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Wag
 
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| Ian- what about the numpties who couldn't read body language if it was printed in large print and one syllable words. There are far too many martial arts obsessed morons around who would do this training just to prove how hard they are, most of them don't have criminal records-yet, but soon will have if we give them a "license to kill". I have yet to see any argument which suggests that dangerous/stupid or criminal people could be kept out of this licensing process to any significant extent. We can't prove that they're dangerous/stupid or criminal until they do something and by then it may be to late. I'd hate to think that someone who believes that muggers deserve everything they get, could be armed and then trusted to make a judgement call on whether I'm going to ask for the time or a wallet if I stop them in the street. Very few people wake up one morning and decide I'm going to be a street robber (though some do), they usually end up in that situation as a result of combined circumstances(many of which are a result of poor choices on their part), if anything creating a legitimate route to violence can only increase the number of people with a capacity for violence on our streets and possibly encourage desperate people to use these skills in ilegitimate ways.
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I do talk a good fight
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Andy,
In my experience, the martial-arts-obsessed-numpties are rapidly turned off by any attempt to teach them self-defence. They don't want to know about awareness, avoidance, and body language -- they want to know How To Kill. So long as the latter is emphasised as the LEAST important part of any training & certification process, the nutters don't stick around anyway.
Decent self-defence instruction also includes extensive scenario-based training, in which trainees must make judgement calls exactly like the one you've just mentioned -- is this guy just a nutter, or does he have some completely innocent reason for approaching me, or is he trying to get close enough to ambush me? In training, a failed judgement call is likely to lead to nothing more than some bruises (including to the ego), some constructive criticism, some behaviour modification (hopefully) next time so that the trainee does try to use some discretion about why they're being approached, AND, in what I propose, a "Fail" result on your weapon license test.
Make it about as tough to pass as a driving test, with at least as much concentration on safe use of one's skills, and I don't think there'd be a problem. The driving test isn't a bad parallel -- there are loads of teenage lads out there who reckon they're great drivers & love to race around at high speeds, showing off their driving prowess... but unless they learn to drive safely, they won't pass their test.
http://www.hyboriantales.com
PD: Ghostdance ("The most irritating curse I've ever encountered" -- NPC played by H.)
Riftworld: Rossar Kuug ("Clearly mad, because he thinks he's a Com-Trow Skirmisher" - Aela)
Hyborian Tales: Crew, cook, dogsbody, general labourer, toilet cleaner ("Dangerously overoptimistic ref" -- Tom Nowell)
Otherwise usually crew ("Quite spry & fit, & willing to wear a big costume & run around a lot" -- various event organisers)
"My other oversized foam weapon is THE LORD" -- Questionable Content
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I do talk a good fight
Group: System Moderators
Last Login: Today @ 11:06 AM
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Incidentally, I do take your point that people often (usually, even) end up in a life of street crime due to coming from deprived backgrounds, etc.... but it's still a conscious choice on their part to break the law and to ignore other people's basic right to not get mugged! They know they're doing the wrong thing. There are plenty of other people from deprived backgrounds who DON'T turn into criminals.
I would have a lot more sympathy for muggers if they were genuinely likely to starve if they didn't rob people, but that just isn't the case in the UK. They're far more likely to be trying to pay for drug addiction. Now, my ideal solution to that is that all drugs ought to be legalized, and cheaply or freely available to addicts, but that's a different matter.
http://www.hyboriantales.com
PD: Ghostdance ("The most irritating curse I've ever encountered" -- NPC played by H.)
Riftworld: Rossar Kuug ("Clearly mad, because he thinks he's a Com-Trow Skirmisher" - Aela)
Hyborian Tales: Crew, cook, dogsbody, general labourer, toilet cleaner ("Dangerously overoptimistic ref" -- Tom Nowell)
Otherwise usually crew ("Quite spry & fit, & willing to wear a big costume & run around a lot" -- various event organisers)
"My other oversized foam weapon is THE LORD" -- Questionable Content
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Devil's Advocate
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Andy Rimmer (6/14/2006)
Tart- sorry, I was joking but Welsh Nationalist Propaganda would suggest-their language(until the 1960's it was common practise for teachers to make children who used Welsh, wear a dunce cap and stand in a corner), culture,most ofthe natural resources (Coal, Iron, Gold not to mention the damage done to livestock when Trawsfynnedd/Chernobyl went up-the one hid the other very well), independence.... Then youcunningly trickedus into the Welsh Assembly Government experimental democracy project- read some of their policy documents and count yourself lucky there aren't more bridges.
OOoooOOOOOO... Handbag! 
Honestly, it's nothing but whinge whinge whinge with you lot (when you aren't too busy bringing up phlegm to pronoune the placenames that is) just think of all the great things England has given you like, um... Taxes?
Damn. 
back on topic: I agree with Ian about thugs learning self defense. In general (from my experience of many different clubs) the real "grrr, i want to hit things" types tend to be found it Kick Boxing clubs with little or no thought towards self defense, and the same people don't like doing anything that isn't related to hitting people. hard.
This woudl be why I don't go to those clubs anymore.
If you can't beat your computer at chess, try kickboxing.
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