Self Defense Quotes

• Self-defense is not just a set of techniques; it’s a state of mind, and it begins with the belief that you are worth defending.

  Rorion Gracie

  Self, Mind, Technique

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• The criminal does not expect his prey to fight back. May he never choose you, but, if he does, surprise him.

  Jeff Cooper

  Fighting, Criminals, Doe

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• The essential thing is to bear always in mind that trouble can appear at any time.
  Be aware.Be ready.Be alert.

  Jeff Cooper

  Mind, Essentials, Bears

  Jeff Cooper (2006). “Principles of Personal Defense: Revised Edition”, p.15, Paladin Press

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• Self-defense is not only our right; it is our duty.

  Ronald Reagan

  Self, Defense, Duty

  Ronald Reagan (2004). “Speaking My Mind: Selected Speeches”, p.288, Simon and Schuster

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• There’s only one basic principle of self-defense- you must apply the most effective weapon, as soon as possible, to the most vulnerable target.

  Bruce Lee

  Self, Principles, Defense

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• Your mind-set is your primary weapon

  Jeff Cooper

  Mind, Weapons, Primaries

  80 Copy quote

• Self-defense is so important to know in today's society. It's not just that you might get mugged. It's more for confidence. It's the way you hold yourself when you walk into a room. Every step you take is more sure and you're much more aware of your surroundings. So, I think it's a really important thing - especially for women.

  Milla Jovovich

  Thinking, Self, Important

  Interview with Glenn O'Brien, www.interviewmagazine.com. February 12, 2009.

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• 

  The right of self-defense never ceases. It is among the most sacred, and alike necessary to nations and to individuals.

  James Monroe

  Gun, Self, Presidential

  James Monroe (199?). “The Writings of James Monroe: 1817-1823”

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• I don't even call it violence when it's in self defense; I call it intelligence.

  Malcolm X

  Self, Defense, Violence

  Spike Lee, Ralph Wiley, Malcolm X (1992). “By any means necessary: the trials and tribulations of the making of Malcolm X”, Hyperion Books

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• The best personal defense is an explosive counterattack.

  Jeff Cooper

  Defense, Explosives

  Jeff Cooper (2006). “Principles of Personal Defense: Revised Edition”, p.25, Paladin Press

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• Your physical safety is up to you, as it really always has been.

  Jeff Cooper

  Safety, Up To You, Has Beens

  Jeff Cooper (2006). “Principles of Personal Defense: Revised Edition”, p.51, Paladin Press

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• Self-defense is Nature's eldest law.

  John Dryden

  Gun, Self, Law

  John Dryden (2002). “Selected Poems”, p.63, Courier Corporation

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• Though violence is not lawful, when it is offered in self-defense or for the defense of the defenseless, it is an act of bravery far better than cowardly submission. The latter befits neither man nor woman. Under violence, there are many stages and varieties of bravery. Every man must judge this for himself. No other person can or has the right.

  Mahatma Gandhi

  Men, Self, Judging

  29 Copy quote

• The first right of every human being is the right of self-defense. Without that right, all other rights are meaningless. The right of self-defense is not something the government bestows upon its citizens. It is an inalienable right, older than the Constitution itself. It existed prior to government and prior to the social contract of our Constitution.

  Larry Craig

  Rights, Government, Self

  Congressional Record, Volume 146, Pt. 7, June 06, 2000.

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• It is true that a victim who fights back may suffer for it, but one who does not almost certainly will suffer for it.

  Jeff Cooper

  Fighting, Suffering, Doe

  Jeff Cooper (2006). “Principles of Personal Defense: Revised Edition”, p.9, Paladin Press

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• There isn't any real good reason for fighting except self-defense.

  S. E. Hinton

  Real, Fighting, Self

  S.E. Hinton (2016). “The Outsiders 50th Anniversary Edition”, p.110, Penguin

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• Though defensive violence will always be 'a sad necessity' in the eyes of men of principle, it would be still more unfortunate if wrongdoers should dominate just men.

  Saint Augustine

  Eye, Gun, Men

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• It is high time for society to stop worrying about the criminal, and to let the criminal start worrying about society. And by "society" I mean you.

  Jeff Cooper

  Mean, Worry, Criminals

  Jeff Cooper (2006). “Principles of Personal Defense: Revised Edition”, p.51, Paladin Press

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• Murder begins where self-defense ends.

  Georg Buchner

  Self, Defense, Murder

  "Danton's Death". Play by Georg Buchner, Act I, 1835.

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• If you must use your hands, use them with all the strength you possess... If you choose to strike, by all means strike hard.

  Jeff Cooper

  Mean, Hands, Use

  Jeff Cooper (2006). “Principles of Personal Defense: Revised Edition”, p.44, Paladin Press

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• It's better to avoid than to run; better to run than to de-escalate; better to de-escalate than to fight; better to fight than to die. The very essence of self-defense is a thin list of things that might get you out alive when you are already screwed.

  Rory Miller

  Running, Fighting, Self

  "Meditations on Violence: A Comparison of Martial Arts Training & Real World Violence". Book by Rory Miller, 2008.

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• The necessary consequence of man's right to life is his right to self-defense. In a civilized society, force may be used only in retaliation and only against those who initiate its use. All the reasons which make the initiation of physical force an evil, make the retaliatory use of physical force a moral imperative. If some "pacifist" society renounced the retaliatory use of force, it would be left helplessly at the mercy of the first thug who decided to be immoral. Such a society would achieve the opposite of its intention: instead of abolishing evil, it would encourage and reward it.

  Ayn Rand

  Thug, Men, Self

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• Use your eyes. Do not enter unfamiliar areas that you cannot observe first. Make it a practice to swing wide around corners, use window glass for rearward visibility, and get something solid behind you when you pause.

  Jeff Cooper

  Eye, Glasses, Swings

  Jeff Cooper (2006). “Principles of Personal Defense: Revised Edition”, p.15, Paladin Press

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• God grants liberty only to those who love it, and are always ready to guard and defend it.

  Daniel Webster

  Veterans Day, Memorial Day, 4th Of July

  Daniel Webster, Edward Everett (1860). “The Works of Daniel Webster”, p.47

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• Let your attacker worry about his life. Don't hold back. Strike no more after he is incapable of further action, but see that he is stopped.

  Jeff Cooper

  Worry, Action, Strikes

  Jeff Cooper (2006). “Principles of Personal Defense: Revised Edition”, p.44, Paladin Press

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