Comments for The Black Belt Mindset Blog

Comment on “Man, 65, kills teen who knocked him off bicycle” by Joe

Joe — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 17:35:07 +0000

“Righteous self-defense is not violence; it is an appropriate response to unprovoked violence.” These words, in addition to your ancient martial arts proverb, could not be truer. I also appreciate what you have to say about the alternate title. “Three strong young men viciously attack elderly cyclist; one killed in attempt,” has a very differnt effect on the reader than “knocked off bicycle….

Comment on Young Martial Artist Saves Sister from Carjacker by Kirby Tucker

Kirby Tucker — Sun, 25 Dec 2011 20:52:38 +0000

Great proof of the value of martial arts in a young person’s life.

Comment on Lead By Example: Be The Best Teacher You Can Be! by nchq0831

nchq0831 — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 11:49:32 +0000

Thanks for the kind words — glad you enjoyed the post!

Comment on Lead By Example: Be The Best Teacher You Can Be! by Tam Veilleux

Tam Veilleux — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 11:33:21 +0000

This is a great post on basic, or what should be automatic, leadership skills and understandings. Thanks for the reminder. Every person is a teacher whether they know it or not and these techniques should be incorporated into everyone’s education.

Thank you for sharing this.

Comment on Karate Makes You Smarter- It’s a scientific fact! by Mushin – it’s a no brainer | Goju-blogger

Mushin – it’s a no brainer | Goju-blogger — Tue, 07 Jun 2011 16:36:38 +0000

[...] Apparently alpha waves are what our grey matter exude whilst we are in a semi-prepared state of mind – not completely relaxed or sleepy, but quieted. Like when you are reading a book just before going to sleep. This helps us focus and generally improve the way we handle pressure, think creatively and innovatively. You get alpha activity when you do mundane, automatic stuff like having a shower – this might explain why the best ideas we have are whilst taking a shower. [...]

Comment on Karate Makes You Smarter- It’s a scientific fact! by nchq0831

nchq0831 — Tue, 07 Jun 2011 13:02:48 +0000

Glad you enjoyed it. We appreciate the comment!

Comment on Karate Makes You Smarter- It’s a scientific fact! by drdolittle76

drdolittle76 — Tue, 07 Jun 2011 12:45:27 +0000

Thanks for the really interesting post. I’d often wondered what the ‘mokuso’ was all about and you’ve answered my question.

Many thanks,

Goju-blogger

Comment on What would you have done? The Chrissy Lee Polis attack… by Abby

Abby — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 21:15:22 +0000

I am a firm believer in many of the principles that Martin Luther King Jr. stood by. Two quotes hang in my office:

“Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.”

and

“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”

As for the first quote, if my life is forfeited due to my effort of standing up for what is right, then I died knowing that I did what was righteous and just.

As for the second, those who stood by and did nothing to prevent the attack upon Chrissy are not humans. They have not the empathy, conscience, or compassion to be called human. They were challenged and they failed that challenge. They deserve the same fate as the girls that attacked Chrissy.

Comment on What would you have done? The Chrissy Lee Polis attack… by jimbouchard

jimbouchard — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 13:25:09 +0000

Abby- thanks for sharing your expert advice! When I was an EMT in the 1970′s it was standard procedure to place something in the victim’s mouth to keep them from biting their tongue. We would carry a “bite stick” which was basically a couple of large tongue depressors with some gauze taped between. The object should be large enough that the victim would not aspirate it.

I defer to your current procedures and again thank you for sharing your advice.

The point is that there were several “passive bystanders” in this scenario who are, in my opinion, as guilty as the attackers. Had the attackers been 2 large, armed men I would not advocate that the bystanders jump in physically; though I would praise them if they did. Still, why has our society devolved to the point where the spectators of an attack like this one will urge on the attackers as if they’re watching a sporting event, and run a camera while someone is going into a seizure?

Folks, we’ve got to develop some courage- the same courage the elderly woman showed when she got in between Chrissy Lee and her assailants. We’ve got to have the courage to teach children that it’s not right to attack someone physically because they’re different, offensive or even if you think they were trying to put a move on your boyfriend. We’ve got to hold people responsible when they do nothing to assist- the minimum being calling for police and medical help when someone is being beaten to a pulp.

I appreciate the decorum you describe should the victim have lost bladder or bowel control. Instead of any semblance of compassion, this crew was trying to get a close up to post on YouTube.

We are destroying ourselves. When will we stop?

Comment on What would you have done? The Chrissy Lee Polis attack… by Abby

Abby — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 00:58:33 +0000

Placing a towel or other object into the mouth of a person having a seizure is not rudimentary first aid. It can cause their airway to be obstructed, resulting in death by hypoxia/asphyxiation.

When a person is having a seizure, they should be placed on their side away from any object that they may bang against, causing themselves harm. In this case, the girl should have been moved away from the wall into an area of the floor where she would not be flailing against objects that could injure her. Although placing her on her side is not always required, as a nurse, I have seen many people vomit during a seizure, aspirating the vomitus. Placing them on their side will prevent aspiration from occurring, but is not entirely necessary.

Witnesses should note at what time the seizure started. It is crucial that the EMTs know how long the seizure was in order to give the proper treatment. There is a difference between a grand mal and a petite mal, and time is one of those differences.

If the EMTs have not arrived by the time the victim of the seizure has ceased seizing, place them on their side if you didn’t before, putting a towel or other soft material under their head. Be aware that they may have urinated or defecated on themselves due to loss of bladder or bowel control. Cover them to provide privacy. Some people recover quickly from the seizure, get up, and walk away. You should encourage them to stay for the EMTs to check them out. They should not be driving after having a seizure.

Hope this sheds a little light on what to do for a person having a seizure. Having been in a similar situation, with a husband beating on the wife in a store, I stepped in between them and told him to stop. He immediately realized where he was and what he was doing, leaving in a very embarrassed state. I took the wife to a safe house, since I was working at that time with an organization that dealt with safe houses. Sometimes all it takes is others to step in and make the person committing the assault aware that they are being seen.

Athais RN, MSN