How old are you? Where are you from, and where do you live and work now?

I am 24. I live in Victoria BC Canada, where I have lived all my life. I am currently re-enlisting in the Canadian Forces. I spent 6 years in the infantry and am now re-mustering in the Navy.

What did you do in between enlistments?

I went to school and obtained a diploma in Network support.

How has your time in the service changed your life and affected you personally?

It taught me to endure. It taught me that even when life sucks, you're hungry, you haven't slept in two days, and you just rolled your ankle, you have to soldier on. It also taught me how to deal with personal failures. I just used the same principle:  endure and soldier on until I get better. It also taught me the value of versatility.

What is the state of the Canadian Forces today?

The state of the Canadian Forces is a tricky bird to pin down. On the one hand we have some of the best trained and most versatile troops in the world. Regular Canadian personnel are often required to do jobs for which larger forces like the US would send in specialists. Our regular soldiers perform Long Range Recon and our regular sailors perform hostile boardings at sea.

Unfortunately, this is forced on us. We have very few specialists because the size of our armed forces does not allow it. For years after the Cold War, the politicians down-sized the Canadian Forces to an anemic level. The budget has been on the rise lately, although most of the extra money has gone to pay raises and standard of living adjustments (for which I am grateful). The next step is replacing old equipment like our Infamous Sea King helicopters.

What have you learned in the armed forces of Canada?

While I was in the Army I was a Rifleman. I learned to handle weapons including the C-7 (Canadian Designation for the M16) C-9 (FN Minimi, the US Squad Automatic Weapon) and the C-9 97.62 GPMG. I also learned to use grenades and anti-armor weapons. As for skills, I learned everything from field operation in attack and defense to reconnaissance patrols and FIBUA (Fighting In Built Up Areas). I also got my first "official" look at Military Combatives.

Could you describe your style?

I promote a style based on Military combatives and my own experiences in other arts, both traditional and sport.

What can you tell me about the style? Can you describe it in detail?

The bulk of it comes from the Fairburn/Sykes methods of World War 2 combatives. I added more grappling, mainly in the form of standing joint destruction and attacking the neck. I promote an overkill approach based on the one strike one kill principle multiplied over and over.

My style is, therefore, very aggressive. I believe in controlling every aspect of the situation. This takes an aggressive mindset. This isn't to say that I spit nails and yell a lot (ok only sometimes) but I like to stay on the offensive. I try and take control of any verbal lead-ups.  I also defiantly take control of any physical actions when possible.

I believe that every technique should be a fight-ender. We all know that things do not often work the way they are supposed to so I string them together. The idea is to keep attacking, together with adapting to new scenarios, until the threat is over. Physically, the techniques I choose are normally very linear. Even edge-of-hand blows are delivered in a straight line at the target. Hooking movements are great for getting around a guard but too difficult to use properly for self defense. I kick low for balance (and due to lack of flexibility) and attack with as much of my body as possible.

Do you teach?  If so, how long have you been teaching?

I hesitate to say that I teach. It implies that I have a school and run classes. Right now I just share my knowledge with interested parties. There has been some thought of doing some seminars, but that is it. However, I have been teaching here and there for about 5 years when I started teaching grappling for a Karate class I was in.

What, specifically, do you teach?

What I "teach" is self preservation. It is based mainly on Military combatives, but it draws techniques from Judo, Shotokan, submission wrestling, and Aikido. I also "teach" the non-physical ways of dealing with altercations, such as de-escalation, awareness, and reading people.

Do you derive income from teaching?

I teach because I enjoy it and to get a deeper understanding of the techniques I do. I don't teach for money (at this point), but I generally share what I know with anyone interested.

What are you teaching qualifications, if any, official or otherwise?

I have no official teaching qualifications. That is one of the reasons I haven't began teaching professionally. In these days of martial fraud I am very careful of passing myself off as something I am not. However, I think my material speaks for itself. I know my stuff and I am honest with what I don't know. I feel I have a great deal to share and willing to share it.

What official rankings do you hold in which styles?

Actually, like you, my credentials in the martial arts are not terrible impressive. Until very recently I never got above yellow belt. Even in a style where I should have progressed higher, I never cared. I did Shotokan for a year and a half and never got above yellow. I went to the advanced class anyway and fit in and I trained 5 days a week, 5 hours a night, but I was also kickboxing and shootfighting. Belt tests just weren't high on my list. My highest official belt is a green belt in Judo. Most of the stuff I do doesn't have rankings.

Do you feel you receive less respect than you deserve as a result of your lack of official credentials, something to which we can both relate?

Again, I have been pretty lucky. I have been singled out for my lack of official credentials, most recently my lack of formal Aikido training. I moderate an Aikido forum at e-budo.com and several people took exception to someone "they outranked" in a position of authority. To them I can only say "rank" when it relates to knowledge. I never pretend to be what I am not. I am honest about my official credentials and people can judge me on the merits of my knowledge.

Please indulge a personal curiosity: what can you tell me about shootfighting? What is it, and what were your experiences in it?

Shootfighting is a Mixed Martial art with roots in Japan. It is essentially kickboxing combined with submission wrestling. It is different than shootboxing, which is kickboxing with throws, and different than shootwrestling, which de-emphasizes the standing techniques. The aim is to score a knockout using predominately Muay Thai strategies (although full contact karate is also popular) and submit your opponent using joint locks or chokes, or to score a decision.

The rules vary a lot, but generally, kicks (to everywhere but the knees and groin), knees, and punches are allowed. Chokes are allowed and joint locks are allowed to all joints. The rules I fought under were similar to the above with the exception that it was open hand to the face. Open-hand blows were predominantly slaps or palm strikes. The Pancrase competitions in Japan follow rules similar to these.

Earlier you mentioned experience in traditional and sport arts. Of what did your experiences in these arts consist?

Over the years I have studied or been involved in Shotokan, American Kenpo, Aikido, Judo, Kickboxing (American and Thai Style), Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, freestyle Wrestling, Submission Wrestling, and Shootfighting, for varying amounts of time and at varying levels of formality. I studied Aikido informally under my wrestling coach in High School for three years. I did Kenpo for about 6 months. I did Shotokan for just over a year and a half. I kickboxed for a couple of years, although I never competed in straight kickboxing. I have competed in Judo and Shootfighting.

There's a picture of you fighting in the ring on your webpage. What is this from? Tell us about the experience.

The picture came from and event called "The Ultimate Battles II." I fought a shootfighting match using rules similar to the Pancrase events in which Ken Shamrock and Bas Rutten fought. I fought a Chin Na guy and basically what I remember about him was that he had tremendous grip strength. I won because I was more aggressive and controlled the bout. It was a fun but tiring event. Combative sports like that demand that you be in peak physical condition.

What did you learn from which arts? Which arts did you like best? Which arts did you like least?

It is so hard to categorize what I learned from what arts. I learned throws from Judo. I learned positional grappling from all the grappling arts I studied. I also learned some submissions that can be turned into excellent breaks. Although I prefer striking, I found that most Karate schools teach a version of fighting that isn't optimal for the street. Most either teach point fighting or kickboxing. So for self defense I like those the least.

What do the martial arts mean to you?

Well, martial means war, essentially. So any martial undertaking involves a dash of war. Martial arts to me are when someone takes the techniques of battle and makes it a personal expression. Some of these art forms are expressions of a martial nature but they more often follow a Do ["Way"] path or a sporting path,

Who has helped you on the path of accomplishment in the martial arts? Anyone? If so, how did they help?

So many I don't even know who to name. No one gets anywhere without help or inspiration. One person I would like to mention is Paul Valentine (RIP), whose death changed the way I think about self preservation forever.

Who was Paul Valentine? What can you tell me about him? How did he die? Why did this affect you?

Paul was a guy I grew up with. We were friends, but as we got older he went a different route than I did. I joined the army and concentrated on sports and the martial arts. He liked to party and got into drugs.

One night after a night of smoking dope and drinking at the clubs he got in an altercation.  During this altercation he was beaten to death with a two-by-four. This changed the way I thought about fighting forever. Before, I thought of fighting in a sport manner, or in terms of schoolyard fights. Having a friend die in a fight taught me the folly of looking at combat that way. Always be prepared to fight for your life, because even stupid arguments can turn deadly.

Have you ever had to apply your style in real life? If so, could you describe this in detail?

A few times, although rarely in the physical. A large part of my thinking is in preventing the physical altercation through communication and awareness. I have been in fights, but what they taught me was a personal thing. Getting punched in the face only hurts for a little while, for example. I learned how to deal with the fear of an altercation.

If you had any advice to offer to someone interested in the martial arts, what would you tell them?

Look for a good instructor, not necessarily a good style. You will learn more from some one you respect and will listen even if you find out later that the style isn't right for you. Assuming you have a good instructor (and that is not a given by a long shot), be honest with yourself. What type of fighting suits your body type? What are your goals?

Do you believe autodidactic (self-taught) training can work? If so, what strategies and guidelines for training one's self would you recommend?

Sure. One could teach one's self how to fight all by one's self. Spend Friday and Saturday down at the local bar. Experiment with techniques and see which ones don't get you hurt.

A teacher will help you get down the basics and provide insight. Even if most of your training is self taught, go to seminars or train on a drop-in basis. It is easier to learn in a group sometimes. I train mostly alone right now, but I have had teachers and mentors. Some of these mentors have been online and I have never met them in real life, but they have been kind enough to answer my questions.

Could you give me your thoughts on some other styles of interest to you?

A few style stick out. I love Aikido because of the wrist locks and the foot work. It is one of the most beautiful arts in the world in my opinion. I also compete in Judo because I love to compete. Also the Goshin Jitsu Kata in Judo is very similar to the WW2 combatives stuff.

Lately I have been looking into things like Silat and the Filipino martial arts. Some of these styles are only 60 or 70 years out of the jungle, so they are still quite combative and haven't evolved in to a Do-like approach. I also research every type of military hand-to-hand I can get my greedy little mitts on.

Given that your attitude about the martial arts seems very combative, very aggressive, how do you reconcile this with the pacifist approach to Aikido, given that you've expressed great affection for the art?

Aikido, for me, is not about fighting. Although it contains fighting techniques, that is not the aim. An analogy would be dancing. Dancing contains kicks like fighting but it is not fighting. Aikido to me is beautiful art form which can develop great attributes, but don't go to an Aikido dojo expecting to learn to fight. You may get lucky but that is not the norm.

Do you find that your attitude and approach to the martial arts is controversial or incompatible with that of many martial artists?

I have been pretty lucky but occasionally I ruffle some feathers. One recent example was a quote I use as a tag line on several internet forums. The quote is this: "Attack, attack, attack -- come at your target from every possible direction and press until his defenses overload. Never give him time to recover his balance; never give him time to counter." This is from Mathew Stover's excellent novel Heroes Die.

The specific criticisms were that this quote was a misunderstanding of Budo, that it was a dangerous philosophy, that it was barbaric (although that specific word was not used).  I was told that such an attitude made one no better than the attacker.

[Editor's note:  This exchange is the subject of an essay here at PhilElmore.com.]

Whom do you respect most in the martial arts community, and why?

You.

Good answer. I realize you're joking.

Seriously though, I respect anyone who will share their information with like-minded people. I have no problem paying for a service or a product, but I give my knowledge for free and when people reciprocate they earn my respect. I also respect people who remain polite in martial arts discussions. Martial artists can be a touchy bunch, but those who understand that the discussion brings deeper knowledge make life better for everyone involved.

What do you do with your time when you're not training or teaching?

I spend time with my family. I keep my website updated as best I can and I play EQ.

I also write articles and pretend I can write fiction. I never finish anything but I enjoy the process.

Are you affiliated with any organizations you'd like to promote?

None at this point.

What are you feelings about the Internet and web discussion as it relates to martial arts?

I love it. As long as people follow what I say above and stay a little bit humble, it can be an excellent learning aid.