Personal Safety, Awareness, Self
Defense and Firearm Training

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Dear Sealed Mindset Students,

In continuing honor of our upcoming Emerson Defensive Knife Skills class on 10/22 and 10/23, we have another excellent guest blog by none other than Mr. Emerson himself! Enjoy, and if you want to join the ranks of those who can see and avoid the predators out there, email us to take the class. We only have two spots left! anne@sealedmindset.com.

The Attributes of the Sociopathic Predator

“Wherever you are, death will find you, even if you are in towers strong and high!  So what is wrong with these people, that they fail to understand these simple words?” – Mohammed (Qur’an: 4:78)

How do you prepare yourself for an attack by your enemy?  Lets’ first take a short look back in history.

Prior to World War II the French Military built a line of defenses, a wall in effect, called the Maginot Line as a bulwark defense against an attack by the German Military.  The Germans simply went around using a different route, and over the line via the Luftwaffe.  My point?  The French strategic planners and military advisors failed to anticipate technological advances made by the German military.  They failed to realistically evaluate all the possible strategies that an enemy could employ to subvert the defense and they also ignored the fact that the way wars would be fought had evolved and changed.  In short, they did not know their enemy and as a result could not prepare an effective defense.  Their efforts were futile and useless.

The simple lesson here is; Unless you “know” your potential enemy you cannot prepare effectively for his assault.

The principle here as it applies to self defense and hand-to-hand combat is the same.  You need to “know” your attacker so you are ready and properly prepared should that attack ever come.

Who is Your Enemy?

“I didn’t feel nothin”, said Tommy Lynn Sells – when asked what he felt as he cut the throats of two ten year old girls.

With all of our training, our technology and our knowledge, why do the bad guys win?  Let’s take a look at answering that question.

Do you know what a sociopath is?  In simple terms, I would define it as someone who has no empathy, no feelings for others –no conscience.  We’ve been aware of, and perhaps have had contact with sociopaths our entire lives, ranging from the grade school bully all the way to the serial killer with all degrees of sociopathic behavior in between.  In fact, (Many bullies actually grow up to be adult sociopaths).

We on the other hand are the good guys.  We have a conscience.  We care about what happens to others, we do not want to cause pain or suffering, let alone death to anyone.  In this contrast lies the bad guys biggest advantage.  My question earlier to you was, “Why do bad guys win?”  Let us see if I can answer that.  There is a phenomenon called “hesitation shooting”, an all too real scenario in which a police officer has his gun drawn and pointed directly at the bad guy.  The bad guy also has a gun pointed at the officer.  The bad guy pulls the trigger.  The officer dies.  How does this happen?  Forget about your training.  Forget about department policies about justification of force.  Forget about rules of engagement.  Putting yourself in the officer’s shoes, it happens because you’re not a sociopath, even at the expense of your own life.  But the even bigger reason is this; The bad guy is a sociopath and he’s done this before.  You have not.  A sociopath will stove you’re head, in grab your sandwich and wonder what flavor the cheese is.  His behavior started with pulling the wings off flies, kicking dogs or beating kids on the schoolyard, he’s done this before, a thousand times before.  The only difference was that this time he had a gun.  Tomorrow he might beat the hell out of an 85 year old grandma just to get her eight dollars and change.

In simple terms they are a product of their environment and we are a product of ours.  You might say, Good Vs Evil.

This is your enemy.  Understand, I’m not talking here about a bar fight over a girls honor.  I’m talking about a stone cold killer who will climb through a window into your house, crush your head with a hammer and rape your wife next to your dead body.

“This is the enemy you must prepare for.  If you are prepared, truly prepared, mentally prepared, to face an opponent like this, then all lesser opponents will pale in comparison.

“Let him who desires peace, prepare for war.” – Publius Flavius Vegetius

How do you prepare for the sociopath, perhaps a gang member who will kill you just so he can tattoo a tear drop under his eye for status in the gang?

Unfortunately to beat this opponent you have to become a sociopath.  This is the point where most (a majority) of people fall short in the totality of their preparation.  Will you gouge someone’s eye out?  Will you tear their throat open with your teeth?  Will you smell his stale breath as his eyes glaze over from your arm around his throat?  If you’re not willing to answer yes, hell yes, to these questions then the day you meet one of these guys is the day you are going to die.

Are you a Sociopath?

I am a sociopath.  Well, let me soften that a bit, by saying a, “justified sociopath.”  What I mean by that description is; My decision, my mind set, my foregone conclusion is simply this.  If you threaten my life or the safety or the lives of my family, I will do anything and everything to prevent you from doing so.  No restrictions – no conditions.  Period.  You also, better be able to be that “justified sociopath”, when the time comes.

It is with this singular clarity of purpose that you must approach the reality of true life or death combat.  The SAS often describe it as the switch.  You’ve got to be able to turn on the ruthlessness when you need it and turn it off when it is not needed.  That is what separates “us” from “them”.  I’m going to talk in much more detail about the “switch” and also the psychological / physiological response to such extreme violence in upcoming articles.  But for now I want you to consider how you stand when it comes to a “what will I do to survive?” moment.  Otherwise if there is any part of you or your conscience holding you back when a bad guy is bent on your destruction you better be able to turn that switch off and the other switch on.  If you don’t, you may personally find the answer to the question I asked early on; “Why do the bad guys win?”

1, 100 words

Copyright 2010 Ernest Emerson

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Hello SM Students!

Again, we are honored to have Ernest Emerson as our guest blogger this week to bring more exciting insight to the warrior mentality and the warrior spirit. Also, if you click on his name, you can visit his page to see the NEW Memorial Knife he designed for those who were killed in the recent helicopter crash.

For those of you who will be attending our Emerson Defensive Knife Skills class on 10/22 and 10/23, this is REQUIRED reading!

“Once you learn to quit, it becomes a habit.” – Vince Lombardi

Since time immemorial warriors have always held a revered honored and respected place in society.  In spite of all political meanderings and the ebb and flow of societal values, this has never changed and it never will.

In terms of exposure to a spontaneous dangerous threat, it has been my observation that in general, society breaks down into two groups.  Those who run to danger and those who run from it.  This is not a matter of courage or cowardess and I place no judgment upon it.  I believe in the idea so eloquently explained by my friend and colleague Lt. Col David Grossman that, “there is the flock and there are the protectors of the flock, the Sheepdogs,” as he puts it.

Now, if you are reading this article because it is of interest to you then chances are you are a protector, a warrior.  Otherwise this would be of no interest to you.

Mind you, a warrior is not necessarily the 220 lb football quarterback or the professional wrestler.  In fact the physical aspect of strength or size, or sex has little if anything to do with the bearing of a warrior.  Many times in hostage situations it has been the petite middle age woman who has stepped forward, into the fray.

Do you know who is the toughest son-of-a-bitch to walk the face of this earth?  Any guesses?  Well, I’ll tell you who it is.  It is a 120 lb Marine just out of Boot Camp.  How can this be?  Does he think he is tough?  No, he does not.  He knows he is tough.  He knows he is the toughest son-of-a-bitch to ever walk the face of the earth.  There is not one shred of doubt in his mind.  He has the resolve of invincibility.  If any of you who are reading this are former marines then you know what I am talking about.

Every time I teach a hand-to-hand combat class the ever anxious students expect to grab weapons and start training in knife fighting tactics right out of the gate.  They expect that to happen but, that never happens.  Why not?  Because after 2 or 3 days of training what I’ve got is 30-40 weak fighters with knives in their hands.

My god, my methodology, is that that I must train them to be fighters first, before we ever put any weapon into their hands.  Once I have turned them into fighters – hard-core, fight to the death warriors, then I can put any weapon I want into their hands be it a rock, club or knife, and they will prevail.  Because now, even without weapons, they are Warriors, not just athletes.  Now, at the end of a training evolution I’ve got 30-40 warriors willing to fight to the death if necessary, to stop the bad guy.  And it doesn’t matter whether they have a weapon or not.  They’re going to win.

Once upon a time I was working with members of the British SAS.  In the middle of an edged weapons training block we were practicing how to punch as hard as humanly possible.  I asked one of the instructors why we were training in punching when we were dealing with edged weapons.  In a thick Scottish Brogue he answered bluntly, “If I can hit you so hard, that I’ll knock you into next Sunday then, if I have a knife in my hand, I’ll drive it through your chest and right out of your back.  The only reason I’m in this fight is because the bad guy’s try in’ to kill me.  I’m not about to let that happen.” What is the key point in his reply?  The one you should lock onto?…  “I’m not about to let that happen.  That is the Warrior speaking. Not the punching. Not the drills. Not the SAS.  It is the man who is a warrior.  In simple terms it embodies everything I’m trying to describe.  It is the attitude.  The resolve.  The Mentality of the Warrior.

“Get Tough or Get Beat” – SAS Maxim

In 1876 the citizens of Northfield Minnesota rallied together to route a daring bank robbery by the James Younger Gang.  Cole Younger was shot 13 times.  While recovering in the hospital a newspaper reporter asked him how he could survive being shot 13 times.  His answer was simple and direct.  “We’re tough men used to tough ways.”

The warrior’s spirit is conceived by need, driven by a cause and fueled by inspiration.  It is learned and earned and is not something anyone is born with.  As it is with a leader, the Warrior is not born into the role.  It is made by hard effort, determination, resolve, selflessness and a dedication to a moral and ethical ideal, a sense of justice and a willingness to defend your convictions.

A warrior is one who takes a stand and will give 100% of himself, even unto death to protect those who depend on his shepherding.

“Until the end of time, as the last sun sets upon this earth, in that blackest night, somewhere a warrior still stands his lonely watch.” – Ernest R. Emerson

For inspiration I submit to you the following, taken from The Order of the Black Shamrock;

“The Medieval Knight and the Royal Orders represented the ultimate warrior class of western civilization mirrored only in the East by the Samurai of Feudal Japan.  The Knight represented the ultimate culmination of skills and the epitome of human development.  Fearless in battle, heedless of death, driven by a cause and held to a strict set of moral standards.  To the common man, they represented the ultimate in human achievement.  And they represented the protector, their bulwark against evil.

These knights also represented the idea that someone possessed of such deadly skills and destructive force could at the same time be held accountable by an adherence to a code of strict moral, ethical, and honorable standards.  Standards held higher for them than any others.  Such was the definition of chivalry.

And this definition stands true today.  We are warriors.  We are warriors in the fight for justice, for truth, for freedom.  We are warriors against tyranny, against oppression, against evil in all its forms.  We are warriors for what is right and good.  We are warriors who protect those helpless, from harm.  We are warriors who fight to protect our way of life.  We are warriors who carry on the legacy of those who have gone before us, those who have given the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom and the safety of our families.  We carry on the legacy of the warrior class, those who have always stepped to the frontline to place themselves as the last wall of defense between the evil that would destroy it and the precious things that we hold so dear.

This legacy has been borne true since the time of the noble knights and it is now held forth by those who heed to its calling to this day.  Those who stand watch over our neighborhoods and city streets.  From the dirt swept planes of Afghanistan to the front doors of our very homes where our families sleep at night, a warrior stands at the ready.  Whether you are a Soldier, Police Officer, Fireman, or a guardian, we are the brotherhood of warriors, the protectors, those who will not run from danger, but run to it, to seek its source and with shield and sword, strike it dead to stop its terrible spread.  We are the noble knights who will, without hesitation, and against fear, enjoin the battle to protect and guard the safety of those who lay their trust in us.

Not every man is a warrior, but for those that are, know that you are the steel that runs through the foundation of society and civilization and that without you there would be no liberty, no freedom and no justice for all.

The warrior is held to a higher standard.  The highest standard.  The greatest heroes in the history of the world have been warriors.  You are counted among those heroes, those times, those events that have shaped human history, that have built the greatest civilizations on this planet.  Count yourself among the ranks of those brothers and know that you stand shoulder to shoulder with those who have shaped the destiny of the world with steel, blood, fists, and glory.

You know who you are.  Carry the pride and bearing that befits the status that you have earned and that you hold.  Be proud that you have chosen to walk the path taken by few and revered by many.

And know also, that as warriors, we will never perish from the face of the Earth.”

The responsibility of a warrior does not merely necessitate the taking up of arms against an enemy.  It is more, much more and it is such that you become an example, a role model of ethical and moral behavior to all others who may look to you for guidance or protection.  If this is the path in life that you have chosen to walk then know that it is a path well worn by the footsteps of those who have walked here before you.  Others, who have willingly said; I will endure the hardship, the pain, the sacrifice and the risk of death so that those who sleep soundly in their beds can do so in the warm embrace of safety and peace.

If this is your choice then know that your road will be fraught with adversity and you will be assailed by many, but in those times, remember that you are in the company of the noble souls who have also faced such adversity and prevailed.  And know also that your legacy shall be that until the end of time, as the last sun sets upon this earth, in that blackest night, somewhere a warrior still stands his lonely watch.

Coming next week… Know Your Attacker – The Attributes, Strategies and Tactics of a Sociopathic Predator

1,701 Words – Copyright 2010 Ernest R. Emerson

Image via Wikipedia

Dear Sealed Mindset Students,

It is our great honor to introduce you to Ernest Emerson of Emerson Knives as our guest blogger this week! Larry and I were humbled to meet him a few years ago,  and now he is coming all the way out to Minnesota to offer the best defensive knife skill training to you! Larry has carried his Emerson Commander knife since his days at the U.S. Naval Academy, across the Middle East, through South East Asia and even in our own backyard. Larry is never without it. This very fact intrigued me the first day I met him, and now you will be able to learn, just as I did, about the meaning of the Emerson blade.

To give you better insight into why Larry always carries his Emerson Commander knife, Mr. Emerson has put together a series of blogs that we will be posting for the next few weeks. This is a terrific opportunity for you to learn what you may be in store for at the upcoming defensive knife skills class, should you accept the challenge to attend, on October 22nd and 23rd at Sealed Mindset. Enjoy!

“One who stands with his convictions never stands alone”

Surviving the Deadly Attack: The Twelve Principles and Strategies That Will Save Your Life by Ernest Emerson

Over the next few weeks I will be discussing 12 basic principles applied to the most intimate and deadly of all human interactions, Hand-to-Hand combat. These principles are distilled from decades of experience and thousands of analysis of deadly attacks. Out of all of this study, I began to see patterns and commonalities that manifest in both outcomes of these scenarios, those where the victim of the attack survived and those in which the attacker prevailed and severely injured or killed the victim.

This is the first installment in a series of articles, a course, on the strategies and tactics, the principles and concepts that you must know, that you must use, that you must embody, in order to insure your survival when you are against the odds.

These are the same subjects that I teach in seminars and courses to civilians, law enforcement and elite military units all over the world.

“There is great moral satisfaction when, in a decisive moment in time one is able to mete out clear justice without hesitation or debate” – Ernest Emerson

The Bottom Line

The true bottom line of this series of discourses is to teach you how to survive a violent, deadly attack. It is a survival fighting course; it is not for sport or tournament fighting. It is not designed to beat or defeat your opponent (although that is most often the outcome). It is designed to give you the tools to survive. This does not mean that you will not get hit, cut, broken or even severely injured. What it does mean is that everything you will learn is geared to enabling you to survive a violent attack. You must enter into the study of this course from the point of view that the end result of any attack could be your death. It is only with this clarity of purpose that you can, without hesitation employ the techniques and embody the concepts so that they give you the best use of the tools to survive. A photo cannot convey the intensity and violence with what they must be delivered to be most effective. If you think you can hit hard you must hit 10 times harder. If you think you are fast, you must be 10 times faster.

Forget the dojo, forget sparring, and forget the tournament or ring. Forget the teacher, the rules or referee. Imagine that it is 1:30 am on a Saturday and your car has broken down in the worst part of the worst city in the world. As you step out of your car, you see the three predators that are going to rape your wife and daughter and then kill all of you. They’ve done this before and totally without conscience they are about to do it to you. At this time, there is nothing else in your life that matters. There are no safeguards. It doesn’t matter if you are the most powerful CEO in the world or a gas station attendant. The only thing that exists in your world now, is you and them. The only tools that you have now are your physical skills, your wits and your most powerful natural weapon; the will to survive. In most cases, it is the only advantage you posses. Out manned and out gunned, your resolve may be the only deciding factor. You may even need to sacrifice your life to save your wife and daughter. This is the mentality that you must draw upon and develop during the study of these discussions.

And, this is the violence that, God forbid, you may have to confront some day and if you do, you must be prepared for this level of pure evil, both physically and mentally, in order to survive it when, and if, it ever enters your world.

Saving Yourself: You’re the Only One You Can Count On

In a time of real crisis, when your life is truly on the line or if you are ever involved in a life or death struggle with an armed attacker, a fight to the death, you will immediately come to the realization that it is just you alone against the attacker, nothing more and nothing less.

Even if you are protecting loved ones, teammates or innocent bystanders, where others may be involved, it will still boil down to just you and the bad guy. And if you are attacked in a parking lot or outside of some dive bar, you will really be alone, very alone.

Human beings are in general, by nature, social creatures. We congregate; we surround ourselves with friends, family and even strangers because it is comforting. In nature it is the stragglers who are singled out as potential prey.

Our society further supports this comfort zone with safeguards such as Police Departments and Fire Departments who will come to our aid in a time of need. They form our safety nets. As a whole we as a society have off-loaded our personal responsibility for safety to someone or something else. And as a result, psychologically, we have let down our guard and exposed our soft underbelly. We have come to rely on all of these factors for security and we know they will come to our rescue when we are in trouble.

Or so it would seem. In reality, it is highly unlikely that a serial killer, rapist or mugger is going to attack you in a crowd. In reality, a serious attack or fight is started and finished in less than 8 seconds. How long is 8 seconds? Just ask any Bull Rider and he’ll tell you just how long 8 seconds can be. Actually, most of the time a fight is over in less than 4 seconds, but most people won’t believe that. They’ve just seen too many movies. In reality, there is not going to be a police officer standing across the street. In reality, if you are attacked no matter what the circumstance, you are going to be on your own. Consider this scenario. You’re walking down the street with your buddies and out of the blue you pass some guy, he starts wailing on you. How many punches, could he throw in the 3-4 seconds it would take for your buddies to pull him off of you? How many knife strikes could he have thrown?

Does any of this change in a combat environment? Hell no. In fact it is worse. Not every mugger has the preliminary intent to kill you. But, if you have to go hands on with any enemy soldier in a combat environment, you better know he is trying to kill you.

I hope that you are coming to the realization that your survival in a deadly attack scenario ultimately rest squarely on your shoulders alone. You are solely responsible for your own survival. Safety nets, buddies, teammates or police responders will not be there to help you. If you are currently of the mindset that someone or something will be there to save you in your time of need, to come to your rescue, then you’re going to get hammered.

But, if it is true that you are responsible for your own survival, and that you believe it so, then you can start to do things to change the circumstances in your favor. You can start to manipulate the environment of a conflict. You can change the dynamics of a violent encounter and you can affect the sequence of events to sway them in your favor.
As you may have surmised by now, I am describing a mentality, or a mindset more than anything else and it is the first step in a progression of steps you must take in a readying yourself to react correctly when faced with the imminent threat of extreme physical violence.

I will be discussing, and you will be learning, that there are certain ways you can think, certain ways you can conduct yourself and certain things that you can do which will give you the tools to survive if and when you ever come face to face with the most terrifying of all experiences, mortal combat with another human being.
If you are now decided that yes, you are solely responsible for your ability to survive, which is the essential first step, then the next question is; What is the next step? What are all of the steps? What are you going to do about it? Take heart, for there really are certain things you can do…

Stay tuned for the next installment:

The Warrior Mentality – Developing the Warrior Spirit
To register for the Emerson Class on 10/22 and 10/23, please call Sealed Mindset: 1.877.723.7573.