Violence, Blunders, and Fractured Jaws-Advanced
Awareness Techniques and Street Etiquette
Written by Marc "Animal" Cong. Published by Paladin Press in 1992.
There is a reason why I have chosen this book to be the first in my recommended list. It is awesome. This book is a must for street cops and self defense instructors. It is what I think of as a academic bible on self defense. Academic, not technique. That means for those of you who like a lot of pictures, get a video. I believe that self defense books showing techniques are obsolete anyway. That is what videos and DVD's are for. Mr. McYoung has put into words some very intangible concepts. How to avoid stepping on someone else's feet by learning cultural differences, both ethnic and environmental. Etiquette basics that bike or street gangs might have. Knowing what tattoos, scaring's and piercing can mean. The rules of making eye contact. How trouble often evolves around women and gambling. The importance of magic, religion and juju to street people. And awareness building techniques to train yourself. Most of the time knowing when to leave or not go somewhere in the first place can keep you safe. This book is not only full of info, but the Animal has a humor about him that makes it easyer to absorb all of this data.
