I hate to disappoint those of you who hope to learn physical self defense from a book, but you can't. You can learn concepts, tactics, strategies, and techniques, but without actual self defense or martial arts instruction in person with a real teacher you're not going to really get it. After that, you can take what you learn from books to augment your training, but without actual training, they're not going to help you much. Even worse, books like this could get you killed if you were to actually attempt some of what they try to pass off as defenses against attacks with a knife.

Don't believe me? Try this experiment. Put on a white T shirt. Give a friend a magic marker and bet them $10 per mark that they can't mark you with it - anywhere, arms, torso, legs, face (wear protective eyewear). My money says that they mark you up, and consider that a criminal trying to cut you is most likely far more motivated and far more aggressive.

For a book with a more practical, realistic perspective on self defense situations involving knives, I suggest reading "Knives, Knife Fighting, and Related Hassles" by Marc MacYoung. His other books on various aspects of self defense are also excellent reads.


They discontinued LINE for a reason   January 31, 2002
 17 out of 21 found this review helpful

And the reason was not "it was too brutal." Why would the Marines stop a system because it was too brutal? These are the Marines, not the Boy Scouts; there is no way the Marine Corps. would give up a truly effective system because of humanitarian concerns. Why they really got rid of it, and I got my info from 2 ex-Marine combat instructors, is because it is completely unworkable in a real conflict. The LINE system relies too much on complicated twists and slides that are just not conducive with a real fight. Please, if a soldier tried putting the enemy in a wristlock while the enemy was trying to gouge out his eyes with his fingers, he would be finished. The system implies that an enemy soldier will just stand there while the Marine tries to pull off some complicated takedown move, which is ridiculous. The new system, which is used in the book "CLOSE COMBAT" is much more simple and pragmatic and utilizes techniques taken from originators of modern hand-to-hand combat W.E. Fairbairn and Rex Applegate whose techniques were proven to be effective during World War II. If you don't believe me, and I don't expect anyone to believe an anonymous reviewer, just see for yourself and try out LINE and then take a look at something by Fairbairn or Applegate. I don't mean to sound arrogant, because I'm not a Marine and I see a lot of poeple who try to pass themselves off as experts; I'm not going to say I'm an expert, its just that I've read extensively on the subject and recieved some informal training and I've found the simpler, more brutal techniques that utilize gross-motor skills and natural body movements are more effective, in my opinion, than complicated fighting systems. This is all just my opinion; I encourage people to learn and choose for themselves.


This system has a specific purpose. To kill the enemy.   November 30, 2001
 19 out of 22 found this review helpful

Reading over the other reviews, I thought I would try and clear the air about what this book and the system it explains is all about. For credentials, I have dabbled in several different fighting arts, and I spent 4 years in the Marine Corps infantry when they were still teaching this system.

First, please understand that this is NOT a self-defense system. The Marine Corps does not teach you how to survive a mugging. They do not teach you how to beat up the local bully. They teach you how to kill your opponent.

The Marine Corps does not have the time or the instructors to teach a complex fighting system to every Marine. So this system is very simple. It is based on a few maneuvers, which are adapted around different situations that soldiers are likely to encounter. It is assumed that your opponent will most likely be wearing a flak jacket, so blows to the abdomen are not dwelled upon. Strikes to the throat and groin, eye gouging and the breaking of limbs are the standard techniques. There are no wasted movements, and all moves finish with some form of killing blow, usually a kick to the head of a prone opponent.

The whole premise of LINE training is to condition your muscles to react in a certain way in given situations. That is why the moves are all so similar. This simplifies the muscle memorization to make it easier to teach this system to many people in as short a time as possible. It is a very basic, yet effective system.

LINE training's simplicity is its strongest asset. This system was never intended to create world class fighters. It was intended to be effective in difficult surroundings when the user is tired, cold, and hungry. It was designed to provide Marines with the means to destroy the enemies they might encounter on the battlefield, as quickly and efficiently as possible.

If you have already trained in the martial arts or some other fighting system, then this is may not the book for you. It's simplicity and lack of practical alternatives to killing may not be what you are looking for. However, there are some useful sections about sentry elimination, knife fighting, and weapons of opportunity that you might not get in a standard martial arts class.

And lastly, it is my understanding that the Marine Corps abandoned this system because it was too effective. Unfortunately, you cannot force Marines to only use what they have been taught when they are on the battlefield. Too many bar fights and other scuffles amongst Marines themselves or against civilians resulted in severe injuries to the combatants. And because there is a relatively small chance that our soldiers will run out of bullets, it was felt that a less brutal system could be found.

I highly recommend this system and this book. It does what it is designed to do very well.


Simple & Effective !   November 21, 2001
 7 out of 11 found this review helpful

This manual is easy to read and understand. It is full of simple and effective techniques of close quarter combat; most of which can be used for self-defense by civilians. The drawings and text are simple and to the point. It is a very good basic manual for those individuals unfamaliar with self-defense and hand to hand combat. It does not cover the more important elements of realistic self-defense and that is the mind-set of the individual who must fight for their life. There is a mind-set and a specific predisposed psychological condition of the defender, that must be in place prior to the attack for the individual to successfully defend oneself and to survive a lethal encounter. (...)