My response

"that is true but you are still better if you are in great shape I mean compared to not."

I agree that being in the best shape possible has no negatives associated with it. It is mostly good for health and will assist your timing, speed, power and such.

"Well yeah the skeleton but you can slap too. But there is another issue Mike."

What's slapping going to do? Hummingbirds flap their wings 100mph, but they won't hurt you. If I slap the guy 12 times in a split second and he smiles, I'm in trouble.

"part of your defense is to protect your opponent."

We are not talking about an opponent. Opponents are in a sport situation and yes you will have complete respect for your opponent and will display sportsmanship. On the street you have an enemy. If you don't like the use of that term, which is used in the military arena, then just say attacker. For me, I view anybody attacking me or my family as an enemy and I will treat him as such, because that is how you get out alive.

"And to protect your attacker you can't always be driving right through his skeleton."

I am not going to protect the attacker. I am going to protect myself. If you have empathy for the attacker, you will get seriously injured or killed. If I get attacked, I defend with no worries of what I will do to the guy. My intent is to stop him. Whatever happens in the process is his fault because he attacked me. I agree there is a such thing as overkill, but I will not have empathy for the person trying to hospitalize or kill me.

"You have to have compassion. To have that you must really be able to control him without so much destructive force."

Everything is environmental based on intent. If it is a drunk guy being a punk (I have been in several of those situations as a five year bouncer), I will not try to harm him as it isn't really an intense situation in my view. I will control him by attaching to and attacking his hinges utilizing joint, spine and bone structure control without striking major target areas. I will also take him down to control him. But in a self-defense sitation where someone is attacking at you, if you worry about him you will get hurt.

Again, good discussion.

Michael Miller, CKF