Apparently Google thinks farts are funny.
Yes, I was Googling what you see there, and found Google’s “did you mean” suggestion funny. So of course, gotta blog about it. 😉
Author: hsoi
Slacking, sorta
The past couple weeks have been… full? distracting? having other things taking priority? been what they’ve been is all I can say. Some of it documented here, some not. As a result tho, I haven’t been at the dojang as much as I’ve wanted to be. So to my Kuk Sool folk reading this, sorry I haven’t been there… but it’s not from lack of want. 🙂 I did sign up for seminar tho. Dan bong! Looking forward to it.
Thing is, a while ago I made a commitment to practice martial arts every day. Doesn’t matter what it is, just as long as it’s something and done every day. It could be going to the dojang. It could be going to the garage and working on the heavy bag. It could be going on the yard and doing forms. It could be dry fire. It could be just draw practice. It might just be working out some techniques in my head, thinking through self-defense scenarios. Mentally going through all my Kuk Sool curriculum. Freeform development of mixed concepts (e.g. empty hand transition to handguns). Whatever. Doesn’t always have to be intensely physical, could be mental, could be just meditating on some concepts. So long as every day I do something. Going to the dojang is actually a fair part of that, but not going is really bugging me…. such is just life right now. Ebb and flow.
Stop. Don’t touch. Leave the area. Tell an adult.
I became an Eddie Eagle volunteer and gave my first presentation last night. Went over fairly well, for a first time. I think it’s a great program that strives to be fun but teach a serious message. Afterwards I heard from various parents that agreed: even if you are anti-gun, it makes sense to teach your children to “Stop. Don’t touch. Leave the area. Tell an adult.” At the barest of minimums that helps you keep your child safe if they ever encounter a gun. We teach our children so many other things about being safe but this one tends to be avoided for whatever reason. With a program like Eddie Eagle, there’s no reason not to provide it and teach that simple mantra/message to your children:
As for the program itself, I used the “assembly format” which I think works fairly well. It aims to be fun, keeps the kids interested, but it doesn’t bog down with anything or even let the fun and silliness get in the way of the serious message of “Stop. Don’t touch. Leave the area. Tell an adult.” and additional messages of respect (for always following all safety rules) and responsibility (for yourself). It uses various things to help imprint the message: rhymes, repetition, some physical movements (watch the video, you’ll see the “Eddie Shuffle”), repetition, a few scenarios to play out, repeating the 4 steps numerous times, “Stop. Don’t touch. Leave the area. Tell an adult.” You get the idea. 🙂 It’s very well developed, from an educator standpoint.
You can hate guns to your dying day. But if you love your children, be they your own kids or just kids in your care, please take the time to teach them about Eddie Eagle. Thirty minutes of discussion could save you from a life of heartache.
R.I.P. Francis
Daughter’s hamster passed away tonight. It’s a solemn evening in the household.
Analysis of Texas Campus Carry
JR has an analysis piece of the evolution of the Texas Campus Concealed Carry bill.
3 pets, updated
So the saga of the pets continues.
Extreme Pistol
I was out at the KR Training ranch all day today. Much to tell.
Sunday Metal – Metallica
Is Metallica metal? I would (still) say so. 🙂
Without question, Metallica is the most successful metal band the world has ever known. They have been through a lot, they have changed, and some old school fans refuse to even acknowledge them these days… or if they do, won’t call them “metal” but maybe just a “rock” band. This I can understand. After the black album the band changed their look and their song style. The whole Napster fiasco. St. Anger. Lars and James getting in touch with their feelings (banana stickers!). I can agree with this. When you have millions of dollars, when a big emotional moment in your life is auctioning off your artwork collection for millions of dollars… well… not that I have any problem with them being rich and enjoying success (I do think that’s awesome), I think it has detracted from what makes Metallica Metallica. Where’s the anger? Wanting your anger to be healthy? What happened to Alcoholica? How healthy was that? 🙂 There’s no question the Metallica of today is not the Metallica of old, but I don’t think that’s a bad thing.
I’m still a fan of Metallica. I see nothing wrong with their evolution and change. Any musical artist that has endured has changed. They change their look, their sound, their direction. Nothing too majorly radical (I don’t think we’ll see Metallica go country), but still they change. If things are the same over and over, then what’s to care about? Even if you hate it, at least you’re still caring about it… apathy is worse than dislike.
I recently picked up their new album, Death Magnetic. It’s better than St. Anger. It is closer to old-school, but it’s still new school Metallica. The only album I don’t listen to is S&M.
Love them or hate them, they’ll never stop, they’ll never quit, because they’re Metallica.
Convey to the person what you want them to do
I previously wrote an article on how “mindset is everything” and in there discuss the importance of conveying to the person what you want them to do. If you haven’t read that article, you should read it before continuing with this article. It’s brief, go read it. I’ll be here when you’re done and return. 🙂
An interesting report from Force Science News. The relevance here is to the issuance of commands, as I mention in my “mindset is everything” article, to convey to the person what you want them to do. The article discusses a study of how police give commands under stress and how the type of command affects compliance. It mentions two sorts of commands: alpha, and beta.
“Alpha commands,” Lewinski explains, “are simple, direct and explicit, so that even someone in a chemically or emotionally induced fog is likely to understand them.” Examples: “Take your hands out of your pocket,” “Stop talking,” “Quit resisting,” “Don’t leave your vehicle.”
… “[Beta commands] are indirect or imprecise orders that require interpretation by the suspect, based on his or her inference of what the officer intends,” Lewinski says. Examples: “Move,” “Give it up,” “Don’t be stupid,” “Stop screwing around,” “Knock it off,” “Don’t make me kill you.”
In other words, officers in day-to-day interactions generally gave very clear commands about what they wanted, and for the most part they gained compliance. But when they felt themselves threatened, this direct precision tended to be abandoned quickly. While they may have started out issuing alpha commands, in the face of resistance and personal danger they overwhelmingly transitioned to vaguer, less direct beta commands and, in general, gained markedly less compliance.
…
Based on his work with autistic children and others who show resistance in classrooms, he knows that “beta commands are very ineffective and inefficient. They leave people guessing.” When teachers switch from beta to alpha commands, they experience greater compliance even from mentally and emotionally disabled students, Houlihan says. “With the change, you almost immediately see better teachers and better kids.”
He cites an incident from the law enforcement studies in which an officer was in a stand-off with a suspect who was gripping a knife. “The officer told him 5 times, ‘Don’t make me kill you’ before he finally did shoot the suspect. A terrible command! He might have thought he was conveying an order to put down the knife, but that’s not what he said. It was left up to the suspect to interpret what the officer meant and what action was expected. In effect, the suspect was put in the position of having to control the officer’s behavior.
It doesn’t matter the context: police work, self-defense, dealing with your kids, ordering food at a restaurant, talking with your boss or subordinates, whatever. If you wish to increase the level of success regarding compliance with your requests, clearly convey to the person what you want them to do.
Shoot to wound doesn’t make sense
I hear about people that say in a self-defense situation you should shoot someone in the leg or the arm, instead of “center of mass”. There’s many reasons for it, but in the end it’s just not sound reasoning. If someone needs shooting, then they need effective shooting. If they don’t need shooting, they don’t need shooting. So if push comes to shove and you must shoot, you need to shoot at the most effective target (e.g., “center of mass”) and not at some less-effective area like a leg.
I came across this article at Force Science News that discusses the situation in-depth. It approaches it from a police officer standpoint, which is a different situation than a private citizen defending themselves, but it doesn’t take away from the point of the article that shooting to wound doesn’t make sense.
