Krav Maga Blog - Jul 2021

An important aspect of self-protection is “target hardening”. In the security industry, target hardening usually involves increasing the visibility of security measures so as to deter threats e.g., you might increase the number of patrolling security guards and/or place some CCTV cameras in open and visible locations, around a building, to draw attention to, and inform any potential intruders that cameras are in use etc. You would take such measures when it is already obvious that the building is a visible and attractive target, such as a bank, or a jeweler etc. You may however want to be more discrete...

Over the years I have met a number of instructors and students who have voiced the opinion that unless you’re training at maximum effort, force etc., your training isn’t realistic. I’ve also heard many “old school” practitioners make the argument that training back in the 1970’s and 1980’s was so much harder, more physical and demanded students to be much tougher etc. There may be some truth in this, but I’ve also heard ex-students of mine, at social gatherings, tell current students the same old story; that “back in the day” when they trained, training was much harder, tougher and...

Back in the 1980’s policy makers – not academics – started to talk about the rise of the “Super Predator” i.e., teenagers whose offending would worsen over time, and carry on growing proportionately into their adult years. This idea ignored one thing that almost all criminologists agree on, that crime overall involves young people who age out of it – excepting a few persistent offenders. The idea of the Super Predator also contained the idea that such individuals belonged to an identifiable sub-group, making them easy to pick out, allowing for them to be given harsh sentences to that would...

Evolutionary psychology looks to explain universal human behaviors from the perspective of evolutionary adaptation, whilst evolutionary criminology looks to do the same concerning offending. However, it should be noted that crime is a socially constructed concept, and is often subject to change and redefinition e.g., Marijuana is now legal in US States where its use was once prohibited, and where sentencing was extremely harsh etc. This presents an issue/problem for anyone trying to make a claim that genetics and biology are solely responsible for offending behavior(s). Whilst genetics can influence an individual’s character, it would be extremely difficult to tie...