~A Soldier's Nostalgic Memories On A Sleepless Night~

27March2015
0215hrs.



~Unable to sleep I have reheated a pot of black coffee and while listening to old airborne cadences on Spotify feelings of nostalgia overcome me and I am taken back once again to the roots of my military birth place and a culture which has left it's eternal brand upon me. Ever marking my soul.


 ~I recalled a quote they once had us remember, which was posted upon the wall of my platoon area, and it remains in my memory even at this moment:
" The greatest happiness is to watch your enemies scatter before you. His love ones shrouded in tears. And gather to your bosom his wives and daughters." Ghengis Khan 1200AD...


~At Sand Hell U.S. Army Infantry School, Ft. Benning Ga., there was one interesting thing the Drill Sergeants use to do was to make a recruit (a joe) grab their own testicles and squeeze them if they didn't 'sound-off' loud enough when speaking or yelling.


~I recall one Caucasian recruit squeezing himself so hard while the Drill Sergeants were yelling at him to squeeze his genitalia that he caused himself to pass out unconscious.


~Common rhetoric Infantry recruits would be forced to repeat daily at top volume (as part of the indoctrination) would be, "What makes the green grass grow?~The blood, the blood, the bright red blood!"
"What is the spirit of the bayonet?~To kill, to kill, with cold blue steel!"
"Whadaya wanna be?~Infantry!"
"Whadaya wanna do?~Kill a mother ******! Kill a mother******! KILL!"
"How far you wanna go?~All the way!"
"Are we ever coming back?~Hell NO!"


~In the Infantry culture we often repeated the rhetoric, " Learn to hate, learn to hate, open your arms and embrace the hate, then learn to love it!" Quite often in my company when an Infantryman was asked what he was doing, the rhetoric reply would be, "Learning to hate." Or the reply would be,
"Making love to the hate."


~Each morning after conducting physical training (P.T.) my platoon would gather in a circle with our right hands stacked atop of our platoon leaders, with our platoon sergeant's hand on top, to give thanks to God for allowing us to conduct good P.T., for keeping us healthy, and then we would pray that God send us a war so we could kill some M*****F*****s...THAT WAS THE SPARTAN CULTURE WE WERE RAISED UP IN AS TEENAGERS AND VERY YOUNG MEN.


~Each morning, when not deployed into the field, we reported for P.T. in our parent units around 0400hrs until often after 0730-0800hrs. Sometimes even later if we did an excessively long ruck-run or road march.


~If it was raining in the middle of winter we got soaked in our P.T. uniform while cold rain pelted our face and eyes, sometimes even hard sleet, while at Ft. Campbell. But not a man in my platoon would ever complain, not in the least, but on the contrary everyone would shout "Hoo-ah!!!!" and we'd start asking God to send us 'hail'...That was the morale and attitude of our happy band of masochists.


~During our P.T. runs we had a culture of singing very violent, sometimes borderline blasphemous, always politically incorrect, songs we call 'cadences' which are designed to serve as a method of breath control, pace control (speed) maintaining no less than a 7minute mile pace (regardless of the cross country or marathon distances we ran) uniformity of step, psychological motivation, self-hypnosis to help separate the mind from the body during painful runs, and finally to maintain psychological indoctrination...All of that just in a cadence! No one has ever said that the Infantry didn't have programming combat-soldiers down to a science.


~As I've grown into a mature man at almost forty years of age I understand the science and premeditation behind programming and training teenagers and young men to become Spartans whom are ever ready and anxious to fight for their master, their country, love ones, prestige, and most of all for their brothers in arms. Some even do it for the love of fighting or because they never felt they belonged in civilian society and finally found a home in the Infantry culture. There are some whom have psychologically broken down the motivations of why such individuals do what they do and have developed an acronym for it: M.I.C.E...This acronym also applies to other fields of service, but I digress.


~I've religiously studied the writings of Sun Tzu, Robert Greene, Niccolò Machiavelli, as well as numerous psychology text books and sociology books. Even reading a book written by one of the founding fathers of the Roman Vatican Jesuits whom mastered the art of indoctrination, programming, and trauma bonding. So I'm not ignorant to the methods behind the madness from which elite military brotherhoods are built upon. It's all very clear to me...and yet.


~NOT A DAY GOES BY THAT I DON'T MISS IT AND WANT TO RETURN TO THAT WORLD WHERE I FELT FOR ONCE IN MY LIFE... 'HOME'.


~And therein lies the conundrum folks.

~
♣Forever Hoo-ah♣
5th Plt. Dco.
3~327th Inf. Reg.,
1st. Brigade,
101st Airborne Division (Air Assault).
"Rendezvous with Destiny"

~ Create Leaders As You Lead The Way~

~In the Infantry we have a saying, "The best way to learn is to teach". So just like in the Infantry I will present a block of instruction to my students and then ask them to teach it back to me.





~Whether it be language class or H2H/Close Quarter Combat class, regardless, it never fails to impress me how much more quickly even the most insecure student will grow when they are given the opportunity, or requirement, to engage their brain in a more proactive manner by teaching the material back to myself and the class 'in their own words'.
 


~In language class, over the course of a few months, I've singled out my most insecure female student and patiently cultivated her to the point that she now is my most outspoken and sharpest student.



~She readily grasps even the most difficult material and has surpassed my best students already during a relatively short period of time.
 
~Regardless of any negative aspects to the Infantry culture from which I was forged, it is my personal belief that they have mastered the art of not building mindless drones but building teachers. Because in the Army Infantry and Light Infantry they begin training you to be a teacher from day one. Every single soldier, down to the lowliest E1 private, is required to teach classes, lead morning P.T., and quite often delegated authority to lead details at the inception of his career.
 
~This culture breeds not mindless followers but rather teachers and soldiers whom are disciplined enough to follow but confident and skilled enough to lead. We are taught that the best leaders are the ones whom 'Lead By Example'. Which is embodied in the Infantry motto, "Follow Me".
 
~This is what is lacking in the public school system and in the training of our children and youth today. The understanding that the best students are the ones whom we train not to be students but rather to be teachers...To lead by example.
 
~I tell my students during almost every class, "I'm not teaching you to merely repeat or copy what I tell you. I am teaching you how to think for yourself and to understand how to be your own translator as opposed to merely being a parrot that repeats a bunch of words and phrases. I am not teaching you to be students...I'm teaching you to be teachers so that you can go out and teach others! Hoo-ah?" (They still are not sure what 'Hoo-ah' means nor am I certain how to translate the meaning into Spanish.)
 
~I encourage you all, be you a veteran or civilian, to embody both the Infantry motto and the Infantry Ranger motto in whatever field that you pursue in life: "Follow-Me" (Implying that you lead by example) and "Rangers Lead The Way" (Same implication as the Infantry motto: to lead by example.) ~


AnDrew
25March2015.

~WHAT AMERICA NEEDS IS LESS SHEEP AND MORE SHEPHERDS~

~Whatever you pursue in life if you're only interested in creating or leading sheep than examine the motives of your own heart.


~In the Infantry we have a saying, " I am my brother's keeper." That implies that each of us are shepherds, even when we stand down and let another lead the way for awhile...We are not sheep but rather all shepherds whom take turns leading but always ready to take either the primary lead or sec...ondary lead.
 
~We are strong because we do not train anyone within our brotherhood to be a 'sheep' but rather we train and encourage everyone within our brotherhood to a be shepherd. When we are only as strong as our weakest link we don't want mindless followers but rather leaders whom are ever ready to take the lead while acting as their brother's keeper. Contrary to outside views we are not leaders and followers but a culture of leaders all working together while taking different leadership roles at different times. Always evolving and never stagnant.



~This mentality and culture is what America needs today...Whether you are a boss at your company, a teacher at your school, a worker for some corporation, a parent, a religious minister, grandparent, social worker, or instructor you can find ways to lead by example and teach or inspire those around you to be leaders rather than followers.
 
~If anyone, outside of your Creator almighty, desires you to remain a follower under them than I'd question their motive. For a good leader and a good teacher should be working toward molding you into a good leader and a good teacher in your own right, so that you can go and do likewise with others~

Hoo-ah,


AnDrew.
25March2015.

~THE NEXT GREAT-GRANDMASTER-GURO-SOKE-R.B. INSTRUCTOR: SELLING YOU LIFE INSURANCE~

~There is a massive amount of fantasy and egomasturbation being peddled as 'self-defense' or 'combatives' for monetary gain by individuals whom would be dead if they had to apply their quackery under duress against a dedicated criminal intent...


~If they haven't lived it, they have no business teaching you how to survive it. If they were a champion in a ring they have every right to teach athletes how to dominate the sporting ring but unless they've had to survive among or consistently engage brutal criminal predators (few have) then from where does their expertise derive?


~If they claim to be expert 'street fighters' or experts in using close quarter combat in the streets, but have not been a patrol cop or highway patrolman from a violent area, club security in a bad part of town, or a penitentiary convict than what business do they have teaching self-defense against edge weapons (as is epidemic among martial-arts/combative instructors)...And if they were actually experts in violent street combat, as many claim these days, they'd have earned themselves a criminal record (aside from patrol cops) being that street fighting, assault, aggravated assault, and attempted murder are crimes in every civil society.



~That is the crux of what I have to say about the epidemic of instructors/teachers selling powdered unicorn horn and fairy dust for 'self-defense/combatives' these days and presuming to teach others how to disarm a determined attacker with a knife. Or how to defend oneself in a so-called 'street-fight'.



~Truth be told, mature men don't engage in street-fights or bar brawls. And if a mature adult finds themselves in a violent situation in 'the street' then they are facing violent criminals whom seldom attack alone. Criminals most often attack as more than one, in groups, and quite often at least one of them will be armed with some sort of weapon.



~But many instructors are fond of either claiming there is no defense against multiple attackers (as the Gracie Brazilian Jiu-jutsu family publically claim) or they will train under completely unrealistic scenarios (themselves having never faced and fought off multiple, determined, criminal attackers).


~Having no understanding of how criminal predators think, operate, or function gives rise to all forms of fantasy games being peddled by clever confidence men with traditional Asian martial art backgrounds, MMA/sport based backgrounds, or combative backgrounds on how to disarm a knife swinging predator or face down thugs in the street (without a firearm and proper combat training).



~Basic self-defense against a school yard tussle or women's defense against a date rapist are one thing. But when any instructor is teaching students how to prevail against and/or disarm a criminal predator armed with a knife or how to face down bigger, stronger, experienced, violent thugs in a 'street fight' one should always insist upon pressure testing his or her (the instructor's) theories under hard contact scenarios which are as close to real-life as possible (assuming one has personal experience with criminal predators and their tactics, capabilities, methods, and the environment). And anyone training in bare feet, on even flooring, in a loose traditional uniform or MMA sports wear is not preparing for 'self-defense'.



~Keep it real and don't get hustled by some charismatic personality with an impressive background in sports based martial arts, urban combatives, or even military service...Pressure test everything under realistic scenarios against fully resisting, experienced, stronger, training partners (as much as possible without maiming or permanently injuring one another) to see if these 'theories' are applicable under extreme duress when all your fine motor muscle control has been incapacitated and tunnel vision is trying to set.



~And anyone who claims to teach knife 'disarms' against an active, stronger, knife attacking predator is a charlatan. We're not talking about taking down a drunk wielding a pocket knife or a geriatric person brandishing a kitchen knife. I am implying a stronger, active, criminal predator or thug with a knife. Every single knife disarm I've ever seen demonstrated in 'any' martial art is complete fantasy and a recipe for getting oneself maimed or murdered.



~Every single knife attack I've ever had the misfortune to personally witness in the prison system was carried out by either a surprise attack where the attacker used the free hand to punch like a boxer while the rear hand stabbed simultaneously or the free hand grabbed/pinned the victim while the rear hand rapidly delivered quick stabs from varying angles at a speed that made it impossible to see the knife until the attack ended. And then the next most common way I've witnessed knife attacks executed is for a team to engage and hold the victim while a separate knife wielding attacker frantically punctures the victim in the groin, torso, neck, eyes, and head.



~Let me add that many experienced or well tutored criminals will tie the knife to their rear hand, making disarming them with fancy martial arts techniques impossible. Defanging the snake techniques would be futile. This is the way that nearly every penitentiary killer will insure that his weapon is not disarmed and used against him during the frantic assault. A victim's desperate swinging limbs and the viscosity of blood make holding a knife or ice pick difficult, so violent assassins will tie the weapon onto the bare hand or a work-gloved hand.



~Before you invest a large amount of your hard earned money to train under some great-grand-master-guro in how to disarm knife attackers or to prevail, unarmed, against multiple street thugs (or former prison gangsters) it would behoove the reader to consider the things addressed in this short article.



~Know thy enemy and know thy area of operation, then prepare accordingly if one wishes to invest the time and finances in proper preparation for such things. Don't be a victim of charismatic hustlers preying upon your limited understanding and experience with life or death violence against stronger predators.
~I would like to make mention that even though they succeed in stabbing you it's still possible (I've witnessed it more than once) to counter-attack with superior, focused, aggression so as to neutralize them before they kill you. A great number of stab victims do live, albeit; maimed, crippled or disabled, so being stabbed doesn't guarantee death.
~Neutralizing a knifer isn't the same as disarming a knifer with empty hands. That's what I wish to clarify. Controlling the wrist before stripping the knife away or executing an outside wrist throw on an intent knifer is suicidal! Neutralizing the attacker, as opposed to disarming the knife, either before or after you've been stabbed is possible with training. An instructor and retired I.D.F. counter-terrorism officer, by the name of Itay Gil, is one of the only commercialized instructors I've witnessed whom teaches effective, efficient, methods for dealing with and neutralizing bladed attackers. He can be seen in a few videos on the web demonstrating viable methods under realistic attacks. He was also featured once on the History Channel's Human Weapon Episode which is titled Military Hand-to-Hand-Combat.
~But once again, he too teaches and speaks with the authority from years of personal experience with real-world edge weapon assaults from intent, murderous, attackers.
~That's the difference.



~Si vi pacem para bellum.

~AnDrew~

~A Personal Interview With Author N. Cognito~The author of the book, When Hell Becomes Your Home: How I Survived 14Years In Prison. Published by Lulu Publishing.

~11February2015~

~This is an interview conducted over breakfast on the cold morning of 23January2015 with Author N. Cognito , at the author's home.

~The author of this blog, having personally served closely with Mr. N. Cognito in the military and abroad, has decided to publish this exclusive interview with the permission of Mr. Author N. Cognito whom has recently published a self-help book based upon his past training and personal life experience with the intent of helping others.

~The following abbreviations 'Q' represent 'question' and 'A' represent 'answer' for the global community readers not familiar with the common use of 'Q & A' within the English line of inquiry.

~Q. Goodmorning. We both understand that your name Author N. Cognito is actually a pseudonym by which you've published this book for reasons of both privacy and personal security, is that correct my friend?

~A.  Yes, that is correct.

~Q. Is there a particular reason why you feel personal security is such an issue that you must publish your written work under such a pseudonym as Author N. Cognito? Or are you merely being overly cautious because of the times that we find ourselves living in these days?

~A. Actually I have legitimate reasons for preferring to remain outside of the spotlight, so to speak, for that is where I am most comfortable. And yes, there are other reasons of which I prefer not to recount. Reasons by which any sane individual would take the necessary precautions to remain as grey as possible. I believe that I once read somewhere, it slips my mind exactly where or whom said it, but that a man without enemies has never stood for anything. We shall leave it at that.

~Q. Roger Lima Charley...So can you tell us a little about the inspiration behind this 'self-help' book which you've recently published?

~A. Well, I was at a place in my life's journey where I found myself contemplating a vast many things concerning the past, present and future. But none more so than that of my son whom was  nearing manhood, having been born and grown in my absence, with troubling reports of his behavior weighing heavily upon my heart. The letters I wrote to him did not seem to be enough instruction while my fear was that he may someday find himself upon the same path to purgatory which had brought me down to a place of hell on earth. My instinct told me that, as difficult as it had been for me, he would not be so well prepared for such tribulations were he ever to find himself in the same shoes. So it occurred to me to draw from the well of my hard earned experiences and write down everything that was most crucial in order to set him up with enough knowledge, tools, and wisdom that he would not have to learn through trial and error but have the benefit of years of my hard earned experience. To provide him with an edge to survive the extreme hardships of life.


~Q. So can we ascertain that you initially wrote this book as a block of instruction for your son?


~A. That is correct.


~Q. What made you decide to share it with the public at large, or did you initially intend to share it with the public?


~A. Initially I did not consider sharing it with the public but after having let a few close friends read my manuscript they adamantly advised me that the information within my book could greatly benefit others, particularly individuals whom were struggling to survive in a similar environment, and they pressed upon me the need for this type of information to be shared with the public. Particularly with the subgroup of individuals whom have, or will have, found themselves as a prisoner within a detention camp, jail, or prison. Two of my friends also impressed upon me that the psychological nature of this manual, with it's many tools for stress and fear management, as well as the politics/criminology/criminal science aspects, could also be of great benefit to the civilian public at large and not just to the applicable subgroup implied. One of them asked me a profound question which was the catalyst for my publishing this information to the public.


~Q. Would you like to share that catalyst with us?


~A. Well, he asked me, "What good is the useful knowledge that you've gained through experience if you take it with you when you die?"


~Q. So realizing that we live in a very jaded world and some people can be very critical in a deconstructive manner, what would you say to those whom may or may not say that this book is written by a fraud or that because you use a pseudonym that you can not be checked out and verified as a legitimate authority concerning the knowledge you're sharing from your personal life experiences? (And I only ask this because there seems to be a fixation for some people these days to attack the credentials of anyone whom publishes a relatively successful book.)


~A. That is fine and I agree that we should question everything and pay attention to detail. I was taught to believe nothing you hear and half of what you see. Which perhaps is a jaded philosophy so I can somewhat relate to such distrustful individuals. My sincere answer to them, if there were such critics, would be that the information presented in my book, while being able to benefit the civilian public at large, was and is written more specifically for the benefit of 'at risk' youth and 'at risk' adults whom are either on a path to incarceration or have already been sentenced to incarceration. Such a target group, particularly the ones already having to survive within that world, will recognize the value and truth of the material within my book because they are the ones experiencing it for themselves. The public at large, unless they work within the penal system, will in fact not know for certain whether the information within the pages of my self-help manual are factual anymore than we can assess whether a cooking book is factual until we have tested the recipes and applied it to our specific needs. Veterans or active duty members with similar military training will read the information within the pages of my book and recognize it right away. For most civilians, and most veterans for that matter, having never received the same training and information found in a portion of this book will not, in fact, know whether the information is coming from a legitimate background. To put it simply, anyone whom has, or is having to, walk the same paths will relate to the information in this book and validate it's legitimacy. Those whom have not, are not, most likely can not because the rule of thumb, as my good brother once told me, is that unless someone has walked through it, or is currently walking through it, they can not relate to it. In my own words, "Real recognizes real." I'm out to help those whom are walking through it, or at risk to walk through it, and that is my target audience. If anyone else takes an interest in the viable information within the pages of this brief book than my hope is that something I've shared from my personal experience will positively impact their life...To help just one person, or even save a single life, would make it worth all of the effort I've placed into publishing this very personal work.


~Q. Having read both your manuscript and your published work I noticed that you don't speak very highly of criminal gangs or syndicates. May we assume that is also one of the reasons why you've published under a pseudonym?


~A. That assumption would be correct. Many authors, including the famous Mark Twain, published under pseudonyms for various personal reasons without any criticism from their readers so I see no reason why my readers would have a problem with this. Again, real recognized real and anyone walking through the same tribulations will understand right away the value of the information presented in this self-help book.


~Q. So can we infer that although your book was written to a specific target audience you feel that there may be other individuals within the general civil population whom may also glean valuable and useful information within the pages of this rather brief book?


~A. Yes.


~Q. Can you address a little bit why you chose to publish your book in paper back form and in the type size which it is written in?


~A. Yes, I wanted not only the public to have access to this self-help book but most importantly my target group which of whom many are being held prisoner within maximum security facilities which do not permit hard jacket books of any kind to come in through the mailing system. So it was important to publish this book with a soft cover for security reasons in order for everyone to have access to the information being shared. The type-size that it is written in was for economic reasons and most importantly to allow the book to be less intimidating to readers whom are put off by larger or thicker books. A smaller or thinner book is more compact and more apt to be read by individuals whom normally wont commit to reading a larger or thicker book. I wanted to reach as many people as possible and touch their lives in a positive way so a lot of thought went into how to make this book more accessible and less intimidating to my potential readers.


~Q. Is that also why you chose to offer it at such a low discount price with Lulu Publishing?


~A. Again yes, my intention was not motivated by monetary gain nor by self-promotion but by a desire to hopefully impact someone else's life in a positive manner by sharing knowledge gained through my education and personal experiences. I would have given the book away to the public if it were possible but the publisher must get their money back so we offered it at the lowest price available at Lulu Publishing. Let me also mention that it is more expensive if one orders it from the bigger name vendors.


~Q. Having mentioned that the initial motivation for writing this book was to share this information with your troubled son whom was approaching manhood, did you send him a copy as soon as you published it and did he read it?


~A. That is a rather painful subject for me but I will share that with everyone. I wrote this book while still serving a sentence for attempted homicide in prison but could not get it published from within prison without having outside help. So upon my release I began to work towards publishing my manuscript but within four months of my release from prison I lost my teenage son. He never got to see the book I wrote for him published so I was going to scrap the manuscript when a fellow veteran and dear friend advised me that I should still publish it and share this valuable information with the world in the hope that it may help someone else's child or love one. So after some procrastination that is what I did and I mailed a copy to my son's maternal grandfather. If he read it I can not say since we've drifted apart after the loss of my son, his grandson, and his daughter's remarriage.


~Q. Taking into account that there will always be trolls and destructive critics, What would you say to a pessimistic individual whom may or may not say that you've agreed to let me publish this interview in order to promote yourself or increase book sales for lucrative gain?


~A. Well first I would point out that if I wished to promote myself I'd have published my work under my real name in order to take credit and get my name in the spotlight. Secondly, if my intention were monetary success I would not sell it at the lowest possible price that Lulu Publishing would permit while including the largest percent-discount allowed by Lulu Publishing.


~Q. What would you like to ultimately see happen with the information in this book and why?


~A. I would like to get copies into every prison library, copies to everyone's relative whom is at risk or has recently entered the penal system, and get a copy to every corrections' officer for the purpose of positively impacting the lives of others and promoting a safer environment for both prisoners and corrections administrators. A great deal of violence ensues from a lack of psychological and emotional stress management, miscommunication, hopelessness, despair, and all around naivety to the inner workings of the criminal subculture. Knowledge saves lives while the ignorant perish for lack of knowledge. We all have something to offer that can help others and make this world a little better place before our time on earth is through. From dirt and manure springs forth beautiful flowers and nourishing plants if given proper cultivation, so everyone can take even the bad experiences of their life and use it to touch lives in a positive way and make this world a little bit better with our small contributions. I wanted to take lemons and make lemon-aid, then share it with those in need.
(End of Inquiry)
~Mr. Author N. Cognito, I wish to thank you for your time and for openly sharing so much with me and the readers of this blog. Hopefully anyone interested in reading your self-help book or those whom have already read it will have a better understanding of the author, thanks to this personal interview. There will be a link to your book from Lulu Publishing, because they are offering it at a much lower price than other book vendors, in case any readers wishes to acquire a copy for their self or a loved one.


~I must say that I've read Author N. Cognito's book and was very impressed at how much detailed information and practical knowledge was presented in such a short read. I believe it was only about seven brief chapters and a conclusion, making it a short read. But the amount of information to absorb and the interesting method in which it just flows spurned me to read it over several times while absorbing something new each time I read through it.


~Also, let me add that although the information presented maybe drawn from the author's tribulations within the penal system, while serving time for protecting his pregnant fiancée, and drawing heavily upon his military training, there was nevertheless much information and tools laid out within this book that one could find useful to daily life within our urbanized, exceedingly stressful, and tumultuous world of increasing criminality.


~My acquaintances from varying walks of life, including former convicts, current correctional officers, veterans of infantry special operations units, self-defense instructors, criminology majors, and even a catholic priest have expressed that the practical knowledge shared within this book by Author N. Cognito is applicable to both daily life as well as surviving extremely harsh situations from which the inspiration of this self-help book came. The target audience was blatant when I first began skimming over the first chapter of this book but the information was presented in such a flowing style that I soon found myself half way through the book. By the end I had realized that the information and principles presented by the author would benefit me in my civilian relationships, jobs, struggles and personal outlook on life.


~I've since purchased additional copies for friends and relatives while one of my long time friends has purchased several copies and had the vendor mail them to a prison library in the Northern United States.


~If you're interested in self-help books this one draws upon the author's elite military training and education in counter-detention, counter-interrogation/interrogation, battle-proofing the mind, self hypnosis, physical fitness, strategic thinking, self-defense, survival, psychology, political strategy, criminology, and criminal science, as well as personal testimonies of positive evolution and transformation than I would recommend this very brief and low priced book to you.
~
~http://www.lulu.com/shop/author-n-cognito/when-hell-becomes-your-home-how-i-survived-14years-in-prison/paperback/product-21937195.html
~
~11February2015.

~Differences Between Bareknuckle Punching Opposed To Gloved Punching~

THERE ARE MILITARY PROFESSIONALS WHOM TRAIN IN COMBAT-SPORT METHODS OF BOXING WHILE BELIEVING THAT THEY WILL STRIKE THE SAME WAY BAREKNUCKLE AS ONE DOES WEARING GLOVES~

~During WWI and WWII many military hand-to-hand-combat instructors, like Captain Allan Corstorphin Smith, William Ewart Fairbairn, and Eric Sykes taught that the edge of hand/axe hand strike and palm strike/chin jab, prevalent in the Japanese Jujutsu schools, was a safer and superior method of striking with the empty hands in close combat. However there were other instructors whom taught 'bareknuckle' boxing methods to infantrymen during both world wars, along with grappling methods, as a viable option for close-combat.

~When we say 'bareknuckle' boxing methods, for the purpose of this article, that would include any method of empty hand combat that includes utilizing the hands for striking. Most specifically, that include using the fists for striking in close-combat whether it be English boxing, American rough and tumble, boxe française (also known as French Savate), Thai boxing, Chinese Ving Tsun boxing or the many other schools which utilize the bare knuckle fists as impact weapons.

~Today many military units, particularly western military units, have programs which incorporate various methods of boxing into their close-combat training. Some programs on bases out in the sand box train in western sport based boxing mixed with Brazilian Jiu-jutsu. Some train in Thai boxing mixed with grappling, while some units are even training in Gung-fu based methods.

~Of course the Marine Corp has their MCMAP and the Army has it's MACP while the Army Special Operations have SOCP. But down range some units are actively supplementing their training with individual unit programs which incorporate full contact sparring in sport-based boxing, Muay Thai, gungfu, or kick-boxing with some element of grappling often involved. The 82nd Airborne as well as other units often incorporate some form boxing along with grappling methods into their close-combat training and sparring sessions.

~Contact sparring along the lines of sport-based boxing methods like Western boxing, Thai boxing, American kick-boxing, Savate, or any other school of boxing is great for developing an aggressive spirit in a soldier or marine. In fact, if the goal is merely to foster fighting spirit and impact inoculation with no intention of ever engaging an enemy with lethal intent during a close quarter combat situation than carry-on. 

~ However, if this training is also meant to prepare the fighting man for the method by which he will engage and bring down his adversary in a close-combat situation than something must be said about the difference in how one must deliver a strike using the bare-knuckles as opposed to delivering a strike during sparring with hand protection, like gloves.

~There are some schools of thought which admonish the idea of using the bare-knuckles to strike the hard bony targets of the face and head during a frantic close-combat situation due to the risk of self-injury in the form of a boxer's fracture or busted knuckle. After all if the world heavy weight champion, Mike Tyson, can break his well trained hand in a 1988 street fight against fellow professional boxer Mitch 'Blood' Green than certainly anybody can suffer the same fate. And since professional soldiers are predominantly 'gun slingers' whom fight with weapons and operate sensitive equipment on the battle field, while performing sling-load operations, rappelling, fast-roping, mountaineering, swimming and airborne operations in the field, a badly damaged hand could hinder one's mission capabilities.

~However, there is another school of thought that propagates the use of bareknuckle punching in a close-combat defense situation. And it reflects in the amount of time devoted to their boxing, kickboxing, Thai boxing, etc...

~Ideally all military battles should be fought with weapons, but close-combat training is vital and necessary for when an adversary is able to close distance by surprise or deception before a weapon can be deployed and utilized to eliminate the threat. This has happened at check points while I.D. are being reviewed or when moving through crowds. Sometimes an ally at very close range can turn the tables and become an attacking enemy. Movements through fatal funnels are always potentially a close-combat situation. At any of these times the individual warfighter must fall back on their close-combat training.

~"Train how you will fight." This is a phrase every military personnel in a combat MOS or security MOS has heard and one which has a deep element of truth to it. However, sometimes for the risk of injury one must utilize safety equipment in their training. We utilize MILES gear, blank adapters, blanks, airsoft weapons, paint ball, aluminum knives and other safety gear in training. And yes, some include boxing or MMA gloves into their close combat training and sparring.

~So how does wearing boxing or MMA gloves hinder the development of proper punching technique for bareknuckle striking, in the context of military close-combat? Let's go back to training how we fight.

~When we wear hand protection we can throw punches 'to-whom-it-may-concern' while swinging for the fence. If you're American you will get the implication. In other words, we don't have to be so specific in target selection and are capable of putting our full power behind the punch with the added confidence of wearing hand protection. In addition we can pronate our punches aimed at targets located on the human head in the same way that we would pronate our punch when striking the targets of the torso. It seemingly makes a faster punch and with the protection of gloves we don't think twice about delivering the same pronated punch to the head as we do to the torso.

~The main reason for pronating the punch, or twisting the punch, so that it lands with the palm facing downward is that when we strike the targets of the torso our point of impact will be our first two knuckles. The index and middle finger knuckles are a smaller surface area attached to the two thickest metacarpal bones of the hand. This smaller surface area permits deeper penetration into the targets of the human torso such as the liver, solar-plexus, kidneys, and floating ribs. The key words here are deeper penetration.

~Now the problem is that in a bareknuckle situation it isn't prudent to punch the bony surface area of the face using the pronated two-knuckle punch that we use for the targets of the torso. We do not wish to penetrate the bony facial targets in the way that we wish to penetrate the softer torso targets.

~Generally speaking the bones of the face and head are thicker and harder than the delicate metacarpals and knuckles of the human hand. Again, professional heavy weight champion of the world Mike Tyson is a perfect example of why the modern sport-based boxing technique of pronating the punch to the face has it's disadvantages. In physics we learn that when two opposing forces meet the greater force will prevail. 

-Also, the same amount of force being delivered through an impact is also returned back to the object performing the impact. So the weaker of the two structures will be the one to give under the impact. If you could deliver 300psi (pounds-of force-per square inch) through a bareknuckle punch delivered to the face of another human being then the same amount of 'psi' impacting the bones of the face are also impacting the bones and knuckles of your hand. The 'psi' is shared when it is returns back into your hand, after impact upon the bone of the face.

~Let us also consider that, according to many scientific experiments, trained boxers hit with more 'psi' than martial art black belts. So when one uses that amount of force, which one develops through training with hand protection, and applies it to a bareknuckle close-combat situation where one's fists will be brought to bear against the hard bony facial targets we increase the amount of 'psi' being returned to the metacarpals and knuckles of the unprotected fist.

~Now let us examine the fact that a 'sport-based' boxer who trains and fights with gloves will also wrap and secure the wrists to prevent buckling and injury. When the punch is pronated the structural support in the forearm and wrist is weakened as opposed to when a punch is delivered straight, in a vertical manner. To counter the structural integrity issue common with the pronating, twisting, punch of combat-sports, Western ring boxers, Thai boxers, American kick boxers, Savate boxers will reinforce the wrists, as well as the hands.

~When we examine historical bareknuckle boxing methods like fisticuffs, Ving Tsun (Wing Chun), and Okinawan Toudi, among others, we will find that all punches delivered to the bony structure of the face were delivered with the back three knuckles with the fist in a vertical, or often diagonal, position. With this method the middle knuckle is the primary point of impact while the last two knuckles go along for the ride and support the middle knuckle. This method eliminates the common injury to modern fist fighters which is often referred to by orthopedic doctors as the boxer's fracture, dubbed so for being so prevalent among modern day boxers whom use the pronating (twisting) punch when striking head/facial targets. Especially when fighting bareknuckle.

~Old school bareknuckle boxers and Okinawan fighters understood that the pronating (horizontal) or twisting punch is of value when delivering the (penetrating) two-knuckle punch to the targets of the torso. The two knuckle, twisting, punch penetrates between ribs and digs deeper into the torso to damage soft organs. Particularly the liver and kidneys. But when delivering bareknuckle punches to the bony targets of the face/head they always used the vertical, or often diagonal, punch for the superior structural integrity of the fist and the wrist. Wing Chun/Ving Tsun boxers have always used the vertical and diagonal punch because they are a bareknuckle boxing school whose focus is on civilian-self-defense and they are not a competitive 'combat-sport'.

~A simple test one can try at home is to make a fist and place the first two knuckles against the wall, palm facing down, at torso level while applying one's body weight and pressure behind it, as if to push down the wall. This represents a horizontal or pronating punch. Rock the fist back and forth a bit. Now perform the same exercise with the fist at face level, above your shoulders. Notice how the wrist is weaker and the last two knuckles are floating on their own.

~Now perform the same test with the fist in a vertical or even diagonal position, with the thumb side up, and all of your weight and force resting upon the last three knuckles. You will notice that the fist and the wrist is more solid and secure in this position. This is the fist position which you will want to train and utilize when striking the targets above your adversary's clavicle or collar bone in a bareknuckle close-combat situation.

~Let us address perhaps the most important issue of all that separates bareknuckle boxing punches from gloved punches. The battle field is very different from the combat-sports arena. With the advent of wraps and gloves a combat-sport fighter can deliver much harder punches to the face/head targets without breaking the delicate metacarpal bones and knuckles in the fists. This makes for a more exciting fight for spectators since the boxers can throw more 'punches-in-bunches' toward the face/head in hopes of a spectacular knockout. It also makes modern combat-sports more lethal due to the amount of concussions received by ring/cage fighters. Without hand protection a bareknuckle punch must be held in check when striking the hard facial/head targets.

~When we strike the bony facial/head targets using bareknuckle punches we mustn't punch 'through' the target with all of our power nor throw 'punches-in-bunches' in the same way that we can with hand protection in the sporting arena. Nor in the way that we do when delivering bareknuckle punches into the softer targets of the torso.

~When executing bareknuckle punches to the bony targets of the face/head the rule of thumb passed down through the centuries is that one must 'snap' back the punch as soon as impact is made. The power comes from the quickness of the impact while the 'snapping' back upon impact allows the kinetic force and 'psi' to travel through the target without all of the force returning back into your fist. 

~Modern sport boxing and MMA coaches often teach to 'punch-through' the target. To try to drive one's fist through the adversaries face and out the back of their head. This is very effective in the ring or cage considering that the athlete is training and going into a bout wearing hand protection but here we are discussing 'bareknuckle' punching for a military close-combat situation since so many military units abroad and in the sand-box are currently training in various boxing methods for CQC/H2H.

~Old school soldiers and Marines going back to WWI and WWII whom received bareknuckle boxing instruction in their close-combat/hand-to-hand training were taught that the rule of thumb in bareknuckle punching in actual combat was:

A. When striking the torso, punch 'through' the target.

B. When striking the face/head, always 'snap-back' your punch upon impact.

~This seems to be lost knowledge among modern day fighters whom transition their combative skills from combat-sports into military close-combat/hand-to-hand/CQC training programs with the intention of being battle ready in a frantic life or death situation against a highly motivated, dedicated, enemy intent upon killing them so that he can earn a special place in paradise.

~If you are going to incorporate modern day western boxing/Thai boxing/MMA into your military combatives programs and individual unit training than it would behoove you to consider the necessary modifications which must be incorporated into your 'boxing' training. 

~Lets reiterate what we have discussed here in this article about the difference between bareknuckle striking and sport-based striking as it relates to 'punching' and the transition from combat-sports to the battlefield, or one's area of operation. Hoo-ah?

~1. The warfighter must use a vertical, or diagonal, punch when striking targets located above the clavicle (face/head) but may use a pronating/twisting punch, vertical, or diagonal punch when striking the targets of the torso below the clavicle.

~2. The warfighter must 'snap-back' his punches upon impact when striking the targets of the face/head but 'drive-through' the targets of the torso. Snapping-punches delivered to the face and digging-punches to the body.

~Let us make mention that in the realm of military combatives, unlike combat-sports, it is important to drill simulated strikes in training which would be illegal in combat-sports. Rabbit-punches using the radial bone to attack the back of the neck in close-combat is highly effective and dangerous, which is why it is illegal in combat-sports. 

--Everyone likes to discuss dirty tactics like eye gouging, biting, PPC, spitting in the eyes, fish hooking, striking the testicles, kicking the knees, striking the trachea, tearing off the soft tissue targets of the face and head, when they discuss the difference between combat-sports like MMA and CQC/Hand-to-Hand Combat. But there are many other attacks that are simple, efficient, and highly effective while being illegal to every combat-sport arena. 

-This is not meant to be an article for disseminating those specific attacks, which every warfighter should be training, but one need not look any further than studying every illegal attack banned from both catch-wrestling and boxing. Also study the attacks which ancient Greeks banned from their Olympic Pankra'tia matches, which were also the reasons why the Spartans were banned from competing in the same matches.

~If we wish to prepare for CQC/Combatives we need not look to modern innovations but rather examine that which was used with great success in the past. In more recent military history the greatest proving ground for effective methods of both training and employing combatives/CQC/hand-to-hand combat for the life and death struggles faced by the Infantryman or special operations commando would be both World Wars. No wars since have seen as much close-combat as WWI and WWII.

~Considering that the adversaries were Germans, trained in both western and eastern martial arts, and Imperial Japanese, trained in Asian martial arts, yet the American and allied troops were consistently able to prevail in close-combat engagements with the enemies at a much higher success rate is no small testament to the methods trained and employed by the military men of that era. 

-But everyone wishes to reinvent the wheel and some believe that the same techniques that achieve success in the sporting-ring will apply, unmodified, to the battle-field or area of operations. Let's also remark that combat-sports of that era still retained much of their practical self-defense/street credit compared to the evolution they've undergone with the advent of the post WWII commercialization of the competitive-martial/combat arts.

-As for the aforementioned Okinawan Ryu of pugilism let's give honorable mention to the most lethal empty hand (Kara te) school known to mankind. . .Uechi Ryu, aka Panghai-Noon, of Okinawa. 

-The legendary Shinjo Kiyohide sensei, aka Superman of Okinawa, is perhaps the most renown master of Uechi Ryu in my earthly life time. 

-Uechi Ryu is a tier one bare knuckle school of physical training, discipline and self defense which combines indigenous Okinawan Toudi with Chinese Panghai-noon dragon, tiger and crane boxing. 🐉 🐅 🐦 

~Si vis pacem para bellum...In omnia paratus.

12February2015, 

♣Hoo-ah♣

Soldier's Book Review: WHEN HELL BECOMES YOUR HOME, By Author N. Cognito.

                                                                BOOK REVIEW


   ~If you're interests delve into the realms of criminology, criminal science, psychology, stress/fear management, people management, self-protection, combatives, counter-detention, survival, fighting fitness, Budo, prison politics, prison sub-culture, spirituality and much more than this is a book which will grab your attention and hold onto it until the last page is turned over.
   
   ~Written as a self-help/personal development book, When Hell Becomes Your Home: How I Survived 14Years In Prison by Author N. Cognito, this manual is actually so much more!
   
   ~Not only a valuable manual for a newly incarcerated love one or someone whom possibly faces incarceration and wishes to possess the psychological tools and wisdom to survive the most challenging moment of their life, but also an extremely insightful manual for anyone whom works in corrections, teaches self-defense/self-protection, works in law enforcement, studies at university, wishes to better understand the psychology of human survival, works with at risk delinquent youth, majors in sociology, has ever been on a spiritual quest, or simply has a respect for what it takes to over come extreme circumstances in the face of major adversity.
   
   ~This personal development book is written by an elite U.S. Army soldier with no criminal history whom was thrust into the prison system and forced to survive on his own within a world that he knew nothing about. Imagine being a soldier trapped alone deep behind enemy lines, in an urban environment, vastly outnumbered by superior forces, unarmed, no back up, no one coming to rescue you, no chance of escape and evasion, surrounded by atrocious brutality, no adequate medical care, no adequate nutrition, and for the most part ignorant to the local culture...How would you feel? Most importantly, how would you survive?
   
   ~The author of this book survived very similar situations, over a fourteen year period, learning through trial and error. Drawing upon his personal military training and experiences the author adapted and overcame as a survivor until one day while contemplating the question in his mind of how well his own son, without the same benefit of the author's prior training, would fair should he find himself in such a horrible place the author began to write for his son all of the most important things he would need to know.
   
   ~Sitting in his prison cell his pen began to write, as if writing to his own son, the most vital pieces of information that one would need to possess in order to have a fighting chance of surviving such a world and avoiding the most dangerous pit falls that await the uninitiated. Only later was he made to realize that this work should be shared with the public in order to help others in the way he had desired to help his own son.
   
  ~The information within the pages of the personal-development/self-help book are drawn strictly from the author's personal experience. Some have said that experience is the best and most cruel teacher of all. The knowledge and wisdom that the author had to earn the hard way: through a life of adversity and tribulations, is being readily given to the reader without having themselves earn it through the same crucibles.
   
   ~I would classify this work as being a self-help/personal-development book derived from the author's autobiographical experiences. Thus, in my humble opinion, making it more valuable than the theoretical. For if one should teach from theory and another should teach from their personal experience than with whom does the wisdom lie?
   
   ~This book is available in paperback print at Lulu.com and is offered 'on sale' for $3.63 U.S. dollars. If interested parties would log onto the book publishing site Lulu.com and search for either the title When Hell Becomes Your Home or the name Author N. Cognito then a copy can be readily attained at such a discount price. It is the author's desire to share life saving knowledge with readers more than to merely accrue monetary profits, so he offers it at the lowest price possible.


    ~Having read this book myself, as have many of my associates, I must say that the amount of knowledge contained in such a relatively brief book is astounding and yet written in a manner that one's attention never strays from it's pages. Though originally intended to give the reader the tools necessary to survive within the dangerous criminal underworld of prison the concepts and tools found within these pages just as easily apply to the dangerous streets of civil society while providing the reader with vital tools for dealing with stress, fear, anger, grief, and an assortment of other challenges we all face in our daily lives!~


http://www.lulu.com/shop/author-n-cognito/when-hell-becomes-your-home-how-i-survived-14years-in-prison/paperback/product-21914575.html