…

You can still hammerfist with it in your hand, like the Push Knife and Koppo
Stick…

The Stinger can do more than "sting," so be careful with it. If you can punch
moderately hard, the Stinger will break a rib as easily as a Number Two Pencil. It's
not a toy.

I know it looks sorta funny…but listen…the Stinger is a very powerful device. As

powerful as it is simple and brilliant. Nothing to break or wear out, it’s just a chunk
of well thought out plastic.

You can hang your keys on the Stinger as well as a good LED Flashlight like the
Photon II and you are good to go! I love the thing and I don’t even like punching
anymore, why? The Stinger can take a moderately powered punch and turn it into a
miserable-feeling-deeply-penetrating strike. That’s why. You hang a Turquoise-
colored [the brightest] Photon II LED Flashlight off of it, learn to keep your cool
and you learn how to "Flash & Punch" [Metsubushi] with this combination and you
will absolutely turn the tables on someone in a heartbeat.

Again, a direct, straight punch or a "rolling" vertical punch, right to the face after
flashing with the light…awesome results, low line kicks should follow.

The Impact Kerambit/DTL

The brainchild of Datu Kelly Worden, this is also a favorite of mine and very viable
for street Self-defense. I remember Datu Kelly sending me one almost six years ago
now…you see one of the first in the picture below along with a current production
one. This is a really effective device as well.
"DTL," as this Impact Kerambit is sometimes referred to, simply stands for,
"Destroy, Trap and Lock." Datu lovingly refers to it on some of his seminar tapes as,
"The Puncher…"

It’s more than a puncher. It’s more than a reinforcer of the hammerfist, although it
is clear when you hold it in your hand that it is going to excel at hammerfist strikes.

The bottom portion that forms the "L" makes for a vicious reinforced hammerfist,
as stated above. As that portion projects past the clenched fist, that has a Comtech
Stinger effect for straight on, direct punching and uppercuts, etc.
The ring is not merely for retaining the DTL. Everything stated about holding
groceries or grabbing attackers by the hair or clothing as well as Kubotan pinches
with your attacker’s flesh (ear, nose, etc.) stated about the Stinger, Push Dagger and
Koppo apply here as well.

The ring also becomes the reinforcer for the reverse hammerfist or…a straight on
punch as well…very versatile.

Yubi Tori, fingerlocks – especially the particular agony of Professor Wally Jay’s
fingerlocks, all become a brutal reality with the DTL.

The fingers that are captured are grounded into plastic that will not yield, they are
clamped in and everything works effectively.

The Wild Kat

This is a plastic rendition of an old "Half Knuckle" Brass Knuckle pattern. It has
been around for years. Now people are making them in an indestructible plastic
format. You might not believe it, but these were made years ago out of brass and
they were Half Knucks with extreme points. I tried one scan out of an old martial
arts magazine, but it came out really bad. But that was in the 80s and these were
made out of metal then. The plastic seems more than suitable and will hopefully be
more friendly when it comes to the law.

I don’t have experience with them or I would probably write more about them.
They are interesting to me in a way and I’m not saying they are not going to be
effective…they would be in determined hands for sure. Just not my cup of tea.

I would add one more thing…this particular weapon along with the "Ninja"
keychain carry with them the possibility of actually penetrating the eyes or trachea.
I don’t know that for sure, as I have not tested them but my best guess is, if they will
survive medium-power strikes to a wall…they’re probably going to go into these
structures.

My personal belief is…if a stranger, a male, grabs a woman in a parking lot…not at

a party or any other "social" gathering…but in a setting where the woman should
be in fear for her very life…
If he got his eyes put out or his trachea, jugular or carotid pierced…I could not care
less.

Unfortunately, the law does not see things this way. The law would demand that
women should be psychics and perform Oprah-approved whistle blowing and
Cellular Phone Self-defense…they might come down hard on a woman who put an
attacker’s eyes out, etc., if it were not a clear cut case where lethal force was OK.

I’m just saying this as a warning… In Kelly McCann’s ["Jim Grover"] Self-Offense,
he speaks of the "Ocular Knockout." Where the eye is pushed in to a depth where
this causes a knockout. That would probably be the result of a forceful strike, along
with the possibility of eye damage and blinding…if you used a blunt Kubotan or
something along those lines. But the Wild Kat’s "ears" are rather pointy. This is for
you to decide.

Romatron

It is a keychain-based device and can be a fistload, that’s why I’m placing it in

here…

The Romatron has a body and a plastic ball, the ball is connected to the body by a
steel cable. The ball can rest in the end of the device and then with a flicking motion,
the ball exits the body and becomes a striking flail.

I had my hands on one in the early 1990s and the plastic ball did NOT have lead in
it at that time. It was very light and I thought it would be rather ineffective against a
determined attacker.

The website for Romatron now states the ball has lead in it. That’s a whole new
ballgame now…I have not had my hands on one yet, however, not one of the newer
ones…
The "Ninja" Keychain

I purchased one of these about 14 years ago for a girlfriend and she carried it daily
and loved it. It’s not a bad Self-defense keychain; in fact, it’s going to be really
nasty-effective on the street!

It’s just the whole "Ninja" thing associated with anything to sell it. Why, hell, I
think the words "Ninja" and "Romatron" are now associated as well…sigh…

With this device, you have those two nasty, aluminum prongs sticking out the front
when a fist is formed…that’s going to hurt. The prong sticking out the bottom is a
bone breaker with a hammerfist, to be sure.

It really is a cool design; it’s just the way everyone sells the damned thing. I know, I
know…it sells…I know…

It’s a keychain! It can always be with you! It’s not a bad device at all. Just a bit
bulky for slipping in the pants pocket with the keys hanging outside which is the
norm for me. I’ve carried Kubotans and Koppo Sticks for years now…it’s second
nature… This Ninja Thang might get hung up coming out of the pocket, however.
Something to consider.

It is definitely something I don’t want to get hit with…

As an interesting sidebar, my buddy Seth sent me a video that he received as a

"bonus" from a TRS Series he had ordered or something. This keychain was
featured in part of that video. I won’t go into who or what the video was but will list
one thing shown on the video with this device.

There was a straight punch to the trachea, at extension, the palm would be down.
Upon contact, you twist your fist so these two prongs that have basically landed on
both sides of the trachea…wrench the trachea…crushing it.

There are a lot of things on videos you will see that are rather odd, crazy,
bloodthirsty and strange. Most of them won’t work at all. This one was brutal and
having held these keychains before, I have to say, as odd as this movement seemed, it
would probably do the damage the fellow said it would.

PlastiKen

Yet another keychain enters into the fistload category. Could have been in the Brass
Knuckles Article…but it’s not metal and…did not seem to fit.

As I wrote elsewhere, this thing is close to being "Knucks," and as such, you could
be arrested and charged with carrying "Knuckles." Especially if your State has a
catch-all game with its’ Citizenry regarding carrying NOTHING to defend yourself
with. Some States say, "Metal Knuckles." I believe others say, "Metal or other
knuckles."

Again, this is for you to decide. I have no experience with this device but it’s another
puncher-hammerfist-reverse hammerfist device that looks viable. Just not so
forgiving if you are hassled or arrested for it.
Shu-Chu

This rather odd fistload device was advertised in an issue of Black Belt back in 1983.
Long time ago…around the same time, Tak Kubota of Kubotan Fame was
advertising a "T-Hold Kubotan." Thicker than this Shu-Chu device…think of a
miniaturized version of a PR-24 Side Handle Baton and that was the T-Hold
Kubotan.

Anyway…this Shu-Chu device is a lot like that T-Hold Kubotan and the reason I did
not go ahead and scan the T-Hold Kubotan. Redundant.

This is sort of neat and I’m absolutely sure it would be effective. The beauty of
fistloads and pocket sticks is, they do not have to be radically involved to be
effective. So, of course it will work. But it is just another in a sea of devices…
The G.I. Fistload

Yes, the Government issued a fistload. Amazing, huh? Well, it’s not really a fistload,
but a lot of people sure use them for fistloads. They are catching on in popularity in
the more restricted areas of the country.

The good old Carabiner makes one hell of a fistload/knuckleduster. Or, you can
simply hook your index finger through it and kerrang someone that way as well. No
more explanation is required. It can do a lot of damage. Metal has a tendency to
damage people.

The Karate Key

Wrap Up

Fistloads, Pocket Sticks…Knuckles and Knuckledusters of all types…these cause a

severe amount of damage. The reasons are listed in the beginning of this article.
Reinforcement of the clenched fist or open hand, weighting it so you hit harder, etc.

People do not realize that these sorts of things break bones easily. They also break
facial bones easily as one of my sinuses bears painful testimony to, to this day.

An interesting thing about striking the face with something like brass knuckles, or
in my own injury I sustained, a simple piece of steel…

These injuries do not really hurt until the adrenaline wears off…then it hurts. If you
hit the thicker parts of the skull, you can knock someone out or kill them.

Aiming for the face against someone determined will not necessarily stop them from
hurting you as the facial bones break so easily and dissipate the force. The skull can
be a fatal shot, as can anywhere in the neck so if you were to target these areas with
some sort of reinforcer. Be aware that it would have to be a situation where your life
is in danger, immediate threat of grave, bodily injury and/or death…for you to
counter in that manner.

These devices can break ribs easily…anything they hit gets smashed and damaged
to some degree. If you train with these things to familiarize yourself with various
weapons, expedients and improvised weapons and tools…do so with the utmost
caution. Dentists are very expensive Doctors to have to hire and death is forever. Be
careful please.

The PlastiKen, Wild Kat and other "Keychain" Self-defense impact tools can be
purchased through

The Modern Matchbox...The Pager...

Modern Metsubushi Concepts

When I was a kid, we watched "professional" wrestling...alot. We were sort of

dense, we did not quite understand that the winners and losers were decided before
the match. So, we never understood how a "Referee" could be so blind to the truth.
Blatant cheating was never caught and whenever the "good guy" did the slightest
thing wrong, he was always busted. It made for good, addictive entertainment
looking back.

So, we had many misconceptions from watching this nonsense. We would hear the
"Commentator" scream into the microphone, "Oh...and a CHOP to the THROAT!"
[Gasp!]

When I started in Jujutsu, my world was crushed, I found out this was all fake. I
was almost ten years old, after all... I found out that a Shuto [Karate "Chop"] to the
throat was often fatal and one of the most vital weapon/target combinations a
person can have in their arsenal. My Instructor told me, "If you don’t believe it’s
fake, watch it closely, they are hitting the pectoral muscles high in the chest..."
Sadly, he was right. It does not really matter how much of a bodybuilder you are or
how tough you are. You cannot grow muscle over the trachea and you cannot
survive with a crushed trachea.

Pro-Wrestlers most certainly are some tough human beings, and they do get injured
and they have a great capability to injure someone that would attack them.
However, it’s not real...many things are not real... [I just had to say that so this does
not look like simply a slamming commentary on Pro-Wrestling]
So, I would walk through the door on a Saturday, my Mother is sitting there
watching two dudes pounding on one another for money, and she is screaming at the
TV like someone possessed. Then I saw something that I had probably watched as a
child but for some reason, I forgot...

A Japanese Tag-Team [They were probably brothers and owned a Law Firm in
Wisconsin or something in real life], well, one of them reached into the waistband of
his shorts and rubbed his fingers into his palm...and then he blasted the other guy in
the face with a handful of salt.

So, I sat down and watched this. And my Mother is screaming, "You cheatin’
sonsabitches!" I always reminded my Mother when she would read The Enquirer,
"The only thing scarier than the stories in The Enquirer are the people that read
The Enquirer and actually believe those stories..." The same applies to pro-
Wrestling.

So, she is believing all of this is reality, on the TV. Now I am rather intrigued...I’m
watching this, I get up and walk away. The mind is moving now...

This would have been about 1984, "The Ninja Craze" was in full swing, hand in
hand with "The Balisong Craze..." So, I began to do some reading...

Whatever meager allowance I was given, whatever money I could earn, I spent on
books and magazines. I bought my first piece of junk Balisong Knife in that time
period as well. I was into both of these "Crazes" full swing [pun fully intended].

I must have driven my Instructor to drink heavily, I was always dragging books into
class for him to explain movements. Mostly books by Stephen K. Hayes. Some
concepts Hayes would write about, I was intensely interested in. Sometimes I
received a good answer and sometimes I was scolded.

I would read about metsubushi, the use of powders and all sorts of things to either
vanish or to blind someone so you could either exit or damage them. This was
appealing to me, I thought back to the fake wrestling, right? Common sense, salt in
your eyes would hurt.

After awhile, my Mother could be heard in the bathroom, "Where is all the baby
powder?" She would be in the kitchen, "Where is all of my salt and flour?" I was
out in the woods experimenting, you see...

Enter The Ninja

So, do you remember the rather bad Sho Kusogi "Ninja" movies? I already had the
low-down from Shidoshi Hayes’ books that these movies had nothing to do with
Ninjutsu except to cash in on it. It was sort of neat to see the smoke bombs and
whatnot though. So...I’m in the woods, I’m using anything in the house I can to
figure things out for myself. I’m dusting trees, bushes, anything I can. I’m having a
ball. My Mother is pissed and has to run to the store just to make Christmas
cookies, but me, I’m in the woods and I’m lighting everything up.

Whole portions of the woods have turned white from flour and baby powder, ants
are dying from salt poisoning...I’m having fun.

So, I had this friend, the same age, and he was taking Shotokan at the time. We
would have these discussions about Jujutsu and Shotokan, and we thought we were
the Kings of the World. We knew everything! One day, we were screwing around in
the backyard and I dusted him with an aspirin bottle of flour. If we put aside the
fact he was extremely pissed, it worked like a charm. He was gagging and rubbing
his eyes, and I became the dirtiest bastard in the world at that moment. It worked!

Stephen K. Hayes

"A second method of creating the effect of invisibility is to take away the perceiver’s
capability of sight. This method includes smoke bombs and smoke screens, chemical
gases and sprays used as eye irritants, metsubushi blinder clouds of ash, sand and
iron filings and intense flashes of bright light, all of which render the perceiver’s
sight temporarily useless."

Do you see the Gateway that Shidoshi Hayes opened?

Dr. Masaaki Hatsumi

[The following are excerpts from the December 1996 Issue of "Ninja Magazine,"
once in a while, this magazine had a great article in it, this was one of them.]

"If he (or she) was discovered or faced with possible capture, more often than not
the agent was probably outnumbered by the enemy. In order to ‘equalize’ the odds,
the Ninja had to develop a method that would provide him with time, even if it was
only a fleeting moment, so that he could bring into play other Ninjutsu techniques
that would ensure his safety...
The technique of metsubushi (sight removers) involves a very wide range of eye
blinders, not just powder-like substances thrown at attackers: dirt, mud, gravel,
sand, pebbles, stones, ashes, ground pepper, nettle hairs, oil, water, poison liquids,
smoke and explosives are just some of the many ingredients that may be used.
Equally wide-ranging and diverse are the containers which these sight removers
were carried in...

...One particularly interesting and ornate container is called the sokutoku. Often
worn around the neck like a decorative pendant, it would not arouse undue
suspicion; but in an instant it could be a most effective means of subduing an enemy
with a single breath. The hollowed out device is usually filled with ground pepper
then plugged with a pencil-thin stopper attached to a thin line. When attacked the
Ninja merely brought the sokutoku to his mouth, removed the plug and blew hard
into the mouthpiece.

[Other methods of metsubushi] ...These would include methods of headbutting your

opponent, poking your finger or snapping a towel in his eyes, or the use of neko te
iron claws. Even reflecting the sunlight off a drawn sword blade into the enemy’s
eyes is a part of this."

Hatsumi Sensei also mentions that punching the nose to cause uncontrollable
lacramation is metsubushi. Cutting the forehead so that blood runs into the eyes, or
cutting/thrusting directly to the eyes, these are metsubushi. You’re beginning to see
the Big Picture, yes?

Enter The Dragon

So, I had a copy of Sifu Bruce Lee’s "Tao of Jeet Kune Do" from the local library
and I began to study that. I began to understand from being in fights, that alot of
things that were taught in Jujutsu you could see coming from a mile away
["Telegraphed"] and people could dodge them. And I knew Shotokan had the same
problems, and then after I hooked up with a guy who was taking Isshin-Ryu [forgive
me if the spelling is incorrect, it looks wrong] and even that Martial Art suffered
from the same illness.

Sifu Lee’s eye jab was used alot and the more I worked it, the smoother and faster it
became. It was great, you just shot the hand out with the fingers extended and
boom! You were in someone’s eyes! Even if you missed, you created the opening as
the person flinched. Like the Fencer’s direct thrust that Lee was inspired by in part,
it almost always lands...

The Finger Jab [Thrusting Spearhand, etc.] existed in Jujutsu, but the whole
concept as taught was not as "scientific" and focused on...therefore, it often did not
work.
The Concept Expanded

So, what exactly is "metsubushi?" Well, it is a concept as I understand it. I’ve given
you a few examples. Literally striking the eye, as in the infamous and effective JKD
Eye Jab, that is metsubushi. Throwing some powder that is purposely carried for
that reason, that is metsubushi.

What else? If you are walking out of the 7-11 and someone pulls a knife on you and
screams at you, "Gimme your wallet!" And you then fumble with one hand like you
are grabbing your wallet, and you pop the lid on the coffee cup quietly and easily
with a fingertip and project the hot coffee in their face, that is metsubushi.

MACE, CN/CS "Tear Gas," O.C. Pepper Spray, these things are metsubushi and
are about the best things the person interested in this method can carry. They are
ready-made and they are accepted in most areas. Check your laws, in some areas,
they are highly illegal.

So, in areas where you cannot carry a can of O.C. Pepper Spray, how can you utilize
the projectile concept of metsubushi? Simple, you can carry a container of salt even
on an airliner, right? It’s for food. Baby Powder would raise some eyebrows if you
were searched on a city street, given the every day hysteria we live under with
regard to everything...some idiot would probably arrest you for a controlled
dangerous substance. Then, when the tests came back negative, any folding knife or
whatever else you were carrying would be held against you as additional charges so
you did not sue them for the "Baby Powder Arrest." That’s the way that works, you
see...

So, we have salt and we have pepper as legal alternatives. Pepper is lighter than salt,
both will work, I just think salt is better. The baby powder and flour, they most
certainly are more "visual" to the bystander, more dramatic in effect, but they are
not practically superior. And you can carry them in your "off" or "weak" side
pocket in a 35mm film container. You can pop the lid off with your thumb while the
container is still in the pocket.

We’re not done yet, however...

Michael D. Echanis and The Infamous "Black Book."

Michael D. Echanis’ "Black Book," otherwise known as, "Knife Fighting/Knife

Throwing for Combat" has an excellent section on throwing edged weapons. Knives
and Shuriken, to be exact.

Many do not understand the Shuriken. One group of people think throwing stars
are "killing" weapons and the other group thinks they’re trash, or in the immortal
words of Bill Bagwell in a 1980s Soldier of Fortune "Battle Blades" article on them,
"metal confetti."
In the proper context, Shuriken, both "star" and "spike" forms, are effective. They
are distractions, and in a way, they are a form of metsubushi onto themselves.
Human Beings have a natural fear of having their eyes put out. Used properly,
thrown items work extremely well, and a multi-pointed Shuriken could too. It is
common sense. The spike forms of Shuriken are like very small throwing knives and
they require a greater degree of skill...learning how to throw multi-point "star" and
spike Shuriken can carry over to throwing other things accurately. See the
connection?

The end of this book is very good (the entire book is worth having on your shelf too)
and the very last set of photographs depict a scooping of the foot on the ground to
obtain a rock to throw.

Now, some folks will scoff at this. Some will say it is delving into utter nonsense, but
there is some serious food for thought here. The toe of the shoe can be used to
"scoop" some dirt or sand as well, and this can be flung into the face of an
attacker... It is not as outlandish as it might seem.

Other portions of the book depict various rolls and during the roll, retrieving a
weapon and during the completion of the roll, coming up and throwing. This is
equally applicable with a single rock as a projectile or for a handful of dirt, sand or
gravel.

Other Projectiles

Some people have suggested defense-minded people should carry some medium to
large sized, steel ball bearings in their pocket for throwing. Guro Dan Inosanto has
mentioned that in some parts of the Philippines and Indonesia, rock [and other
projectiles] throwing is an art onto itself. Echanis mentioned this in the end of "The
Black Book" as well.

A handful of coins, your keys and perhaps your wallet, all have been suggested as
projectiles to be fired by a defender at an attacker’s vision area.

Guro Dan Inosanto used a regular wallet to great effect in one training video on an
unsuspecting subject. In a book, he once flipped the sheath off of a knife into the
eyes of an attacker.

Vladimir Vasiliev advocates projecting your sunglasses into the face of an attacker,
or your wallet, keys or a hat. All of these things will work. He has specific ways to do
this that appear to be minor adjustments to the sunglasses...

Please understand, this is my personal, conceptual view of metsubushi and some

may not agree.

Metsubushi and Shuriken Throwing

There are many ways to throw both. Hatsumi Sensei in the article cited above lists
five basic methods:

#1 Forward with the palm up.

#2 Forward with the palm down.

#3 Backward [back-handed] with the palm up.

#4 Backward [back-handed] with the palm down.

#5 Spraying an area with an arcing motion of the hand as depicted in this

photograph from the article.

Experiment on your own to find what works best for you. It is cheap and fun.

The parallel is obvious when throwing Shuriken. I have never been able to throw
"star" Shuriken overhand or sideways. I can throw them with a great degree of
speed, accuracy and power underhanded, palm down. This is possibly the best way
to throw both Metsubushi substances and star Shuriken as the throw comes from
"nowhere."

Why Chemical Irritants have a Bad Reputation

Part of the reason chemical irritants like MACE have a bad reputation for
"stopping attackers" is, they were marketed improperly in my opinion and
furthermore, people are taught to use them incorrectly. Especially women.

People should be taught four basic things when using even the most powerful
chemical irritants like say, 10% O.C. Pepper Spray:

#1 Never overestimate the chemical or underestimate the attacker. These irritants do

not work on all people.

#2 Consider the irritant to be a temporary, one second blinder that allows you to do
something else in your own defense. A low-line kick to the knee or groin, or some
hand strike should immediately follow. There should be a physical strike
immediately following any use of a chemical irritant because you never know when
it will fail or not have the desired effect. You may only make the attacker flinch,
make the most of that flinch.

#3 Remember even after spraying an attacker, you now have a can in your hand, it
can be and should be used as an impact weapon, like a Yawara or Koppo Stick.
#4 Do not warn the person that you are going to spray them, try to conceal the can
until it is activated. If you warn the person, they could try to dodge the attack, or
turn their head, close their eyes, etc., meaning they won’t get the full effect. Why
give them a chance to make your defensive weapon less effective? Sure, people will
say that you have to warn someone to "legally" defend yourself. If it has come to the
point that you have to reach for the can of spray, we go back to the old adage among
Gunfighters. "If the pistol comes out, it comes out smoking." If the can comes out, it
comes out spraying...or you conceal it inside or behind another object until the
moment of use.

Women are usually not taught this because many women find the physical
encounter threatening and alot of people would not be teaching Self-defense for a
living if they told women they still had to punch and kick in order to survive. Some
people want a remote control for a Self-defense device. Life is hard, it is much
harder if you’re stupid. Any Self-defense Instructor that is not teaching women to
kick the attacker in the knees or groin while they are temporarily blinded by the
spray have either overlooked this or they have are not qualified to teach people real,
life-saving skills in my opinion. It’s O.K. to overlook something and then correct it.
It’s not O.K. to hide behind myths and nonsense more suitable for a Daytime TV
Talk Show than Streetfighting.
Make Them See The Light

No, not a recipe for making "Ninja Flash Bombs." Something very simple.
Flashlights. Not just any flashlights, however. No, the best flashlights designed for
"Defensive Use." There was a time when the MagLite brand flashlight was about
the best on the market you could own. And they are still excellent Self-defense
tools...but flashlights have become much more powerful and alot smaller. The
MagLite is still the brightest and best flashlight of choice when you need to use the
light for an extended period of time, and it is still the best when you need a
bludgeon-flashlight combination. It provides alot of illumination and still has the
capability to be used as a weapon if need be. It is a great companion to the smaller
LED Flashlights in your vehicle and home.

Law Enforcement Personnel usually have the large flashlight in "The Bludgeon
Position." Meaning, it is usually resting on the top of one shoulder, if the light is in
the right hand, that would be the top of the right shoulder. With the lens facing the
attacker. It is a very simple thing to blast someone with the light, into their eyes, and
then simply strike them with the other end of the light. A one-two combination that
will put someone out quickly, and if not, you have the light in your hand, you can hit
them until they are no longer a threat.
The King of High-Intensity Flashlights are the SureFire Flashlights from Laser
Products, Inc. I have owned a SureFire 9P for almost a decade now, and it saved me
on at least a half dozen occasions from being attacked by burglars and easily a
dozen or more times on the street. Along with an ASP-21 [inch] Baton, I was able to
defend myself easily on a few occasions. I cannot say enough about them. They work
on firearms, but they can work in your hand as well if you only do your own
research and personal experimentation with the concepts.

They can give you the decisive edge when you need it. Most attacks occur in low
levels of light, which means if your attacker is utilizing darkness [as smart ones will]
to aid them, their eyes will be adjusted to the darkness. The SureFire 9P will make
you see spots at 6 feet in a well-lit room, at night, the effects are much more
effective. If the eyes are adjusted to the darkness, which takes anywhere from 15 to
25 minutes and an instant flash of white light to destroy...the effects are not only
dazzling, they are almost painful. The eyes are sensitive, if they are adjusted to the
dark, they are super-sensitive, to say the least.

When you flash someone like this, it is best to keep the Master Eye closed. In that
instant that you hit the attacker with the light, close your Dominant Eye. That will
save you from being dazzled by your own light and your Non-Dominant Eye will be
able to keep everything somewhat in view...do not focus on the light that is blasted
onto the attacker. Divert your direct vision from the wash of white light.

If you think I am kidding, let a training partner adjust his eyes to the dark,
remember, anywhere from 15 to 25 minutes...and then have a training exercise in
the backyard at night or in a blacked-out basement, etc. Let him have it, then
reverse roles. That way, you know exactly what you are dealing with.

Another thing you can do in the "Metsubushi Realm" is to purchase inert training
sprays to simulate O.C. Pepper, etc., and be creative with your training scenarios.
Do this randomly so the person does not know when you will fog them with the inert
spray. Do not use anything except those inert training sprays specifically designed
for that purpose. The liability warning comes into view once again, don’t hurt each
other. If you cannot afford or otherwise obtain proper training equipment, don’t
train with this stuff.

What you are going to find with the use of the SureFire Flashlights and inert
training sprays in unpredictable training sessions (meaning the other person, or
yourself, should not know which "drill" is going to contain the use of light or spray)
is that these things work. They work very well. You will be amazed, you can then
take that information and run with it. Create your own training scenarios without
being bound by them.
What Else?

I think we should also include in this whole conceptual approach the use of regular,
carried items. What if you are carrying your briefcase or one or two bags of
groceries? These things can conceal a draw or an already drawn weapon, and they
can be used as a projectile. Just like if an attacker screams, "Gimme your wallet!"
Give it to him as mentioned earlier, or whatever else you have in your hand(s).

A coat or jacket whipped into the eyes or thrown over the head is delving into
"Cloak & Dagger" methods, but is still in this realm. They are effective. The bag of
groceries can either be dropped and the weapon drawn, or they can be thrown into
the face of the attacker.

If you have more than one attacker, a bag of groceries or a briefcase/shoulder bag,
or for women, their purse, these can be projectiles to distract one attacker while
low-line kicking another, etc. Like I said, use your imagination! These actions can
always be a segue to a draw or an exit. It all depends on the situation.

As I warned earlier, be careful and always train safely. Use eye protection, don’t
substitute safety equipment with substandard items. Don’t use extremely hot
liquids, etc. In other words, use your head! I’m not responsible. (Are you tired of
hearing this yet?)
 Low-Tech Knives in a High-Tech World

Low-Tech with a Euro-Flair...

The search for the Ultimate Lock on a folding knife marches on… The search for
the Ultimate Steel in any knife…marches…on… I guess I should not complain
because innovation is a good thing. What seems to really be bothering me is most
people look at a tool as a savior instead of just another tool.

If you focus on the tools, you have to have those tools you are focusing on, generally
speaking. If you're not careful, they become a crutch that you must rely on. Some
crutches you must, obviously, possess in order to survive some situations.

If you focus on the skill, you can generally use anything.

What if you can't have your "newest and bestest" folding knife with the Space Age
Steel and the latest Wiz-bang, slide-rule developed locking device that you can hang
weight plates from, what then? Is everything lost?

How did men clean fish and game long ago or…just exactly how did men fight long
ago with folding cutlery with no locking devices?

Go back one hundred years, you're not going to see Axis Locks and Walker Liner
Locks and Frame Locks. Men knew limitations and worked around them.

People found ways to get around limitations and they found ways to get around the
limitations of folding knives that were inherently two-handed openers (using nail
nicks, etc.). …Compared to the relatively spoiled knife community of today that is
showered in all sorts of one-handed knives from Switchblades, Gravity Knives and
Balisongs to knives with regular thumb studs, holes and other cutouts and discs on
the blade that allow you to open them with relative ease.

So, just what do you do when you cannot have your new Wiz-bang "Tactical Folding
Knife?"

I've been thinking about this ever since I read Pete Kautz's excellent article: "If Jim
Bowie owned a Spyderco." Then I read of the deadly encounter Civil War General
Nathan Bedford Forrest had with one of his Officers where Forrest used a folding
knife after being shot by this Officer, to mortally wound this man… I thought on it
some more.

The second generation of information that had me thinking was James Loriega's
book, "Sevillian Steel." I know Loriega is a rather controversial figure and the book
is too in some circles, no matter, that's not what this is about, this is a discussion of
where ideas came from. The book is a good read in my opinion. I'm simply not
qualified to have an opinion on the accuracy of the techniques in the book, etc. I am
not talking about that… I think what he puts forth as method is just as viable as a
lot of other stuff I have observed in the past and the section on using scissors and
jackets and coats is excellent.

While I'm at it, I would like to mention James LaFond's book, "The Logic of Steel."
I really like it although I vehemently disagree with him on some things. The material
in there about using a jacket/coat is excellent.

Through many conversations with Fred Perrin, I started to develop this whole idea
that I did not have to leave good tools behind that were no longer considered
"Modern." They did not have to be sentenced to the dustbin of cutlery history, no,
quite the opposite.

Fred Perrin spends a lot of his time teaching various Military and Police Units in
Europe and elsewhere how to do various things like fighting with knife and stick,
hand to hand combat and he teaches them about various concealed weapons. He
teaches much, much more and that is totally beyond the scope of this article, it
would have to be a series of articles to cover it all. One of the most important things
is how to survive in areas where you cannot get the "latest and greatest" equipment.
Or, in places where if you did try to get the "latest and greatest" equipment, it might
mean you draw attention to yourself.

You see, I was also bitten by the "Tactical Folder" bug for quite some time and with
good reason. But I began to see a much larger world; I did not want to get so
dependant on them to the point that I couldn't use other types of knives safely. That
could happen. So, I started using the more simple knives again for every day tasks
and I kept the "Tactical Folder" in reserve. (Which as of right now is an Al Mar
Knives SERE 2000 and it is an excellent knife.)

See, it always bothered me that the knife community, for the most part, has
discarded simple folding knives. They collect them, but many would never carry a
high carbon steel blade with no lock and no way of opening it easily with one hand.
To some, these knives are collectible but no longer practical. To others, they are
simply junk from another era like a rusted out Model A Ford.

To those of you out there that still use these types of knives, good for you!

What I wanted to do was to write a small article about the Low-Tech Knives that
seem to be an anachronism, stuck in a High-Tech World and they don't really get
the respect they deserve. They don't get their due as tools of everyday living, or for
survival, and…for fighting - defensive purposes.

This whole line of thought brought me to the place where I wrote the three-part
article "Kid's Stuff" which you will also find on my website and I encourage you to
read them.
 Low-Tech Knives V. High-Tech Knives

Are they "superior?" That's not a very simple question really. What is "superior?"
What good is a "superior Tactical Folding Knife" with "superior metallurgy and
heat treating" or a "superior lock" when you can't get one and you can't take one
with you but you have to find something to survive with?

What happens if, one day, the mere sight of a folding knife's pocket clip means an
instant arrest? It could happen, look where we're going with laws. Look at the
various lying mouthpieces in politics and the media beating the drum for banning
everything they consider "dangerous."

What about a slightly slower opening folding knife that fits the hand very well or
"good enough?" What if it does not have much of a locking device or none at all?
What if it is simple, straightforward high carbon steel?

Yeah, "What if?" Indeed…

What if you get stuck in a Third World Country and you can't find some nice knife
store? But you can find a place that sells tools that are common in that part of the
world? Or they sell…table cutlery…

This article is just a glimpse of some cool stuff. Old Technology in a Modern Age.

Flick your Bic

Back before we became a "Disposable Society" where you simply throw away old
shaving razors that have lost their edge or writing pens that no longer have ink, or
cigarette lighters that ran out of fuel, people valued the more permanent
counterparts to all of these items.

Ironically, the Bic Company has made cigarette lighters, shaving razors as well as
ink pens. If you took all of the disposable garbage that Bic has made, it would
probably fill one, massive landfill alone with no other items contained in it.

Think about this for a moment, a multi-billion dollar company that made its money
on 100% totally disposable items, amazing, isn't it?

The disposable shaver and a can of foamy cream replaced the straight razor and
shaving soap with mug and brush… Pens with ink cartridges that you could not re-
fill replaced the pen and ink well. Later on, the entire pen became totally disposable.
The various types of lighters, most notably the Zippo and Ronson, fell into disfavor
with the convenience of the Bic and Cricket disposable lighter.

Part of that is because the old writing pens, well, you had to put ink in them, the
older lighters, you had to put flints in them every once in a while and you had to fuel
them. The straight razor, a horrific fighting implement, you had to know how to
shave with one and you had to know how to sharpen one and actually take care of it.
Society is far too high speed for all of that now, it's perceived to be eccentric to know
such things or do them every day. To put it bluntly, most people are too "busy" to do
these things and the rest are too stupid and lazy to be bothered with such things
now.

As a matter of fact, I am too busy to do ALL of that stuff!

Anyway, men developed little "routines" around these devices. Extra flints were
kept under the pad in the fueling area of the Zippo lighter, you would never be
without a flint if you kept a small supply of them in there. The Zippo is a lot like the
knives I am going to discuss in this article; it is a holdover from another time. It has
a loyal cult following, enough for Zippo to make little gasket-sealed fuel containers
that can fit on your keychain…for those diehards that refuse to give up on the
Zippo…

It's funny, years of Zippo lore and the snapping open of these lighters. Some people
treat these things like Balisongs and Yo-Yos, they collect them and they perform
tricks with them, etc. There is, in fact, a website dedicated to Zippo lighter tricks…
just as there are websites dedicated to Yo-Yo tricks and Balisong knife
manipulation…

After I finished this article, I went to find that website and learned it had been
removed from the internet due to some liability concerns. Apparently, most people
are no longer trusted with fire either.

Smoking is viewed as a big "NO NO" in our society. A friend of mine brought over
some stuff for me to look at, the little sealed fuel unit for carrying Zippo lighter fluid
on your keychain (how is that for hardcore?) and a small, portable, stainless steel
ash tray that slides open and shut. Can you believe it? And of course there were the
Ronson Brand flints and it was once common to see them in a multi-flint dispenser
with a thumb wheel on the top, all of which fit on your keychain…

In the picture below, you see the Zippo fuel container and you will notice there is a
small plastic piece and a metal piece on the keychain as well. The small piece of
plastic will hold an extra flint and the small piece of metal can be used as a
screwdriver tip to access the flint well in the Zippo, to change the flint. Pretty nifty,
huh?
 Douk - Douk

The Mighty Douk - Douk, the little knife that can do a lot. The little knife that no
one thinks much about, some even think it's just a piece of junk that has a cult
following among some people. Good! That leaves more Douk - Douk for those of us
that know the secrets!

In the picture below you see the medium and small sized Douk-Douks.

What are the secrets of the Douk - Douk? Read on…

Let's start out with a nice attribute of the Douk. The blade is high carbon steel.
What that means is, you have to take care of it or it will surely rust. But Men have
been carrying knives like this for years, with these types of steel in them. They take
an edge like no other and they tend to hold that keen edge a lot longer than most of
the newer, "better" steels. You can make a good knife out of stainless steel; it will
take some abuse or neglect and won't rust too badly. It may hold an edge for quite
some time, and then it will be a perfect pain in the ass to sharpen. High carbon steel
is not like that - but you have to take care of it.

Everything is a trade-off in life, isn't it? If you want the extra keen edge that high
carbon steel offers, you are going to have to take care of it. If you want the ease of
sharpening, you're going to have to take care of it. I keep repeating this over and
over so you understand that you have to take care of your tools if you want your
tools to take care of you when you need them the most. If you want to get the most
out of a firearm, you have to take care of it. I don't know why people don't
understand this about knives as well.

Fred pointed out in his article on the Douk - Douk that you can turn it into a fixed
blade by simply striking the steel body of the knife with a hammer (or other
appropriate tool) right behind the tang, crimping the steel and causing the knife to
lock in the open position.

He also pointed out that the Douk-Douk is basically internationally legal because it
does not have a locking blade. This will vary from country to country, of course, but
it is something to consider.

In some countries, it is also illegal to have a knife that you can open with one hand
like a common Spyderco. The Douk-Douk does not have a thumb-hole, stud or disc
for this type of one-handed opening either. This means you have to use two hands or
your teeth and you have to practice opening it with two hands.

I have a wonderful book titled, "100 Legendary Knives" and it has a nice article on
the Douk Douk, it echoes what Fred has told me about the Douk Douk being
currency in some parts of the world. A lot of people in the United States may have
lost sight of the fact that a knife is a tool for life but other people in diverse places
have not. A knife is still a very valuable thing to have and a part of not only their
every day life, but their very survival.

While your average Cubicle Slave here in the United States might wet their panties
at the thought of someone carrying a pocketknife every day, a lot of the rest of the
world just thinks we're weak.

Mercator

When I finally examined the Douk-Douks, Fred Perrin turned me onto is the
German K-55, also known as the "Mercator" or "Black Cat." Sometimes called the
"Running Cat" or "Jumping Cat," sometimes with Cat spelled with a K. It usually
has K55 then right after that second number five (5) it will have a backwards K.
We were talking about the Douk - Douk and Fred advised me to get one of these
interesting little knives that have been around for years. The "Black Cat" is another
knife that no self-respecting member of the various knife cults would brag about.

But what is wrong with it? Really, when you look at it, it's a fine pocketknife. It has
a bail for a lanyard, high carbon steel blade and an almost indestructible steel body.
Much like the Douk - Douk. Unlike the Douk-Douk, the Black Cat has a locking
mechanism.

People see the leaping cat on the side of it and think, "That's flea market garbage."
Perhaps it is to them; maybe they cannot see how rugged the knife is. They would be
in good company; I didn't see it for a very long time, either.

Anything can be destroyed; you can break anything if you want to. But the Douk -
Douk and Mercator K55 are very, very good knives to have on hand and in your
packs and kits. The Douk - Douk has a tough spring that you have to get by to open
and close but it has no lock. The Mercator K55 has a lock and a nail nick to open it.

Both the Douk-Douk and Mercator Black Cats are incredibly thin bodied knives
and they can be hidden, slipped, slithered and sewn into a multitude of places on
and about your person, clothing or carried gear.

Laguiole

With the fine lines resembling a Spanish Navaja, the Laguiole is the hidden fighter
in this article. I know this will be controversial, but that's A-O.K. with me. Knives
like these have been used as fighters for years. Remember, "knives like these." I'm
talking about the Low-Tech Knives, L.T.K.

The last 20 years or so of "tactical folders" have a lot of catching up to do in this

department, the fact remains, these knives can be used for defense. They have been
used for years, probably much more than what we know as "tactical" or "fighting"
knives of the past 20 years.

These types of knives were the "tactical knives" of their day.

Some people are going to bellyache about no locks or whatever else they want to
gripe about…

You can use these knives for defensive purposes or…simply to cut your food, cut
anything you need to cut, it doesn't matter.

The knives in this article are very simple and rugged tools. But the Laguiole is
probably the gem of them all. It's not only the way it feels in the hand, you know you
can fight with it if you have to, but it's just a very fine knife, period. It's a quality
item; it has the appearance of quality and feels the part as well. The high carbon
steel blade to the mouche on the top with the bee on it and with fine brass bolsters
and equally fine horn scales. It is a knife that can be handed down from Father to
Son and so on and so on. Or…maybe you need to throw it in a storm drain if you
have to use it.

It's at home on the table of a restaurant or in the alley behind the restaurant if need
be.

Opinel

This particular Opinel feels like the Laguiole above, that's why I like it. Most
Opinels do not have these fine lines but are simpler in appearance. This Opinel, like
the Laguiole, is lightning fast in the hand and small enough to disappear quickly.

The Opinel has a wonderful lock, a simple ring that you twist and that's it. The lock
is as simple and elegant as the knife itself.

This Opinel could be a fighter or a steak knife; the situation will dictate that.

The overall appearance of these knives is one of innocence. They don't look "evil" or
"bad" and they can pass for true utility knives or even implements that you use to
cut your food. They're totally legitimate no matter what your intent is. If someone
should attack you, you can still have these as totally legitimate tools and eating
utensils.

"Why are you carrying this type of knife?"

"I use it at restaurants to cut steak with."

"Why would you do that? They give you a knife to cut your food with at the
restaurant."

"No, they give you something that you use to rip and tear the meat apart with,
they're always dull. I'm not carrying this for any other reason except to cut food and
open boxes."

You can say that with 100% honesty. It is true, most places that give you a knife and
fork are giving you something that they call a "knife" but it's really a bad excuse for
a knife. A hacksaw blade would be a better choice for a steak knife than a common
steak knife found in, at least, American restaurants. They're usually not sharp and
they just mash, rip and tear meat apart.

In the past, Cold Steel, Inc., manufactured a line of Opinel-type knives and they
were simply excellent!

Another type of Opinel - "Robinson"

This is a rather interesting example that Terry (and thank you T.T.!) sent to me
along with the Opinel and the Laguiole up above. This one has two blades and dual
locking rings, one on each end.
 Survival

What exactly is "survival" to you? Next to a firestarting device and a device or

tablets to treat water, there is probably no other tool as important for basic survival
as a knife. From the mundane to life threatening, nothing else will do.

If you read my three-part article on "Kid's Stuff" a whole new world of knives as
tools will open up to you. It's not for everyone, but you might get some value out of
it. Ken is going to write a companion piece to this article on "Low Cost - High
Value" knives and it is in the same vein as all of these articles. Call it "Survival on a
Budget" or whatever you wish, it's all important, for those smart enough to realize
it.

I've brought you the exotic, the strange, the obscure and now it is time to go back to
Square One and examine all of the things around you that you may have ignored or
discounted in the mad rush to get the latest and greatest "Tactical Folder."

There is a very good possibility that the "Tactical Folder" as we have come to know
it will perish under the boot-heel of oppressive law in the not-to-distant future.

For over two decades now, we have heard the control-freak gun-controllers preach
to us about how we should be more like "Britain" when it comes to gun laws.

You better believe if they set their sights on knives, we're going to have a battle on
our hands and I don't think we're going to win that one. The only "knife people" in
this country that are going to speak up are the ones who wish to appease the control
freaks and even the most cursory examination of the control freaks shows that their
appetite to ban, regulate and control is never sated.

Learn to use anything and as long as we can keep the more advanced stuff, that's
icing on the cake. Prepare for the day when you cannot have those things and learn
now. Prepare for the day when you might be rooting around in a junk pile trying to
find things to survive with. That might be a reality one day as well.
The Escape Artist - The Magnificent Rebel

Some thoughts on the writings of Henri Charriere, a/k/a, "Papillon."

Beware! The following contains content that is not suited for children, it is violent and
explicit in other ways as well.

Thank you, Brother

First of all, I really have to thank my Brother, Ken Cook, for suggesting Henri Charriere's
two books "Papillon" and "Banco." Ken knows I love to read and he advised me to
purchase these two books. He also knows my interests and he was 100% correct, these
two books are golden literary works, in my opinion.

If you enjoy really good storytelling without the stilted and cold prose that so many
books contain, you will love these two books.

Now, your opinion might vary, so be it. Perhaps you have already read one or both books
and you did not like them or you don't quite find them as interesting and informative (as
well as entertaining) as I do. That's fine. Different strokes for different folks, or, perhaps
you need to revisit both books and read them again in a different light.

Anyway, I wanted to thank Ken for casting some light into a dark corner by suggesting
these two books. A few years ago Ken and I were discussing various survival books,
primarily military fare, Former British SAS Gents (Wiseman and Davies) who have
written manuals as well as the ever-controversial Tom Brown. Then Ken told me about
these two books…

After I read them I discussed the possibility of writing an article on the books for my
website, dedicating them to the Memory of Henri, as there is precious little on the
Internet about him. It seems rather sad, actually, that this is the case.

The Concept of Justice

I guess what I have to say next is just as important and I need to get it out of the way right
now.

I am a big believer in Justice. Justice with a capital "J." Part of Justice is making sure
innocent men are not sent to prison. It seems impossible to do just that when you use
either paid informants or you arrest one person and then they roll over and rat some other
person out so they, in turn, receive a lesser sentence.

Think about that for a moment. I know there would be fewer convictions if this "system"
was not used, but what exactly is gained by allowing a real-deal thief, rapist or homicidal
maniac back out on the streets just because he was a better liar or a faster one?
O.K, so, on paper, you put a bad guy or two, maybe three away, but the really bad one?
He is back out, so in reality, it's only "progress" on paper and it's really an illusion. We're
not safer and in some cases, we're demonstrably less safe from this system. The better
liar, or the faster liar, sometimes the really evil one, he gets away. But, hey, what does
that matter when it's all about career advancement and numbers on a piece of paper, ever
attractive numbers to bean counters, right?

I know there are "safeguards" in place and I know that stories get checked, there is a
method to the madness. I also know that no matter what type of safeguard you put in
place, innocent people can still get placed in the jackpot for something they did not do,
or, for something they had a lesser role in while the main players get off with nothing or
get off lightly. I don't care what you say or what excuse you give, that's not "Justice," it's
not "public safety," I don't know what to call it. I guess it's best just to refer to it as, "the
way it is" and the way it is going to be for the rest of our lives.

While some might consider this a "necessary evil" to get the job of Justice done, it should
never be confused with real Justice. While I don't have an answer as to how to fix the ills
of the system, I think this sort of thing should be done away with in the future as the
potential for destruction far outweighs, in my personal opinion, any real societal benefit.
Letting the best liar off with a lighter sentence (or none at all) and hoping like hell you
did not let the more violent of the two offenders off is pretty sad.

All of my friends know that I believe in the proper (Just) application of Capital
Punishment, the use of the death penalty, for certain vicious crimes like first degree
murder. With the power to take Life, there comes a great responsibility to make sure that
no innocent people are executed for crimes they did not commit. I think with the
advances in technology (DNA testing, etc.) we are now at a point in our development as a
society that we can execute the guilty and not the innocent in the vast majority of cases.

We can also go back and release innocent people through DNA evidence and this has
been done as well. And the terrifying thing about that is, there was a great amount of
obstructionist activity going on. Early on, "The powers that be" were against releasing
people cleared by DNA evidence even though the same system was proclaiming that they
could now incarcerate and execute criminals without the nagging questions of guilt or
innocence because the DNA evidence is so good. They wanted it both ways, they wanted
the powerful new tool to "fight crime" but they didn't want to release people that were
cleared of their crimes and this points to a rotten system. I think much of that
obstructionist activity is over with now, at least I hope so.

I am writing all of this so that you know I don't believe in coddling criminals. I think it is
the absolute worst thing that we, as a society (in the United States), have ever done to our
own society. We have, in a very real way, soiled our own nest because we voted for
certain people in the past and they, in turn, "reformed" the criminal justice system and the
prison system.
By coddling criminals we have emboldened them. By selling the false promise of safety
through utopian dreams like gun control, banning pocketknives that have springs in them
and the so-called "rehabilitation" of violent criminals to the masses - we have made some
of our streets a very dangerous place to be when the sun sets. Sometimes in broad
daylight.

So, my friends who know my beliefs might find it quite surprising that I would be such a
fan of Henri Charriere's "Papillon" and "Banco." Henri was, after all, a murderer, right?
Why would I be a fan of a murderer? Read on…

The Story of Charriere

Henri stated in both of his books that he did not murder the pimp that he was accused of
murdering. He claimed he was caught up in a situation where he was a criminal, a
Safecracker, and someone else sold him down the river, so to speak. There is no doubt
that this could be the truth. I certainly don't know… although Henri knows…but he is
dead now.

I also take into consideration "underworld" criminals killing other "underworld"

criminals. No matter what you say, it's not the same as one of them killing a totally
innocent person anyway. It's like "murder" in prison is oftentimes not so clearly defined
or easily compartmentalized as "murder." In the "underworld" of Paris, France, Henri had
to live a certain way as all "underworld" figures have to do and that is a very different life
than that of a regular Citizen.

Likewise, the person in prison has to survive in a different world with different rules and
regulations imposed both by Prison Officials and criminals alike. The Bagne of French
Guiana was so utterly corrupt and violent that it would make our worst prisons appear to
be after-school detention.

So, I am trying to carefully navigate the murky waters of a very dark sea. I believe in
Justice and I think Justice should be fair.

Another thing, idea, that I want to get across is, I don't think prison should be like
playtime for Kindergartners. But it should also not be like the French prisoners had to
suffer through in the Penal Colony at French Guiana. While some would say, "To hell
with them, they are animals anyway…" Well, I can understand the passion behind that as
well. I just don't believe in State-sanctioned torture. And when you treat even the most
vile criminals like this, it is torture. We're above that. I am in favor of the proper use of
Capital Punishment, but I believe prisoners should be treated fairly and they should be
treated well and not tortured. They should not be sent to a slow death, Capital Punishment
under the guise of "hard labor." Or, as the penal colony of French Guiana came to be
known, "La guillotine seche," or "The Dry Guillotine."

I could not blame any human being for wanting to escape a place like the now defunct
Penal Colony of French Guiana. In fact, it is hard to blame human beings for wanting to
escape some of the prisons we have now, even though they are "country clubs" compared
to the French Bagne.

So, in reading Henri's adventures, I place myself solidly in his shoes and I make the
assumption that Henri is innocent. The greatest intellectual freedom and escapism can
then envelope the reader.

On another level, so what if a Safecracker killed a pimp? Who brings more misery to
society, a Safecracker or a pimp? Pimps are involved in the buying and selling of women
and children. So, to be perfectly blunt and honest, I really don't care if Henri had a
dispute with a pimp and killed the pimp. A Safecracker is a Saint compared to a pimp in
my book.

So what is all of this about?

Getting back to Ken's suggestion that I read "Papillon" and "Banco," Ken said something
very interesting and it put the hook in me. He said something like, "They are survival
manuals, but they are not written like survival manuals."

I found that quite interesting and had to investigate further. I was lucky enough to find a
paperback copy of each book in a used bookstore locally. They were dirt-cheap at about a
$1.25 each. Both printed in the 1970s, old enough to have cigarette ads placed in the
middle area of the book. Now, if you have read enough of my writing on this website,
you will know that I am quite a fan of old stuff like this. This was a really pleasant
surprise at the bookstore.

Now, Ken was absolutely and wonderfully correct when he said that Henri had written a
survival manual without even trying. This applies more to Henri's first book, "Papillon,"
than his second, "Banco."

"Papillon" is a smorgasbord of survival information. Survival in prison as well, even

though the French Bagne is much different from our prisons today. This carries over into
both wilderness survival as well as "urban" or "street" survival. French Guiana was a real
wilderness back then and I assume not much has changed when you step into the jungle
even to this day.

The book "Papillon" has tons of information about various survival topics, including the
use of the knife in prison. Ooohhh, not the dark side!

Why on Earth would anyone want to learn anything from the violent culture of prison,
especially how to knife someone? That is elementary. Although many will scoff,
especially the more genteel among us…we have a horribly high recidivist rate in this
country, the convicts walk among us. That being the reality of life in this country, as well
as other countries, you have to know how it's done in order to, in my opinion,
successfully defend against it.
Some now say that Henri Charriere did not actually escape from Devil's Island, even
though they concede that he was a prisoner and did escape from some other prison in
French Guiana. No matter. I am certainly not trying to create any more "mystique"
around Henri, certainly no more than He and his Agents and/or Publicists created around
himself.

I have asked Fred Perrin about Henri Charriere and Fred said that the stories in both
"Papillon" and "Banco" were actually the combined stories and adventures of a few men,
say three or four, and not just Henri Charriere. He also stated that Henri was a very tough
man to have survived the Bagne…

I am not even concerned so much that Henri told the "truth" about everything, I don't
care. Let me clarify that, I don't care if Henri Charriere's exploits were actually that of a
few men, himself and others, it does not matter to me really. What really matters to me is
the rest of the content.

I have found something interesting (intellectually stimulating, if you will) and it has some
value to me personally. I am writing about it because I write about things I find
interesting and…hey, you might feel the same way. If you do, great! If you don't, hey-
hey! See the little X in the small box in the upper right hand corner of your browser? If
you don't like it, you can choose another article or just click that little X and all of your
worries will go away…

A Tactical Tidbit from the Bagne

Here is one little nugget of information that you can find in "Papillon." This is not merely
"prison survival information," it is universal in principle. It is a lesson from a fatal
mistake and it applies today as much as it did in the 1930s when it happened in French
Guiana. It shows certain interesting things, like (folding) pocketknives being used as
serious offensive and defensive weapons of the street and prison, etc.

"Yesterday my friend Matthieu Carbonieri was stabbed to death. His murder set off a
whole series of other murders. He had been in the washhouse, naked, and his face was
covered with soap when he was hit. When we showered, we were in the habit of opening
our knives and hiding them under our clothes so we could reach for them quickly if a
suspected enemy appeared. Carbonieri forgot to do this and it cost him his life."

Papillon, Page 348

You will notice that Henri is referring to a folding knife. It is common today to claim that
fighting with folding knives is something "new" and that fights with knives years ago was
always a fixed blade affair. Interesting, isn't it?

The "Newspaper Sheath" for a folding knife is a trick that has been around for a long,
long time. It was in the movie "Papillon," but most people probably missed it or thought
it was nonsense.
Using a tightly rolled newspaper as an impact weapon is another old streetfighting trick,
especially well-known in Baltimore City. Pete Kautz has also addressed this in an article
and Pete always has some of the most interesting stuff to read. I suggest you devour his
Website, it is one of the greatest around.

Here is a link to that article, please click here.

Getting back to folding fighting knives...

Do you think those folding knives back in the 1930s had a new, wiz-bang locking
system?

Here is Henri's friend describing a double-killing in retaliation for the murder of

Carbonieri up above:

"I wanted to have it done before you [Henri] got back so you wouldn't be involved. With
your record, if things didn't work out right, you'd get the maximum. Jean put out the light
at one end of the room, Gravon at the other. It was almost dark, the only light coming
from the gas lamp in the middle. I had a big flashlight that Dega had given me. Jean
moved forward with me following. When he reached the two men, he aimed the light right
in their eyes. The Armenian was blinded and raised his arm to protect his eyes - it gave
me just enough time to plunge my knife into his throat. We did the same thing to Sans-
Souci. He pulled out his knife but couldn't see to aim it. I gave it to him so hard the knife
came out the other side. Paulo threw himself on the floor and rolled under the hammocks.
Jean had turned off the flashlight, so I couldn't see Paulo. That's what saved him."

Henri then asks:

"Who pulled them into the can?"

And the answer:

"I don't know. I suspect it was the men in their gourbi who wanted to get their plans out
of their gut."

Papillon, Pages 348-353

(A "gourbi" is prison slang and the word is Arabic for "primitive shelter." It was your
personal area in a prison barrack in French Guiana. You will understand the "Plan" in the
"gut" in just a little bit.)

Continuing on about the use of the flashlight and knife, the concept emerges. Remember,
tools can change, concepts do not, clearly shown in the next excerpt:

"The idea of using the flashlight came to me when I was preparing my knife…

…And I have nothing to be sorry about. They killed our friend while his eyes were
blinded by soap; I killed them when their eyes were blinded by light."

Papillon, Page 353

Don't focus on the "why" of all of this or if it was "murder" or simply self-defense in the
incredibly violent environment of a prison, look at the principle(s).

Identify the principle(s), examine the principle(s), and apply the principle(s).
"The Zodiac Killer" is another example of the criminal world utilizing something we
consider "state of the art" when it comes to gear. Having murdered one victim on the run,
in the dark while he, the killer, was running as well. He had taped a small penlight to the
barrel of a semiautomatic .22 caliber handgun. This was in the late 1960s. The police
could not understand how he could hit someone running away from him in the dark. The
murderer explained it to them in a letter some time later. This serial killer taunted the
police with letters he would send to newspapers.

More on knives in French Guiana

"I sought out Francois la Passe and asked, 'Is your brother still an orderly?'

'Yes, he's a relegue.'

'Go see him as soon as you can and ask him to give you a lancet. If he wants money, tell
me how much and I'll pay him.'

Two hours later I was the owner of a lancet with a very strong steel handle. Its only
drawback was that it was a little too long, but it was a fearsome weapon."

Papillon, Pages 32 & 33

Henri then describes how he transferred his lancet from his cap to up his sleeve with the
handle of the lancet in the palm of his hand. In the next excerpt, he explains how he hid it
during a stripsearch that wasn't very thorough:

"We all undressed. I assumed we were going to be searched. I put my lancet under my
bare right foot and bore my weight on my left. The steel cut into me, but the weapon was
well hidden...

...The search turned up three knives, two sharpened nails, a corkscrew and a gold plan."

Papillon, Page 39

That plan, made out of gold, contained three hundred English pounds, two hundred
dollars and two five-carat diamonds.

Plan d'evasion

This is sure to get some stomachs churning in disgust. It was apparently common to
retrieve your victim's "Plan" from his "gut" after you or someone else killed him.

That is because the "Plan" was a small, smooth, metal cylinder that either had a screw-on
lid or screwed/unscrewed in the middle and this is where you kept your money and other
valuables.
"I got my plan. It was a highly polished aluminum tube, that unscrewed right in the
middle. It had a male half and a female half. It contained 5600 francs in new bills. When
I got it, I kissed it. Yes, I kissed that little tube, two and a half inches long and as thick as
your thumb, before shoving it into my anus. I took a deep breath so that it would lodge in
the colon. It was my strongbox. They could make me take off all my clothes, spread my
legs apart, make me cough or bend over double, for all the good it would do them. The
plan was high up in the large intestine. It was a part of me. Inside me I carried my life,
my freedom..."

Papillon, Page 7

If a man (or men) thought you had a "Plan" in your "gut," it might mean your Death
Warrant because they would assassinate you at first opportunity and then gut you like a
deer to get your "Plan."

Nice huh?

So, you never wanted to let on that you had a "Plan" because you could get killed for it.
Many did.

Rene Belbenoit writes in his excellent book, "Dry Guillotine:"

"Hespel's story was discussed and repeated in the blockhouse. I heard it time and again
before the day arrived on which he was scheduled to die. He had been the executioner at
Saint Laurent for several years. In 1923 he, a libere, had escaped into the bush with the
intention of making good his escape and it was then he had gained for himself a dreaded
nickname: 'The Vampire of The Maroni!'

For, at this time, he owned a dugout, and he made a business of taking escaping convicts
over to the Dutch side of the [Maroni] river for 25 francs. But many of these e'vade's had
been found dead by the edge of the river: they had been murdered and, in every case,
their abdomens had been cut open. These crimes had all been pinned on Hespel, who
was suspected of having killed them, and then cut them open to grope in their bowels for
their suppositories which, without doubt, contained money."

Dry Guillotine, Page 106

In the movie "Papillon," Steve McQueen played Henri Charriere. Sitting on a hammock
and speaking with another prisoner on the (ship) voyage on the way to French Guiana, he
sums it up succinctly:

"We're really something, aren't we? The only animals in the world that will shove things
up their ass for survival."

The picture below is McQueen stuffing the (movie prop) Plan with money.
Henri carried two Plans at one time, one belonging to another man who was terrified of
being killed for it, here is an exchange between this man and Charriere:

"'I can't carry my plan anymore. I've got dysentery. I don't know who to trust and I'm
scared someone will steal it or the guards will find it. Please, Papillon, carry it for me for
a few days.' And he showed me a plan much bigger than mine. I was afraid it was a trap,
that he was asking me this to find out if I had one. If I told him I wasn't sure I could carry
two, he'd know. So I asked him coldly, 'How much is in it?'

'Twenty-five thousand francs.'

Without another word I took his plan. Very clean it was, too, and right there in front of
him I pushed it up my anus, wondering if it was possible for a man to carry two. I had no
idea. I stood up, put my pants back on...it was all right. It didn't bother me.
'My name is Ignace Galgani,' he said before leaving. 'Thanks, Papillon.'"

Papillon, Page 29

In the movie "Papillon," Henri's friend, Louis Dega, being handicapped without
prescription eyeglasses, found a pair small enough to be disassembled and placed in his
own Plan.

The character in the movie "Papillon" who asks Henri for his knife so he can cut his own
leg and then fakes a hard fall so he can get to the hospital actually had his own small
folding pocketknife in his own Plan in the book "Papillon."

"[Julot] He also had a very small, very sharp knife, really a penknife, in his plan. As we
docked, he planned to cut his knee open. Then, as he was leaving the boat, he would fall
off the ladder in front of everybody. He hoped he'd be carried from the wharf directly to
the hospital. And he was."

Papillon, Page 42-43

Rene Belbenoit, survivor and escapee from French Guiana and author of "Dry
Guillotine," wrote extensively about the Plan and Plan d'evasion.

The Movie Starring Steve McQueen, Papillon

On the DVD for "Papillon," in the special features area, there is a Featurette, a short
documentary, about "The Making of Papillon."

In this short Featurette, separately titled, "The Magnificent Rebel," Henri Charriere says
something interesting through an interpreter, you may find it interesting as well:

"Society does not want free men. They talk freedom, democracy, anything they want. But
they don't want free men. Society wants conditioned men…men who march in step."

In this short movie, a behind the scenes look at the making of the movie "Papillon," you
actually get to see Henri Charriere, just a couple of years before his death. Hamming it up
a couple of years before cancer would end his life with a man that had less than a decade
to go before cancer would end his life as well - Steve McQueen.

I think I was lucky. I was able to read "Papillon" and "Banco" before I ever saw the
movie "Papillon" or the "Making Of" short movie.

The book is so much better than the movie. Dalton Trumbo (Of "Johnny Got His Gun"
fame - Metallica fans will know this movie as the basis for the video for the song, "One"
on the "…And Justice for All" album.) had to compress and smash this wonderful book
into a fast-paced movie. He did OK. He could have done a lot better.
Steve McQueen definitely saved the movie with his presence. As a related sidenote, I
always thought that McQueen did his best acting in the movie "Tom Horn." That is until I
watched "Papillon."

McQueen's acting in "Papillon" far surpasses anything he ever did, in my opinion -

including "Tom Horn." (Another man, Tom Horn, I should write an article about one day,
perhaps.)

The "Thousand Yard Stare" that McQueen musters for the camera in one of the scenes
where Henri was in solitary confinement…is haunting.

The look on his face after biting into half of a coconut is amazing. You would think that
he really had to eat nasty, watery broth with a chunk of fat (if you were lucky you
received a nasty piece of fat-meat…) in order to get him to like a piece of coconut that
much.

The fear on his face when he pulls a tooth out of his head, knowing he is dying from
malnutrition, you can feel.

Steve McQueen was a talented man indeed. No one acts like that anymore.

Argosy, March 1970

Argosy was a rather strange magazine for men. Adventurous men. Daring men. So,
Henri's story was right up Argosy's alley, so to speak.

When I found a copy of the March 1970 issue, I was talking about it with Ken and he
said, "Yeah, they ran stories about sharks all of the time."

Lo and behold, on the front cover of the March 1970 issue there was a Diver about ready
to deliver the bang stick to a shark. The story, "The Sharkbusters."

Being attacked by a shark is more adventure than I care to be involved with. I've caught a
couple of small sharks years ago. I like to eat them actually. Mako and Black Tip are my
favorites, I just tell me Son, "think of it as revenge for them eating us humans."
Shark is the steak of the sea.

Anyway…

Without copying a bunch of text, the pictures in this article on Henri and Devil's Island
are really surreal. Argosy Magazine took Henri back to French Guiana about 26 years
after he escaped. One can only imagine what was going on in his head when he went
back there.

I have to apologize as my scanner does not work with this computer. The pictures that
follow were taken with a Sony Mavica. Pictures taken of the pictures in the magazine. I'm
amazed they turned out this good.

In the picture below, you see some of the broken down doors of the prison.
Henri in one of the prison buildings. (below)
In his isolation cell in Reclusion. (below)

The next two pictures are Henri throwing a bag of coconuts and then floating on a bag of
coconuts, this is how he made his final escape from Devil's Island. A reenactment for
Argosy Magazine.
Closing

Papillon is a story about rehabilitation. Self-rehabilitation. You cannot "correct" a

criminal and you cannot rehabilitate them as the word has come to be known.

The French Penal Colonies were not designed to rehabilitate, they were actually designed
to break men down and to kill them. That's why Rene Belbenoit referred to French
Guiana as "The Dry Guillotine."

It is also a story about survival in an environment that is so harsh that it defies reality. It's
all wrapped up in an adventure and you will enjoy it immensely if you read it.

If I wrote anything else about it, you wouldn't go out and buy the book, would you?
That's why I'm going to bring this to a close now.
There will be more to read about French Guiana very soon, an article about Rene
Belbenoit, for example.
 The
American Bowie Knife
Proud Symbol of Freedom and Power
Part IV

The Traveler's "Take Anywhere" Bowie

As I have traveled and taught seminars on the Bowie knife across the country, many
people have asked about the practicalities of carrying such a large weapon. Some have
felt that it was impossible or impractical to do. While I do not advise anyone to carry any
weapon (that is a personal decision), I can say that it is certainly possible to do so.

One answer to this problem is to find a sheath maker who understands the big knife and
how a proper carry system can make it possible for even a small woman to conceal a
large knife. One leading expert in this field is Mike Sastre of River City Sheaths. His rigs
can make even a large Hell's Belle or Southern Comfort Bowie disappear under a T-shirt
and shorts, as improbable as that might sound. If you carry any kind of blade, then check
out Mike Sastre's work - you'll be glad you did!

Another answer to the problem of carrying a Bowie knife is simply to look beyond the
rigid definition of the weapon, and seek other objects which may be used to accomplish
the same goals. Remember, the True Art is conceptual and not limited to the weapon.
There are many objects in the environment that can act as a substitute Bowie in the hands
of a skilled warrior, some obvious and some less so. Here we will describe a simple
Bowie knife "stand in" that could serve in a pinch perhaps for today's worried air traveler.

To create our "Faux-Bowie" we will use simple, invisible items. In a time when people
are on such an alert, there is no reason to cause yourself problems by the carry of an
illegal weapon, such as when traveling by air. The guard at the gate doesn't know you
from Adam, and just because you know you're a "good guy" he has no reason to believe
you are anything other than a dangerous nut! People who tempt fate by sneaking along
weapons are only asking for trouble, and I do not mean at the hands of terrorists.

The two things you will need to have are a magazine of some kind (preferably one with a
square spine, not a folded and stapled spine) and a few dollars in quarters. On a plane,
they give you 2 suitable magazines in your seat-pocket (you know, that "Award-winning
Attaché magazine") so if you forgot your own, you are still in luck. The one thing I
would recommend for you who bring your own is not to bring along a military, gun, or
martial arts magazine. If your carry-on is searched, you will have a lot less explaining to
do with a copy of "Women's Sports and Fitness" or "Wired" than with the latest issue of
"Combat Handguns", "Soldier of Fortune", or "Knives Illustrated."
 Send the right message - to the general public, a pretty girl is a better "message" than
violence!

Next, open the magazine to the middle, and lay a row of quarters along it. If the magazine
is the stapled type, go over a page or two and the quarters will hold in place better. You
can get away with as few as 4 quarters or as many as the magazine can hold. The more
you add, the stronger overall the magazine becomes. If you load the whole length of the
spine with quarters, you will be amazed at how strong it becomes (try and bend it!)

Experiment on your own with longer magazines. How could this be adapted to a
newspaper?

Now, roll the magazine tightly from the spine (or "fold" as the case may be) and you are
ready to go. You could tightly wrap a rubber band or hair-tie near either end for more
strength, or tape it if you had time. This is a powerful thrusting weapon that can also be
used for some impact applications. You will find that it is quite easy to break a pine board
or two with a thrust from this simple tool. The end of the magazine can give a large oval
shaped "paper-cut from Hell" so as always, use discretion in self defense. If force was
unwarranted, it would be considered against you as a weapon.

Wrap the other arm for protection or grab a seat flotation cushion, and fight from there!
Wear a backpack "backwards" (i.e. on your chest) for an improvised body armor.
Though this is clearly not the kind of fight stopper that a large Bowie knife (top) or even
a small folder (bottom) are, in expert hands this "paper knife" can be quite effective.
Remember, you are not like a cartoon character hitting a bad guy on top of the head with
it, which would be ineffective. The skills and strategies with the Bowie knife remain, just
modified as need be for the tool.

One simple test I have for anyone who doubts the effectiveness of this tool, is simply to
put on a fencing mask and spar with a pair of these. You will quickly learn that they just
are bad news to be hit with, though clearly less deadly than a real Bowie knife. They will
cut up exposed flesh and their weight and leverage enable them to pack a wallop on the
edge which can break bones in the hand and cause a disarm; they are also quite "stout" on
a thrust to any part of the body. These are "not a toy", and should be treated in a
professional manner, with respect.
Brass Knuckles

Brass Knuckles [In the generic grouping of "Knuckledusters."] have a long and
bloody history in both Europe and The United States. Probably a lot of other places
as well. Carrying them on your person in virtually any State in this Country would
amount to an instant arrest if searched. You would be very lucky to get away with a
confiscation and a verbal warning…very lucky.

In my youth, there were many people in the neighborhood and in Baltimore City
that packed a pair of "Knucks." They are sold to this day in the same places they
were in my youth. Flea Markets all around the area have "Brass Paperweights."
Some of them are supplied with a tiny little piece of threaded metal that screws into
a matching hole so they can be picked up easily off of a stack of papers on your
desk. Makes them a real cool paperweight in fact! They are neat and a great
conversation piece.

I think it is safe to assume that wherever there are Flea Markets or Swap Meets,
etc., you are going to find dumptruck loads of brass knuckles, various flat and
round blackjacks [saps] and cheap overseas rip-offs of ASP Telescoping Batons. I’ve
watched a lot of punks and wannabe gangbangers buying them…so beware. They
ain’t collectors, they’re users…

The bloody world of pummeling people with Knucks has a long history as I said
before. These things are brutal weapons and have a sinister reputation.

The reason they were banned is because we have a problem, as a society, of blaming
inanimate objects for the acts of predatory or stupid human beings. That is primary.
More than that, they were banned because they are effective at what they do, which
is damaging people.

The way I was taught by a Jujutsu Instructor was to punch in a tearing and
glancing manner and not necessarily straight on. In other words, you would hit with
something similar to a vertical, rolling punch instead of something like a reverse
punch.

But that is with Brass Knuckles as we have come to know them. Most "Classic"
Brass Knuckles have smallish holes for the fingers. To punch straight on could lead
to broken fingers, which is why he suggested a slightly different method of punching
with them. It really depends on how your hand is shaped, finger size and some other
things…but in general, with the "Classic" pattern, it’s probably best to hit with a
rolling, glancing blow.

BC-41 Knuckles

Other patterns of Brass/Metal Knuckles do not have to be used in that manner and
you can punch straight on with other types. These other patterns had ovals instead
of round holes for the fingers. The patterns that come to mind are the World War
Two SOE/OSS Pattern for Brass Knuckles. This is an excellent pattern that gives
the fingers a bit more breathing room and will prevent some of the damage to the
fingers that Brass Knuckles are somewhat known for.

This pattern of Brass Knuckles was taken from a specific knife. That knife is the
World War One Clements Knuckle Knife. This knife usually had Aluminum
Knuckles. This knife was produced and used again in World War Two by Clements
and the Knuckles were marked "BC-41" just as the Alloy Knuckles [without blade]
were. My understanding is, Aluminum in World War One was the most common
Knuckle material with brass second. In World War Two, I believe they were mostly
an Alloy. In both World Wars, brass became scarce quite quickly as firearms
ammunition cartridges are made of brass. When I say "Brass" in this article, know
for the most part I am speaking generically.
The World War One & Two Trench Knife

The U.S. 1918 Trench Knife is a Classic. Col. Jeff Cooper remarked recently in a
magazine article with regard to fighting knives that this would be his choice. Some
people hate it because it is rather heavy, but it leaves little to the imagination as to
the sort of savage mayhem that could be brought on an enemy in Close Combat with
it.

The type of Brass Knuckles that form the entire body of the knife have elongated
ovals like the BC-41 Pattern and are better for striking, better than the "Classic"
Pattern of Brass Knuckles.

There are variations that have a triangular or round spike instead of the double-
edged dagger blade and they have more of a "D" shaped Knuckleduster Guard on
them. There were also Bowies made that had similar Guards! The "D" Guard
Bowie is a particularly vicious fighter in skilled hands…different methodology, but
quite effective as well!
"Death’s Head" Knuckles, Knuckle Knives and Push Daggers

The British Firm of Robbins & Dudley should have been known as "Damage,
Incorporated" in the last World War. I mention these knives in passing because they
are unique and at a glance, you can tell they would be effective for Close Combat.
They are just another piece of a historical puzzle.

A couple versions of fighting knives made with "Death’s Head" Pattern Brass
Knuckle grips and one Push Dagger with a nice Brass Knuckle grip.
They’re rather neat, aren’t they? It’s quite obvious why this pattern of Knucks is
referred to as a "Death’s Head," it looks like a skull.

Enter the Tekko

Some people in the Martial Arts would scream bloody murder if you suggested that
a pair of Brass Knuckles was a "legitimate" or "Martial Arts" Weapon. Others
would scream if you suggested they could be used for Self-defense.

"But they’re OFFENSIVE!!! Criminals use them!!!"

Criminals use motor vehicles as getaway cars, ban them too. Eh? Well, the point of
this article is to give some information about the brutal world of the Knuckleduster,
the nefarious "Knucks." And…to make a point that they are, in fact, a modern day
version of a Martial Arts Weapon.

Yes, prepare to cry. I’m not taking the time to research, scan pictures, type all of this
out into some sort of interesting article merely to be controversial. I’m doing this
because I enjoy it and I believe what I am typing has some truth to it. I believe
certain things and the fact that they are controversial to some people is a non-issue
to me. I do chuckle at them, however…

Without listing every possible Martial Art that may have used Knuckledusters, let
me focus on two that I have confirmed. One is quite popular although the weapon is
not and the other is very obscure.

Below is a neat picture from a very old Martial Arts Magazine, a Tekko!
Notice the similarity to the "D" shaped Knuckleduster Guard on the 1917 Trench
Knife? I think things like this are great, really delving into the concepts of weapons.
I enjoy it immensely and I hope you do as well.

The first is the Okinawan Tekko. This Knuckleduster is similar to that found on
"D" Guard Fighting Knives. Very interesting indeed. This is a picture of two
variations of the 1917 Trench Knife with triangular blade.
The interesting thing is, in some forms of Karate from Okinawa [I’m not an expert
on that and I am speaking in the most general terms and offering tidbits of
information that I have found] there is a Kata specifically for the Tekko. Maybe
more than one, but this one I have "found" online. It is called, Maezato no Tekko.

Cool, huh? I think so!

The first mention of the Tekko in Okinawan Martial Arts was in a book written in
1824 or 1825 according to one online source.

Vajra-musti, Martial Art of India

Please, make no mistake. I know next to nothing about the Martial Arts of India. I
do know they have a very hardcore reputation as being effective and tough! I have
traced down a Knuckleduster from India called a Hora…they were made out of
animal horn.
I’m sorry I cannot provide any specifics as to the use of the Hora, I’m sure that it is
basically used like any other Knuckleduster weapon, but I was hoping to find
something rare and obscure about the Hora and I have not so far…

"Half Knucks"

Here is a rather cool pair of "Half Knuckles." There are a couple of people on the
Internet who are making classic brass/metal knuckles as well as a variety of
pointed/spiked metal knuckles. All the designs are as visually nasty as they are
effective.

In Closing…

Get caught with them in your pocket…Go to jail…they are illegal damned near
everywhere, I don’t know of a State where you can carry metal knuckles. It seems as
though they have been illegal forever…

Now, has the "question" been "answered?" Are these things "legitimate" Self-
defense weapons? Are the "legitimate" martial arts weapons?

I believe so. I believe they are legitimate and they should be legal, unfortunately,
they are not. If they are legal to simply own where you live, by all means, get a pair
of them and work with them on a focus mitt just to familiarize yourself with them.

While I think about it, stay away from the folding knuckle knives. No one reputable
ever made a pair which means you cannot trust the locks on them. Unless you want
to have the nickname of "Stubby," avoid them like the plague. They have been sold
for two or three decades now. Cool idea, poor materials and craftsmanship.
In the meantime, as people are banning Trench ["Knuckle"] Knives and Metal
Knuckles, let them ban these.
The TID, which stands for, “Tactical Impact Device,” sure has created a lot of buzz
in the knife community with lots of people buying them and mounting them on their
Sure-Fire flashlights. The TID for the Inova LED flashlight seems to be catching on
and becoming popular as well. Some people call it “The Cookie Cutter.” To me, it
resembles a Hole Saw more than a Cookie Cutter.

The Inovas actually have a much greater utility, in my opinion, than the Sure-Fires.
That is said with the full realization that the Sure-Fires are brighter than Inovas. I
have been carrying Sure-Fires longer than Law Enforcement in my area. I
remember one local County K-9 Officer borrowing my 9P Sure-Fire, way back
when, to check it out on the range with his Sig-Sauer P-226 duty weapon.

Back to the TID…

From the G, G & G literature:

“…the new Tactical Impact Device (TID) fits easily on the bezel of the flashlight and
is secured from removal by four small socket-head screws. Manufactured from 4140
steel, it has a manganese phosphate finish…

…Its sharp, 5-teeth-per-inch pattern surrounds the entire bezel and provides an
aggressive, and extremely effective, alternative to lethal force.”

Here are two pictures, two different angles to show you the TID on a Sure-Fire E2e
and an Inova X5-Tactical. Another Inova X5-Tactical with the newer body style is
shown for comparison.
Light as a Weapon: Modern Metsubushi

I think that people devalue lights like the Inova, how much light do you need to
blind a home invader when their eyes are adjusted to the darkness of your home? I
have used a 9P Sure-Fire flashlight to blind someone and then strike them with the
flashlight and I have used them so I could strike with a 21 inch ASP Baton. (Both
legally on the job) Anyone that thinks that is “stupid” or “nonsense” has never been
on the receiving end of such an offensive defense. It does work, works like a charm
as a matter of fact.

(I remember Andy Stanford catching grief on an Internet forum for the mere
suggestion that you could use a Sure-Fire and an edged weapon together.)

The flipside to that is, Sure-Fire has one hell of a marketing machine and they have
some very vocal fans. They have also really pushed the envelope with their
flashlights, they keep getting brighter and brighter and that’s a good thing. I don’t
think it would be fair to say that they (Sure-Fire) have insisted that light alone can
be a weapon. I think it would be more than fair to say that a couple of people closely
associated with them and/or employed by them have. Some of the most vocal fans
have.

They are incorrect. When light is a weapon, it is a weapon that has to be used in
tandem with a real weapon, even a chin jab or kick.

I see “Light as a Weapon” differently. I see it as an aid to using another weapon, as I

wrote about in the “Metsubushi” article on this website.

(I know that it might appear that I am contradicting myself, bear with me. I’m not
condemning the use of light, I’m just saying you need to rely on the whole spectrum
of skills and equipment and not merely light.)

I am not paid by Laser Products, Inc. (this should be obvious) which happens to be
the manufacturer of Sure-Fire flashlights, nor should any of this be viewed as a
criticism of their products. I love their products and value them greatly! This is just
a little discussion about some of the craziness that can surround an excellent
product when the ball gets going.

I am also not employed or paid by the folks that make Inova flashlights.

People are coming out of the woodwork on various forums and they are saying
things like, “No, THIS light (Sure-Fire) is a WEAPON! It will make someone fold or
run away!” If this did happen, I’m betting that the guy you flashed did not really
want to fight at all. Or, he might think you are a Police Officer and he’s about ready
to get the maximum damage brought down on him (being shot) and he bolts. People
that say these things have probably never fought a real hardhead.

I’m talking about the sort of hardhead that will fight three Police Officers over
relatively nothing at all. One Citizen with a bright light is of very little concern to
them at all. They are dangerous and they’re not easily scared nor spooked.

Real hardheads don’t crumple or shrink away from a bright light and when they do,
they will usually crash back in on you. They might see a big, colored spot in their
center of vision from the light, that is just a bull’s eye to them.

Between the TV Show “COPS” and the current barrage of war news as of late,
everyone knows about Police and Military use of flashlights, they know they are
handheld and mounted on weapons. They know they are used…a lot.

Here is the reality: If you are going to use “Light as a Weapon,” do not ever think
for a moment that this is going to save the day. No, be prepared for battle. Do not
pay this lip service and say, “Well, this light is bright, I’ll deal with whatever else
happens.”

No, going into this, know that you have solid skills and weapons to back the light up
to begin with. Understand that you are not a SWAT member (unless you are!) going
into a room to shoot a barricaded suspect or whatever. A street attack and use of the
flashlight during same is very different than entering a room with a Sure-Fire
equipped H&K MP-5.

As with knives, you will usually not have the luxury of long range during a street
attack. It will be in your face, that’s how rapes, assaults and robberies take place.

If you blast someone with your dandy flashlight on the street, don’t just stand there
admiring what the light did, defend yourself. If you blast the person who
approaches you after you warned them and they are at a distance, you better be
moving because if they have a firearm, even if they are dazzled, they can shoot for
the light.
This is why Police used to be taught the now antiquated technique of holding the
flashlight up above your head and away from your body. They were drawing hostile
fire. (Is there any other kind of fire? I think not!)

Criminals saw this so much, or other criminals informed them of it, and they started
shooting low and to the side to hit the Officers. (Source: Ayoob) Criminals can fire
at the light. You use your light intermittently, even if you have it mounted on
something slick like a Benelli Shotgun and you are defending your home.

If someone flashed you with a flashlight and then tried to take your child out of the
shopping cart in the parking lot of your local grocery store, would you run away
being “injured” by the light? Of course not, you would fight!

Well, most hardcore criminals are like that too; they are serious about their goals
just as you are. Remember that the next time you read about someone saying that
light is an effective weapon all by itself.

Light will dazzle and temporarily remove someone’s ability to see you. It can
disorient you and this is directly proportionate to the degree their eyes have
adjusted to low levels of light in conjunction with the power of your personal
flashlight you are using to dazzle them.

The light is not a “weapon,” but it is a really good way to get the drop on someone
and give them a terrible deficit in a fight, there is no debate whatsoever about that.
But it is not a ray gun, OK? Please, don’t buy into all of the marketing hype. If you
do, you run the risk of some crafty criminal who is used to being flashed and
smashed by Police Officers and he is going to look away or close his eyes. When he
does not see bright red, yellow and blue stars through his eyelids, etc., he is going to
stick a knife in your face. Don’t buy into “Light as a Non-violent Panacea.” A
streetfight can shift in a split second and what you thought was going “right” can go
terribly wrong, very fast.

Buy into this fact, if you have a good flashlight, it is an excellent way to draw
another weapon or employ unarmed combat. The light is a window of opportunity
that you open upon depression of the tailcap or other button, that is all.

Do not repeatedly flash them, they will adapt to that and then you have a problem.
If someone is hostile and they are in close proximity, you must Flash & Smash right
then and there.

Understand that even very powerful flashlights are basically “One Trick Ponies”
and you get one chance that you can bet on in order to do something. If you get
another chance, that is because the attacker does not have his game together. As you
frustrate a homicidally aggressive human being, they will get even angrier.
Understand that they believe they have a right to victimize you and you have no
right to protect yourself. They’re twisted that way.
Quite frankly, I don’t understand why people say some of the things they do; it’s not
like they won’t fight if some criminal gets their hands on a powerful flashlight. It’s
not like you are going to go fetal and start urinating if you get flashed by one. (Are
you?)

One word on pain compliance, as many of you might already know from reading
some of the articles here on my website, I am not a big believer in pain compliance
techniques because of the alarming number of people who ingest mind altering
substances for personal amusement. This happens to be the same sorts of people
that launch violent attacks for no reason or in any event, very little provocation.
(“Why are you looking at me man!”)

There are also people that will let you damage them as long as they can damage you
more. Yubi Tori, fingerlocking, is incredibly painful and just as effective in a wide
range of defensive scenarios, but it is not a panacea as some people will let you
break their fingers as long as they can stick you with a knife, etc. This is a reality
that some people ignore constantly in the blind worship of some martial arts and
utilization of some defensive tools.

But it is a reality and these people are not rare either.

All of that having been said, if something is going to make someone fall under the
umbrella of pain compliance, a flashlight equipped with a TID will do it where other
devices, even applied vigorously, might fail.

I guess we need to get the ugliness and negativity out of the way first. That’s usually
best.

Legalities

This is the hot button with the TID. It is with most things in the Self-defense realm,
isn’t it? What is legal? What is not? What might pass muster in a Court of Law as
“reasonable” or “justifiable?”

You have to understand that in some jurisdictions, the TID might be considered an
edged weapon because it has points. If you cannot understand that or you simply
want to ignore that, do so at your own peril.

I’m not saying that the TID is a “lethal force” weapon like almost anything in the
“edged weapons” category, I’m just saying that it is sort of falling into that zone of
instruments. It’s obviously not a knife and it has no “edge” in the classic sense of the
word, but it has points and points can be enough to place it in another category of
tools and weapons. It can be used to maim and that is the problem, hitting someone
in the face with a TID is going to ruin their day and probably their face as well. So I
would not advise you to target the head, neck or face unless you are justified in
using an edged weapon.

The whole "It might be an edged weapon" angle is troubling, but then almost
everything is a “weapon” now.

I think a TID on a Sure-Fire dedicated to the nightstand is most certainly something

to consider. What you can have and use in your house in Close Combat is alot
different then what you might carry - as a regular Citizen - on the street. You may
be scrutinized for what you use in your home, but not to the degree over something
like this, using it on the street.

I think the main thing I don't like about it is it takes away the "clean" element of
using an Inova or SureFire as a Pocket Stick and you automatically jump to
maiming the person. It is true that if you hit someone in the face with one of the
aforementioned flashlights, it might very well cut them, which has been my
experience on one occasion with a 9P. But the cut and tear is not going to be as bad
as using a TID and someone could make a lot of noise in a Courtroom over that as if
you were carrying it to deliberately maim someone during simple Self-defense.

So, you basically have these situations where you cannot use your light as a Pocket
Stick anymore because it does not require the degree of force that the TID will give
it.

Because of these realities which I feel are valid criticisms of the TID, I sort of placed
it in the category of devices that were well thought out but not really a great idea to
bring into play.

Until my good friend Seth clued me in on something important.

The TID gives you the ability, when striking limbs, of penetrating heavy clothing
and getting some impact into the target. He also pointed out that there would be no
slipping because of the points digging in. This is some definite food for thought and
because I routinely carry more than one flashlight…I gave it some heavy thought
for a couple of months.

I am now of the opinion that the TID does in fact have a solid, legitimate place in the
Self-defense tools you carry. You are just going to have to exercise the discipline
required to not go smacking someone in the face when the situation does not
warrant that degree of force.

In the home

Using a Sure-Fire flashlight (with a TID mounted on the end of it) in the Harries
Position might very well give you a force option in close combat in the home. If you
make a mistake, and no matter how highly trained you are, you can make a
mistake… If that happens, the TID can definitely be applied in a vicious manner on
the home invader.

Your flashlight now has steel dentures mounted on the front of it and you don’t have
as many problems explaining the TID to a responding Officer because it is in your
home and it is not a prohibited thing to have. On the street, it might be determined
that it is in the edged weapons category and you might be in hot water over it.

Let’s say you carry an Inova X-5 Tactical and something like a Sure-Fire E2e, as
long as you did not get them confused, yeah, it would be a good force option to have
a TID on one of them.

Simple Drills

Always use eye protection when using training knives; don’t let an endeavor
designed to save your life end in a tragedy.

With a training partner, use an Inova X-5 Tactical LED Light, preferably with white
LEDs and use a Sure-Fire E2e. You will need eye protection, the flashlights and a
focus mitt. Use a small training knife like a Spyderco Delica Trainer (Drone) or a
LaGriffe trainer from Fred Perrin.

A little light pollution in the area is OK, things like streetlights are OK, working in
and out of shadows cast by walls and vehicles, etc., because this is the type of
environment that you are most likely going to have to fight someone in.

Don’t look directly at the streetlights. Allow your eyes to adjust to that degree of low
level light and then begin. Test the Inova first, if you use the Sure-Fire first, it can
lead to skewed results because it is indeed an incredibly powerful flashlight, even in
the small E2e configuration.

I’m telling you this so you approach everything with an open mind.

Once your eyes are adjusted, start out at a long distance (in a street attack, it’s
different from gunfighting), about twelve (12) feet which is confrontation distance to
me, the distance where someone might start giving you some eyes, hands and mouth.

The training partner walks in and you guys/gals have to be honest with each other
or you will not get the desired result. If you cover up from the light, you are not
going to understand the effect.

Start at that “long” distance confrontation and the attacker walks in to menace and
give some face or actually assault.
DO NOT flash them on the first time and the attacker must be honest and not cover
up. Do the walking confrontation a few times and when it is unexpected, THEN
flash them with the Inova. When you flash them, move, use footwork to move and
take their flank or…retreat on 45-degree angles…

Do this upwards of a couple dozen times with the engagements and confrontations…
the lack of the flash as well as the flash and then reverse roles and do it all over
again. Don’t have a set pattern to flash or not to flash, be random.

Sit down and discuss that for a bit and then let your eyes adjust again, let the
“spots” fade from the Inova, then go through the whole thing again with the Sure-
Fire.

Now, there is no doubt that you will find the Sure-Fire more powerful. What we are
looking for is information through honest experimentation and feedback.

TID: Inova X-5 Tactical vs. Sure-Fire E2e – Head to Head

If you are the type of person who thinks, “more is better,” you’re probably going to
opt for the Sure-Fire flashlight. And there is absolutely nothing wrong with that
decision, whatsoever.

We’re talking about the power range of temporary blindness – sight impairment.

I believe, through my own experimentation in the aforementioned low light

environments, that the Inova X-5 Tactical will do the job well. That is not a criticism
of the Sure-Fire E2e at all.

The strong points of the Sure-Fire E2e are:

· Very powerful, more powerful than the Inova X-5 Tactical

· Has a pocket clip
The pocket clip is excellent! However, with the TID mounted on the E2e, it orients
the teeth on the TID in the up position, which could bite you as you slam your hand
down to access it under stress.

Some Kydex Sheathing might be in order because of this for some people.

The strong points of the Inova X-5 Tactical are:

· Although it uses the same expensive batteries as the E2e, they will last much
longer.
· The LEDs are probably more shock-resistant than the Sure-Fire’s lamp
assembly. Although the Sure-Fire lamp assembly is indeed tough.
· When using the Inova X-5 for non-fighting tasks, you won’t dazzle yourself
during some tasks like you will with a Sure-Fire.

Yes, using a Sure-Fire for simple tasks where the light is striking a lighter
background can dazzle you. The degree of light you will get off of a light colored
object is amazing. For example, I had to read maps and whatnot all of the time and
although I used a Mini-Maglite for such tasks usually, I would sometimes use the
Sure-Fire with a flip-up red lens cap mounted on it because I would impair my own
vision using the Sure-Fire. When I was sneaking around inside buildings making
sure they were clear of any burglars, I often flipped the cap down so I had red light.
Sometimes inspecting a point of (forced) entry…

So, I consider the Inova X-5 to be a light with a wider range of utility than a Sure-
Fire and it won’t eat batteries so quickly either, both a monetary and tactical
consideration as well.

I think a well-executed pocket clip would be an excellent addition to the Inova. It

has a lanyard hole already which some might find more useful than a pocket clip. A
removable pocket clip on the Inova would be great.

Now we are at the end of the article and I really cannot recommend one over the
other if you have the funds for both, buy both. If not, then I would shift my opinion
over to the Inova X-5 Tactical with the TID because it would be more useful in a
wider range of situations.

Both lights have a great value to anyone interested in Personal Protection and the
TID is a valuable addition as well.

G, G & G should receive praise for making something this radical and Professional
Executive Protection Specialist Lance Harris should for designing it. If the TID is
ever discontinued, it will be one of the most sought-after items for some people who
passed it up when it was available.
Closing

One more point about the legalities. Some would say it is unethical or immoral to
not inform people that they might get in trouble for using something like a TID…or
whatever device you are discussing.

They have a point, in a way. However, I don’t feel that it is “moral” or “ethical” to
tell you to NOT use something because it might be illegal or might be considered
illegal.

The reason I take that stance is incredibly simple.

I don’t believe it is “ethical” or “moral” to tell people that something like this is
“unreasonable” for them to defend themselves with, the reason for this way of
thought is…what happens when everything is legislated against? What then? Will it
then be “immoral” or “unethical” to tell someone they should not be carrying
anything to defend themselves with? That’s the destination of the train you ride
when you start preaching to people about this sort of thing.
The Ju-jo

When I was taking Jujutsu in my teenage years, I would aggravate the hell out of the
Instructor to show me any Knife, Chain or Yawara Stick he knew...

And the love of these things for going on about twenty years now is seen in little
glimpses in here.

I was making oak dowel "Koppo Sticks," copying them out of Hatsumi Sensei’s book,
"Stickfighting" since about 1987 or so. That reached the apex of the design with James
Piorek [JSP "BladeRigger"] . I believe there is no better Koppo Stick-type of weapon in
existence. There are many that can do the job, it’s just the best of breed in execution.

To me, the Koppo Stick is everything the Yawara Stick should be and more. It is so
versatile and there are more things that can be done more effectively, effortlessly and
securely with a properly executed Koppo Stick than a Yawara. The Yawara is still a
favorite.

When the "Keychain Koppo Stick" became a reality, I retired the regular Kubotans, the
Original Kubotan™, the ASP O.C. Kubotan (It discharged on me once, I don’t trust it
anymore) and the ASP P-9 Keychain Baton.

My love for the weighted Japanese Fighting Chain has evolved into a love for the JSP
Bandando™ and V-Gar System’s ManrikiGarrote™. I still play with
Manrikigusari/KusariFundo, and Improvised Flexible Weapons, Garrottes and such, but
they all sprang from the childhood/teenage interests in the Martial Arts.

There was something unique on the scene in the 1980s and for some reason, I never got
around to ordering one. I have been searching for one, literally, for years. Prowling Pawn
Shops, Gun Shows, Knife Shows, Martial Arts Stores...Flea Markets, Yard Sales,
anywhere I could. I put the word out through about a dozen people on the Internet. No
luck.

Then, in a flash, one fell into my lap from a fellow on the Internet by complete luck. This
was not one of the people that found one for me, he was unaware of the search. He just
happened to have one in excellent/mint condition and was willing to trade it.

I called James Piorek the other day and he said, "You got WHAT!?!?!" Hahaha...

Yes indeed, I found an elusive ParaCombatives Ju-jo™.

What more could a guy who loves the Yawara Stick and Manrikigusari ask for? It’s both
wrapped up into one.

Usually when people combine things, effectiveness is lost and it ends up that both things
are done badly. While this is a far cry from a weighted chain or a Koppo Stick, it is
indeed the best of both worlds with a hefty set of keys on the flail end. You could tie
someone up Yo-Yo Style as Tuhon Bill McGrath [Pekiti-Tirsia] described Guro
Inosanto’s Yo-Yo techniques...[*] or it can be used for any number of things.

I’m still waiting to try it out. But I really wish these could be produced again by Choate
Machine & Tool, Inc. This really is a great Self-defense Weapon even if the cylinder is a
bit more bulky than it had to be. It’s diameter could be trimmed by one-quarter of an inch
and you might have to use your pinky or a pencil to push the cord back in, but that would
be no problem at all...it would ride easier in the pocket though...the Ju-jo is thick.

In the September 1985 Issue of Soldier of Fortune Magazine, Page 18 "Adventure

Quartermaster," there was a short piece written on it, after that, I saw it appear in Brigade
Quartermasters’ Catalog and I was hooked;

"Tested by Special Forces, the SERE (Survival Evasion Resistance Escape) Committee,
Fort Bragg’s Military Police, Rangers, Force Recon, and British SAS, the Ju-jo is
constructed of Zytel plastic and manufactured by Choate Machine & Tool Co."

There was mention of the Inventor, "Dr. John J. Lewis" in the small piece written on the
Ju-jo. When I knew I had secured the elusive ParaCombatives Ju-jo, I decided to research
it as thoroughly as possible (God bless the Internet folks, it really is a remarkable tool)
and I found some very interesting information about the Ju-jo.

With the help of my friend and Webmaster Jay, I was able to obtain the Original Patent
Document on the Ju-jo. I found it, I had the Name of the Inventor, but could not open the
file because the U.S. Patent Office uses a funky picture viewer program and even though
I went to the MS Site, I could not figure out what the hell I needed to view them. Since
then, Jay has been an invaluable resource and friend in my hunt for oddball weapons that
have been patented.
Once he sent the files back to me in Giff format, and I could read them, I was very
impressed at the mechanical drawings. Alot of patents do not have drawings this good,
some are better, but this one is really great. It is more for historical purposes.

Then, I started searching elsewhere on the Internet, searches for "John J. Lewis." And
then I was surprised to find out that he was once a member of U.S. Army Special Forces.
All too often, Special Operations Units are used as a Hot Link to Success from people
who make knives, etc., and it was refreshing to see that the Ju-jo apparently made its way
into the hands of S.F. people because it was made by a former member.

During his Army years, Mr. Lewis studied Judo and I do not know what else, he then
rapidly rose through the ranks of Miyama Ryu Jujutsu because of prior experience in
Martial Arts. On one website it was stated that he reached Black Belt in Miyama Ryu
Jujutsu in one year, due to his background in Judo and I do not doubt that could be done
legitimately. Since a firm foundation in Judo would make for a firm foundation in
Jujutsu. There are alot of things that cross...Judo came from Jujutsu.

He then began his own "System," ParaCombatives Jujutsu at Northwestern University,

Illinois.

He geared the Martial Art for the Street, Streetfighting Martial Arts have my utmost
respect. I have never been exposed to ParaCombatives Jujutsu, but if the thought he put
into the Ju-jo is any indicator of his Mindset (and I believe it is), I’m sure the System as
he taught it was good.
Sadly, Mr. Lewis died in 1996. Sadly, James Keating’s Bandana work was not around and
popular in 1985 or Mr. Lewis would have probably made a mint off of the Ju-jo.

The thing is constructed like a tank. It is idiot proof, there are no buttons or anything. Yet,
for all of its’ simplicity...it would take a firm understanding of Flexible Weapons to get
the most of it. It is truly a weapon for those who understand it and less than useless for
anyone who does not understand it.

It was truly a Self-defense Weapon before its’ time...a damned shame it is still not being
produced for those that can appreciate it and are willing to dedicate the time to Master it.

Can you tell I’m thoroughly impressed with it?

I was saddened to learn during my search that the Inventor had died. He obviously had a
keen eye to what was needed, but maybe the weapon was so complicated in application,
yet simple in construction, that it never caught on and seemed like a "gimmick."

Jim Keating and Robert Langford have proven that the Bandana* is viable, and these
techniques make the JSP V-Gar System viable, as well as the Ju-jo. It seems that Mr.
Lewis had his finger on the button of reality a long, long time ago. Maybe the
methodology differed, but he most certainly was on the right track.

Here’s to John Lewis, a great Martial Artist, Inventor and Innovator. A Man who had
vision.

*McGrath’s comments on Guro Inosanto’s Yo-Yo Methods was very interesting indeed.
Attaching the free [fingerloop] end of the Yo-Yo to the end of a knife and using it like a
garrotte, or using it in the off hand to throw at an attacker’s forearm/wrist area to allow
the natural weight and momentum of the Yo-Yo to wrap and secure around the limb to
somewhat entangle the attacker, giving you time to take countermeasures, draw your
knife, etc.

**Before James A. Keating launched his Bandana Material on the Martial Arts
Community, there was material from GMs Sulite and Illustrisimo on the "panyo."
Unfortunately, even alot of people in the Filipino Martial Arts Community stood up and
claimed Keating was making things up as he went along, when in fact, the material did
exist. Keating/Comtech may have added some things, but the basic concepts are universal
and they can shadow Japanese Bujinkan or the other way around, they compliment each
other...but make no mistake, Keating did not simply make things up in this instance and
call it "Filipino." All of these things most certainly have their place as improvised
weapons, the Yo-Yo [Tapon-Tapon], Bandana [Panyo], Whip, Belt [Sabitan] and Rosary.

This longtime Ju-jo Owner E-mailed me about the Article and took the time to
photocopy the original manual for the Ju-jo and mail it to me. This was incredibly
generous of him. I asked him if he would write something short about his experience
with the Ju-jo and here was his response:

"I have always respected the Ju-jo and the maker for a long time. I purchased mine
back in the 80's and learn about the item as I grow in my studies. I study Budo
Taijutsu and find the Ju-Jo a very well designed item that adapts well for my art. I
have trained with the Ju-Jo in our Kihon Happo patterns and it adds a great deal to
these fundamental movements. An item like the Ju-Jo is a great addition to any
martial system because it allows grappling and striking components in a unique
package, it can be used as a eda koppo, kubaton, and kusari fundo. I would
recommend that people work with the Ju-Jo very slowly so that they can see
doorways and possibilities within the movements between tori and uke. Applying
the uses of the flexible and impact qualities when it is warranted will aid any system.

It is a nice equalizer to be used against would be attackers because of the versatility

contained within it's design. I find that in conjunction with awareness and training
(understanding the weapon) the Ju-Jo is a very effective item for self-protection."

Two people who studied under Dr. Lewis in ParaCombatives Ju-Jutsu had E-mailed
me and told me of their experiences. Unfortunately, on America Online, sometimes
when you save mail to the Personal Filing Cabinet, it is either lost or you get the
message, "That message is no longer available."

I lost them over time because I wanted to keep them fresh in the E-mail and then cut
and paste them into this article. I’ve long wanted to do this article but needed to
assemble more information about the Ju-jo in order to do so. Regrettably, I cannot
find their E-mail addresses or anything. The E-mails were positive about everything
involved and had a unique insight as well. I’m sad they have been lost and I have
been unable to make further contact with them.

Another Gentleman, just a few weeks ago now, sent me a goldmine of material with
regard to the Ju-jo and the whole intense and in-depth amount of thought that Dr.
Lewis put into the Ju-jo and the Ju-jo’s place within ParaCombatives Ju-Jutsu.

This fellow, a Federal Agent who wishes to remain anonymous, sent me not only a
Ju-jo, but the original manual and the original packet of information Dr. Lewis
would send out to certain individuals which contained magazine articles and
advertisements. He also sent the complete Program of Instruction for Instructor
Certification for the Ju-jo, which adds further to The Big Picture.

Perhaps most important, I was able to see some of the personal insight of Dr. Lewis
as this Gentleman also gave me personal correspondence from Dr. Lewis. Letters,
when you actually had to write them and E-mail was unheard of. What a generous
fellow.

He also sent me a wonderful Safariland/Kel-Lite Yawara Stick. What a find. All he

wanted to do was E-mail about the Ju-jo and Koppo Stick Articles and things
developed from there. He has a titanium JSP Koppo Stick coming from me.

I asked this Gent to write a little piece about the Ju-jo and possibly from the Law
Enforcement angle as well. Here are his thoughts on the matter.

"While I was assigned to the [deleted] Agency, [deleted] CA (circa 1985-1987) as the
Assistant Special Agent in Charge, I had the good fortune of associating with one of
the most accomplished martial artists I've ever met: Special Agent [deleted]. To give
you some idea of his abilities, he was (when I knew him) a nidan of Prof. Wally Jay
(of Small Circle Jujitsu fame). No one (and I really mean no one) was ever able to
choke him out. As his legend grew, people from all over tried, but none were
successful. Conversely, he could put you out in about 7 seconds with a neck strangle.
You could hit him anywhere – no effect. I recall it was kind of like hitting a fire plug
– same overall effect. He did have two weaknesses though – toe locks and "shark
bites" (where you grab the skin of the inner thigh or stomach between your fingers
and pinch hard. He'd jump away if you'd try these on him. 'Course you'd only get
one chance and then he'd clean your clock....

Anyway, he and I would work out at the base gym virtually every day- we'd either
do free randori on the mats, practice locks or throws or fence. Occasionally we'd toy
with new hand weapons as we were both Unarmed Self-Defense (CQB) instructors
for the agency. Since we were federal law enforcement the issue of the excessive use
of force and scaleable control were of great consequence to us. We did the kubotan
thing, the telescoping baton (ASP), various other weird little things, until I came
across an article on the Ju-jo. It looked sufficiently intriguing that I called the
inventor, John Lewis, and explained what type of device I was after. He opined that
the Ju-jo would probably fill the void that we needed and agreed to send me a demo
tape and a device.

As it turned out he sent a whole lot more (all of which you have, save the tape which
I returned to him after viewing it with my training partner). After it arrived he and
I played around with it on the mats for a couple of workouts. We both felt that while
it had potential, in actual practice it took too much finesse to really be effective. I
should add here that both he and I felt (and still feel) that for any marital art or
device to work, it had to be effective on Hawaiians or Samoans. That was always the
real test of a technique for us (I suspect this was a holdover from Prof. Jay's
influence!) After a while we continued in our search for something else. Ironically,
the Kerambit is pretty much what we thought of as the ideal weapon – you can do
all sorts of neat stuff with it (to include finger locks), but it can be employed quickly
and it *hurts*! It's also pretty intuitive once you've played with it for a while. The
agency took one look at the strangulation aspect of the Ju-jo and wanted nothing
further to do with it. I suppose in retrospect they were right – the legal liability of
the choke holds pretty much doomed any device of this type from being considered a
"viable" police-type weapon." [end]

I think this more or less agrees with what I stated in the first Ju-jo Article. Here is
the quote:

"The thing is constructed like a tank. It is idiot proof; there are no buttons or
anything. Yet, for all its’ simplicity…it would take a firm understanding of Flexible
Weapons to get the most of it. It is truly a weapon for those who understand it and
less than useless for anyone who does not understand it."

In my opinion, Flexible Weapons, that entire category, are the most difficult to learn
and to be really proficient at. Hand a person a CaneMasters Cane and spend 30
minutes with them. You have armed them for a lifetime as long as they keep their
cool on the street and they actually learn what you taught them that day. Will they
be able to defeat anyone they come in contact with? No, there are no guarantees
with anything, but they will have a much better chance on the street. Hand them a
knife and spend about 16 hours with them and they will have a firm grasp of the hit-
and-run use of the Edged Weapon to counter grappling and whatnot on the street…
And they should have a firm understanding of the basic dynamics in knife to knife
confrontations. No guarantees…just a grounding in the basics.

With the Ju-jo, in that same amount of time, you would have a great understanding
of the use of a Yawara and it would take many, many more hours to truly
understand the Flexible Weapons aspect(s) of it. In other words, you could get the
Atemi-waza, the striking, as well as Shime-waza, the choking, down in that amount
of time with an intense program. But all of the deflections and other things would
take many hours for the student to become anywhere near "viable" in a violent
altercation.
Dr. John Lewis would obviously disagree as I have read the material. I still believe it
would take some serious dedication and time to understand the flexible weapons
portion of the Ju-jo Program.

I think this is what doomed the Ju-jo in the Law Enforcement Arena. Even more
than the choking aspects of the Ju-jo which some Administrators ran from in terror
from this particular Agency. It would simply take a long time to learn how to use the
device well and the refresher instruction would have to be yearly and more intense
than a Baton refresher during In-Service. I don’t see any other way. Then, there are
so many things people in Law Enforcement have to intimately know and they have
to be able to perform. The Ju-jo would have not been cost-effective and it would
have been rather time-consuming to teach Officers to the degree they should be
taught.

Mr. John Lewis, however, is still to be commended for this design and for attempting
to do something that was interesting, innovative, and it was effective if you were
willing to put the time into it. In the grand scheme of things, there have been many
implements sold as "Self-defense" weapons and the vast majority of them are
absolute garbage.

Perhaps the Ju-jo was something that was more advanced than even Mr. Lewis
realized.

This leads us into a small discussion on some of the Ju-jo methods in the Owner’s
Manual…

ParaCombatives Ju-jo Methods

One of the beautiful things about the Ju-jo Manual is, you get a really good Yawara
Manual as well! In the striking section of the Manual, you get a rundown of basic
strikes:

• Thrust – a compact, vigorous straight strike.

• Roundhouse – a swinging strike with a wide arc.
• Jab – a short hooking strike with a tight arc.
• Uppercut – an upward strike thrown from the waist.
• Uraken – a compact, spring-like strike directed over the shoulder (the
striking arm is bent in an L-shape).
• Reverse – similar to Uraken except the strike drives straight backwards from
about waist-high (the striking arm is bent in an upside-down L-shape).

To save some space, I’m not going to create an illustration for this. Just listen
carefully. The two strikes you might have a problem envisioning are simple to
describe. Uraken is almost a spear-throwing position. It is designed to hit someone
in the head or face that is standing behind you and slightly to your right. Almost as
if you were drawing the arm back to throw a spear. But you hit with the Stick.
Reverse Uraken is a rearward strike to hit the torso or groin with the Stick. Imagine
just reaching back and hammerfisting someone in the stomach or groin. That’s how
easy it is.

On the next page, it covers hammerfist strikes, vertical punches with the Ju-jo as a
fistload. And a good deal more. But the strikes above are the distilled basics. Like I
said before, it is a very good manual and a lot of it applies to any Pocket Stick or
small flashlight, etc.

In the pages that follow, we see the squeezing and pinching techniques of pain
compliance, which will work on some people, but in cases of extremely combative
attackers…I think you know my opinion on pain compliance techniques.

Throat Constriction, choking, blocking, throwing and locking…all of these things

are covered quite well and the reader is then introduced, in the section on blocks…to
some of the flexible weapons aspects of the Ju-jo.

Deceptive Power

A lot of people do not realize how powerful something so simple like a belt or a
bandana, when properly used, can be. Truly…someone can throw you all around a
room with a short length of rope if they know what they are doing. The flexible
weapon has some power and if you are unlucky enough to get one of your punches
snagged by someone who knows how to use a short piece of rope or some other
flexible weapon…you will find out quickly.

In one of James Keating’s Fighting Bandana videotapes, he shows a simple pull with
the bandana, snagging a punch and then giving a pull that works extremely well. It
is basically an Arm Drag in wrestling but the bandana gives it so much more,
effortless power, it’s all a matter of leverage. People do not understand that at all. A
lot of people are prejudiced against that sort of thing. They just cannot imagine
something so simple being so strong.

The blocking movements that Mr. Lewis demonstrates in the Ju-jo Manual would
have more power than many people think. A block with a flexible, if you know what
you are doing, has an effect almost like that of a trampoline. It can repel the
attacking limb to a great degree. As James Keating points out in the aforementioned
material, this can also cause the attacker’s upper body –the head– to be impelled
into another strike, etc.

This is excellent, basic material in the Ju-jo Manual. The advanced material can be
found in Filipino and some Japanese Arts as well. Use of the sarong in Pentjak Silat
is also applicable, obviously.

The Manual then goes on to outline some techniques geared specifically towards
women because sometimes women are attacked in specific ways…mostly grappling
types of attacks. The use of walls and other structures is also included, how to smash
the attacker into walls, chairs etc. Self-defense scenarios while seated… When you
consider this Manual is all of 20 pages, it gives a great idea as to the depth of the
System Mr. Lewis created. I wish it were 100 pages.

Personal correspondence from Mr. Lewis

As I said before, the Gentleman who sent me the Ju-jo and Safariland Yawara also
sent me the packet of information regarding the Ju-jo.

This is one portion of what Mr. Lewis wrote back to him and it is quite interesting:

"As to your comment on the joint-locking (kensetsu waza), your impression is

somewhat correct in that the use of joint-locking, without Ju-jutsu breaking, is merely
designed as a temporary control measure to cuff or otherwise control an assailant who
has generally given up. My experience has shown that unless the user of the Ju-jo or
unaided using only the hands is skilled that kensetsu waza in the control mode will not
be effective against a powerful, resisting individual. If, on the other hand, a break or
trauma to the joint is added once the lock is secured then the technique is highly
effective against even the most severe resistance. Simply, I train on the lock because
law enforcement wants it to assist in passive resistance situations or for cuffing. I do
not bother to teach it to civilians with the Ju-jo in my regular courses.

Your analysis of the tape in terms of cord employment and immediate response
techniques is on the mark. The original taped session was two hours, eighteen
minutes long. Much of what you commented on was deleted in order to fit the
material onto a standard video cassette. There is no question that the cord is the key
to the system, however, there was only so much I could do on a single tape designed for
the ‘general’ public. This is why I tell various agencies that I can produce a specific
tape tailored to their individual needs and training…"

Interesting, huh? It’s gold.

The Instructor’s Program of Instruction

This gives a more in-depth look at this whole System that was devised, using Ju-
Jutsu to power the Ju-jo Methods. You also see another side of Mr. Lewis and the
multiple tasks he wanted the Ju-jo to be able to perform in a military context.

Part I.

"History and introduction to Ju-jutsu. Principles of Self-defense. Discussion of

human anatomy as relevant to biomechanical aspects of force, motion and stress…
Efficacy of the Ju-jo in personal defense, law enforcement, unconventional warfare,
military (SERE) and marine (SCUBA) special operations, private security and in
conjunction with martial arts training and cross comparison to seventeen other self-
defense devices. The Ju-jo as an expedient first aid tourniquet, splint and in rescue
operations. Construction of a field expedient Ju-jo. HANDS-ON training in modes of
carry, types of grip, draw, stances and twenty-five forms of striking."

It is that one line, the thought…

"Construction of a field expedient Ju-jo…"

This set me on a path of thought that perhaps Mr. Lewis was exposed to the Te no
uchi, especially since he was exposed heavily to Judo and Ju-jutsu…

I am not saying that I am correct, I simply do not know. Perhaps Mr. Lewis knew of
the Te no uchi and improved it and when making a field expedient for garrotting,
etc., one would basically make a Te no uchi as described later in this article. I just
don’t know. God rest his Soul, he is gone now and I cannot ask him.

In any event, if he did in fact get the idea from the Te no uchi, the Ju-jo and the
techniques that drive it are much more realistic for street application than most of the
Te no uchi movements that I have watched on the videotape. It is simply a no-
brainer; combative people will not allow you to do certain things…

Another thing that sort of points to this, or something similar to this is found in this
passage:

"…cross comparison to seventeen other self-defense devices…"

Perhaps one of those devices was the Te no uchi…

Where did the Concept come from?

I used to just think, as many others have, that the Ju-jo was simply a combination
between the Yawara Stick and something like the Manrikigusari/Kusarifundo
weighted chains. And maybe it was. But I have found something very interesting
indeed…

Thanks to my buddy Ray, I have been able to view some terrific Japanese Martial
Arts Videotapes. One covered Koryu Jujutsu; some were Aikijujutsu…some on the
Jo. Three of the most interesting were videos from "BAB" in Japan and covered the
Kusarifundo, the weighted fighting chain; another covered the Suntetsu, a close
cousin of the Koppo Stick and covered in Koppo II on this site.

The third videotape was on the Tenouchi or Te no uchi. " Te no uchi," from what I
gather, means "hidden in the hand." While it is hard to "hide" a Te no uchi in the
hand…like most things Japanese, there is a deeper meaning to it. Something can get
lost in the translation as well.
If you look closely at the picture, you will see a Te no uchi in the middle.

The Te no uchi consists of a Pocket Stick, a Yawara if you will, that has one hole
drilled through it at the center of the stick. Through that hole is a length of cordage.
It is tied in a specific way. If you tie the cord correctly, and you were to lay it flat on
the floor and spread it out, it would resemble a Figure Eight ( 8 or - the infinity
symbol ).

The Figure 8 is formed by two loops. In one of those loops is attached this Yawara
Stick for the Te no uchi.

I cut a very simple Pocket Stick out of rattan and drilled the hole in the center just
to try out some of the techniques on the video. This picture should clearly illustrate
how the cord is tied and its relationship with the Stick.

[insert pic of homemade te no uchi here]

The Te no uchi movements

The videos are in Japanese, I do not speak Japanese but having been involved with
various Martial Arts for quite some time and with a basic understanding of the
terms in Japanese, viewing the videos from BAB has been no sweat. A careful
attention to detail proves to be very rewarding.

Let me first say, rather bluntly, that a lot of the techniques shown could never be
performed on a resisting attacker. It would simply prove impossible to be able to
perform some of the intricate trapping and tying movements with the Figure 8
cordage on a resisting opponent.

There are, however, some very interesting movements involved with this weapon
and there is some definite food for thought when you examine the Kusarifundo,
Suntetsu and Te no uchi material one after another.
I am not saying anyone could pull off some of these movements for real. Some of them
are simply impossible to do no matter what your skill level. This is a truism because no
matter what your skill level, you cannot guarantee that the attacker will stand still for
it. I know this is an unpopular opinion to many people in traditional Martial Arts, but
I’ve been in enough confrontations to know that when people are combative, it’s hard
to do intricate things to them.

Even in the video, body shifting is used, footwork, to avoid a knife thrust and the
hand is struck with the Pocket Stick portion of the device. Then a loop is dragged
over the hand after the knife has fallen to the floor and then the loop is tightened
through another maneuver.

This is simply not going to happen in real life. There is no way that someone who has
a knife and they are combative and want to stick it in you…there is no way they are
going to stand there after you knock the knife out of their hand, with their arm
outstretched, while you perform this. It is fantasy. As skilled as the practitioners were
on the videotape, there was approximately one half dozen minor fumbles of the cord
when securing it on a limb. That’s a hint as to what we are dealing with here…if
there is a fumble on a compliant subject, just what exactly do you think will happen
when someone is not only being non-compliant, but they are being combative?

The only way these things would work, the standing techniques performed on the
arm is if the attacker’s arm did not have to be ensnared in the manner shown. There
are other ways to quickly ensnare limbs with flexible weapons. It is the fact you have
to drag a loop over the limb via the fist or open hand…that is the problem. No one is
going to stand still for that sort of thing on the street. They would have to be
knocked unconscious or nearly so in order for that to happen and if that happens,
they are in the process of falling straight down or backward or they have already
done so. They do not stand there and let you do these things.

Added to the frantic nature of combat is the unpredictable nature of the cord flying all
around. This appeared to be a part of the fumbling on the videotape along with the
Pocket Stick being long enough to get caught up on some of the movements as the
snare was pulled taut around the attacker’s limb.

At this point, some of the techniques become superfluous in the extreme and I am
being very kind with that assessment.

Experimentation

So, I made this Te no uchi out of a slim piece of rattan and some 550 ParaCord. I
have been using this weapon in some training and I have to say, making the Stick
portion of the device shorter has helped to slick up some of the
movements/techniques portrayed on videotape.
Has this made me a believer in this weapon? No, not really, but it did give me
another view as to how the Ju-jo and other flexible weapons and garrottes could be
employed.

The Te no uchi’s strength is in the fact it is half Yawara Stick. Pocket Sticks of all
types are incredibly powerful hand weapons.

Shortening the length of the Stick has made quite a difference when pulling the
"noose" taut using the Stick. It has made some movements, shall we say, more
viable in that the Stick does not "hang up" within the noose during the tightening of
the noose.

Think of the Te no uchi as half of a garrotte (compared to a garrotte with two

handles, one on each end of the cord). There is a lot of potential for this to be a very
powerful garrotting device. Much along the lines of the Thugee Garrotte like
Colonel Rex Applegate wrote about in "Kill or get Killed."

It is quite apparent that if this weapon was used to any measurable degree, it was
probably by someone in a law enforcement capacity, the Feudal equivalent of a
police officer. There has to be some preparation of the device. The arm has to be
placed through one of the loops, not a "Quick-draw" device at all, remembering
that this is basically a Yawara Stick anyway, it could always serve instantly in that
capacity.

The Snaring Position of the Te no uchi

There are two loops of cord. The cord of one loop runs through the Yawara portion
of the Te no uchi. This is done by taking a length of ParaCord, you run the cordage
through the Yawara with the drilled hole in the center, and then you tie the ends off.
This makes one, large loop of cord that is tied off.

Now, two form two loops, simply tie a knot in the center of the loop, using both
strands of cordage. You now have two loops with the Yawara contained in one of
them.

You place your hand through the loop that does not have the Stick as a part of it.
That would be the loop farthest away from the Stick. You then place the cord almost
at the inside of the elbow joint and you grasp the Stick in your hand. You now have
a large piece of cordage that is hanging off of your arm.

The cord directly attached to the Yawara portion of the Te no uchi exits the hand
hold the Yawara from between the index and middle fingers, the hand is in a
clenched fist position.
Against a straight thrust with the knife, as depicted in the videotape, you use body
positioning to evade, strike down with the Yawara and immediately drag the loop
over the attacking arm.

You then check the attacking arm with your other hand, this stabilizes it to a degree
and you then pull the Stick rearward and this snares the limb. You can then simply
backpedal and drag the person to the ground.

That’s the way it works on the video anyway…but we already discussed the virtual
impossibility of ever being able to pull this off against someone who is really
combative.

But there are some gold nuggets in there…here are some of the variations that are
very valuable…

Variations of the Snaring Movement above

In one variation, the defender uses body positioning (tai sabaki) to evade and strike
against a knife thrust. The knife hand of the attacker is struck with the Yawara
(hammerfist) and the knife arm is checked slightly above the elbow. The Yawara is
then used in a straight thrusting manner to the face/head of the attacker. This
movement of dragging the loop over the extended knife arm leads to the strike in the
face with the Yawara and then the cord pulled taut via the Yawara.

In another variation, when the snare is pulled taut, the defender steps back out of
range and pulls the Yawara low and then using the foot on the other side of the
body, steps on the cord and slams the attacker face first into the ground.

All of the techniques are fueled off of proper body positioning (tai sabaki) as well as
Atemi waza. Striking vital points.

There is a heavy emphasis on Atemi waza.

There is an equally heavy emphasis on finishing blows to incapacitate the attacker.

The Snaring Movement on a Choke

Where the snaring of the limb could flail on the street, you could stun someone with
the Stick portion of the Te no uchi and then as you move by them, snare the neck
and pull everything taut. That could work. It is a different movement altogether.

If you strike someone in the hand with a Yawara Stick hard enough to disarm them,
it is almost a certainty that their hand will not be there when you attempt to snare it
by pulling the loop over the hand.
The head is altogether different. The hands might rush up to the face when the face
is struck, this is a window of opportunity to act and snare the head, move behind the
attacker, pull the cord taut and drag them to the ground backwards, etc.

Second Position

The second position is basically the same way one could grasp the cord for the Ju-jo.

The loop of cord is placed over the index finger and the cord lies across the palm
and then you make a fist, securing the cord in place. This is illustrated in the Ju-jo
Manual as well as the Patent Document.
This is also a much faster position to get into on the street.

On the Te no uchi videotape, the hand that does not hold the Yawara is placed
through the far loop and then the cord goes through the hand and a fist is made…or
the hand can be open and a shuto (edge of hand) strike can be performed.

Sometimes, the hand that is through the far loop also holds the Yawara Stick. In
another variation, the Yawara is thrown into the facial area (eyes), which is
Metsubushi and this is mentioned by name on the video. This is the segue, the entry,
to then come in and strike with a hammerfist or shuto to the knife hand, then the
attacker can be finished in a number of other ways, primarily hammerfist strikes
using the Yawara.

The hand holding the cord and not the Yawara, is sometimes the first hand to strike.
This is where the video material is excellent, in my opinion. Using tai sabaki, the
thrust is avoided and the shuto or hammerfist, using the other hand holding the
cord, is used to strike the knife hand as the Yawara Stick strikes the attacker’s facial
area or throat.

What does work with the Te no uchi?

Deflections and then snaring, that works! As long as you do not rely on the fine
motor skill and the compliance of the attacker and you use the Te no uchi like a
bandana or belt, it would work well. It is the intricate nature of this double loop and
the over-complication of the movements where they do not have to be that would
make a lot of the Te no uchi movements unrealistic and ineffective, if not dangerous,
to perform on the street.

Some of the movements are very street-real and viable.

If you stick with the concept that you have a Yawara Stick in your hand and the added
benefit of the cordage to exert more leverage and power on the attacker, then the Te no
uchi is as impressive as it is simple.

Just leave the most intricate of movements requiring compliance in the attacker and
fine motor skills to the folks in the Dojo who are keeping the tradition of it alive.

I have just attempted to describe that which cannot really be described. I hope that
the text along with a few illustrations will give you a firm idea of what I have been
writing about. I have no program to "capture" video into still shots. A few digital
camera pics in sequence must suffice to give you a few ideas…

Thugee Garrotte, Kusarifundo and the Ju-jo?

If you have not read all of the articles on my site, you are probably wondering what
I am babbling about Thugee Garrotting for now in a Ju-jo Article…
The Thugees of India were rumored to have placed a Rupee in their Rumal
strangling scarves. Just another way of getting the Rumal over the head and around
the neck. Or simply project it around the neck for the choke. The other hand would
be waiting and would grab the weighted end of the Rumal and the choked would be
executed.

In the BAB video for the Kusarifundo, we see the same movement with the chain.

In the BAB video on the Te no uchi, we see Metsubushi. Projecting the Yawara Stick
at the eyes, striking them, and then the Yawara Stick (weighted end, like the Rupee
in a Rumal or the weight on a Kusarifundo) is swung via the cord retained in the
hand, around the neck of the attacker. The neck is then controlled and the attacker
taken to the ground and finished.

(The pictures above are blurred. The throw to the eyes, metsubushi, followed by
throwing the Stick around and catching it...then finishing...)

There are only so many ways to do something correctly and effectively. This should
be viewed as a large puzzle and these are pieces. The assembled puzzle is
effectiveness and realism. Leave the other pieces out that do not work for you.

These same movements could be performed with keys attached to the Ju-jo, the keys
would provide enough weight to propel the cord around the neck so that these
movements could be executed.

This is one way the Yo-yo (tapon-tapon) is used in Filipino Martial Arts, as per my
understanding.

Patent Search and Various Self-defense Weapons

The Patented version of the Japanese Suntetsu was found thanks to the search for
the Ju-jo online as well as another "Self-defense Keychain."

Below is the Patented "Suntetsu" type of device and then below that picture follows
a Key Flail Self-defense device as well…and an interesting little drawing from the
Patent showing a woman striking a "mugger" armed with a knife with the keys.
She’s attacked by a mugger and casually slaps at his gut with the keys…he looks
down at his midsection…yeah…OK. Lots of realistic thought put into that…
although the device is sort of neat and looks to be easily improvised…
More on Keating

I always like to cite Keating when speaking of Flexible Weapons. The reason is
simple. His material is simply excellent. With the Keating-COMTECH Bandana
Material…let’s just say that the Ju-jo then becomes incredibly effective. The
movements are quite a bit different from the original movements designed for using
the Ju-jo. Keating puts forth movements that are simply fluid destruction, in that,
the deflection happens with the flexible, then using a hammerfist (both hands will be
clenched because both hands are grasping the bandana, etc.), the hammerfist comes
down to blast the arm. The hammerfists, clenched fist, forearms, and elbows along
with low-line kicking all become an intrinsic part of the method.

With the Ju-jo in your hand, you have the power of the Stick, the concentration of
force, in one hand, which will make it even more effective. You have to purchase the
Keating material if you are really interested in these things. It’s impossible to
describe how fluid the movements are…how fast and powerful. Also going into
chokes, etc.

Deployment

Most people pop the cap with the keys on it when they want to deploy the cord from
the Ju-jo. Even I thought that was the way it was done when I first got one. Even
after reading the Patent!

But the cord is deployed from the bottom, quite easily. And if you are practiced, it
could be done under stress. It is no more of a complicated movement or fine motor
skill than opening a folding knife.

You can place your index finger through the loop and pull then make a fist with the
cord across your palm as is depicted in the Patent Document. Or, you can place the
entire hand through the loop if it is large enough…and then the cord goes through
the hand and a fist is made…

The Ju-jo’s dark side, the spike plug

I have been unable to obtain one of these, so far, for my Ju-jos. There is basically
nothing written about this portion of the System. But I have a pretty good idea how
it came about and what purpose it would serve.

Of course, you could just use it to hammer on someone! And in doing just that…the
Ju-jo would be transferred into another category, into the edged weapons category.
The wounds would not have been very deep at all because the spike is not large.
There would have been little to no cutting capability at all…just a thrusting
implement.

But I think this spike device was originally aimed at the Military Sector. The reason
is painfully obvious.

Mr. John Lewis spoke repeatedly about wanting this device to be adopted within
U.S. Army Special Forces as well as by other Special Operations Units.

Using the Sentry Removal Section of the now defunct U.S. Army Combatives
Manual, FM 21-150 (1992), I have altered another illustration from that manual to
attempt to explain what I believe could have been an application. Remember what
Mr. Lewis wrote, he wanted this device in the hands of SERE Instructors, SERE
being, "Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape."

There are a few different ways that the Ju-jo could have been utilized as a garrotte,
obviously, but with the addition of the spike…more techniques could have been
possible.

Remember that people who are trained in SERE are taught to kill the enemy by any
means at hand, if that enemy stands between them and continuing to E & E, Escape
and Evade. Mr. Lewis also wanted it to have multiple uses to increase the versatility
and to justify the injection of another piece of equipment in the already burdened
Soldier’s Kit.

The Ju-jo could have been used as a Yawara to stun the enemy like the pommel of a
knife…using the end of the Ju-jo where the cord is deployed. The cord could be
deployed beforehand in anticipation of having to eliminate a Sentry, etc. The
stunning shot using the Ju-jo as a Yawara, striking the temple, then the thrusting of
the spike to ground the Ju-jo into the enemy…and then the cord looped over the
head and the enemy garrotted…is a very real scenario for the use of this tool.

The Ju-jo could be used to perform this task with or without the Zytel spike.

The enemy could have been stunned with one end of the Ju-jo and with the spike
attached. The spike could have been plunged repeatedly into the side of the neck,
more to the front, in an attempt to puncture the external and internal jugular veins
as well as the carotid arteries. Then the cord could have been used to secure the
enemy until expiration.
For more on the Army’s Sentry Removal Concepts from that Manual, see the
Articles on. All of those techniques (Garrottes and Flexible Weapons) could have
been performed with the Ju-jo.

What was wrong with the Ju-jo?

First of all…it is most certainly very tough. It’s just a big piece of DuPont Zytel
after all. What could be more indestructible than a thick-walled tube that is closed
off on one end…constructed with Zytel?

We all want things that are built extremely well because we don’t want things to
break. We want more bang for the buck. The Ju-jo is overbuilt in the extreme…
really. This thing is just about indestructible. Everyone that I have discussed the Ju-
jo with that actually owned one and every single person that has examined mine has
stated the same thing. It should have been made a bit thinner because it is not as
convenient to carry in the waistband or pocket like a regular Kubotan is.

It is a valid criticism because it could have been made thinner and it would have
probably still been more than strong enough for the task at hand. The outside
diameter could have been shaved down a bit and made thinner and then the interior
space where the ParaCord is stored could have been a bit smaller. This would have
possibly helped the popularity of the Ju-jo even more. It is a slight flaw, but it is one
that possibly caused the Ju-jo to never really catch on with the general public.

Other than that, I really don’t see a "negative" to the Ju-jo except that it would take
a good deal of training to get the most of the flexible aspect(s) of the tool.

If you examine a small Mini-MagLite Flashlight from MagLite, you would see how
strong aluminum can be. Perhaps instead of injection-molded Zytel, the Ju-jo
should have been made from thick-walled, aircraft-grade aluminum. It would have
weighed approximately five ounces or so…a best guess…but it would have been
more than strong enough to get the job done.

The Ju-jo’s walls could have had a thickness much greater than the Mini-MagLite
from MagLite and it would have been incredibly strong like that. It would have still
been very light and would have been almost half as big in diameter. This would have
helped the Ju-jo immensely I think. But in the end, I don’t really know why it did
not catch on, especially when you examine other things that have caught on that
were stupid. If it were made from aircraft-grade aluminum, it would have been
about as thick as a fat Kubotan instead of being the huge device it is. I still like it
though.

Random concepts...
 Improvised Weapons

"The Pen is mightier than the sword" There are thousands of uses for pens besides
writing. A good heavy steel pen can be used for stabbing (in self defence of course)
Where you stab can make the difference between a wound and a fatality. I won’t go
into details because most of you know critical points. But even in a removal situation,
one can use the pen like a pair of pliers in order to control the person to remove him
or control him as such. You hold the pen as you would a lighter and simply grab the
persons skin between your thumb and the end of the pen (donest have to be the
pointy side either). Try grabing a finger the same way! Where your fingers can bend
other’s fingers, the pen also adds a solid surface that, against bone, really hurts! Eg,
if the bending action doesn’t take’m down the sheer pressure of steel against bone
will drop the biggest of men. Study, Pens and Pressure points and you will soon
become handy with the pen.

Credit cards: Besides draining your account, you can use them for illegal access to
doors (so Im told). With some practice, they can be thrown with such intensity they
can stick in wood!! This take much practice. By themselves they can cut readily but it
you want to be sure, you can sharpen the edges just to be on the safe side! Again,
works best on pressure points. You also get a phycological advantage if you cut
above the eyes. Blood runs over the eyes and the attacker doesn’t know how bad the
injury is. Plus he cant see as well. Life or death situatioin, maybe your aim wouldent
be so good (as high). If someone is grabbing you, a sharpened credit card across the
knuckles will open them up like a Turkey on Thanksgiving. I found Airmiles works
best! They make a good card and you might not be able to redeem the points now
anyway!

You wouldent believe what you can do with a magazine! Here’s the senario; You are
reading your favorite Cosmo article in the subway. Buddy comes up to you and asks
you for some change. You say you don't have any which is a big insult to most
muggers. He shows a knife. You roll the magazine up (fold the page so you know
where you were). Parry the knife aside, hammer him in the face with the rolled end
of the magazine. Try this lightly on yourself. Just below the nose works well. Lips
work, even eyes. Remove the knife with your free hand. You can also use the
magazine to shield you from the knife. You average magazine is thick enough to
avert a knife strike but you have to be "in the movement" EG, if its held still,
probably the knife will go through but if you move both knife and magazine get
moved to the side.

Use your surroundings: If hes still giving you problems (or if you were already having
a bad day) use those poles used for holding onto. Bend his arm backward across
those poles, across a seat back etc. If he’s bent a little, you can grab his hair from
behind the pole and attempt to bend his neck around the pole. What did you think
those poles were made for anyway? Of course, if he isn’t yet bent, use you magazine
to smack him in the balls in order to get him to bend so you can trap him against the
pole.

Different Scenario: You are near a wall. Any building will do. Heck, lets open it up.
You are near ANYTHING! A tree, a car, garbage pale, an obsolete telephone booth.
USE these surroundings! Push the opponent against them. Smack their heads
against them. Do you know how you can choke a guy using a garbage can? You bend
him, stick his face in the garbage can and push his neck to down onto the edge. That
way if he hurls, it will be in the right place, not on your suit. They go to punch you or
stab you, use that wall so they hit their hands there or better, the knife stops and
their hand slides over the blade! If it’s a gun, you can swing their arm sharply
against the wall. (making sure you are not in the possible line of fire) Holding a steel
gun and hand being smashed against the wall will hurt, break the knuckles or at
least cause him to let go of the weapon. Of course, in the case of all moves, practice
makes perfect. You are not going to save yourself by reading one article here or in
BB magazine. It has to become natural.

Imagine for a minute; A beer bottle in a bar fight. A heavy ashtray. A chair! The kewl
thing about chairs is you don't have to throw them! Vlad showed how to use the legs
as grappling tools. Eg guy has a knife, the chair not only shields you but also you can
rotate it, tying up his legs and arms, rotating in the direction that his limbs don't go.
This can break him or take him down and you are still at "arms length from the
blade" Once down you can pin him and sit there enjoying your drink while authorities
come (of course you might also just want to "buggeroffski") Bottle opener gives you
great leverage on the fingers! A coffee mug to the fingers or face. The beverage
itself. (ask for HOT HOT chocolate or HOT HOT coffee if you are in doubt of the scene
and stuck in a situation were leaving would be bad)

An umbrella can distract the opponent, mask your intention etc. Closed, it can be
used like a cane, as leverage to arm lock, choke or just straight smack to the vital
points. Cane – the same only possibly better because you are viewed as a "non-risk"
(A guy carrying an umbrella is usually viewed as a non risk as well – least where I
come from).

Always carry some WD40 and a lighter in your car. The WD40 is good for leaks and
makeshift flamethrower as well! Even Unlit, WD40 make a great dog repellent! If you
attach the little straw they give you with it you can increase the range up to 15 or so
feet!!

Duct tape is a must for any vehicle!! It does everything from hold things down to
submit opponents! Imagine how silly the bad guy looks after trying to rob you, you
duct tape him to the lamp post, call for assistance and buggeroffski?

Mirrors, glass, etc just like a knife. Use some clothing to hold it with. Throwing glass
(like the credit card) is very brutal. And you are not worried if you don't get it back.

Now, if I’m ever in an area of lots of people I’m watching for chair legs, how heavy
are the tables? Can they be moved? Are they bolted down? Where’s the nearest exit?
Are there windows in the bathroom (usually not – to avert possible dine and dash
scenario) Is the floor tile (slippery when wet) or carpet?

Using your creativity, you can come up with endless possibilities of how to use your
surroundings and articles around you in case of attack.

Yes, there are unlimited scenarios and unlimited resourses available to you to deal
with each. The key is to be able to act naturally, on the spot when the attack comes!
It comes with being aware of your surroundings. Avoid confrontation whenever
possible. Avoid possible scenarios that could lead to such a predicament.
Five Weapons used by Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) in the Bourne series of movies.

1) Hardcover Book

Just because you can use a book to educate yourself doesn't mean you can't use it to
brutally injure someone.

2) Pen - (Bourne Identity)

If you're Jason Bourne, you grab a bic and cram it into the guy's fist. Because nothing
says "deadly weapon" like a $.07 bic pen:

3) Magazine - (Bourne Supremacy)

 I never thought I would see a magazine used as a weapon in a fight scene, but Bourne
doesn't just use it to beat the guy senseless

4) Electrical Cord - (Bourne Supremacy)

Bourne barely pulls off the win by grabbing a nearby electrical cord and depriving his
enemy of life-giving oxygen.

5) Vodka - (Bourne Supremacy)

Jason Bourne utilized a bottle of vodka to do two things: 1) Disinfect a gunshot wound,
and 2) temporarily blind a Russian policeman.

Who says you can not learn anything for T.V

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You Will Survive Doomsday

By Bruce Beach

Copyright Information

This document is copyrighted. You are welcome to reproduce it, however,

for FREE distribution in whatever quantity you desire and by whatever
means you desire so long as you reproduce the entire document.
Extensive quotes are also welcomed so long as credit is properly given.

Our purpose in publishing this document is to ameliorate the effects of a

nuclear holocaust for as many people as we can reach, and to locate as
many people as we can who are willing and able to join our nuclear
survival group.

Table of Contents

z Twenty-three myths that are repeatedly heard

z Useful Figures and Tables
z Nuclear Survival Groups
z About the Author
z Bibliography

MYTHS
Here are twenty-three myths that are repeatedly heard (some much more
often than others) that this document tries to dispel.

z MYTH #01: Almost everyone will suddenly be killed on doomsday.

z MYTH #02: Most people would be quickly killed by the bomb blasts,
thermal radiation, or radioactivity.
z MYTH #03: You can build an adequate shelter in your basement.
z MYTH #04: You must filter the air coming into a shelter to remove the
fallout.
z MYTH #05: Water would become radioactive.
z MYTH #06: There would be no dangerous radioactivity after a couple
of weeks.
z MYTH #07: Radiation sickness is not contagious so there is no danger
in assisting those affected.
z MYTH #08: Food exposed to radiation becomes radioactive and is
therefore not edible.
z MYTH #09: If you have a special radiation suit (like you see in the
movies and on TV) you will be protected from the radiation.
z MYTH #10: New crops of food grown in future years will not be

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radioactive.
z MYTH #11: There is no such thing as a fallout pill.
z MYTH #12: There is a fallout pill that will protect you from all
radioactivity.
z MYTH #13: There would be dangerous radioactivity for thousands of
years.
z MYTH #14: There would be no dangerous radioactivity after a couple
of years.
z MYTH #15: You are prepared if you have a two weeks emergency
supply of food stored.
z MYTH #16: You should be prepared to be self-sufficient and be able
to survive on your own.
z MYTH #17: Any survivors would have to live the rest of their lives
underground.
z MYTH #18: Life after doomsday won't be worth living.
z MYTH #19: You need not make any preparation because you are
either going to die in the holocaust or be saved (religious
connotation).
z MYTH #20: The bombs today are so large and there are so many they
will destroy the world.
z MYTH #21: You will receive adequate warning from your government.
z MYTH #22: You will receive no warning, and there is no hope if you
do.
z MYTH #23: One of the primary targets will be nuclear power plants.

This document is published by a nuclear survival group. The group is not

affiliated with any religious group or other organization. We welcome
inquiries from all persons interested in joining our survival group. Send
email to survival@webpal.org (Bruce Beach) for more details.

DOOMSDAY

MYTH #01: Almost everyone will suddenly be killed on doomsday.

You will survive doomsday. And here you thought that if it ever happened
the bomb would fall right on you. Probably not. It will more likely go like
this.

One day, the inferior Russian computers may make a mistake and decide
that the US has already launched a pre-emptory attack against Russia.
The US warning system has made that same sort of mistake many times
and a number of times we have gotten just minutes away from launching
our retaliation before the mistake was discovered. Who is to say the
Russians will always be so smart?

Forty minutes after a missile is launched from Russia it will be landing on

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its target in North America. Before this occurs the US has just minutes
within which to respond or it will be caught with its missiles down. The
hotline to Russia happens to be not working (this has also happened a
number of times before). That is one of the factors that entered into the
Russians decision to launch.

So, what's his name in the White House reaches for a jellybean and
pushes the button. Interception missiles of course try to stop the Russian
missiles before they reach their first two primary targets, NORAD
(NORthern Air Defense) headquarters in Colorado Springs, Colorado and
its backup at North Bay, Ontario.

These are hardened underground computer and communication sites that

may require several bombs to wipe them out. Given the number of
missiles that may be intercepted the Russians have sent a handful.

A better way to wipe out the communications of North America is to just

explode four thermonuclear devices at a high altitude over the continent.
These will generate an EMP (Electro Magnetic Pulse) that will knock out
most electric and electronic devices tied into the power grids. It will also
knock out any new devices that contain IC's (integrated circuits) and that
have an antenna over thirty inches long. That means that your car radio,
portable radio, and television will be inoperable, even if the power ever
does come back on.

All over the continent the power and lights will suddenly go off. If you
happen to be listening to a battery operated old tube type radio (when did
you last see one of those?) that is tuned into a "hardened" transmitter
sight (I don't know where you will find one) that transmits (fat chance)
the EBS (Emergency Broadcast Signal) then you will know that doomsday
has begun.

Otherwise you will be standing out there with the rest of us survivors
saying, "Nice day, eh? Strange the power would go off on a nice day like
this." Silence. The sun will continue to shine, and the birds will sing, and
the breezes will blow and you will still not know that they have a bit of a
problem up in North Bay. They are no longer there. Silence.

Eventually word may drift in. On the chance that there is something to the
rumor you decide to try to call someone. Your spouse, a friend, a relative.
Don't bother. Silence. The telephone isn't working either. Even if the EMP
hadn't done it in, a mere power outage causes such an overload of
demand on the central exchange that you couldn't even get a dial tone.

You are a survivor. Doomsday has occurred and you are a survivor. While
you are waiting for the spouse and kids to get home maybe you should do
something practical. Like go down to the supermarket and lay in a bit of

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an extra stock.

You may notice that the little corner store has closed. If he has believed
the rumor, he wants to save his stock. And besides, your money may not
be worth anything tomorrow. You thought you had seen rapid inflation
before but this is like from zero to a million in sixty seconds.

At the supermarket, if you are early enough, you will find pandemonium.
If not, you will find practically nothing. Maybe a large bag of dog food
(take it) and some cans of floor wax (forget it). The rest of the stuff was
all in those carts that you met come flying up the walk as you came
running down.

There won't be any girls at the cash registers, (they have done their
shopping and gone). Besides, the cash registers aren't working anyhow,
with no power. It may have taken the hired manager a little longer to
figure out that he should grab what he can and head home to his family,
but he has probably gone now. The only cops you will see are the one's
grabbing stuff themselves.

If on the way back you spot a shopping basket with something in it - think
twice before helping yourself. If there is an altercation there are probably
no doctors at the hospital to sew up the lacerations. Everyone else is also
too busy to bother calling an ambulance, if they could, and one wouldn't
be available if they did.

Of course the trip to the supermarket may have been nothing like that at
all. It may have just been a bit more active than usual but if most people
haven't caught on yet then we are very lucky. You just keep mumbling
under your breath. "Good people, good people - that's the way, that's the
way, just stay calm." This way we can just go about doing what we have
to do as quickly as we can, while trying to not stir up panic. "Yes. I
understand the cash registers aren't working but please let me just help
you add this up by hand. No, that's fine, just keep the change."

Then, of course, if everything is really this calm we can take that good old
plastic credit card and go out and buy all the good survival stuff that we
are going to need and should have gotten beforehand. Don't worry about
paying for it, no one is ever going to send you a bill. Getting the stuff
home may be a bit of a problem if the car isn't working (the EMP may
have wiped out that fancy electronic ignition). "No, that's fine. You don't
need to deliver it. I'll just put it here in my little red wagon." But you sure
don't want to lug it all the way up to your thirty-second floor apartment, if
there is somewhere safe that you can stash it. "Can you really believe that
people are staying this calm? How is it that we seem to be so much
smarter than the rest?"

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More than likely you are now back home and all you have is the fifty-
pound bag of dog food. Are you really going to be able to carry it up to
your thirty-second floor apartment? You know the elevators aren't
working of course. Then maybe you could hide it in the trunk of your car
in the garage- if no one sees you.

Ah, back home in the apartment. Home sweet home. The kids are home
from school now. Do you have enough guts after that scene at the
supermarket to send them out to do some more scavenging? It isn't
exactly a party going on out there. Did you see Watts, Detroit,
Washington D.C., and Baltimore after some of their similar parties? I did.
I think I would keep the kids home. Not much you can do except to wait
for the spouse to walk home. Shouldn't be more than a few hours.

The spouse finally makes it home. "What do you mean all you got is fifty
pounds of dog food? We don't even have a dog." The electricity isn't on.
We can't cook anything anyway. Best to eat everything out of the
refrigerator before it spoils. Won't be anymore water as soon as the
gravity feed tanks on the roof empty. Hope you saved a few pot's full. If
everyone filled up their bathtubs - it is all gone. It has gotten cold. Might
as well go to bed. There is no light to see anything by anyway. Certainly
not going out in those streets in this dark with all that noise going on
down there. Hopefully, everything will look brighter in the morning.

Day Two

Morning comes early with the noise of people throwing pots and pans
over the sides of their balconies along with the blankets, pillows and
other things that it saves them carrying down. Apparently some of the
residents are moving out. Perhaps you should too.

Everything looks better in the light, doesn't it? TV still doesn't come on.
Telephone isn't working either. And you know what - the toilet doesn't
flush. Can't cook anything. Got to eat what you've got. See, that wasn't so
bad. Make it sort of a picnic. Eat it right out of the can. There is not going
to be any water to wash dishes.

But see, we survived doomsday. Didn't even see an explosion, hear a

bomb, or anything. Maybe we should sit down together and try to figure
out what we are going to do from here. The bombs may still be coming.
Probably are.

If the attacker's plans have gone according to schedule they have

probably finished with their primary targets. They have hit the three Titan
Wings in Kansas, Missouri and Arkansas (three wings, eighteen missiles
each, for a total or fifty-four) or the things have landed in Russia by now,

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so why bother. They have certainly been knocking the bejammers out of
Montana and the Dakotas. Can't hear or see a thing from here of course.
[Author's update note: This is point is a little dated. The Titan Wings have
been decommissioned and both the U.S. and Russia have now put much
greater reliance upon the MUCH greater and more reliable destructive
power of MIRVed warheads aboard nuclear submarines. The primary
targets are now most like submarine bases, to prevent more subs from
leaving port).

Then they will start on the secondary targets. All the SAC (Strategic Air
Command) bases both in the US and around the rest of the world. Oh,
they have lots to keep them busy for a while. Cities themselves are pretty
far down the list. Maybe they won't even go for them. Any airport with
over a ten thousand foot runway is pretty important however because the
SAC could land and refuel their bomber there. So you know where that
puts us. They will probably get around to us in the next day or two.

There are two strategies of warfare. One is called counterforce and the
other is called countervalue. With counterforce you knockout the enemy's
forces so he can't harm you. This can be very chivalrous like the fighting
codes of the knights of old. You never harm the women and children.

On the other hand, with countervalue, you go after everything the enemy
holds dear in order to demoralize him. This was the technique of the
Mongolian hordes.

"Take no prisoners." "Eliminate the enemy." "The only good Indian is a

dead Indian." "Eliminate the Jews." "Sock it to the Japs."

Women, children, babies, everybody goes.

Now the problem with countervalue warfare is if everybody knows they

are either going to win or die, some people can get very tough. So maybe
the best thing is to knockout the military forces and hold the cities as
hostage. "Now, either surrender or we bomb the cities." Anyway, the
cities aren't generally the first targets.

And so here we sit. Unscratched, the day after doomsday. But we can see
some problems on the horizon. Very possibly the city is going to be
bombed in the next day or two. Even if it isn't, how can we stay here? The
electricity is off. The heat is off. The water is off. And it isn't coming back
on. The elevators aren't working. For older people it is "If we go down (if
they can go down), we can't come back up."

There is no more food in the grocery store. And there won't be any more.
(Unless you believe your government, which says they will start
delivering it in about two weeks - want to bet?). Then there is that

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horrible stuff called fallout that is going to start showing up in about

twenty-four to forty-eight hours, or sooner.

Now, we have all seen or heard about the book and the movie "On The
Beach", and Beach himself shows up with the solution. A pocket full of
cyanide pills. If you want one he will give you one for each of your kids or
grandkids. There is only one catch. There are only so many and I don't
want them wasted. So you will have to line up each of your children or
grandchildren in a row and pop it down their throats right while I am
here. How many of you will do it? "Here is your vitamin. Open wide..."

No? Then you really are a survivor. Here you always said you hoped the
bomb would fall right on you and then when I offered you an easy out...
Oh well, it won't be that bad. A world without electricity, automobiles,
radio, television, telephones, and supermarkets. And maybe eventually
with only twenty million people in North America. (They won't all be
Canadians).

But then, that is the kind of world that was here in 1800. The people then
didn't have cars, supermarkets, movies, TV, radio, telephones, modern
medicine, airplanes, rockets, and computers. And they survived. They may
have even enjoyed life. Maybe even more than many people do today with
all their drugs, tranquilizers, and what have you.

People generally are survivors. Put them out on an ice floe in the middle
of the arctic with no expectation of rescue, no supplies - nothing - and
they will hold on. Some will even survive until they happen to be rescued.

So you are a survivor and you survived doomsday. But you will eventually
die. We will all eventually die. That is the nature of this world. The
question is not whether or not you will possibly die, but how long you will
live, and what life will be like during that time.

So you have survived. And if you and your kids are going to continue to
survive you had better get the heck out of the city. Not only is there the
possibility that there will be bombs but those little scenes down at the
supermarket, or anywhere else a little bit of food happens to show up, are
going to become more and more unpleasant as anarchy prevails.

Moreover, without the toilets flushing and with no one removing the dead
bodies, health conditions are really going to reach a state you just
wouldn't want me to describe. So, off to the country. But, how? And,
where?

Before actually departing for the country let us further consider the
alternative of staying in the city. Perhaps you are convinced that the
Russians would never really get around to bombing your city. Or you feel

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you have sufficient underground shelter if they do. Nothing, of course,

would protect you if there were a direct hit on your shelter, but a good
bomb shelter could certainly give you very good protection as little as five
miles from ground zero.

The trouble is that subways and underground garages are not designed as
blast shelters. They do not have blast vents and doors. Anyone in such a
place, at the time of blast, within a couple of miles of ground zero will be
subjected to a phenomenon called popcorning. Minute particles of greatly
accelerated sand will cause blisters to pop out all over exposed parts of
the body. This, combined with several other pathological mechanisms, will
probably result in a rather painful death within a few days.

Although the blast protection in an underground shelter is much superior

to being above ground there are reasons that one is better off staying in
their high-rise apartment rather than going to a large public shelter if
they feel there is little or no danger of blast.

The public shelters have no supplies and no equipment. The average

designated public shelter is supposed to shelter over three thousand
people. Can you imagine the anarchy and conditions there? Without food,
the first to die will be infants who are not being breast fed. Other early
candidates will be persons who require special medications (especially
the elderly) and anyone who happens to be injured.

Not only will deaths have negative psychological effects on the survivors,
they will create severe sanitation problems. There will be enough
sanitation problems anyway if the water and sewage systems are not
working. Most of the designated shelter locations do not have sanitary
provision for three thousand people in the first place.

One of the greatest hazards in an underground shelter is carbon dioxide

poisoning. The designated public shelters, almost without exception, do
not have adequate ventilation for large numbers of people over a
considerable period of time. And the existing ventilation systems
generally depend upon electricity being available.

There are ventilation defense and survival techniques available. However,

if you were to try to implement them in a large public shelter situation
you would probably be one of the first persons killed by the other
survivors. The reason is that most people have misconceptions about
either the air becoming radioactive, or containing radioactive particles
that they feel would be more dangerous than the carbon dioxide.

Add to these problems the fact that you might not have any light in the
shelter, that anarchy may become rampant, and that there will almost
certainly be no food, and perhaps, more importantly, no water and you

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will see why no trained survivalist would want to be caught dead in the
place.

Returning to one's own high rise apartment, after the danger of blast is
past, gives much more favorable opportunities for continued survival than
given by remaining in a public shelter. If you are ten or fifteen stories
above the ground the distance will probably adequately protect you from
any radiation from the fallout on the ground. If there are ten or more
stories above your head then that distance will also protect you from
fallout on the roof.

The apartment dweller should try to secure an inner room without any
windows. A blast fifteen or more miles away will knock out the windows
and it is the glass shards that will kill most people. Pulling drapes and
blinds are all helpful defenses. A blast wave will be preceded by a brilliant
flash of light. The survivor will have from several seconds to three or four
minutes, depending upon the distance from the blast, to duck behind a
sofa or to take other shelter.

Training oneself to take similar immediate defensive action can also help
give protection from the intense thermal radiation that accompanies a
nuclear blast, and that can start fires fifteen to twenty miles from ground
zero. Fires, in themselves, can be a problem and if you are downwind
from a large fire or firestorm you have to watch out for carbon monoxide
poisoning.

Fire defense techniques are generally well known so I will not dwell upon
them here. One thing you need not do is call the fire department, if you
could. There is little they could do, if they were still around, without
central water supplies. But the thing you can do is improvise closings to
seal off all the apartments above you, and those immediately below you,
so that fallout will not blow in and settle on the floors over your head, or
otherwise near you.

Now, it may be possible to organize your activities with other survivors to

become a cliff dweller like those of old. A bucket on a rope might be used
to haul up water gotten from a nearby stream or pond, and waste could
be let down in the same way.

Some ingenuity may be required in providing heat and light, but if you
really have sufficient supplies of food for yourself and your fellow
survivors to hold out until another crop can be planted and harvested
(most survivalists recommend at least two years supply), and you
seriously face up to the sanitation problems created by morbidity, and you
and your co-survivors are sufficiently organized against anarchy, and
there are no more nearer bomb blasts - then you are probably well on
your way towards continued survival. At least you are many times better

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off than being in a public shelter.

There may be all sorts of reasons why you elect to remain in the city
rather than head for the country. If the attack comes in the winter and
you do not have a planned escape route, adequate clothing and supplies
to make the trip, are not physically able to make the trip, and do not have
a known destination of refuge, well then...

Those who have most prepared themselves and have made the best plans
should pray that their flight does not come in the winter. During a storm,
or severely cold weather, it is very likely that many more persons may be
killed by exposure than by any other single cause. The roads and
highways will most likely be jammed. If there has been an explosion in
the vicinity then overpasses and utility lines may have been dropped onto
the roadways making them unusable.

Even without a blast having occurred, traffic jams, accidents, or vehicles

just running out of gas will probably create bottlenecks that completely
clog the roads. Once people find themselves just sitting there, not
moving, they will abandon their vehicles. My guess is you can forget using
an automobile for escape unless you had a plan and immediately
implemented it before the general panic set in.

A motorcycle, scooter, or even a bicycle might offer certain advantages

over an automobile. One might carry a smaller form of conveyance on a
larger one and then implement the smaller means of conveyance, such as
a bicycle, when that became the necessity.

The most dependable means of escape would probably remain walking. If

one had to walk all the way out, and they were in any physical shape at
all, they could surely do it in two or three days. Once again, proper
preparation can make all the difference. Proper walking gear, proper
survival clothing, a planned escape route, proper selection of material to
be packed, and proper allocation of loads.

And, as before, there are better alternatives. One could have pre-arranged
pickup points and times with co-survivors coming from the refuge
destination, or in a worsening pre-crisis situation you may have made an
early dispersal. But the greater likelihood is that anyone with a practical
survival plan who reacts immediately can get out well before the rush
sets in.

Just getting out into the country, or to the other side of the mountain, will
increase the survivability factors for many people. The threats of blast
and thermal radiation will have been greatly reduced. But blast and
thermal radiation while very nasty in their effects are not going to kill that
many people anyway. Oh, they will kill millions, but as a percentage of the

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people living the day before doomsday they will, combined, kill only ten to
fifteen percent. And most of these will be a considerable distance from
the blast and will eventually die as a result of injuries caused by the
broken glass shards.

As stated before, depending upon the time of year and the weather, many
more may be killed by exposure. But there is still another big killer
coming. That is of course the fallout from the weapon explosions that
took place many hundreds of miles away. This fallout may require from a
few hours to a day or two to arrive. If the weather permits, and the
survivors know what they are doing, they may still have time to build an
expedient shelter against the fallout.

Techniques for defense against fallout have been developed and tested at
great expense by almost every nuclear nation. While information on these
techniques has been made readily available, most people have not availed
themselves of it.

Two basic techniques are available. One is to leave the contaminated

area. But the extent of the contaminated area may be far too wide to
escape, or one may not have accurate information as to the delineation of
the contaminated area, or they may not have the means of transportation,
nor the means of survival should they reach a radiation free area.

The other basic means is to provide shelter within the contaminated area.
Weather, ground, and time conditions permitting it is possible to dig a
trench and cover it with dirt supported by poles, wooden doors, or a
vehicle. Properly designed, such an expedient shelter can make all the
difference between avoiding the effects of fallout radiation, and not
avoiding those effects.

The details of how to build an expedient shelter are to be found in books

listed in the bibliography. One of the most important and often overlooked
factors in designing a shelter is the matter of providing an airpump so as
to eliminate the problem of carbon dioxide poisoning. The technique for
building such an expedient pump from materials readily available in time
of crisis is also found there.

The effect of fallout radiation is not always death, although many times it
is. Even if it is death it is not immediate death. Intense radiation causes a
very painful, and horrible death (what the literature calls a hard death)
over several days. More likely the effects are drawn out over a period of
weeks, months, or even years. As the title of this document points out, all
these people will have survived doomsday. It is not a question of survival
but the condition of survival with which we must concern ourselves.
Everyone will die eventually but it is the quality of life in the interim that
is of importance.

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MYTH #02: Most people would be quickly killed by the bomb blasts,
thermal radiation, or radioactivity.

By the second year after doomsday the combined affects of blast, thermal
radiation, and fallout will probably have resulted in some immediate, but
mostly delayed, deaths accumulating to 35% of the population that were
living on doomsday. Deaths that can be directly attributed to radiation
and weapon related injuries will continue until five years after doomsday
so that by that time 40% of the population that was living on doomsday
may no longer be surviving because of the above named factors.

However, the total population surviving five years after doomsday will
probably be only 20% of the number that was living on doomsday)
Obviously, nearly half, or perhaps more than half, of the fatalities will be
directly contributable to causes other than the bombs.

What then are these equally effective causes of post doomsday mortality?
They are exposure, starvation, plagues, and anarchy. While the threat of
chemical and biological warfare is not to be ignored the primary causes of
these means of mortality can be looked upon as being more natural. That
is to say they will just result naturally from the breakdown of the social
infrastructure that we regularly depend upon for day to day survival.

The four factors that will determine survival are

z Location
z Knowledge
z Preparation
z Luck

On doomsday most people will be living outside of areas that will be

struck in initial attacks by blast or thermal radiation. Many others will
already be living in areas that will never be damaged by blast or thermal
radiation. Both of these groups, if they have the knowledge of what to do,
and have made the proper preparations, will very likely find themselves in
the group of survivors who are living unharmed five years after doomsday
when the surviving population has once again established some
semblance of order and is once again multiplying and replenishing the
earth.

Selecting and Designing a Shelter

MYTH #03: You can build an adequate shelter in your basement.

For a number of reasons, basement shelters do not offer the amount of

protection that is commonly supposed. A proper analogy between them

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and a survival installation as described later in this document would be to

compare a plank with a well-equipped and commanded lifeboat. This is
not to say, that if someone finds themselves in the water from a sunken
vessel, it is not well to advise them to grab hold of a plank and start
paddling in the direction that one hopes there lies shore, if there is no
better means of survival, such as a lifeboat, or raft.

Similarly, there is very little protection afforded (starting from the rooftop
down) by a layer of shingles, a foot or two of light insulation (composed
mainly of air-spaces for the purpose of retaining heat), a quarter to half
inch of plaster board, some paint, a carpet on the floor, another layer or
two of thin boards, and perhaps some paneling or ceiling tiles if the
basement is finished. The distance between the roof and the basement (a
two-story house offers more than a bungalow in this way) does allow
some additional protection, but this factor, along with the combined
density of all the matter described, would not equal more protection than
would be afforded by six to eight inches of earth.

When, within such a basement situation, one starts to create an expedient

shelter using, as is usually advised, such materials as bookcases and
trunks (filled with earth if possible), there are certain design errors that
are liable to creep in. Piling dirt or other material on the floor above will
help but the greatest dangers will be from the areas outside the basement
wall where the foundation extends above the ground. It is best to keep
ones shelter at least three feet below the outside ground level, and to
have at least three feet of soil above one's head.

The next most overlooked problem is that of proper ventilation, so as to

avoid carbon dioxide poisoning. As stated before, most survival experts
advise a location other than the basement for such reasons as the threat
of carbon monoxide poisoning in case of fire, broken gas mains, and the
threat of fire itself that may result from the wide spread firestorms
caused by the thermal radiation associated with a nuclear blast.

There are certain advantages to a basement shelter. One may have access
to necessities such as food, clothing, and blankets stored in the home.
There may still be water available from the hot water tank. And, most
importantly, one may feel certain psychological comfort by being in the
familiar surroundings of their own home. None of these advantages of
course hold a candle to the advantage of being in a properly equipped and
manned survival center.

MYTH #04: You must filter the air coming into a shelter to remove the
fallout.

One of the general misconceptions regarding fallout and fallout shelters is

that the air itself may become radioactive. This is simply not true. Those

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with a little learning will then say "Ah, yes, but it will contain radioactive
particles of fallout". That is true, but a properly designed air intake, even
for an expedient shelter, will cause most of the particles to drop out of the
air flow before the air enters the shelter.

Should the number of particles still suspended in the air be a problem, an

expedient filter, such as a damp sheet hung in the air intake passageway,
will do an adequate job of filtering the air.

If the air vents do not have automatic blast valves then the air passage
should be quickly shut and remain shut for a few minutes after the
brilliant flash of a nearby nuclear explosion (so as to prevent the
popcorning effect described earlier). The air passages will have to be shut
in every case where there is a large fire nearby that is generating carbon
monoxide that would otherwise seep into the shelter.

Most expedient shelters will not have precautions such as those just
described. The danger of carbon monoxide poisoning is one of the main
reasons that most survival experts recommend that even if one has a
basement in their house it is preferable to build an expedient shelter a
considerable distance outside and away from existing structures in case
of fire.

MYTH #05: Water would become radioactive.

As has been mentioned before, the materials necessary for building an

airpump, and an expedient radiation detector, are available in almost
every home. Anyone planning on attempting to use the basement survival
method should obtain ahead of time the detailed instructions for building
these devices, and store these instructions in their home, along with an
emergency supply of food and containers for storing approximately 14
gallons of water for each individual that is going to be accommodated.

There is a similar misconception about water becoming radioactive as

there is about air becoming radioactive. This may have something to do
with misconceptions about the nature of heavy water, but we won't go
into that here. Radioactive particles do become suspended in water,
however, and that is why for the shelter confinement period, you must
make sure that you have a sufficient store of potable water available
ahead of time.

During the recovery period, after radiation has decreased to the point
where it is safe to work outside, there are techniques for letting fallout
settle out of water, and for distilling water, in order to make sure that it is
safe for drinking and cooking. However, far from keeping air and water
out of a shelter, it is absolutely necessary to life that they be available.

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While an expedient shelter could mean the difference between life and
death, it is probably not something that you would want to continue to
use for a very long time.

MYTH #06: There would be no dangerous radioactivity after a couple of

weeks.

There is a wide range of misconceptions about what is safe and what is

not. The matter is sufficiently complicated that a person should have
professional advice. However, if there was no doctor going to be available
to set a broken leg I presume you would go ahead and do the best you
could. And if one had to build a bridge to get across a river and there was
no structural engineer around, again I presume one would have a go at it.

Doctor's would like to have their x-ray machines available when setting a
leg, and engineers would like to have their surveying equipment,
specification guides, and computers or slide rules when they are building
a bridge. So you can well imagine a radiological defense officer would like
to have radiation detection equipment available when giving advice in a
radiation defense situation.

However, if the advise, expertise, or equipment, is not available, one must

go on. One rule of thumb is that if there is not enough fallout that you can
see it, then there is not enough of it that it will kill you. Fallout is usually
small grain dust or grit, often having a light color, but not always. It
depends upon its source. The best place to spot it is on a smooth surface,
like the hood of a car.

The more dense fallout is, probably the greater the hazard, although there
isn't necessarily a direct correlation. It may fall thick enough that quite a
little heap of it may be brushed up from a surface that is one foot square.
It is possible to build, from common materials found around the home, an
expedient radiation detection meter. The details for such a meter are
found in books listed in the bibliography.

Even if one has commercially available radiation detection equipment

there is still some considerable skill required in its use. For example,
almost all survey equipment is designed to be used by an adult of normal
stature. This means that if the equipment is held in the hand of a walking
adult it will tell how much radiation is being received 3 1/2 feet above the
ground, and particularly by the adults vital organs which are above that
level. A child's or an infant's vital organs will be below that level and will
be exposed to much more hazardous levels than an adult's. For this
reason, if one is passing through an area that is suspected to have any
radiation at all, a child should be carried on an adult's shoulders.

There is another rule of thumb that for every seven fold increase in time

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radioactivity will decrease by ten fold. This is called the seven/ten rule.
This is based upon standard decay. It is useful as an example, for
training, and in building theoretical models, but in actual practice the
decay rate is likely to be something quite different. It is determined by
the isotopic composition of the matter under consideration.

There is another commonly held misconception among semi-trained

individuals that low levels of radiation cannot be rapidly fatal. Someone,
after several days in the confines of a cramped expedient shelter, might
conclude that because their meters now indicate a very low level of
radioactivity (or perhaps no radioactivity if it is a high-range instrument),
that it would now be all right to go outside and sleep on the ground in the
cool breezes beneath the bright summer stars.

The fallacy again arises from taking measurements at a level that

assumes the vital organs are well above the radiation source. This is not
the case when a person is stretched out on the ground for long hours of
sleep. These long hours of low level radiation exposure to the vital organs
will result in a fatality in just a few days.

Likewise, perfectly healthy adults who take infants out of the cramped,
unpleasant, expedient shelter to allow them to play during the day on a
blanket spread out on the ground will be quite shocked to see those
infants sicken and die in just a few days while they themselves remain
healthy. The infant's vital organs again being close to the weak radiation
source for a long period while the adults' vital organs are being protected
by distance.

MYTH #07: Radiation sickness is not contagious so there is no danger in

assisting those affected.

The statement that radiation sickness is not contagious is often found in

the literature. That is true. The erroneous conclusion is drawn, however,
that being around persons with radiation sickness is not dangerous. The
danger arises from the manner in which radiation kills.

Sufficient radiation can cook the vital organs, but more often what
happens is that it kills the white corpuscles and the ability of the bone
marrow to make more of them. It is the white corpuscles that are the
body's defenders against viruses, bacteria, and other disease causing
bodies.

Once these defenders are lost the person succumbs to a disease they
might have otherwise warded off, and once that disease takes hold in the
individual they may become highly contagious.

In this manner there is grave danger of plagues breaking out, and all

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sorts of illnesses one does not generally see, becoming very threatening.
For this reason rigorous quarantine, sanitary measures, and health
defense measures must be imposed and enforced.

Becoming aware of such unexpected and unpleasant snares may initially

make one feel that the situation is hopeless. The danger really arises from
a person's unfamiliarity with the circumstances. There is the story of the
explorer who asked the young native if there were crocodiles in a certain
stream. He was assured there were not. While then swimming in the
stream he once again saw the young lad on the bank and asked for
reassurance that there were no crocodiles. "Oh no sir!", replied the
shocked young fellow, "They won't come here. They are all afraid of the
piranha."

The young fellow would have found himself equally in danger from things
with which he was not familiar in our society, like automobiles and
electrical appliances. It is not that the hazards are so onerous, but simply
that we are not familiar with them.

FOOD - Some Important Considerations

MYTH #08: Food exposed to radiation becomes radioactive and is

therefore not edible.

Food is the most serious problem. Most food that is in the house will not
be harmed by the radiation, no matter how intense. There are three types
of radiation that are found in fallout. Alpha particles, beta particles, and
gamma rays. As the first two names indicate, they are particles. They are
minute (too small to be seen) pieces of atomic matter that attach
themselves to the fallout (bits of dust that may or may not be large
enough to be seen).

In any case, these particles may be simply washed off many types of
foods that have a natural covering, such as eggs, bananas, potatoes,
oranges, etc., or off well sealed foods such as those in vacuum packed
cans. Foods such as grains (rice, dry cereals, etc.) that are in partially
used packages that have been opened should be viewed with suspicion.
Fallout dust may have crept in.

The food in its unopened container or natural covering should be rinsed

under flowing water and then placed on a surface that has been similarly
cleansed, before opening. Make sure that the hands (and under the nails)
have been thoroughly cleansed before handling the food. There is little
danger in handling such articles. The radiation given off by these particles
is so weak that it will often not even penetrate something as thin as the
cellophane wrapper on a package of cigarettes.

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You may then ask "Why, then, be concerned?" The reason is that once
these minute particles are ingested into the biological system they will
get into the organs and the very bone marrow itself where they can do a
lot of damage. This is not to say that you need not worry about getting
the alpha and beta particles on your skin. You do. Because they can cause
skin burns. However, good hygiene practice can eliminate that problem
but they are a much more severe hazard internally than externally.

MYTH #09: If you have a special radiation suit like you see in the movies
and on TV you will be protected from the radiation.

As an aside, this is one of the reasons that those fallout or radiation suits
that you see in all the pictures and movies and on TV are such a joke.
Those things are not going to protect the guy from anything, that a couple
of good garbage bags wrapped around his feet and made into a hood to
go over his head, would not do as well. In fact the garbage bags are in
many ways better. They would be considered disposable.

The main purpose of the fallout suits is to prevent the wearer from
tracking the fallout into the shelter. The user simply takes the suit off at
the door. If the person were to wear it on inside, it would defeat the
purpose. There are some clean handling techniques that are beneficial to
know and practice, but in a wartime situation there is so much of the stuff
around that peacetime standards of exposure and cleanliness lose their
meaning.

The gamma rays are another matter. They are very penetrating. No fallout
or radiation suit is going to protect you from them. It requires much more
dense matter to protect you than you could lift, let alone lug around. This
is why one must remain in a shelter when there is intense radiation. With
good housekeeping there should not be so much dust inside a shelter as
to create a hazard from gamma rays. However, be sure to dispose of the
contaminated rinse water that you have used for cleaning the food
containers and persons returning from outside. It may contain matter that
is giving off gamma rays.

There will probably not be sufficient fallout on the food packages (or you
can get rid of it quickly enough) that you need concern yourself about the
amount of gamma radiation that you are going to get from that source
during the decontamination process. However, the food may have been
stored in an area that has received very intense radiation. That can of
beans or peaches may have been stored right out there where it was
receiving 1000 roentgens of radiation per hour. An amount that would
have killed you right away. But it will not be harmed.

That is right. It is perfectly edible. If it were not so I would have told you.
It is only living things that radiation hurts. Even then it depends upon the

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frequency and intensity of the radiation. For example, there are all sorts
of radio and TV waves going right through where you are sitting right now
and they are not harming you.

The food in the can is already dead and the gamma rays are not going to
harm it. They will not make it radioactive. If the radiation is strong
enough it may kill any bacteria that happen to still be living in the food
and thus preserve it even further. If the food is supposed to contain
bacteria (such as yogurt) I am not sure what it would do for that!

Radiation preservation of food is a technique that is already being used in

industry and will probably become much more widely used in future
years. Many people already have radiation (microwave) ovens in their
homes today. One further analogy. Fire will kill living animals but we use
it to cook our food. You really shouldn't be overly frightened about
radiation, either.

MYTH #10: New crops of food grown in future years will not be
radioactive.

Food that is grown in radioactive soil, or that has not yet been harvested
when, fallout falls on it is another matter. This food will absorb the
particles of radioactive matter into its own structure and thus become
dangerous.

The biological food chain acts as a marvelous strainer and concentrator of

radioactive isotopes. This was well demonstrated in certain tests that
took place at Almagordo. From some intentional surface bursts and
because of the unintentional venting of some underground bursts there
was some fallout carried onto the milkshed for southern Utah.

The amount of fallout deposited over the surface was so slight that the
most selective instruments could not detect it. An atomic or nuclear
explosion releases its great amounts of energy by changing some matter
into energy. It also changes certain amounts of matter into new and
different types of matter. Without going into detail about atomic theory,
the nature of the atom with its electron rings, and its nucleus consisting
of protons and varying number of neutrons, let us simply say that these
new forms of matter are generally unstable isotopes. That means they are
going to change into another form of matter.

Once again, the matter, in the process of changing from one state to
another, releases certain amounts of energy. It is this energy that we
measure as radioactivity. The energy, depending upon the isotope
involved, may be rapidly dispelled or it may continue to be released for a
very, very long time. Most unstable isotopes release their energy and
transform into a stable state within fractions of a second or at least within

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minutes after a nuclear explosion. Others take hours, and still others
days, weeks, or months. Some take centuries.

Each isotope starts out with just so much energy. For all practical
purposes we can say it is not going to get any more. Once that isotope has
released all its excess energy it will become stable. Since the isotope
releases its energy at a specified rate we can say how long it will take to
lose half of its energy. After that, it will then take the same length of time
again for it to lose (give off) one half of the remaining amount of energy.
Question: When will all of the energy be given off by the isotope?

An ancient Greek philosopher posed the same problem. He said, "Suppose

there is a bear at the back of a cave. On the first day the bear walks
halfway to the entrance. On the next day he walks half of the distance
that remained to the entrance after the first day. And on the day following
the bear walks half of the distance that remained to the entrance from the
previous day. The bear continues to do this same thing on each
subsequent day. He walks half of the distance to entrance of what was
left from the previous day. The question is: when will the bear get out of
the cave?"

The answer is: "Never." This sort of regression is what mathematicians

call asymptotic. That is to say the figures continue to approach zero,
closer and closer, but they never reach it. So just as the bear never gets
out of the cave, all of the energy is never lost. But much (one half) of the
energy is lost in the first half-life. And three quarters of the energy is lost
by the end of the second half-life. After ten half lives a very large
percentage of the energy is gone.

It is because so much of the energy is lost in the early periods (half-

lives), as compared to the later periods, that it is important to be in
shelter during the early periods after fallout has fallen. We might divide
the half-life times of radioactive isotopes into three categories. Very short
term, medium term, and very long term.

As mentioned earlier, most of the unstable isotopes generated by an

atomic or nuclear explosion are very short term. They give off all their
significant amounts of energy in a matter of seconds. Unless you are
within very close range of an atomic or nuclear bomb there will be no way
for this radiation to reach you. It was this initial radiation that caused the
horrible radiation burns and sickness at Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

First the good news. There will not be any persons subjected to long
suffering from the initial radiation by the nuclear weapons of today. The
bad news is that the reason why is that the weapons blast such a large
hole or create such a large area of complete destruction that the initial
radiation can't escape. That is to say the totally destructive blast extends

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beyond the range of the initial radiation.

On the other hand, the survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki did not have
much problem with fallout. The first major victims of fallout were some
fishermen many, many miles downwind from the Bikini Island tests.
Fallout is a phenomenon much more associated with nuclear weapons.

Nevertheless, there was fallout in Southern Utah. As stated before, it was

so slight it could not be detected by the most sensitive instruments. The
specific matter of interest in southern Utah was the isotope 131 of iodine.
This was absorbed by minute bacteria in the soil. In the process of
filtering the iodine out of the soil the bacteria greatly concentrated it.

The bacteria were absorbed by legumes and other biological forms higher
in the food chain. Each in turn further concentrated the iodine isotope.

Finally, after the iodine had found its way into the grass a cow came along
and ate it. Now a cow is a very complex organism in itself. There are all
sorts of biological activities going on in a cow. Various organs and the
bone marrow filter out different minerals for different purposes. One of
these complex systems forms milk. This particular cow, and hundreds of
others like it, was milked, and the milk was bottled and distributed to
children all over the area of southern Utah.

The children were also complex biological organisms. They in turn had
numbers of specific organs that specialized in straining out various
minerals and compounds from the food that they consumed. The end
result was that their thyroids once again concentrated the iodine 131. And
this to such an extent that if you held a radiation detector next to their
necks it buzzed like a rattlesnake. This was not healthy.

In fact numerous problems developed among the population. There were

a great number of mentally retarded children born, and a number of other
unpleasant ramifications. This need not have occurred from the iodine
131 if we had known what we know today.

MYTH #11: There is no such thing as a fallout pill.

There is a simple pill that would have prevented the difficulty. It is

supplied in every nuclear emergency kit in Russia and available in
Denmark and Sweden. Unfortunately it is not sold in North America.

Fortunately, however, the pill is quite simple to make. Ahead of time,

obtain a quantity of potassium iodide from your local drug store. Five
dollars worth should be lots. When needed, take a regular glass and fill it
a fourth or less full of water, and then slowly start pouring in the
potassium iodide while thoroughly stirring the water.

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Don't worry about how much you pour in. You cannot pour in too much.
After a while you will notice that the chemical no longer dissolves in the
water. It just lies there on the bottom. This means that the water is
saturated. You can now stop pouring in the chemical. More will not help or
hurt.

Next take an eyedropper, or a soaked piece of paper if you do not have an

eyedropper, and drop four drops onto a little piece of bread for an adult.
Or two drops for a child. If you get several times that amount it is not
going to harm you (although in much larger amounts it is a poison).

Now take some butter or margarine and make a little ball out of the bread
and pop it down. Tastes awful. Ugh. Take once a day for 100 days after
the last bomb falls. This is good stuff and you should have it around for
reasons other than defense in case of a nuclear war.

If you live anywhere within in a couple of hundred miles of a nuclear

generating plant you might suddenly find yourself needing the stuff. The
US department of Health rushed a supply of pills to Three Mile Island and
they have a standard brochure all printed ready for distribution in case it
or some similar site vents.

The department of defense also keeps a supply near the old Titan sites
that are deteriorating and breaking down. [Author's update note: Once
again those sites have been now decommissioned and no longer present a
problem, but much greater concerns now arise from Terrorist Threat, and
the U.S. Government is now stockpiling in many cities not only these pills
but others for Bateriological and Chemical Threats]. Canadians have
nothing. I'll take that back. They do have lots of nuclear plants and the
distinct possibility of bombs exploding over their heads and on their soil.

The reason why the potassium iodide works is that the thyroid will absorb
only so much iodine. After that, any iodine taken into the body is passed
off by the kidneys. Since the body already has all the good stuff it wants it
passes out the bad stuff. This is what we call thyroid blocking.

Do not try to use the tincture of iodine that you put onto cuts. Taken
internally it will kill you. And you cannot eat enough iodized salt to do you
any good. You would get salt poisoning long before you got sufficient
iodine to do the job.

MYTH #12: There is a fallout pill that will protect you from all radiation.

I wish I could tell you about another pill that would solve all your
radiation and other problems. But there is none. Unless you mean the
cyanide pill mentioned earlier and things really are not that gloomy. As I
hope I have carefully explained, most of the radiation we have to be

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concerned about from a nuclear bomb will decay in a matter of days or

weeks to a level where we can deal with it.

MYTH #13: There would be dangerous radioactivity for thousands of

years.

You may say "I've heard that some radiation will be around for thousands
and even hundreds of thousands of years". Yes, but those isotopes are
our friends. (That may be putting it a bit strongly.) Anyway, they are not
near so harmful as many people think. There is the point of view that no
radiation is good for you. Some dermatologists maintain that you should
not even get a suntan. (Yes, that is radiation that you get from the sun.)

There is even the theory that it is cosmic radiation that causes both
overall genetic change, aging, and death. In any case we are all subjected
to many sources of radiation every day. The question is not whether or
not you are going to receive radiation, but how much and how quickly. Let
us compare the radiation we are concerned about with another type of
radiation. Heat.

Just as we measure radioactivity in roentgens we measure heat in

calories. If I were to tell you that that pipe over there was going to put off
a million calories of heat, you might say, "Let me get away from it!". But,
if I then said that it was going to be over the next million years, at the
rate of one calorie per year, you would realize that you were in greater
danger of freezing to death than of burning to death if you were
depending upon that pipe for heat.

It is not how much heat is going to be given off (it may be a large
amount) but how much over what period of time. A mere two hundred
calories suddenly inflicted upon one point of the skin would create a bit of
a sting, but hundreds of thousands might be comfortably absorbed from a
heating pad over an appropriate period of time.

It is the same with radiation. Most isotopes give off their energy so
rapidly that they are like flash bulbs. Flash and they are gone. It just
happens right in the vicinity of the bomb. Others are like regular light
bulbs that give off their light and heat for some period of time before they
burn out. They may travel a long way from the bomb as fallout before
they dissipate their energy. For these we need a shelter to protect us if
we are in their vicinity. Nothing else will do.

Still others are like those small luminescent lights that some people put in
their bathrooms for night-lights. Only weaker still. They just sit there and
barely glow for a very long period of time.

Little miniature flashlight bulbs or matches are a good analogy to fallout

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particles. One or two of them in a room with you will not harm you. But
surely you can imagine the situation where if you had thousands and
thousands the light would either be blinding or the heat so intense that
you would be incinerated.

Fallout is just the same way. A few pieces inside a shelter with you will
not harm you, but if you go outside where there are millions of the little
beasts lying around then you have had it. The only difference between
their radiation and the radiation from a little flashlight bulb or a match is
that it is invisible radiation that you cannot see or feel - like that from an
x-ray machine.

MYTH #14: There would be no dangerous radioactivity after a couple of

years.

After having explained all this, now I must tell you that there are some
isotopes that unfortunately do not fall into either the short range of initial
radiation (which we do not need to worry about because it does not
extend out of the blast area), nor the medium range (that you will be
protected from by a fallout shelter), nor the very long range (that decays
over so many hundreds of years that their energy is too weak to concern
us here).

These remaining isotopes are real meanies. There may be solutions to the
problems they present but there are no simple solutions. There will not be
enough of them around that they will make walking around dangerous for
most people but the problem is that they get into the food chain and that
they have relatively short half-lives, between five and 30 years.

That means that during the next couple of hundred years they are going
to be giving off most of their energy. Fortunately, some of them are rather
rare, and given that they are going to be widely dissipated in worldwide
fallout we can largely ignore their effects.

Others may be concentrated in certain areas, certain types of soil and

certain foods where we can avoid them also.

So they will not be that serious a problem.

Some others, however, particularly Cesium 137 and Strontium 90, present
mayor problems in keeping them out of the food chain. Even here, there
are available defense techniques. For example lime, gypsum, fertilizer, or
organic matter (in practical amounts) may be applied to low calcium soil,
or naturally high calcium soil may be used for growing certain crops
which have an uptake preference for calcium over strontium.

There are known refining and purification techniques for some foods and

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milk, and there are some new techniques which I have discussed with
some of the researchers at some of the leading nuclear laboratories, but
which the world isn't ready to hear about as yet.

These methods along with others such as land denial, deep plowing,
surface scraping, and selective utilization, are harsh realities that are
going to have to be faced by the long-range survivors.

MYTH #15: You are prepared if you have a two weeks emergency supply
of food stored.

More important to the present theme are questions as to what

preparations survivors should be making ahead of time. Since it will take
a while to get crops growing again because of social disorganization,
ozone depletion in the atmosphere, climatic changes, crop adaptation,
early crop failures, soil deprivation, and similar factors, survivors will
need a couple of year's supply of food. Wheat and honey are the only two
basic foods, of which I am aware, that have an indefinite shelf life.
Thousand year old kernels found in the pyramids have still sprouted.
Fortunately, these two foods, wheat and honey, meet most adult nutrient
requirements. Powdered milk will be necessary if one wishes to reduce
the infant mortalities. The infants will not survive otherwise, unless their
mothers have adequate natural milk, which is unlikely. Salt is important
as a preservative, among other purposes.

In addition to storing the four basic survival foods (wheat, honey,

powdered milk and salt), it is highly advisable that one also store a couple
of year's supply of a variety of (non-hybrid) seeds. Some seeds will not
store very well and need to be continually replaced.

It is equally important to develop certain skills. Gardening skills. I

particularly recommend the area of hydroponics because this would be
one way to grow foods free of contamination. Preserving skills. Here I
recommend learning to dry foods using hot air. Freeze-drying requires too
much elaborate and expensive equipment and freezing itself is not
reliable when electricity is not reliable. Preparation skills. Bread making,
use of lentils, and making of many foods, or their substitutes, that today
are commonly gotten in prepared form.

On all of these subjects one could write a book. Indeed many books have
been written on them. Even if one does not have time to immediately
develop all these skills they might do well to get themselves a survival
library and then as a next step acquire the essentials in materials listed in
checklists in most well organized manuals.

MYTH #16: You should be prepared to be self-sufficient and be able to

survive on your own.

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The very best thing that a survival minded person can do, after preparing
for themselves an equipped place of refuge, and developing their own
survival skills, is to associate themselves with other skilled survivalists.
No one person can know everything, and almost everyone can contribute
something. Agricultural, medical, mechanical, communicator, you name it,
all skills will be needed.

Few people could afford the equipment that an organization can have.
One well-equipped laboratory for testing for alpha and beta particles in
food costs $5,000. Along with other radiation detection equipment and
many other types of emergency supplies, what individual can afford it?
Yet no nuclear survival group should be without one.

Even in building a shelter the mayor expense is the entrance and support
mechanisms such as emergency lighting, water source, etc. The
incremental cost for space for one additional individual is quite small.
Thus, the greater the number of people the overall cost can be spread
over, the less the average cost.

Moreover, no individual has the personal resources that a group has. If

the head of a single family survival group is injured or lost the chances of
survival for that group are much reduced. However, if it is a large group
then there are numbers of people available to continue to give support.
Just like there are numbers of people available to maintain twenty-four
hour watches, or to create a well manned convoy to go after necessary
supplies. One more prepared and equipped individual added to such a
group is an asset, whereas in a situation like a public shelter, one more
unprepared and unequipped individual is just another liability.

A successful survival group will have to be either completely

homogeneous or thoroughly committed to thoroughgoing tolerance and
appreciation of a wide range of individual preferences regarding society,
economics, religion, and future expectations. Still, a shelter is not a
democratic society anymore than is a ship or an airliner. The captain's
authority is absolute and one should have confidence in his credentials
and ability before boarding.

Neither is a shelter a democracy in the sense that there must be much

more stringent rules regarding behavior. Everyone must perform assigned
duties. There are no wealthy passengers along for a free ride to be served
by others. There are many limitations to personal freedoms such as
contraband materials. No drugs or alcohol (except under medical
prescription and then as approved by the commander).

All firearms and weapons must be placed in the armory and will not be
released except under orders from the commander. All valuables will be
receipted and stored in the locker for safekeeping. No private stocks of

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foods because under survival conditions this can lead to social disorder.
No tobacco or smoking inside the shelter, since it would cause discomfort
to others.

No loud toys, devices, or other objects that would be environmentally

disturbing to others. No large bulky items, or great quantities of any item
without the permission of the commander. And no pets or animals unless
the survival community has made prior special arrangements for their
accommodation.

Tough. Yes, It is tough. But not nearly as tough as the conditions of

survival will be for those who are not prepared. There are many items
that are not prohibited, and in fact are encouraged. A reasonable supply
of one's personal religious literature, the tools and resource manuals of
their trade or profession, survival manuals and equipment of every sort,
additional supplies of food to be put into the common larder, and extra
supplies to be put into the common store.

MYTH #17: Any survivors would have to live the rest of their lives
underground.

Many people ask how long they might expect to have to live in a shelter.
There are no fixed answers. If your shelter is an expedient hole in the
ground you might want to stay in it no longer than was absolutely
necessary. Maybe as much as a couple of weeks. If you dug a pretty
elaborate hole in the ground you might be able to expand upon it and
make it into a place where you could survive through a winter.

If you owned space in a shelter city, like there is in southern Utah or

southern California, you might plan to live there the rest of your life. The
co-operative shelter that I have been describing in the previous
paragraphs is not sufficiently elaborate that anyone would want to make
it a permanent home. Some persons would probably be able to find larger
and more adequate quarters elsewhere after a few weeks.

Others might improve upon the existing structure and remain there for a
year or two until more adequate homes could be built elsewhere.
Decontamination procedures would provide work areas, schools, and
school grounds outside of the shelter where people would carry on their
daily activities after a few weeks. However, it might be beneficial for
young children and expectant mothers to sleep in the shelter or a similar
structure for several months.

Certain occupations, such as decontamination crews, farmers who work

on large un-decontaminated areas, explorers who go into unsurveyed
areas, long distance truck drivers, and others who go out of well defined
areas for the next several years, will have to be closely monitored to be

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sure their total exposure does not exceed established limits.

It should be apparent to the reader, from what has been said earlier, that
a person may receive substantially larger total doses over a large period
of time than over a short period of time, just as with sunlight. A person
may easily recover from several small sunburns throughout the years,
resulting from staying in the sun overlong for an hour or two each time. If
they were to be exposed to the hot desert sun, that many hours all at
once, they would succumb.

In the same way one may recover from a number of small radiation burns
(although some controversy holds that one never recovers - this seems
unlikely), and in just the same way one may receive small amounts of
radiation and never feel ill. Just the same, certain biological conditions
dictate that certain individuals, (particularly the reproductively active)
should receive less radiation exposure and that others may receive much
larger amounts.

MYTH #18: Life after doomsday won't be worth living.

Hearing descriptions of this sort some persons wonder if life will be worth
living afterwards. For some, most assuredly so. Others do not find life
worth living today. How many times have you heard of a person like a
famous movie star, who had wealth, fame, beauty, health, the company of
famous illustrious persons, opportunities to travel to all sorts of places,
and to participate in all sorts of interesting events, the fulfillment of the
very aspirations of thousands of young ambitious people and yet that
same person committed suicide.

On the other hand there are many individuals who suffer daily from
terrible physical afflictions and all sorts of personal misfortunes.
Oftentimes in the greatest poverty. And yet, the world over, down through
the centuries, they have gone on surviving. Many actually finding
happiness, meaning, and perhaps even enlightenment in life. You will
survive. The conditions of that survival are up to you.

Undoubtedly, the events that are about to transpire will have a profound
effect upon the attitudes of many people and perhaps upon mankind
itself. From the cauldron of the holocaust there may spring forth a new
race of men who are less concerned with self-interest and who will come
to understand man's true nature and his divine destiny.

Some of us may even feel that this event will herald the coming to
maturity of the human race. Instead of no future, mankind may have a
glorious future. There will be great amounts of resources available,
combined with man's great advances in technology, to build a new and
glorious world civilization. Providing, of course, that he has learned from

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this experience and does not just go about preparing for the next war in
another twenty to thirty years.

But, I leave each man unto his own vision. While, to myself, looking upon
the immensity of the visible universe, and pondering the events that have
happened upon this one single planet circling a solitary sun among the
uncountable millions in our but one of the innumerable galaxies, I cannot
help but wonder if the events that are about to transpire are not less than
all that unique in the repetitive cycles of life and nature that we see about
us everywhere.

MYTH #19: You need not make any preparation because you are either
going to die in the holocaust or be saved (religious connotation).

Men's philosophies today often go to one extreme or the other. Claiming

that all is within man's power. Or that nothing is within man's power.
There is a middle ground. One can simultaneously feel that nothing can be
achieved except by the will of God and think that the results are
dependent upon his own efforts. God sets the boundaries and within
those boundaries man can have some effect upon the outcome.

MYTH #20: The bombs today are so large and there are so many they will
destroy the world.

There are those who feel that the holocaust will destroy everything. And
well it might, for there are certainly more than enough nuclear weapons
in the world to achieve that end. "Except those days be shortened, none
will survive, not even the very elect." But, if it is the Divine Will, those
days will be shortened. There are those of us who feel that the Divine
Hand is evidenced in the dealings of the world, every moment unto every
moment.

The Divine happenings often seem quite natural. If one were to say unto a
mountain, "Be thou removed and cast into the sea." and it should occur,
another would say an earthquake just happened to happen right then. If
the forces of nature should transpire so that in the midst of the holocaust
the planet should suddenly tip on its side and place His sign (the Southern
Cross) suddenly blazing in the sky above the heads of the people in the
northern hemisphere, there are those who would only recognize the
natural causes.

Such an event would certainly play heck with the astral, satellite based,
and inertial, guidance systems upon which the individual and MIRVed
warhead delivery systems depend.

Events would not even have to be as miraculous as I have described in

order to limit Word War III. There is serious concern on the part of the

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military that they will not even be able to fight the war because of such
factors as the EMP. However, I have faith in the military. I am sure they
will do an admirable job of trying to destroy the world.

None of us have an infallible insight into the future or its timetable.

Whatever will be, will be. We can but wait upon events to prove our
speculations to be right or wrong. While we are working and waiting
some of us put our trust in God. Others put it in the Government.

MYTH #21: You will receive adequate warning from your government.

The government at first proposed the individual family shelter plan. Then
it abandoned it. Next it proposed the community shelter plan. Then it
abandoned it. Then it proposed the relocation plan. Then it abandoned it.
Presently it has no plan. Don't you feel abandoned?

The government has millions to spend for destruction but not a penny for
defense. The EMO (Emergency Measures Organization) has been
completely shut down. The Ontario government was allocated three
berths in the Radiological Defense Officers course (for the summer of
1982) given by the Canadian Emergency Measures College at the
Emergency Planning Canada Federal Study Center in Arnprior, Ontario,
but it didn't feel it could afford to send anyone even after our group
offered to pay expenses for three people. We appealed all the way up to
the Solicitor General's office.

Admittedly, I am authorized to teach the course but during the last course
that I taught at one of the community colleges (free gratis) I could not
even get any resource personnel to come from Camp Borden, who are
responsible for administering the examinations. I feel abandoned. A
radiological detection kit that I used to be able to get for sixty dollars, in
the US, now costs in Canada, with import duties (they really want you to
have one), federal and provincial taxes, exchange rate, custom's
brokerage, and you name it, $450. Who cares?

The last Radiological Scientific Officers Course taught in Canada was in

1977. No future courses are planned. There are no communities with a
nuclear defense plan. I think I can make that an unqualified statement.

Millions for destruction and not a penny for defense. Your family's
destruction bill for this year is $1,300 per member of your family. Do you
realize what $1,000 a year for the last ten years would have bought you
in the way of nuclear survival defense? Instead, your government has
bought you destruction. Your family's destruction.

Oh, I am well aware of the argument that that pile of bombs has
maintained peace in the world for the last ten years, and the belief that it

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will continue to maintain peace. Believe it if you want to. All the high
government officials have their shelters. Why do they need them if you
don't? [Author's update note: Curiously, even the government's shelters
for civil authorities have now been closed].

If the government knew today that the Russians were going to attack
next week, do you think they would tell you? If they did, what would you
and the millions like you do? It would only create panic and get in their
way. No, I do not think that you would be told. Do you feel abandoned?

MYTH #22: You will receive no warning, and there is no hope if you do.

The fact the government may not warn you, and is not giving you any
assistance to defend yourself does not mean that you haven't been
warned. There are many people who feel they can see the signs of the
times. Anyway, if you have read this document, consider yourself warned.
You may still have time to prepare. If an attack should occur you probably
do not live in a primary target area and will have plenty of time to escape.
If you have made preparation.

MYTH #23: One of the primary targets will be nuclear power plants.

Many persons come up with all sorts of rationalizations as to why they

should not prepare for survival. One is that there is a sufficient number of
weapons in the world, that if they were all used, they could destroy the
whole of mankind. This is true.

However, it may be that all the weapons will not be used. Some may be
destroyed by the other side. Some may misfire. Others may just fail to get
launched. This is why each side has so many extra. Moreover, many
persons make the mistake of assuming that it is all in man's hands and
determined by man's will. Whatever. It may be that some limited amount
of the potential for destruction will be used.

Another rationalization often heard is that the person feels they live in a
target area such as in the vicinity of a nuclear generating plant. In
actuality the Russians have little need to target the nuclear generating
plants and probably can do more damage by not doing so. A bomb on the
plant would just blow it to smithereens and the material in the plant
might add little to the radioactive fallout. On the other hand, as a result of
the EMP, if the plant is left on its own when it loses its computer control it
will go into a meltdown and add substantial radioactive material to the
atmosphere.

All of this is quite speculative, of course. There are no experts on nuclear

war. There is no one living who has been through one. There is general
agreement that it will be awfully terrible. It will probably take six or

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seven months just to bury the bodies. But, there will probably be
someone around to it.

Useful Figures and Tables

This was the fallout pattern 36 hours after a single 15-megaton

thermonuclear device (the Bravo shot of Operation Castle at Bikini Atoll -
March 1, 1954) was detonated. The eventual extension of the fallout was
more than 20 miles upwind and over 320 miles downwind. The width in
cross section was variable, the maximum being over 60 miles. This means
there was substantial fallout contamination over an area of more than
7000 square miles.

It is important to note that persons anywhere downwind would not have

had to travel more than 40 miles in a direction crosswind to be perfectly
safe. Secondly, assuming upperwinds of 150 miles per hour and descent
times of 30 minutes, persons 150 to 200 miles away would have over an
hour in which to either evacuate the area or to take shelter.

As noted from the chart on the effects of radiation on humans, the 300
roentgens per hour would cause serious illness with some fatalities after
an exposure of 1 hour and exposure of 2 hours would certainly cause a
hard death occurring in hours to days.

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This picture shows the effect of a 5-megaton airblast. While much larger
weapons have been developed experimentally their use is unlikely. For
one thing they are to hard to deliver and, more importantly, with a 20-
megaton weapon we do only about one third the damage that will be
caused by 4 five-megaton weapons. 5 to 8 megatons will probably be the
average size of the strategic weapons. They will probably be detonated at
some altitude around 2000 feet for maximum effect. At 15 to 18 miles on
a clear day exposed people will be blistered, and from 18 to 23 miles they
will be sunburned.

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This map shows the principal targets in the US. Major airports, military
installations, and railway passes would be targets in Canada. The number
two target in North America is North Bay, Ontario.

In an all out nuclear exchange (WW III), with a multiplicity of devices

being detonated over a relative short period of time (three days to two
weeks is a common estimate), there would most likely be wide spread
areas with general radiation levels (in the 5 to 20 roentgen per hour
range) over 1000 miles down wind from the blast sites, two to three days
after zero hour.

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This map indicates the amount of radiation that a person would receive in
various areas by remaining in the open for 14 days following the bombing
of targets indicated in the map above. It is important to note from the
map that even if Canada were not bombed that Ontario would receive 101
to 450 roentgens from the MinuteMan sites in Montana and the Dakotas.

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The effect of a mere 10 roentgens per hour (arriving two or three days
after a detonation and thus having already lost much of its rapid decay)
would cause serious illness after one day's exposure, and (even with
continued decay) would cause certain death within a couple of weeks.
However, almost any expedient shelter would greatly minimize the
effects.

The basement shelter shown here could mean the difference between life
and death. As much care as possible should be taken to make sure the
shelter roof is below outside ground level. Otherwise, radiation will come
in at an angle through the narrow basement wall, as demonstrated.

Seven/Ten Rule

1 hour ------------------ 1000 roentgens/hour

7 hours ----------------- 100 roentgens/hour
49 hours (2 days) -------- 10 roentgens/hour
2 weeks ----------------- 1 roentgens/hour
14 weeks ----------------- 0.1 roentgens/hour
98 weeks (2 1/2 years) --- 0.01 roentgens/hour

This chart indicates that if one started off with one thousand roentgens of
radiation per hour at zero plus 1 hour, that it would take 2 weeks for the
radiation to get down to 1 roentgen per hour.

Since death would be almost certain after exposure for even 1/2 hr (see

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accompanying chart) it is apparent that shelter would be necessary.

The important thing to remember about the seven/ten rule is that it is

only theoretical, and that actual decay may follow a different slope.
Secondly, in order to use it. one must know the exact time of detonation
for the weapon causing the fallout. And thirdly, it is only applicable for
calculating the fallout from one weapon, and not for multiple sources.

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[Author's update note: The above is a map of the underground shelter

actually built 90 miles northwest of Toronto. Anyone interested in joining
the survival community where it is located should email the author for
photos of the existing shelter.]

Examples of the Effects of Radiation on Humans

Duration Total
Roentgens Number that Deaths will
of dosage
per hour will die... occur in...
exposure of radiation

5-10 2-5 hours 10-50R none -

50 1-4 hours 50-200R less than 5% 60 or more days
100 2-4 hours 200-400R less than 50% 30 to 60 days
100 4-6 hours 400-600R more than about one month
100 6-10 hours 600-1000R 50% less than 2 weeks
200 plus 3 hours 600R plus all the more intense
plus all the radiation the
shorter the time
before death

1.0 1 week 150R none -

0.3 1 month 200R none -
0.1 4 months 300R none -
1.5 1 week 250R 5% 3 months
0.5 1 month 350R 5% 6 months
0.2 4 months 500R 5% 9-18 months
2.7 1 week 450R 50% 1-3 months
0.8 1 month 600R 50% 2-6 months

Example of the Effect of Shielding

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Any material can be used for shielding against radiation. Even feathers.
There is nothing magical about lead. It is only the density of the material
that matters. A pound of lead and a pound of feathers weigh exactly the
same. But it takes a much bigger stack of feathers than it does of lead to
make a pound.

Neither feathers nor lead are generally particularly cheap to obtain, so it

is usually better to use some other material like dirt or concrete. The
more dirt or concrete in the barrier, the greater the protection. Since
concrete is more dense (heavier) it only takes about 24 inches of concrete
to give the same protection as 36 inches of dirt.

Thirty-six inches (three feet) of dirt will give good protection. Five feet of
dirt will give better.

Nuclear Survival Groups

There are probably 12 nuclear survival groups in the city of Toronto. I

personally know of four and I have heard of three or four others. (There
may be some overlap. I can't be certain.) My guess is that there are
another three or four I don't know about. Most such groups are very
secretive, for various reasons. Three of the groups are headed up by
instructors, like myself, who teach survival courses at the community
colleges. [Author's update note: The author now maintains a listing of
survival communities in North America and as of Fall 1998, had over 60

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communities on the list. If you have not seen the list, you may contact the
author and he will refer you to a copy].

Most of the groups contain a number of very well trained and experienced
people. There are also many other groups scattered around both the US
and Canada. They have their own training bases and survival courses.
There is a magazine, Survive, where you can learn about some of these
groups.

What is Radiological Defense Officer?

Both in the Canada and the United States the Federal Governments have
trained certain individuals to be advisors to mayors and other public
officials in time of nuclear disaster. In Canada these individuals are called
Radiological Defense Officers.

Certain Radiological Defense Officers have received additional training, so

as to become qualified to teach Radiological Defense Officers. These
individuals are designated as being Radiological Scientific Officers. The
supposed requirement for becoming a Radiological Defense Officer is a
Ph.D. in physics, but because of a lack of candidates, individuals with
lesser qualifications have been selected.

About the Author

The main author of this document built twenty-three fallout shelters in

Kansas and Utah in the 1960's. He completed the US Office of Civil
Defense course in 1970 after moving to Canada and then the Radiological
Defense Officer's course at Arnprior, Ontario in 1976, and the Radiological
Scientific Officer's course in 1977.

While in the USAF, he was a control tower operator and graduated as

Honor Student from the AACS supply school. Because of this training he
was asked to inspect the Titan missile sites after his honorable discharge.
He refused because of his understanding of what the missiles could do to
mankind. He has been a member of various anti-war groups and his
personal motto is "Bell the Cat and Ban the Bomb", but he thinks it is now
too late to do either.

His master's degree is in Economics from Texas Christian University, and

he holds certificates in both data processing and information technology,
the latter from MIT. [He has also written and edited several books in the
field of computer science].

Prior to becoming a college teacher of computer science he was a

telephony engineer and holds both US and Canadian patents.

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He presently devotes a large amount of his time to the nuclear survival

group mentioned in this document.

Bibliography

[Author's update note: The two books that I used to most highly
recommend were]:

z Life After Doomsday by Dr. Bruce D. Clayton; click on the title of this
book to order it from Amazon.com.
z Nuclear War Survival Skills by Cresson H. Kearny; click on the title of
this book to order it from Amazon.com.

[Author's update note: While those two books are still very valuable, and
it is a good idea to read more than one author's ideas on the same
subject, still there is a new book about which I am quite enthused. This
book is the most recent book of which I am aware and it gives some new
and updated information. From the source, presentation, and approach of
the book it somewhat makes me think that its writing may have been
commissioned or supported by the Mormon Church, but (which is not a
negative but) whatever its source it is excellent.]

The book is "Nuclear Defense Issues",

by " Paul Seyfried and Sharon Packer of Utah Shelter Systems".

You can order in on the net from:

Utah Shelter Systems

or by mail (for $25) from:

Utah Shelter Systems

P.O. Box 638
Heber, Utah 84032-0638
U.S.A.

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