One early morning I was walking back to my car in a darker, less friendly part of town. I was late and behind all my coworkers that night, they had already walked the 2 blocks to our parking lot. I stepped out from the alley onto the street and looked left. I noticed someone waiting on the corner, waiting to cross the street, no big deal. I looked right, and noticed someone a block away on the street corner. That is the way I needed to go, but people exist and everything seems to be okay. I start walking to my right towards where my car is parked.
Now something happens, the guy that was to my left waiting at the corner is now not waiting and is now following my path down the block. That is strange to me, could be innocent, but a change in my environment that I picked up on. Now I am alone with someone behind me and someone in front of me. Forcing movement comes into play, I can continue down my path and find out what everyone’s intentions are, or I can force movement.
So, I j-walk across the street. If I was getting set up in a pincer ambush, I moved out of it. Maybe, everyone was a nice stranger, but something wasn’t right. If these two are working together – if they want me now, they have to cross the street. If either one crosses the street – a big warning sign. If both cross the street = massive warning.
A more aggressive forcing movement would be starting to yell – GET BACK! STAY AWAY!
Sometimes forcing movement is subtle, and sometimes it is more apparent. I’ve been forced before with Dudes’s shoulder checking my center mass. Two people walking directly towards one another, do you turn to the side and allow the other to pass. I have had multiple thugs on public transit feel they were entitled to enter my space and use their shoulders. Head on a swivel, they might be forcing me into a situation I do not want to be a part of.
Forcing movement is a close cousin to some of my other favourite tactics in self-defence. Baiting and luring. In subject control tactics, the most dangerous subject is the cooperative but potentially uncooperative subject. With completely uncooperative subjects I know where they stand, they are not doing what I am saying. Potentially uncooperative subjects CAN explode, and caution needs to be applied. Jail environments are filled with potentially uncooperative, and cautious of baiting and luring tactics should always be employed. Why are they dangerous? Stress inoculation to use violence to achieve what they want.
Martial arts gym training is not the same thing as real situations. Remember and apply that. Self-defence needs to be an explosion along a flat curve.