ATTITUDE
BUT, if you must fight, you should realize these points
Things will occasionally be said
on this web site along the lines of “attitude.” This means, in the
context of this site , your own mental set when confronted with the necessity
to fight. We have already said that I do not believe
that Kajukenbo is a “self defense” art. The concept of defending
yourself from your attacker is a negative mental set and is not the right
mental attitude. Self defense means you will defend yourself
from the aggressor. It almost implies a sporting situation, where you ward-off
the attacks of your opponent without being aggressive or violent yourself.
A good fighting “attitude” to me means that your own mentality is so trained
that the aggressor becomes the victim in your mind.
Fighting technique or training
in the martial arts, or earning a high high ranking belt will go “only
so far” in an actual street fight where your opponent is intent on harming
you. To win you must mentally develop the ability, in spite
of the fears you may encounter prior to a fight, to control the fight situation.
Either your enemy will control the fight or you will. He might pick
on you because he feels he will dominate, but if he suddenly discovers
that you have reversed this, the entire atmosphere of the fight will be
changed. Make the aggressor feel that you are the aggressor--he is
no longer the “bad guy,” because you are. Change your fear
into a display of anger--better yet, into a display of ferocity!!
If you await his attack rather than attacking first, you may have waited
until it is too late... If you miss your chance to win, you might
not get a second chance.
The ultimate in attitude--"under
any circumstances it is better to risk a trial by 12 jurors as an alternative
to being carried by 6 pallbearers." Change your pain into
berserk desire to beat him into submission at any cost. Consider
yourself the meanest and craziest street fighter in the world and
him as something to be destroyed. “No matter what I’m going
to hurt you badly at any cost and anything you might do to me will be repaid
handsomely.” Hit, chop, gouge, throw, elbow, spit, punch, rip, tear, gouge--destroy
in a ruthless way....but without panic and while staying alert.
After the fight, leave the scene if you can--don’t wait to be congratulated. Then, if it appears necessary, go for a lawyer.
This kind of attitude can compensate
for shortcomings in technical fighting ability or can probably double the
effectiveness of good training, if you can develop it.
Personally, I haven't been able to succeed at demonstrating the above attitude
concepts! I like the concept, and I feel it is valid, but the nature
of my personality doesn’t permit me to intimidate my opponent prior
to the fight nor to “go for the kill” during a fight. I might even
be smiling, but I am “all business.” Perhaps it is my
upbringing or my education that prohibits me from being comfortable while
behaving like a savage. But if I ever am forced into another fight,
I know how to be intimidating and viscous and may have to resort
to that, since I am now too old to count on only physical and technical
attributes if another “tool” is available to me.
