Kris Wilder - The Little Black Book of Violence

If you are in a martial arts program or sign up for a weekend self-defense course, you may have the opportunity to practice responding to “woofers” who play the bad guy’s role in the interview process. Instructors can help you learn the right ways to deal with tense situations by play-acting, leading you through various scenarios and then debriefing your performance afterward. If you do not have access or are not interested in this sort of training, it is still prudent to at least visualize such encounters and think about what your response options might be.

The following types of interviews were first codified by Marc “Animal” MacYoung in his book Safe in the City: A Streetwise Guide to Avoid Being Robbed, Raped, Ripped Off, Or Run Over (co-written with Chris Pfouts).

1. Hot Interviews.Hot interviews are sudden, unexpected, and frequently powerfully emotional. Maybe you are minding your own business nursing a beer when suddenly a guy gets in your face and begins shouting obscenities. Or, perhaps, you get the classic, “What are you looking at?” line. This is not a physical attack yet, but rather an emotional one. If you are not accustomed to dealing with this type of extreme outburst and react in a dazed or confused manner, you will almost certainly be perceived as an easy victim. Physical violence will surely follow while you are too disoriented to respond coherently.

You must immediately shift to Condition Red, demonstrating resolute commitment to defend yourself with countervailing force in order to fail this type of interview. This means you look and act as if you’re ready to tee off on the guy without actually taking any action (yet). If you are a trained martial artist, straighten your spine, control your breathing, and set yourself for attack while verbally fending off the adversary. Keep your hands in front of you and make a fence that allows you sufficient space in which to work. A calm, prepared demeanor can be quite intimidating to folks who know how to read it. Most thugs are very astute at reading body language; after all, they don’t survive too long on the street without that skill.

If you are not a trained fighter, you can do a good job of faking it by centering yourself, keeping your hands up with your arms bent and elbows down to keep some space between you and the bad guy, and balancing your weight evenly on both feet. Rather than getting ready to fight, be prepared to bolt to safety. Ask a police officer sometime, it’s very hard to contain someone who really wants to get away from you. Use this to your advantage.

Regardless of your level of training or preparedness, remember that he has not attacked yet. You legally cannot thump him first in most cases. Demonstrating that you are ready to do so, however, may very well end the encounter without the need for violence.

Criminals, bullies, and thugs choose their victims carefully, preying on oblivious, feeble, or otherwise ill-prepared individuals who make easy targets. Before they strike, they look you over to evaluate their odds of success, using hot, escalating, regular, silent, or prolonged interviews. After all, it’s best when pain only goes one way—from them to you. Consequently, the less you look and act like a victim during this examination process, the safer you will be. It helps to know what you might face and visualize how best to respond ahead of time. The set up typically involves four elements, dialogue, deception, distraction, and destruction. If you can see through his ruse, you can force the other guy to abort short of the fourth step, the actual attack.

2. Escalating Interviews.Unlike a hot interview, which begins with immediate hostility, an escalating interview starts out fairly benign yet rapidly turns hostile. The bad guy will test your boundaries by making increasingly outrageous demands or exhibiting more and more contemptible behavior. This type of thing is much easier to shut off early than late. Each concession in each encounter establishes a pattern or habit of conceding. For example, he might begin with a statement like, “You’re in my chair!” and then proceed to demand payment for rent. Every time he succeeds in pushing your boundaries, his confidence will grow. He will go from abrasive, to abusive, to outright physically violent.

The key to stopping an escalating interview is the same as it is for a hot one, demonstrating that you are prepared to respond violently if necessary. The good news, however, is that you get a bit more time to wrap your mind around what is happening and formulate a proper response. Pay attention to escape routes, impromptu weapons, bystanders, and other factors that might come into play if things get rough.

3. Regular Interviews.Regular interviews generally begin with some type of distraction such as asking for directions, the time, or a cigarette. While he is talking to you, the adversary will be evaluating your awareness, calculating his odds of success, and stealthily positioning himself to attack. This is a common tactic of muggers and criminals who want to steal your stuff but can also be used by bullies looking for a fight as well.

Be wary of the dialogue; it is a set-up. The appropriate response to whatever the other guy asks for is “no.” Furthermore, insist that he keeps his distance. A five-foot rule is useful. Shout something along the lines of “back off… give me five feet.” There are few legitimate reasons for a person you don’t know to be closer than five feet from you in a public place. Five feet gives you enough space to spot threat indicators, weapons, and offensive movements and get a moment of time in which to take defensive action.

Sneak attackers may use just about any dirty trick to disguise their intent, get close enough to launch their assault, and keep you from responding until it is too late to defend yourself. This process, sometimes called the “four Ds” by self-defense experts, includes dialogue, deception, distraction, and destruction.

Dialogue creates a distraction while letting your adversary control the distance between you. It is the set up to get him close enough to his intended victim where he can use the element of surprise to strike with impunity. That means that he must be within three to five feet away in order to hit you with anything other than a projectile weapon. The closer he is the less warning you get and the harder it is to defend yourself.

Deception disguises the predatory nature of the adversary, letting him blend into the crowd and making him appear as harmless as possible until it is too late. Much of deception is based on body language and behavior, though it can include things like wearing clothing designed to blend in and disguise the presence of weapons too.

Distraction sets up the attack, typically by asking a question or otherwise using verbal techniques. It can also include gestures or body movements such as when he suddenly widens his eyes and looks over your shoulder to get you to look behind you and expose your back.

Destruction is the physical assault, robbery, rape, or murder. It could be something more innocuous such as a pick pocketing too. When violence is in the cards, if he can successfully distract you he can get in at least one or two good blows before you realize what is going on and attempt to respond. It’s very tough to fight back once you are surprised, behind the count, injured, and reeling from the pain.

Despite these four Ds, it is exceedingly rare for the victim to be caught totally unaware. For example, even if he was sucker punched, most assault victims report that they saw the blow coming but did not have time to react. Even when long-range weapons are involved (such as firearms), fights typically begin close up. Unarmed confrontations always take place at close range. If you can see your attacker, you should not be surprised by an attack. Your level of awareness and preparedness should ratchet up a bit whenever a stranger is close enough to strike, at least until you have given him a thorough once-over and dismissed any threat.