In the knife community, here’s what we mean by “successful presentation.” Many tell me “Then what? What if he calls your bluff?” It’s more than this. In Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada we have the largest Pinoy population in Canada. (As an aside, this is where I grew up in my combative martial arts youth, surrounded by quite gifted weapons folk, which I benefitted from being surrounded by sometimes 4-5 times a week) There are a lot of Pinoys here that can take care of themselves…FMA, boxing, street smarts, predisposition to violence…many 1st generation immigrants so they grew up in PI. In high-school, we had a group of guys that were always heavily into bodybuilding, steroids, aggression that always went out to the bars to fight and intimidate, etc.

Now this is a second-hand story but it was confirmed by the individual in question, to me directly at a later date. Roid rage with alcohol can be a very dangerous combination, often for those around the individual as they become very unpredictable and aggressive. One of the gents that I know was looking for trouble outside. He saw a short Pinoy gentleman standing outside the night club having a cigarette, minding his own business, as most Pinoys do until provoked…a target. He approached the guy and started getting in his face (easy mark: small, seemingly peaceful, not looking for trouble, having a cigarette) Face-to-face, a couple inches away, frothing at the mouth, threatening, finger in face. Next thing he knows the gentleman has a knife to his throat, pressed up against the wall, asking politely and with total calm “I’m sorry, I didn’t fucking hear you the first time, could you repeat, please.”

Turns out that while my acquaintance was beaking off, the other man had been deploying his blade while finishing his cigarette with the other hand. My acquaintance started whimpering and apologizing, actually shedding a few tears, seeing his life pass before his eyes. Naturally, the Pinoy let him go. Upon asking the guy the next time I saw him what had happened, he filled me in on these exact details, admitting he filled his drawers. He told me “Isn’t what you do FMA and knife?” I nodded and he said “Respect. Never again. Total calm and I had no idea where that weapon came from.” This is what successful blade presentation can accomplish coupled with calm, subtle deployment, surprise and the perceived will to use. It’s not just showing it as a deterrent. (Of course, legal consequences always omni-present, as usual)