fm2 wrote:Skiprr wrote:One cautionary note: CHL holders looking for training would, I think, best be served by not focusing on grappling systems like Brazillian Jujitsu. The ground game can be devastating in a one-on-one, unarmed confrontation, but in armed or multiple-attacker scenarios it can be the wrong tactical decision.
I'll agree the we probably don't want to go to the ground voluntarily. I can think of some pros and cons of taking it to the ground with multiples. What we need is control at that range. If we can gain control, then we have options to impose our plan.
But, I'm going to disagree about not focusing on grappling. The reason being is the VCA(s) is close to you to get your stuff or you. In the chaotic nature of assaults we need to have many points of reference (POR) in that range.
I wholly agree with you. I think we were just using different definitions of "grappling." Since I had mentioned MMA, I was using "grappling" in terms of what most MMA viewers have come to understand: primarily ground techniques a la Brazilian Jujitsu.
(A quick aside to two earlier posts: I believe the first known use of the term jujitsu dates to the mid-16th century, not the 17th; coined by the Takenouchi school. And to purplehood, Kano's judo sorta kinda superseded jujitsu, at least officially, but they both continued to exist. Even well into the 20th century when Mitsuyo Maeda arrived in Brazil in 1914, after the official "consolidation" of the Kodokan, judo was often still referred to as "Kano Jiujitsu." Trivia tidbit: the guy Kano selected to represent his system, and to win the contest in 1886 that saw judo adopted as the official police system, was actually a practitioner of an older jujitsu style; he had only very recently begun studying under Kano. For those who wonder why the terminology makes any difference, consider that it is the anglicized spellings that cause most of the confusion. The character for "jiu" or "ju" basically means soft, or softness. "Jiutsu" or "jutsu" means loosely "skill" or "technique." "Do" means "the way" or "the path." In its first anglicized appearance, Kano's system was called "jiu-do." So you can see how the terms really are joined at the hip...pun intended. My first judo classes were in 1964, but I didn't continue with it after I moved to Southeast Asia.)
That's more or less a segue back to fm2's correct observations. Let's pretend I said "groundfighting" rather than "grappling." IMHO, a focus on wrestling, for example, is not the best unarmed self-defense foundation for someone who carries a handgun. (Mind you, as Paladin mentioned, understanding enough about ground fighting to have a chance to escape the guard and half-guard, and to not put your arms or legs into an easy-break position, is a good thing; but I think stand-up techniques are far more important to the CHL holder.)
The old adage, "keep your friends close and your enemies closer," definitely has real-world applicability. Almost all martial arts systems have some element of what I call "stickiness" or "adhesiveness": the ability to fight by touch, to monitor and control your opponent's movement kinesthetically, without needing to see it. You find this less in systems like Taekwondo, Shotokan, or boxing, and more in wrestling, jujitsu/judo, aikido, silat, wing chun, and in many Chinese styles that include chin-na joint trapping and locking techniques.
As shooters, we almost always hear that distance is our friend, meaning the farther away the better. And while that's mostly true, there comes a distance in your Personal Defense Zones where you're better off going directly into the hole and taking the fight to "grappling" distance on your own terms. Based on statistics from officer-involved shootings, that distance is quite likely to be a reality in an instance of deadly assault.
For folks who haven't trained to react by closing the gap, it can be a very unnatural response. The tendency is to want to create distance between you and your attacker, not close in to eliminate it. But there are some very good reasons to do so, and even in a multiple-attacker scenario it may present your best defensive option.
In an armed encounter--meaning we and the attacker(s) are armed--I can think of only one or two instances where voluntarily going to ground might be a viable choice. There is one occasionally-taught ECQ handgun technique that has the defender dropping immediately to his back, but IMHO too many external conditions have to be precisely correct to make this a practical solution in all but a tiny minority of situations.