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Please allow me to gloat.

I haven't read this book or looked at Phil's website, but the antagonism is certainly puzzling.
It sounds like like the verbal attacks are made by people that feel that anyone instructing in self defense should have spent half his life beating the hell out of attackers and such.
In fact, the percentage of people that actually wind up in a physical fight after they pass their teens is rather small. Are there people that think that anyone who researches and writes about self defense is engaged in hand to hand combat on the streets all the time?
Taking it a step further, I used to be a member of the NYCPD. I doubt if any of the firearms instructors I had in the police academy ever did a day on patrol, let alone engaged in a gunfight. But they were sure good at using handguns, and they were also very good at teaching others to use one to defend themselves & others. That's why they were firearms instructors.
If someone was bashing Phil's book after reading it, by saying, "This is not a good tactic, because (whatever the likely outcome would be)", that would be one thing. but there was certainly nothing like that in this thread.
And for what it's worth, someone mentioned "tracing your training back 3,000 years" or somesuch statement, what exactly does that mean? Is whoever that is supposed to refer to supposed to trace his training back to the days of adam & eve or pre-evolutionary man or something?
History and self defense are not the same thing.
 
jerrinfla said:
I haven't read this book or looked at Phil's website, but the antagonism is certainly puzzling.
It sounds like like the verbal attacks are made by people that feel that anyone instructing in self defense should have spent half his life beating the hell out of attackers and such.
In fact, the percentage of people that actually wind up in a physical fight after they pass their teens is rather small. Are there people that think that anyone who researches and writes about self defense is engaged in hand to hand combat on the streets all the time?)

Answer. Would you feel secure in knowing the infrormation is coming from someone who in his 20 years of martial arts training has manged to get a yellow belt in karate, quit aikido because it was too hard on his wrists, somehow managed to "co-found" a new system of martial arts, and has about a year of wing Chun? Is it necessary to be the biggest baddest mofo on the street? No. Would it help to have a significant background in what you are promoting? Yes.


Taking it a step further, I used to be a member of the NYCPD. I doubt if any of the firearms instructors I had in the police academy ever did a day on patrol, let alone engaged in a gunfight. But they were sure good at using handguns, and they were also very good at teaching others to use one to defend themselves & others. That's why they were firearms instructors.

Answer. But they are TRAINED and CERTIFIED firearms instructors. They have met a specific standard as laid out by an organization. The question asked of Phil, is what training is the book based on? When he is not beating up Hobos(his description), he says it is based on palm stick principles. Now seeing as Phil posts everywhere on the internet about everything he does(two guarantees on the 'net, spam and Phil)has never claimed to be certified in PPCT, or to have trained with Ken Good or Mas Ayoob, nor have a sufficient background in any Japanese or FMA (remember yellow belt in karate), where does his experience and training come from?


If someone was bashing Phil's book after reading it, by saying, "This is not a good tactic, because (whatever the likely outcome would be)", that would be one thing. but there was certainly nothing like that in this thread.
History and self defense are not the same thing.
Click to expand...

As Phil insists on using the entire internet to spread the word of his work, after too many years you come to realize there is no sound basis of training behind what he writes about. Phil is first and foremost a writer, both as a way to make a living, and as a way to feed his ego. Somewhere along the way Phil has come to believe that theory is all that matters, that a basis of experience in the real world(dojo, kwoon, training hall, reality,actual physical comparison with other folks doing work in a similar vein)isn't important. I would be curious if there is a single footnote in this book.

My only hope is now that Phil has a large company to flog his writing, he will stop flooding the net with his cut and paste on every MA or blade forum, and maybe hold himself to just the forums he owns, hosts or moderates(and there are enough of those). Oh well, a boy can dream can't he?
 
Phil is a writer and a businessman, so of course he benefits by using the internet effectively. We benefit too, by finding his work more easily. After a few years, as you can see, many of us have come to respect his common-sense approach to equipment and techniques of self-defense.

You are entitled to your negative opinion, too, but it is outweighed by the positive attitude of the many people here more familiar with his ideas than you are.

He is all over the internet offerng his work. What are you all over the internet doing, whining?
 
Esav Benyamin said:
Phil is a writer and a businessman, so of course he benefits by using the internet effectively. We benefit too, by finding his work more easily. After a few years, as you can see, many of us have come to respect his common-sense approach to equipment and techniques of self-defense.

You are entitled to your negative opinion, too, but it is outweighed by the positive attitude of the many people here more familiar with his ideas than you are.

He is all over the internet offerng his work. What are you all over the internet doing, whining?
Click to expand...

No, I have only made my comments here. I am quite familiar with his ideas, and if I'm entitled to my opinion, why are you complaining about it?
 
jerrinfla said:
And for what it's worth, someone mentioned "tracing your training back 3,000 years" or somesuch statement, what exactly does that mean? Is whoever that is supposed to refer to supposed to trace his training back to the days of adam & eve or pre-evolutionary man or something?
History and self defense are not the same thing.
Click to expand...
Jerrinfla, I guess that this question is directed towards me as I wrote that...it was sarcasm as someone was asking about his training...as if training would be relevent to flashlights, there is no ancient master in flashlight fu. As Phil stated, he took the giant leap from small pocket stick defense, mixed it in with the rapidly growing art of removing the night/day vision of an attacker via lumenisonal attack and wrote a book on the subject. Some folks discount Phil's words as he doesn't claim any ancient ubber lineage, no Grand Bloodsport Championships, and no secret government training.;) As my writing can be obtuse, I can understand your confusion as to my motivationand meaning.
 
What are you all over the internet doing, whining?
Click to expand...

Exactly! Thanks much to those who've offered their support.

The book still isn't on Paladin's website but they tell me it should go up any time now.

I'm off to go produce more productive, common-sense self-defense material now. ;)
 
zenheretic said:
Jerrinfla, I guess that this question is directed towards me as I wrote that...it was sarcasm as someone was asking about his training...as if training would be relevent to flashlights, there is no ancient master in flashlight fu. As Phil stated, he took the giant leap from small pocket stick defense, mixed it in with the rapidly growing art of removing the night/day vision of an attacker via lumenisonal attack and wrote a book on the subject. Some folks discount Phil's words as he doesn't claim any ancient ubber lineage, no Grand Bloodsport Championships, and no secret government training.;) As my writing can be obtuse, I can understand your confusion as to my motivationand meaning.
Click to expand...

LOL ..... it wasn't so much your obtuse writing style as the fact that your sarcasm so exactly mirrors the attitude that a number of people seem to actually have.
 
I for one would be curious to hear about Phil's martial background as well.

No need to be descended from some ancient martial lineage or anything like that. But some experience in this field (maybe through military or law enforcement contacts? or has he engaged in a lot of altercations, like Animal MacYoung? was this material at least extensively tested against resisting, uncooperative sparring partners?) would lend more credence to what he writes.

If he is just a regular Joe expressing his theoretical opinions on the subject...well, that's ok too. But the practicality and effectiveness of his approach will tend to be questioned more because of that.
 
Since Phil has written extensively, here and elsewhere, on his ideas and the training and study he's based them on, it seems redundant to have him repeat it all every time he posts.

The internet is such a friendly environment for those who honestly want to learn more ... in fact, Phil's signature line is a good place to begin.
 
Thanks, Esav. I'll repeat it briefly here:

My background and training history are exhaustively detailed in my first book, Shorthand Empty Hand. They are also described briefly at The Martialist. To make a long-winded story very short, I have been studying the martial arts for roughly a decade and a half; my training includes but is not limited to Liu Seong Gung Fu, Jeet Kune Do, Wing Chun Kung Fu, Kali/Arnis/Escrima, and Karate. I have been a licensed armed citizen for roughly the same period of time. I have not and will not answer questions regarding specific altercations because I'm not stupid enough to speak of that sort of thing publicly (if I haven't had them, I haven't; if I have, they're either a matter of public record or something I don't want to admit publicly; either way, there's no benefit to it).

The Martialist consists of practical, pragmatic, common-sense self-defense information by and for average people, mere mortals, and private citizens. We have military and law enforcement contributors and readers, but they are not our primary focus. If you wish to buy materails from NAVY Seals, 19th Degree Super Dragon Grandmasters, and former and current police officers, there is no shortage of this type of information. It is my assertion that an ordinary person is better able to relate to the needs and requirements of fellow ordinary people and this is what I bring to my writing.

More on Credentials

My work, and the quality of that work, stands on its own merits. Those who care enough to examine it will find value in it (or they won't). Those that can't be bothered to look at it for what it is, preferring instead to argue endlessly over whether I should be allowed to have produced it in the first place, are simply wasting their own time as much as mine.

To date, the only people who've had a serious problem with me are people who absolutely cannot stand to see someone who does not impress them actually become successful in the field -- people whose own inadequacies and petty jealousies drive them to lash out in resentment. The professionals and those with impressive credentials either get along with me just fine or couldn't care less what I do or say because they don't know I exist and have their own productive work to do.

Anyone is welcome to challenge the specific content of anything I've written, any time. I've made it a standing policy not only to address such challenges but to place them on my sites publicly. To date, very few have bothered to try.
 
"My background and training history are exhaustively detailed in my first book, Shorthand Empty Hand. They are also described briefly at The Martialist. To make a long-winded story very short, I have been studying the martial arts for roughly a decade and a half; my training includes but is not limited to Liu Seong Gung Fu, Jeet Kune Do, Wing Chun Kung Fu, Kali/Arnis/Escrima, and Karate."

Sharp Phil's post quoted above answers my questions, or at least directs me where to go to get them answered. I'll check out those sources, thanks for providing them.

I didn't realize this discussion had happened before, so I apologize if this was a redundant request on my part.
 
I just went to your website and found it interesting and informative. It is nice to see another practical approach to self defense out there on the internet. Not enough people realize the usefulness of real world self defense as opposed to the more stylized compeition forms of fighting.
 
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