If there was ONE thing...

Phi Truong wrote: ... go Rambo style! oh wait! there should be aikido somewhere in here. try go to bed wearing hakama (under clothing optional), that way you are ready on moment notice when you push the button.

If Rambo had had a hakama he would've used it!
Serrated survival knife for those under-the-mattress moments.

Rhys McLachlan wrote: Last week a friend of mine had his house burglarised while he and his wife were sleeping in their bedroom and their 3 kids (1 baby) we're sleeping in theirs. He told me that he woke up, thought he heard something, then went back to sleep. When they got out of bed in the morning a huge amount of their stuff was gone. For perspective they run a photography business on the bottom floor of their house, while they sleep on the top floor. The lower floor was gutted... Cameras, computers, gone. But here's the part that prompted this post... The upper floor can only be accessed by a deadbolt on their back deck. And the burglars tried to get through the deadbolt to where they sleep. Thankfully the burglars were unsuccessful. They live in an area where house invasion is very unusual. I do not. Break and enter in my suburb (opposite side of the country to my friends) is so common that people don't even raise an eyebrow when you say your house/car was broken into. And it got me to thinking... I am a noob at Aikido (2 months). Say (worst case scenario) I woke up in the night and found some scumbag going through my stuff (single story house) what would be the single most important Aikido waza I could learn? Or I guess in general what would be the single most effective thing I could ask my instructor to teach me? I will be asking him next class btw. Thanks for your input. This is a very real concern for me.

It's not a matter of a single waza but the mindset of being and feeling an aikido warrior that can give you a surviving, fighting chance through such a scenario. And though you can't have any of that in a two months time, still one should do his best to defend if the occasion rises.
Some of the above advices range from naive to hilarious, to absolutely dangerous!
And those who claim that aikido won't work in such a situation, maybe they should talk about their aikido. If one's aikido doesn't work in any self defense case, it means that the person's technique is incorrect and it's not aikido's fault.
The only place that can prepare you for this kind of situations is a good serious dojo. And yes, it won't be easy. And yes, it will take time but that's the way it is. There is no shortcut to being a warrior!!

Yannis Mousoulis wrote: And those who claim that aikido won't work in such a situation, maybe they should talk about their aikido. If one's aikido doesn't work in any self defense case, it means that the person's technique is incorrect and it's not aikido's fault.

Now *that's* dangerous advice.

At least in the US, self-defense situations quite often involve guns. Home invaders in particular are especially likely to be armed.

While I guess it's possible to visualize a scenario in which empty-handed aikido can defeat an intruder with a gun, I sure wouldn't bet my life on it or advise anyone else -- regardless of level -- to do so.

Katherine

Katherine Derbyshire wrote: Now *that's* dangerous advice. At least in the US, self-defense situations quite often involve guns. Home invaders in particular are especially likely to be armed. While I guess it's possible to visualize a scenario in which empty-handed aikido can defeat an intruder with a gun, I sure wouldn't bet my life on it or advise anyone else -- regardless of level -- to do so. Katherine

So, you got a better idea? A martial art more suitable for disarming?
Or maybe just sit there and be shot or cut would be much less dangerous...

Yannis Mousoulis wrote: So, you got a better idea? A martial art more suitable for disarming? Or maybe just sit there and be shot or cut would be much less dangerous...

In any situation, the best self-defense technique is "don't be there."

Katherine

Katherine Derbyshire wrote: In any situation, the best self-defense technique is "don't be there." Katherine

I agree of course, that would be my first choice too.
But I was talking about being already engaged in an inevitable fight by an intruder or whatever, with no way out of it.
Then you have to fight to the best of your ability, so you have to sharpen and forge that ability.
And may it be that is never needed...

Yannis Mousoulis wrote: I agree of course, that would be my first choice too. But I was talking about being already engaged in an inevitable fight by an intruder or whatever, with no way out of it. Then you have to fight to the best of your ability, so you have to sharpen and forge that ability. And may it be that is never needed...

I was not being facetious in my post. A huge part of my "home self defense" plan is being able to negotiate my way through my home in the dark and get out of a window from any room. You CAN opt to cede ground.

Yannis Mousoulis wrote: I agree of course, that would be my first choice too. But I was talking about being already engaged in an inevitable fight by an intruder or whatever, with no way out of it. Then you have to fight to the best of your ability, so you have to sharpen and forge that ability. And may it be that is never needed...

Well sure. With your back against the wall, you use whatever you have.

But how did you get into such a mess in the first place? My feeling is that if you are forced into a physical confrontation, your self-defense strategy has already failed.

Katherine

There are differences between an intruder and a home invasion. A burglar in the middle of the night is an intruder and presents a danger to you and your family. A home invasion on the other hand is usually a blitz attack by several armed people at once. In either case you are in deep kim chee.

In the event of a burglar, it would be best to avoid a direct confrontation if possible. Relying on alarms systems, dogs, cell phones and the like will probably run the individual off before the police arrive. If he doesn't flee, then you should be prepared to fight to protect yourself and loved ones. A weapon of some sort will give you an advantage in most cases; a club, sword, bokken, pepper spray, or firearm. If those aren't accessible or ineffective, then fight with whatever skill set you have. The art is relatively unimportant, but your survival and protective instincts are. Bite, kick, gouge, punch, poke and anything else that comes to mind are all appropriate. Aikido will work, but so will karate, wrestlings, jujitsu, boxing, krag maga, and any other art. It just has to be applied with the intention of surviving the conflict and protecting the family. There are legal implications of course, but if you are defending your home in the middle of the night, they aren't of too much concern.

A home invasion is another matter and you've probably lost the battle when you answer the door. Home invasions are usually specific target events and unless you are a high-value target for some reason, it probably won't even happen to you. There isn't much defense to several armed individuals rushing through the door unexpectedly and the deck is stacked against you. You will have to decide at that moment whether to submit, fight or flee and there is no clear answer here in the cool light of day.

A friend of mine was the victim of a hot-prowl burglary about a year ago. He and his wife were asleep and a man loaded on meth broke into their home in the middle of the night. Their dog awakened them and Bob immediately called 9-1-1 and requested help. Their bedroom door was locked and deadbolted and Bob warned the individual that the police were on the way. Unfortunately for the burglar, he was too loaded to heed the warning and tried to kick his way into the bedroom. When he succeeded, Bob shot him seven times with a .22 pistol, all the while on the phone to the police. The suspect died at the scene and it was a terrible event for all concerned, including the police who didn't arrive for approximately three more minutes.

Thankfully these events are rare in most communities. Burglars prefer to break in during the day when most people are away from home and at work. In this case, the burglar wasn't a thief, but an individual out of his mind on a meth run. Bob, by the way, is a retired Army Colonel who served most of his time with Special Forces. Could he have defeated the attacker with physical combat? Maybe. While this was tragic, at least Bob and his wife are alive and safe.

Katherine Derbyshire wrote: Well sure. With your back against the wall, you use whatever you have. But how did you get into such a mess in the first place? My feeling is that if you are forced into a physical confrontation, your self-defense strategy has already failed. Katherine

In a real self defense situation there are a lot of x factors and the thought that you can always escape is naive to say the least. You get in a "fight or flight" mode, but sometimes flight it's not an option. You don't get the luxury to choose that easily if somebody has invaded your personal place.
But still, building the strategy to escape, having the mentality to do it and seeing it through under pressure is an aikido virtue as well, at least in my dojo.
And that's why I said it's not a matter of a single Waza, but of an holistic approach and training in aikido that can only be done in a serious dojo, if you want to invest your knowledge in every aspect of life. Self defense is only one aspect, but no surviving:no life!

Yannis Mousoulis wrote: I agree of course, that would be my first choice too.

Why didn't you state it?