Shiroi Kage ryu
Why the knife? I have had a concealed carry permit for pistol in NY and PA for over 35 years, so why the knife? I have heard this many times and the answer is, because a sword is too hard to carry concealed. Seriously I trained for over 15 years in kenjutsu (Japanese swordsmanship) and used the methods to expand my knife fighting repertoire.
There are times when a firearm is unbeatable. There was an old saying in Japan about the time that firearms became popular and swords waned. “From the safety of castles walls the gun excels. Once swords cross it is of no use at all.” We don’t live or fight in castles today but the saying holds true when we are talking about distance. The only place a gun holds the advantage is at a distance. Tests have proven that distance needs to be 15-20 feet or more!
What are the possible disadvantages to a firearm? The one most often mentioned is, unlike a gun, a knife never runs out of bullets. But in a private security situation there had better not be that many bullets flying or we encounter some of the other disadvantages of a firearm. Once loosed a bullet cannot be stopped or retracted. It will continue on in basically a straight line until its energy is spent. A knife can be stopped, redirected, and even reversed as needed. I never heard of anyone on the other side of a wall being killed by a misguided knife. Walls, furniture, other people can all be passed through by bullets and an innocent life lost. I have cut myself, at times seriously, but I never had an accidental discharge with a knife which caused unintended injury to anyone else. I have never had a knife ricochet, except off a bone, and no innocent lives were lost because of that either. No collateral damage is acceptable, especially in a sacred space. The degree of damage to an opponent can be more easily controlled by an edged weapon than a firearm. A firearm begins with tremendous energy and retains it for thousands of feet. A knife can take a small bite, or a large one, as the situation demands. If necessary I can easily hit my target with a knife while running at full speed. I cannot hit….. well much of anything when I am running or even walking with a handgun.
There are probably more reasons for “Why the knife.” Right now I think I may have at least given you some food for thought.
Shiroi Kage ryu
Why the knife? I have had a concealed carry permit for pistol in NY and PA for over 35 years, so why the knife? I have heard this many times and the answer is, because a sword is too hard to carry concealed. Seriously I trained for over 15 years in kenjutsu (Japanese swordsmanship) and used the methods to expand my knife fighting repertoire.
There are times when a firearm is unbeatable. There was an old saying in Japan about the time that firearms became popular and swords waned. “From the safety of castles walls the gun excels. Once swords cross it is of no use at all.” We don’t live or fight in castles today but the saying holds true when we are talking about distance. The only place a gun holds the advantage is at a distance. Tests have proven that distance needs to be 15-20 feet or more!
What are the possible disadvantages to a firearm? The one most often mentioned is, unlike a gun, a knife never runs out of bullets. But in a private security situation there had better not be that many bullets flying or we encounter some of the other disadvantages of a firearm. Once loosed a bullet cannot be stopped or retracted. It will continue on in basically a straight line until its energy is spent. A knife can be stopped, redirected, and even reversed as needed. I never heard of anyone on the other side of a wall being killed by a misguided knife. Walls, furniture, other people can all be passed through by bullets and an innocent life lost. I have cut myself, at times seriously, but I never had an accidental discharge with a knife which caused unintended injury to anyone else. I have never had a knife ricochet, except off a bone, and no innocent lives were lost because of that either. No collateral damage is acceptable, especially in a sacred space. The degree of damage to an opponent can be more easily controlled by an edged weapon than a firearm. A firearm begins with tremendous energy and retains it for thousands of feet. A knife can take a small bite, or a large one, as the situation demands. If necessary I can easily hit my target with a knife while running at full speed. I cannot hit….. well much of anything when I am running or even walking with a handgun.
There are probably more reasons for “Why the knife.” Right now I think I may have at least given you some food for thought.
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