I recently overheard a karate instructor mention an Israeli hand-to-hand fighting technique called Krav Maga being adopted by paramilitary forces worldwide, which of course excites the youngsters. So I looked it up. Speaking for social justice bloggers everywhere, I have to admit, Israel is just a gift that keeps on giving!

Exhibit 1: online images of Krav Maga fighters are color coded to show which is the attacker.

Perhaps because this fighting style is a reality based training method.

Exhibit 2: Krav Maga teaches discipline like the Asian martial art traditions, but does not assume a pretense of honorable conduct. Its rules are: no rules and no restraint. Doesn’t that sound familiar?

From descriptions of its ethics, I found it hard to distinguish Krav Maga from bar brawling. To judge by some online disclaimers appended to the principles of Krav Maga, of few webmasters may have become uncomfortable with the similarity they bore with the IDF’s code of conduct in Gaza.

Here, for example, are its basic principles:

        * You’re not going to care how much damage you’re going to cause.
* Cause as much damage as possible and run.
* Do not try to prolong a fight. Do what needs to be done and escape.

Expressed in more formal terms:

        * Do not get hurt
* Neutralize your attacker as fast as possible
* Go from defending to attacking as quickly as possible
* Use the body’s natural reflexes
* Strike at any vulnerable point
* Use any tool or object available to you

Of course applied to military strategy, this could mean the disproportionate application of force, and using weapons that might have been banned by international treaty.

A survey of Krav Maga training websites reveal it’s based on Israel’s history of fighting for its survival in the Middle East, and by the way, it is not a sport.

Krav Maga is an evolving art that adapts to an ever changing world, both locally and globally.

As a result, Krav Maga is the ideal self-defense system for use on the street — a place where no rules exist.