Beating down a woman: Vox Day on martial arts and the myth of the American Amazon

WorldNetDaily.com ^ | Tuesday, April 15, 2003 | Vox Day

[JohnHuang2]

I've beaten down a few women in my time. I'm not writing metaphorically here. I'm talking about punching a girl in the face, doubling her over by kicking her in the stomach, then putting her down on the ground with a right cross to the side of the head. I can't say I didn't enjoy it – an adrenaline rush doesn't know gender.

Now, before my inbox overflows with outraged accusations of criminal Neanderthalian misogyny, I should probably point out that this all took place in the brutal full-contact martial-arts dojo that was my home away from home for almost six years. I still remember my first day there, seeing all the fighters in their black robes and the savage gleam in their eyes as they warily circled each other before exploding in a paroxysm of violence. It was truly a place apart – a broken ankle was a cause for mockery and uproarious laughter, and if one was so unfortunate as to get knocked out during a sparring session … well, to that ignominy was added the expense of buying the victor's drinks that evening.

Of every 10 newcomers, one remained a month later. Few – very few – ever reached the highest level, as the punishing belt tests were not so much sought as fearfully avoided at all costs. They were tests of skill and discipline, but more than anything, they tested one's willingness to get back on one's feet after being knocked down, again and again.

There weren't many women in our midst, understandably enough. But I was close to one in particular, we called her "Penthouse" because of her long, flowing mane of hair and her not-quite-ready-for-Playboy prettiness. She was a single mother who'd been pushed around by her ex-husband one too many times and she was determined to learn how to defend herself. After three years, she was called on the carpet to test for her green, and I was one of those selected for her sparring test, which consisted of six consecutive two-minute rounds against three high-level fighters, none of whom had just been through a grueling three-hour demonstration of every strike, kick and kata in our repertoir.

By the fifth round, she was exhausted and bruised, barely able to keep her hands up to her chin, much less defend herself. She was nearly helpless, but she must have sensed my desire to take it easy on her, because she snarled at me not to dis her like that, that she'd earned the right to be treated as a fighter and a Dragon. And she had, so it was with genuine affection and admiration that I dropped her twice in the next two exchanges, leaving her with a black eye and a bloody nose. It was a wonderful performance on her part, as she never hesitated to pick herself up, unaided, from the concrete floor. A few months later, the entire dojo cheered her on as she mercilessly destroyed the competition and won her first tournament – never having fought a woman before, she said afterward that she couldn't believe how weak and slow her opponents were, how easy it had been when compared with her training.

But if my time in the martial arts taught me to respect the inherent toughness and mental resolve of women, it has also taught me that combat of any sort is no place for them. It may be easy for a woman who hasn't taken a straight-line headshot from a 200-pound man to spin airy myths of martial equality, but no woman like "Penthouse" would ever believe them, and only a man who hasn't felt for himself how easy it is to smash a woman to the ground would take them seriously for a second.

Modern combat may be less strenuous than it was in the age of the heavily-armored Greek hoplite, but it is still physically punishing. The fluid nature of America's new uberblitz tactics means that the attacking forces must carry more of their own supplies on their backs, and indicates that the supply lines will often be operating behind enemy lines.

The capture of Jessica Lynch and Shoshana Johnson and the fact that a significant percentage of our casualties came from a maintenance company does not support the foolish myth of the American Amazon. Instead, it proves that women should be excluded from far more elements of the U.S. military than they are today.

[two23]

Well, I'm glad someone finally made the point of gun ownerships and marksmanship! If a woman has to rely on martial arts, her attacker has ALREADY gotten too close (same for mace and pepper spray).
I advocate staying out of threatening places, staying alert staying armed and use the 30 seconds/30 yards rule and take action (leave enough time to exit a potential threat before it gets close), But keep the firearm for a back up.

[fourdeuce82d]

comports with what I know about barstool blowhardism.

Little harsh, don't you think? I don't know wether all women are potentially better shots than all men, but the (approximately 12) women I have taught were more willing to take instruction than the (approximately 25) men I have taught.

They seem to have more trouble using the strength they have to manipulate the slide- i.e. it's not so much they're too weak, as they aren't familiar with using their body mechanics to maximum advantage. But they did seem to get the idea of a "trigger press" as opposed to a "jerk" more quickly than the men did.

Sure, small sample, didn't keep records, anecdotal evidence. But should I claim to have no opinion on the matter at all, absent a statistically valid sample, rigorous records, etc.?

[Dead Dog]

God Created Man and Woman, The Remmington 870 made them equal.

As for combat, this article and your points and dead on.

[Nick Danger]

[.45MAN]

Good point..!

[dansangel]

Good advice. Thank-you for some level-headed commentary, unlike a few other posts that are here.

[webstersII]

I thought Aikido was supposed to make up for alot of the mis-match in size and strength. Did you not find this to be true?

[waterstraat]

I would also hate to see what a woman could do as a sniper

Ludmilla Pavlichenko, like many other Russian women was trained as a sniper. She is credited with killing 309 Germans.

[two23]

Good Read:

"Street Smarts, Firearms, And Personal Security : Jim Grover's Guide To Staying Alive And Avoiding Crime In The Real World".

Jim Grover- aka Kelly McCann

[.45MAN]

Your right !!!! Now that you mention it I do remember reading about her..

[two23]

Women, daughters and firearms:

"A woman will almost always buy a gun that fits her which gives her an advantage"

Yep, all my rifles are carbines but also have a Mossberg Cruiser (pistol grip/18.5 inch barrel) .410 shotgun with an -up to- 6 shell capacity, which is my all-round home and car security. Fits nicely in the front seat.

The pistol grip .410 is great for kids, young adults, or small framed people who don't want recoil. Takes buckshot or game load and capacity depends on which shell. A great first time shotgun for those of you with children or daughters who have an interest in shotguns but leery of recoil.

My daughter (age 19 LOVES the .12 gauge) But she is sturdier than me and doesn't flinch at all. She chose a Ruger .22 Mag six shooter for plinking. My 8 year old grandson also has a Mossberg .410 and can go through a box of shells in NO time!

[demosthenes the elder]

In your overweening folly, you actually manage to raise one solitary valid point: pistol combat shooting is NOT the same thing as pistol target shooting. Since the phrase "better shot" is usually interpreted as meaning "more accurate on a range than another such shooter" -and was used as such in my post- it is clear by inference that I was speaking solely of sedate, controlled targetry.
Case in point: The Dutch girl who performed in such an astonishing manner did indeed pull off consistent 2.5" groups with a .45 M1911A1 at a range of 8 meters on her first afternoon, as compared to my usual 4.5" group with the same weapon at the same distance after using that particular model for some 23 years. A major difference between the two performances was this: it would take her one full minute to take seven shots, whereas in the same time frame I would go through four full clips. I tend to shoot rapid two-shot groups intending only to nail the breadbox, not trying to hit a particular chamber of the heart. I sincerely doubt that the Dutch girl will EVER be able to match that level of rate-of-fire x accuracy. On the other hand, the very best group I have thus far managed with that model pistol at that range firing very carefully aimed single shots is 3.5 inches. She is thus a better shot than I am.
One error in diction I did make in the post to which you took such rude exception is the following: When I said ".
I would say that almost 100% of the time, women are better natural shots than men..." I did not make sufficiently clear that I meant "straight out of the box, comparing the performance of females to males on their first pistol targetry session." Though, come to think on it, the words "better natural shots" pretty much implied this.

The rest of your posts, and the attitude displayed therein, is pure toilet stew. You assume, and presume, far too much.

[demosthenes the elder]

one-two, one-two, and through and through the vorpal blade went snickersnack!
Good thing indeed you were not drinking anything - I probably could not afford your keyboard cleaning bill right now ;)

[k2blader]

Good article, thanks.

I confess it's fun to fantasize about women being able to kick the crap out of a men.

But in the end, it is only fantasy.

[webstersII]

Anyone ever seen the movie "Enough", with J. Lo as the battered wife who gets some martial arts training and then sets up a confrontation with her estranged husband? That's one of the silliest fight scenes I have ever seen in a movie.

Besides the obvious fact she would have been better off with a firearm.

[demosthenes the elder]

While in New Orleans I had the honor of studying under sensei T. Mikami. He was of the opinion that the gun trumps any barehand or medieval combat skill outside of the range of 15 yards, and will almost certainly trump them outside of ten feet.

[demosthenes the elder]

well put.
I will add that I have never seen a woman put rounds into the ceiling tiles of a range from firing too-much-gun far too rapidly, and have lost count of the number of men I have seen do so.
I have shot the DE .50cal AE ONCE, and will never do so again.
My M1911 is mo' plenty enough, and since it is the first type of pistol I ever shot it just feels right.

[demosthenes the elder]

I really like the old Ithaca 12ga which loaded and ejected from the same port. I have yet to find a pumpgun I like so well.

[demosthenes the elder]

there's a trick to teaching women (and kids, for that matter) how to easily rack the slide: tell them to strongly grip the slide knurl in their non-shooting hand, holding the gun near their solar plexus and pointing down-and-front, and then shove their gun-hand forward forcefully, holding the left hand stationary until the slide slips out of their grip. Using the triceps instead of the biceps seems to do the trick for the petite.

This also keeps them from riding the slide forward, which is a behavior I have noted among novice females more often than novice males. I think this is because men generally are more familiar with other machines, and sorta "ret" the fact that letting the slide slam forward will not "hurt" the pistol. I always tell both gender of trainee not to ride the slide, and have them practice doing it right over and over again before we load up even dummy rounds for trigger pull practice. It seems to me (though I have not kept accurate records of this) that women need to be riminded about not riding the slide more often in training than do men.

[demosthenes the elder]

have you ever used a mech-tech carbine kit on your .45? I like mine, though the butt is soooo narrow it causes some hefty bruising. It is a tack-driver inside its range.