The practicality of martial arts in general today?

As I read this forum and I reflect on my own training and the effort I put into it for self defense. I wonder, is it all that useful?





Wing Chun upper body movement, High School Wrestling for ground, Tang Soo Do for lower body movement, all great arts for me. But how useful is it against someone in the streets of Detroit with a gun or knife?





Grappling is argued to be one of the most effective ways to defeat your opponent on a 1 on 1 basis. But being a close range ground art and having an opponent 15 feet away with a gun, how are you gonna cover the distance before getting sport?





Striking, namely fast hard kicks, have been spoken of to defeat many opponents at one time and would be a better option to pick then. However, there's still distance to cover and my even the longest of legs do not exceed 4 and a half feet. How else are you to cover the distance?





What I'm saying is, with the availability of guns/knives, combined with their ease of use. How useful truly martial arts today?

The practicality of martial arts in general today?
Guns are only dangerous when they are loaded and if it is in the hands of an expert other than that it is useless I saw people who used to carry guns and still got beaten up by some thugs who are REALLY eager to jump him, and really did jump him, those thugs waited for the "he will reload" minute and acted upon it quickly, and about knives I thought Wing Chun was supposed to teach you how to disarm??? Anyway Martial arts is still useful now and forever, the discipline alone could help us everyday in different situations


soldiers even practice Martial arts too, despite the fact that we could only push a button and the opponent is dead, BUT hey Martial arts still IMPORTANT





oh and a real Martial artist will walk away from trouble, and if you have multiple opponents trust me, the chances that you would win is very, very slim so Martial arts will help to give you time to escape or call the cops
Reply:They serve much in the way they always did, as a last resort if you didn't have or had lost your weapon on the battlefeild(with the exception of things such as kendo) they were never meant as the primary means of fighting in any society and they aren't today either, we have tanks, planes, missiles, guns etc. for that. today they are still a last resort, if you are unarmed and cannot run away its better to know something(provided its a useful martial art and not say tae bo) than nothing, that will increase your chances of survival even if only 5% or something
Reply:Well if someone has a gun close to you, martial art usually teaches you how to disarm and defend. Same with a knife. However I would personally prefer to have someone up close with a gun than with a knife because there is a greater chance of getting cut than shot up close...control the barrel of the gun.


If someone has a weapon with an apparent advantage, best bet is to run =D AAAHHHH
Reply:Training and study of the martial arts is about much more than simply learning how to defend yourself. It is about overall balance, fitness, mental agility, physical awareness, increased sensitivity, and much more besides.





The truest self-defense technique may be the one that is the hardest to "teach" and the technique that sneaks up on one before you realize it - self-confidence. Most criminals and bullies look for easy targets. Competent martial artists don't "appear" to be easy targets on the whole. In all the years I've been involved in the martial arts it is very rare to hear of a story of a black belt master or grand master being forced to physically defend themselves. Undoubtedly it happens on occassion, but I personally believe the training and preparation allows them to avoid problems, de-escalate trouble, and evade the need to defend physically.





With regard to defense against any weapon, I would always bet on someone who is in tune with their body and whose reactions should be faster and more controlled that a lay person to survive against almost any weapon you may meet on the streets. Martial arts training specifically prepares you for the unexpected, and trains your own weapon - your body - to react instictively, in the most appropriate way possible for the given circumstances. That provides an advantage someone untrained will not posses. It doesn't guarantee anytthing, but it may provide the fraction of an inch or fraction of a second that makes the difference between living and dying.





As to someone with a firearm. As an ex military policemen and VIP protection officer, only a few people out there are trained properly to use a handgun effectively at anything beyond five feet when their target may be moving and when their own adrenalin may be flowing. Most police officers are not very good marksmen when the target is moving and beyond 10 feet. Very few thugs that may confront you on the street will be any better. The quicker you react, the faster you run away, the greater the distance you put between you and the weapon - the greater your chances of surviving the incident. I would argue martial arts training may just give you the critical response timing and physical ability that may just make the difference.





I personally believe martial arts training today is as absolutely necessary for everyone in our society as they have been for thousands of years, but perhaps for somewhat different reasons in the modern era.





Ken C


9th Dan HapMoosaKi-Do


8th Dan TaeKwon-Do


7th Dan YongChul-Do
Reply:yeah forget going to class and working out.... just buy a gun and sit on your couch and eat potato chips? for some people its a way of life, for others its exercise, for others it is for self esteem... i could ask the same ? about religion... but some people want it and others need it. Usefulness... how about my daughter gets attacked by a dog, or an unarmed (or armed I'd still kill him) pedophile (yeah I'm going to jail and he is gonna die)... Maybe my time in martial arts taught me to respect people... sure what good is that... Maybe it taught me how to be a better man and to be a better father... to instill discipline and values into my children... but your right, a machine gun could wipe us all out and it would have all been for nothing.
Reply:Martial arts is useful for keeping a healthy mind and body. Think of it as a sport.





As for practicality, i think it is best to ask the instructors
Reply:You are correct in that a gun in the hands of a person 15-20 feet away has a huge advantage and they can get off two shots with just a revolver before you close the distance. Over half the gun shootings in this country take place at a much lesser distance according to the Department of Justice crime statistics. Most people are stabbed at close range. Knifes usually are not balanced and when thrown have much chance of hitting their target. Either weapon though is a serious risk to a person and so that is why you avoid those situations whenever possible but practice dealing with them for years in the event that you are confronted with a weapon and have no way of avoiding it.





If you are confronted with a weapon then usually it is a combination of strikes, knees, elbows, punches, and kicks along with some joint lock type maneuvers that will enable you to gain control of the weapon rather than just one particular type of counter or technique.
Reply:You raise a good question and the best answer is people do indeed expect too much from martial arts.





The modern martial arts philosophy of 'self defence' is beating the bad guy, who in theory is always bigger, nastier and better armed than you, and finding some way to do it.





In fact the art of war is all about siezing the initiative. If you are being attacked for any reason, you have already lost half the battle before you even start. Someone in your intelligence section has fallen asleep and allowed you to get into this mess before you realised it.





The simple fact is if you turn it around into 'attack' and you are the bad guy with the knife or the gun, or who is stronger or who hits first, you have won already.





Now I'm not saying you can go round shooting people! It may be that the 'inititiave' is you don;t near bad areas, or become rich enough to hire bodyguards or get a permit to carry whatever.





It is more about mentality of always having the initiative right from the start, where you don't try and create martial arts as some magical formula to lifes bad problems.








In other words don't be afraid to say "As good as I am my martial arts are almost useless in this scenario" and feel good about thinking of other ways to get around it.
Reply:You ask an excellent question, and the answer is, all your training may not work. You seem to be trained in 3 excellent systems, and you are smart enough to realize it won't help you stop bullets. What you have is wisdom. The benefits of martial arts though are that in a situation, you'll at least have a chance. Look at the Virginia Tech massacre last year. If a few of those students were martial artists, perhaps something could have been done. The gunman wouldn't have known who the martial artist was, and where the attack was coming from before it did. Other situations, like drive-by shootings, can't be fixed by martial arts.
Reply:You are right that guns are dangerous, but I think you are forgetting one of the most important things that you must have learned in all of your training. You learned to read and out think your opponent.


Most guys with guns and knives like to intimidate and will wave it in your face before they will pull the trigger. They get off on any fear that their intended victim might show.


Believe it or not...


As a martial artist you have been taught to recognize possible dangers and to analyze risk even if you are not conscious of it.


Who says that you have to sit still and be a victim... The statistics show; that unless trained in how to shoot, that your assailant has only a 10% chance of actually hitting a moving target. So distract your attacker and run away. Better to be smart and live another day than go home in a "hero's" body bag.