Everything Self Defense Columbia, South Carolina

  Finding Freedom in Prison Posted: 25 Aug 2011 05:00 AM PDT   Photo by Milan Ilnyckyj Last Saturday I got arrested. Having never been arrested before, it feels strange to write that. Like most Americans I associate getting arrested with committing egregiously unlawful acts that require punishment … or, you know, getting drunk in public and being picked up by the cops. For a short video clip that happens to feature my anxieties leading into the action, see below: In my case, though, I was arrested for willfully breaking the law for something I believe in. Together with 60-some others, last Saturday I plopped down in front of President Obama’s front lawn in Washington D.C. Normally you’re allowed to sit down on a sidewalk on a summer morning. However, due to security laws, you can’t do it in front of the White House. Yet, when the D.C. Park Police told our group to go, we all stayed put. We were there to commit non-violent civil disobedience. I’m generally

By: Mason Snyder Published: August 26, 2011 LITTLE RIVER, SC - The second suspect involved in a Little River home invasion was released from the hospital and arrested Friday. Police charged Anthony Joshua Hess , 17, Longs with two counts of attempted murder and 1 st degree burglary. Hess was wounded in one of multiple shooting incidents that happened Monday. Friday Hess was transported to J. Reuben Long Detention Center. You can read the rest of the article HERE . Sensei Chris Feldt Samurai Karate S

Random Acts Of Kindness The Parents Council weighs in during Back To School Week about a very touchy subject: bullying. With the 2011-12 school year about to start, this week’s Parents Council discussion was inspired by the following, very timely post we’ve seen going around Facebook: “Special request to all you kids returning to school in the next few days: If you see someone who is struggling to make friends or being bullied because he/she doesn't have many friends or because they are shy or not as pretty or not dressed in the most "in" clothes -- PLEASE step up. Say hi or smile at them in the hallway. You never know what that person might be facing outside of school. Your kindness might just make a BIG difference in someone's life! Deserves 2B Reposted” This is a simple and great message for kids, parents and frankly, everyone to heed. Sometimes we are all too quick to judge someone based on how they look, what they wear, how they talk or who the

By The Associated Press   Dale Richardson(Credit: CBS/WLTX) LADSON, S.C. (AP) Dale Richardson was saved during a tent revival 32 years ago, was called to preach a Lords word in 2006 and, for a past year, had served as pastor during Freedom Free Will Baptist Church, a modest red brick structure on a South Carolina side road running along a railroad track. Now hes in jail, charged with abduction as well as raping three women during gunpoint dual of them in a trailer behind a church as well as abduction a fourth who was not sexually assaulted. According to an incident report, about noon on a Saturday last month, Richardson picked up a woman as well as gave her a ride. When a 20-year-old tried to get out of a car, Richardson allegedly pulled a gun, bound her hands, covered her head as well as took her to a gray-blue trailer home behind a church. You can find the rest of the article HERE . Sensei Chris Feldt Samurai Karate Studio Columbia, SC 29229 803-462-9425

I just recently completed a challenge course and received my 2 year certification in CPR and AED training. Honestly, this is a requirement of the University of South Carolina , as all professors teaching courses in the physical education program must be certified. However, I believe learning CPR is just good self defense, as you never know when you might need to use it. Consider some of the statistics I reviewed at the Women's Heart Foundation: Heart Attack Facts 1.5 million heart attacks occur in the United States each year with 500,000 deaths. More than 233,000 women die annually from cardiovascular disease. A heart attack occurs about every 20 seconds with a heart attack death about every minute. Sudden death is more common among women with heart attack. The National Registry of Myocardial Infarctions (New England Journal Med., 22Jul99) reports that women have a worse outcome than men after having a heart attack. Data showed that women under the age of 50 had t

For those of you that follow me, you know that I believe there are primarily 3 main reasons women get assaulted.  And they are, body language, lack of awareness and being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Today, I would like to talk more about awareness and consider some of the warning signs of possible attack.  I call these NON VERBAL ATTACK INDICATORS. Remember, in most instances, your assailant is looking for an easy target and more often than not, the bad guy will take his time to watch and assess his selection.  There are some assailants that have been known to have studied their victims over a considerable length of time.  When I do my self defense workshops, I will often refer to this as "window shopping" .    The attacker is trying to decide which women to attack, so he is window shopping for the one he thinks is going to be the weakest and put up the least amount of resistence.  Remember, assault is meant to be quick.....and if the plan is to abduct you, th

People ask me all the time, why do I talk about domestic violence as part of my self defense workshops or classes? It's simple really! Because South Carolina ranks 6th in the nation in domestic violence and is currently 10th on the list for domestic violence murders! While I love South Carolina, the cold hard truth is women in this state are more likely to be attacked by someone they know, then a complete stranger. As such, here are some statistics that I pulled a couple of years ago, that haven't changed much since then: Domestic Violence Statistics Sex of Victim Male 24.0% Female 76.0% Relationships Ex-spouse 2.5% Family 31.5% Romantic 28.3% Marital 37.7% Substance Use Alcohol 23.6% Drugs .7% Drugs & alcohol 1.2% No substance 74.5% Offenses Homicide .2% Sexual violence 2.6% Robbery .3% Aggravated

As part of my beginner karate class at USC, I take 5-10 minute of every class and share topics that are related to assault that I want my students to understand. There are many reasons why women get assaulted, however, most studies show that a woman gets targeted for assault for 3 MAIN reasons.  You might be surprised with the answers.  No, it doesn't have to do with how HOT the women looks or how SEXY she might be dressed. AND yes, nearly 25% of all assault is female on man, so these rules apply to both sexes. Reason # 1 Research shows the number one reason women get assaulted is due to poor body language .  In other words, how you walk, how you carry yourself when you are out in public is a large factor in determining if you get targeted. Do you recognize yourself in this description? Do you walk with your head down, your shoulders slumped, your chest in?  Do you generally keep your hands in your pockets? Do you walk with purpose or just shuffle along at a slow pace?  Do you m

This is a guest post, from Anne Jacoby , an expert in personal safety and a domestic violence survivor....                                                                                                                                                                                                               At ten o’clock that night, Lindsay had checked that her doors were locked, as usual, before shutting the lights off and going to bed. She assumed she was safe within the protection of her apartment walls. A typical night coupled with a typical attitude. At four o’clock in the morning, Lindsay’s night drastically changed. Her worst fear had crept out of her nightmares and forced its way into her bedroom. “Don’t make a sound or I’ll kill you…just do exactly what I say” —  a ruthless command and a lethal threat on an innocent human being.  This was not a practical joke carried out by a friend.  It was real and it was happening to Lindsay — a tall, think, ultra-feminine woman who ha

"Time's Up!": "Hoochie Mama?" What I Heard!