jonathan on a path: commentary: good v. evil, part 1

the school i attend is located in an area of Los Angeles that is not very nice.

the campus is situated in a section bounded by predominately lower-income immigrant neighborhoods of differing ethnicities in various states of tension (African-Americans, Latinos, and Asians). approximately 32% of the population live beneath the poverty line and the median income is $17, 597 per year in a city with average housing prices above $300,000-$400,000. around 46% of the residents have less than a high school education. the schools are regularly rated as the worst in Los Angeles County, the state of California, and the United States as a whole.

these conditions entail a predictable state of violent crime. the neighborhood is claimed by 4 rival gangs as their private turf. according to the statistics compiled by the LAPD Southwest Division, crime rates reflect levels of homicide 242% higher than the Los Angeles County per capita average, robbery 368% higher than the county average, and an overall crime index 210% higher.

you can view the relevant (and sobering) statistics at the following links:

the fact that most students at my school spend their time either on campus or the immediately adjacent community does little to absolve them from the conditions of the neighborhood. despite being starving students, they are identified as readily accessible targets by local criminals and gangs. apparently, "starving" is a relative term.

observe the following crime reports excerpted from data compiled by university security for the month of december 2006:

DATE & TIME OF OCCURRENCE: December 8, 2006 at approximately 10:15 PM. LOCATION: 3200 block of University Avenue (off campus). REPORTED OFFENSE: The Complainant reported that both suspects approached him. Suspect #1 struck him in the face, knocking him to the ground. Suspect # 2 searched the complainant's pockets, while Suspect #1 took the complainant's backpack containing property. The suspects then fled with the complainant's property, and were last seen running west bound towards Hoover Street and out of view.
DATE & TIME OF OCCURRENCE: December 9, 2006 at approximately 1:50 AM. LOCATION: Portland Str. and Adams Blvd. (off Campus). REPORTED OFFENSE: The complainant was walking north on Portland Street, when suspect approached him from behind. Suspect struck complainant, and demanded his property. Complainant complied and the suspect took his property and fled out of view.
DATE & TIME OF OCCURRENCE: December 15, 2006 at approximately 2:25 PM. LOCATION: 3600 block of Vermont Avenue (off campus). REPORTED OFFENSE:The Complainant reported that both suspects approached her. Suspect #1 displayed a weapon and demanded property, while Suspect # 2 repeated property demands. The complainant handed her property over to Suspect #1. The suspects then fled with the complainant's property, and dropped the property one block later. The suspects were last seen running west bound on 37th Place and out of view.
DATE & TIME OF OCCURRENCE: December 19, 2006 at approximately 7:20 PM. LOCATION: 600 block of W. 32nd Street (off campus). REPORTED OFFENSE:The Complainants reported that the suspects approached them. Suspect #1 grabbed Complainant #1 and demanded property, while Suspect # 2 searched Complainant #2 and demanded property. Suspect #3 stood by. Complainant #1's property was forcibly removed by Suspect #1. No property was taken from Complainant #2. The suspects then fled with the complainant's property, and drove away east bound towards Figueroa and out of view.
DATE & TIME OF OCCURRENCE: December 20, 2006 at approximately 5:50 PM. LOCATION: 2700 block of Portland Avenue (off campus). REPORTED OFFENSE:The Complainant reported that the suspects approached him from behind. Suspect #1 struck the complainant in the head and placed an unknown weapon against his head demanding property, while Suspect # 2 stood by. The Complainant then ran away from the suspects leaving his property behind. The suspects then fled with the complainant's property, and ran away east bound from 28th Street and out of view.

observe that the times are random, with equal distribution between night and day. all crimes occurred within student residential neighborhoods that are heavily trafficked at all hours. this suggests that crimes occur under conditions when you would least expect them: in broad daylight, within blocks of campus, within the street blocks with a high probability of witnesses. all of which indicates that crime, while not tolerated, is certainly prevalent and that criminals feel they can act with impunity.

i've been told by friends in the LAPD that the local gangs have made it part of their initiation rites to "jack" (in terms of assault, robbery, etc.) students, since we're considered easy targets of opportunity who are 1) likely to have something worth stealing (computers, cell phones, credit cards, pocket cash), and 2) unlikely to pose resistance.

one of the reasons i wanted to start learning a martial art was self-defense. i am, however, realistic in understanding that knowing a martial art does not immunize someone from crime, or make them immune to becoming a victim of crime. i am also fully aware that government and police advise victims that resisting an attack often only serves to provoke a criminal and escalates a situation from dangerous to lethal, and that it is better to simply surrender property to an attacker with the reasoning that it's better to lose a thing than it is to lose a life. in addition, i know that no amount of fighting skill will help you if your assailant uses a gun. furthermore, i understand the admonition of most martial arts instructors that the best way to survive a fight is to avoid it--and this includes running away.

however, this does little to assuage my thoughts on the issue.

this is because i cannot clearly discern the intent of a criminal. they may be engaging in "petty" activities, with the goal of purely assaulting a student to obtain valuable property and notch up a gang initiation rite, but it's not guaranteed. they may be young and impressionable and confused and poor and starving and lonely and desperate and scared, but it's not definite. they may be a part of an oppressed underclass venting a collective air of frustration, but it's not certain. they may be involved in things they can't escape from, and are being pressured to do something they do not want to do, but it's not assured.

and none of this changes the situation if you are the target of a crime.

and none of this is helpful if your attacker decides that it's a bad day and someone has to suffer, and that someone is going to be you. none of this means anything if your attacker decides today is the day to give pain and you are the person who is going to receive it. none of this means anything if your attacker ignores your efforts to comply, overcomes your ability to escape, and decides that violence should exist for no other purpose than violence.

and that's when petty crime becomes not so petty. that's when it becomes deadly.

in ancient China--as well as in the rest of the Far East--martial arts were employed by common people as a means of defending themselves from crime. frequently, it was employed by townspeople, merchants, farmers, and travelers against bandits, warlords, and individual criminals who accosted them in the course of their lives. people didn't learn martial arts solely for enjoyment, education, or enlightenment, but additionally for the very real and very practical purpose of defending themselves, their property, and their livelihoods from kidnapping, theft, robbery, or destruction. in short, they relied on the martial arts to protect themselves against crime. and they relied on the martial arts for their lives.

of course, at this point, i won't even pretend to compare myself against the ancient Chinese. and i won't even offend any current martial arts practitioners by claiming that i have any useful level of skill right now.

truth be told, were i to be made a victim today, i seriously doubt that i could effectively deploy any martial arts skill. i just haven't had the time, nor the practice. i even question if i've acquired the requisite amount of technique. sure, within the past months i have had with my Sifu, i have learned techniques, i have had some practice, and i have spent a lot of time. but it's only been a few months.

it takes years to become proficient. techniques have to be learned in abundance and they have to be learned to be performed properly. techniques have to be practiced so they become natural and instinctive. and time has to be spent so that a person has the physical and mental components necessary to react, act, and finish a fight.

i've only had a few months.

right now, i believe that if something happened to me on the street, and if i were placed in a violent confrontation that offered no means of escape, i would be left relying largely on nothing more than raw aggression, emotion, and adrenaline. in fact, i'm almost certain of it.

i know, because in the few fights i had as a youth, that's what carried me through. i know, because in the school and street fights i've seen, that's what carried the people involved.

it appears to be the recipe humanity relies on in the face of violence. i suppose it's a vestige of the genetic fight-or-flight animalistic impulses. i've been told that in the military soldiers are taught to utilize it, and that they are told that in a combat situation pure aggression is sometimes the only thing that makes the difference between life and death.

but this poses problems. adrenaline runs out. emotion can be spent. aggression can be overcome by superior aggression. strength can be overcome by superior strength. speed overcome by superior speed. there are situations when your attacker is bigger, faster, and stronger than you are. especially if they're younger. especially if they've lived their lives in harder surroundings. especially if they're more desperate. especially if they don't care what happens--to them, or you, or anybody. especially when all they want is to see violence propagated in the world.

martial arts training is supposed to rectify this, for a number of reasons:

skill. skill in the use of proper techniques and fighting strategy. martial arts training is supposed to provide sufficient skill to allow a person to defend themself effectively without relying on physical attributes or raw aggression.
senses. senses in reading potential confrontations and the intent of the people around you. martial arts training is supposed to develop a person's ability to read danger, and thereby avoid them before they are realized.
projection. projection of an appearance that deters others from identifying you as an easy target. martial arts is supposed to help a person gain an aura of capability--what Sifu labeled as the "shen" in the jing chi shen (see previous posts).

it's partly for these reasons (other than cross-training and health) that i continue with the martial arts instruction. because i know that while right now i might rely on things like aggression, emotion, or adrenaline, those things will only carry me so far. because i know that at some point, i am going to need to rely on something else. because i know that i'm in an area where i may need these things to survive.

i know, i know...nothing helps against a gun. it is better to surrender property than a life. never escalate a crime, especially if it is for petty material. and i know: martial arts doesn't guarantee anything; there are proficient martial artists who are made victims of crime every day.

but what if the attacker doesn't want just petty property? what if the attacker doesn't let me escape? what if the attacker wants me to suffer? what are my chances of survival without martial arts then?

and that's my point. no, against a gun i wouldn't really envision martial arts making a difference. no, i have no intention of actively seeking out situations to deploy martial arts techniques. no, i don't expect to be made a victim anytime soon like tomorrow, next week, or next year--i'm not paranoid.

but i do want to improve my probability of survival if i ever was forced into a violent situation and there was no escape. some odds are better than no odds.

and that's why i'm taking Sifu's instructions so seriously.

because it may make a difference between life and death.

and because sometimes petty crimes are not so petty.