Indigenous Ability

  Buckle up, Crew, as we’ve got some ground to cover. First, “ Face under pressure ” is, obviously, a reiteration of Ernest Hemingway’s original quote on the concept of “ Grace under pressure .” Some refine to simplicity and say it was his definition of courage/guts, but in a letter to F. Scott Fitzgerald, he makes it clear he has something more in mind than sheer guts. As a matter of fact, he’s a bit disdainful of guts or courage on its own. “ It makes no difference your telling G[erald] Murphy about bull fighting…. [I] Was not referring to guts but to something else. Grace under pressure. Guts never made any money or anybody except violin string manufacturers .”-A letter dated April 20, 1926. Hemingway was expressing a courageous ideal as something more than mere bravado, he reaches for something that might be closer to the Italian concept of Sprezzatura, a word that appears in the 1528 volume titled The Book of the Courtier by Baldassare Castiglione. The Book of the...

Hey Crew, Stamina wisdom from our Elder Statesmen of Mayhem. Resources for Livin’ the Warrior Life The Black Box Store https://www.extremeselfprotection.com/ The Indigenous Ability Blog https://indigenousability.blogspot.com/ The Rough ‘n’ Tumble Raconteur Podcast https://open.spotify.com/episode/2fTpfVp2wi232k4y5EakVv ...

  Let’s start here… Jack “The Manassa Mauler” Dempsey, ran a hard training camp, one reflective of his already hard life in logging camps. Amongst lumberjacks he picked up the habit of chewing pine-resin, the sap from certain coniferous trees. These loggers, a rambunctious bunch who loved their set-to’s swore by it—said it made your jaw strong, increased your ability to take a punch. A young Dempsey, had plenty of opportunity to see fellow resin-chewers at work in a tussle and decided, “ Yeah, seems to work .” He carried the practice into his training camps. Dempsey was not alone in this resin-chewing practice, many an early pugilist, an early wrestler, an early physical culturist [the drug-free bodybuilders of yore] adopted this practice. All purported it to be a good jaw-strengthener to take a punch, or in the case of the physical culturists they chewed resin to sleep better and to improve posture. Now, perhaps we can get out heads around a little jaw-strengthening,...

  A Little Historical Digression Behind the Clip [Read Part 1 Here .] Again, I turn it over to Joseph D. Pistone [the real-life Donnie Brasco,] a man who went deep undercover with the Mob. A brave man who knows of what he speaks. “One thing I knew not to do was go looking for a street fight. Why provoke a fight when the guy might have a knife or a gun? If, however, you sense that a fight is inevitable, you must make sure you get in the first punch. Once I started hanging out with wiseguys, though, I was surprised at how they went around almost eager to mix it up. They knew they had a tremendous advantage over almost everyone who crossed their paths: an utter fearlessness about fighting. Wiseguys do everything with their fists: fighting is a way to negotiate, send a message, settle a debt, even have a little fun on a slow night. I saw wiseguys beat up waiters, shopkeepers, cab drivers, you name it. And I never saw a wiseguy lose a fight. If you ever have the misfortune to be p...

  FREEBIE VIDEO Links to historical essays on this Mob-Boxing Connection . Link to how to throw like these man-killers w/ “ Chaos in a Phone Booth ” More info on throwing Illegal Hands and The Black Box Subscription Service below & how to save $38.40 on this instructional Here. Resources for Livin’ the Warrior Life The Black Box Warehouse https://www.extremeselfprotection.com/ The Indigenous Ability Blog https://indigenousability.blogspot.com/ The Rough ‘n’ Tumble Raconteur Podcast https://anchor.fm/mark-hatmaker

  [October 1 st we release in-the-weeds drilling from an unsavory aspect of Underworld History—let’s set the stage with a bit of history.] [Read Part 1 Here .] Again, I turn it over to Joseph D. Pistone [the real-life Donnie Brasco,] a man who went deep undercover with the Mob. A brave man who knows of what he speaks. “One thing I knew not to do was go looking for a street fight. Why provoke a fight when the guy might have a knife or a gun? If, however, you sense that a fight is inevitable, you must make sure you get in the first punch. Once I started hanging out with wiseguys, though, I was surprised at how they went around almost eager to mix it up. They knew they had a tremendous advantage over almost everyone who crossed their paths: an utter fearlessness about fighting. Wiseguys do everything with their fists: fighting is a way to negotiate, send a message, settle a debt, even have a little fun on a slow night. I saw wiseguys beat up waiters, shopkeepers, cab drivers, y...