Do you practice de-escalation, escape, and avoidance? I hope so, because when an argument escalates like this, no one wins. This is a great argument for having a diverse skill set as part of your Active Self Protection. Naturally we do not endorse or approve of any of the actions of these young men.

If you value what we do at ASP, would you consider becoming an ASP Patron Member to support the work it takes to make the narrated videos like these armed robbers getting their just desserts? https://get-asp.com/patron gives the details.

Original video with some detail on the armed robbery is available in our Instructor Development Portal: http://get-asp.com/instructors

What does this argument teach us about defending ourselves against a fight and a knife attack?

1. The eyes may be the windows to the soul, but the hands are the windows to the intent of a person. If you’re in a potential conflict, ALWAYS pay attention to what the aggressor is doing with their hands. They might have a force multiplier in their hand, or they might be hiding their hand so that you can’t see what is in it or using their hand to conceal something. If their hands are empty, there is a difference between someone with fists and someone whose hands are open and relaxed. As a self-defender your situational awareness must include seeing the hands of any potential threat in your vicinity, so watch the hands! This argument and fight really changed when the kid went for his bag; when he disengages his hands from the fight, a tool is coming.

Want to learn more? There are 7 additional lessons, 3 class starters for instructors, and links to more information about this attack on our website: https://get-asp.com/huot

Attitude. Skills. Plan.

(music in the intro and outro courtesy of Bensound at http://www.bensound.com)

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