Special Combat Aggressive Reactionary Systems or S.C.A.R.S. is a martial arts fighting system/combative created by Jerry L. Peterson, based in part on his background in San Soo kung fu and from his personal experiences in the Vietnam War.
Currently marketed through private seminars and videotape. Initial presentation of SCARS to the Department of the Navy in 1988 led to its adoption into military use. From 1989-94 Peterson personally headed up the development and training of the SCARS programs as part of a BUD/S (Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL) candidate course and produced SCARS qualified SEAL instructors. While the SCARS Institute of Combat Sciences claims to have instructed the branches of the Army, Airforce as well as foreign governments and various law enforcement agencies, to what extent is unknown at this time.
According to official Naval Special Warfare documents obtained through the FOIA, stated on 03/03/98 that the Advanced NSW Combat Fighting Course (CFC) was recommended for cancellation due to the fact, "...that the 30-day.
Advanced Combat Fighting Course was no longer utilized by the components; it has been 2-years since the course has been run. Generally, the components can't lose someone for the 30-days that the course runs."
Cancellation of the SCARS course was approved on April 17, 1998 by the Naval Special Warfare Commander, G.M. Moy, Assistant Chief of Staff for Operations. (FOIA document 1500 Ser N32/0293 17 Apr 98).
Criticisms: Within the martial arts community, Peterson and SCARS have been subject to no small amount controversy, having been variously accused of being unreliable, unrealistic, a hodgepodge, or simply a stripped-down version of San Soo.
Accusations have also been leveled at Peterson about sensationalistic and misleading advertising about SCARS, often involving how widely the system is and has been taught in the Navy. Yet there are many who defend Peterson and his system, such as Navy SEAL LCDR Mark D. Divine, former Navy SEAL Stew Smith and the combat experienced personnel of NAVSPECWARGRU ONE - CDR Erskine & CWO3 Hayden.
Approved By The United States Defense Department (CNET):
The first officially approved hand to weapons system ever to set the standards and issue credentials of certification as a subject matter expert in Hand-to-Hand and Hand-to-Weapons combat to the United States Navy Special Warfare Command Center Group One and Two (SEAL Teams 1-8), and Special Operations Forces. ARMY, NAVY, AIRFORCE, MARINES.
The SCARS is about physical and psychological warfare experts using 21st century science and technology to increase human performance to its highest possible level. This team consists of many dedicated and experienced people who are the absolute best at what they do.
The History of Special
Combat Aggressive Reactionary Systems
The conception of SCARS began in real
combat 1968-69 Vietnam
Jerry L. Peterson, then a soldier in the
elite Army Reaction Force of the 173rd
Airborne Charlie Company, found that the
close combat training he had received was
nearly useless against the grim realities of
20th century warfare. He and the soldiers in
his unit were forced to learn close combat
by trial and error, in a place where error
meant death. He was convinced there had to
be a better way to train for, and
successfully execute, close combat.
The psychological development of the
fearless mind-set process.
Jerry formulated concepts and theories that
applied to human movement and psychological
survival under do-or-die conditions. His
early analytical and physical techniques
worked, giving him the tools to survive
numerous combat engagements. But Jerry
wanted more, he wanted to know why the human
species would be fearless one day and then
frozen in fear another causing him or her to
die? Mr. Peterson would discover and verify
after 20 years of personal research that he
had created a process to eliminate fear.
This meant the total destruction of fear in
the human brain. Not controlling fear with
over training or conquering fear with shear
willpower, he simply removed it from the
psyche of the human brain, accomplishing the
first goal of human control, a fearless mind
set. He knew that the mind controlled all
body processes that would inevitably lead to
life or death in a high-risk action.
Five questions that needed to be
answered: The first side of the coin had
been cast, which is a simple direct process
that creates the most feared concept in any
conflict, a human without fear, yet having
compassion and understanding of his
environment, the ultimate man. However that
is only one side of the coin, what about the
sciences of human movement? This area would
prove no less daunting, but it had to be
asked and then resolved:
1) Why is one man's fighting art form
better than the other?
2) Why does a professional fighter
lose to someone with no trained skills?
3) Why did the United States military
not have a standard for controlling human
violence in close combat?
4) Why does every law enforcement
agency have a different defensive tactic
course?
5) Why is there no science to human
movement for a violent action?
6) Why indeed- as we start the 21st
century no one has a defined the
scientific path to this much-needed
science of human control. In this day and
age law enforcement agencies still
struggle to find a well-defined set of
principles for human control in a violent
action. Principles that will reduce
liability decrease injury to the subject
and increase safety for the officer.
1988: Jerry Peterson's SCARS tested By
United States Navy Special Warfare Command
(SEALS). SCARS officially approved and
implemented as the standard for close combat
by U.S. Special Operational Forces: To date,
Jerry Peterson is the only individual ever
to have established a proven set of
principles based in modern sciences. His
credibility received the attention of the
United States Navy Special Warfare Command
at Coronado, Calif. (US Navy SEAL
headquarters). The Special Warfare
Department of the Navy begin contracting Mr.
Peterson and his corporation (SCARS
Institute Of Combat Sciences) in 1988 to
develop a program that would universally
apply both physiological and physical fields
of CQB (Close Quarters Battle).
Between November 1988 and February 1989 Mr.
Peterson and the US Navy began testing the
SCARS project with combat veterans within
the SEAL ranks. The Navy was restricted to
combat veterans that had either real world
hand to hand combat and/or advanced training
in any form of fighting art [martial arts].
After three months of physical testing the
Navy agreed that SCARS had proven beyond a
shadow of a doubt not to stem from a style
of (Martial Arts). SCARS is 100% effective
in all CQB actions. This system could
possibly be the standard for hand-to-weapons
combat for the US Navy Special Warfare
Command Department (SEALS).
In March 1989 the Navy and Mr. Peterson
agreed that further development and testing
was warranted. The Navy agreed not to
divulge any information on the SCARS project
to the public. Mr. Peterson also agreed not
to release any mission specific information
about the training & SCARS. Should SCARS
be given official sanction and approval by
CNET, (Command for Navy Educational
Training) limited statements could then be
released. Doing this allowed Mr. Peterson's
SCAR-system to be tested in every condition
of combat and/or police action that may
arise in the world for which the military
may be used.
Around April 1989 the Department of the
Navy officially contracted Mr. Peterson and
his corporation to began further development
of the SCARS program.
The SCARS project was tasked with four
main objectives:
Develop and implement a basic
hand-to-weapons program for the Basic
Underwater Demolition School (BUDS).
Develop and implement a platoon combat
course for qualifying platoon
deployment.
Develop and implement a combat ready
course for Special Boat Units.
Develop and implement a Force
Multiplier program to certify U.S. Navy
SEALS as subject matter experts in the
field of hand-to-weapon combat, both in
non-lethal and lethal use of force.
From 1989-94 Mr. Peterson personally
headed up the development and training of
the SCARS programs. After 5-1/2 years of
development and testing of SCARS by the
Special Warfare Command the US NAVY SEALS
received official approval from the Navy
Department of Education CNET. This was the
first time in history of the US Navy that a
hand to weapons system had officially been
approved as a standard of combat. After
official approval of all of the SCARS
programs Mr. Peterson licensed the Navy to
conduct the SCARS Force Multiplier Train the
Trainer Program. (To this date Mr. Peterson
has restricted all licenses to certify
subject matter experts in the SCARS system
of sciences solely to the US Special
Operation Community. There are only two
places to receive this official information.
One is in the US Special Operation
Community. The other is at the SCARS
Institute Of Combat Sciences in Phoenix AZ.)
Shortly after the SCARS/CFC (Special Combat
Aggressive Reactionary Systems Combat
Fighting Course) was officially implemented.
The US Navy West-coast command requested a
SCARS military demonstration.
The SCARS program was presented to The
United States Secretary Of State, the
Commanding Four Star General of the US Army,
the Secretary of the Navy and other
political personnel, all gave their
overwhelming approval of the program.
From 1993-to present this program has
produced over 300 SCARS subject matter
experts in the field of non-lethal and
lethal hand-to-weapons action. (No military
SCARS instructor can teach the SCARS program
outside of the military.)
This
entry is from Wikipedia, the leading
user-contributed encyclopedia. It may
not have been reviewed by professional
editors, This article is licensed
under the GNU Free Documentation
License. It uses material from the
Wikipedia article "S.C.A.R.S. (military)".
Jerry L. Peterson, then a soldier in the
elite Army Reaction Force of the 173rd
Airborne Charlie Company, found that the
close combat training he had received was
nearly useless against the grim realities of
20th century warfare. He and the soldiers in
his unit were forced to learn close combat
by trial and error, in a place where error
meant death. He was convinced there had to
be a better way to train for, and
successfully execute, close combat.
Jerry formulated concepts and theories that
applied to human movement and psychological
survival under do-or-die conditions. His
early analytical and physical techniques
worked, giving him the tools to survive
numerous combat engagements. But Jerry
wanted more, he wanted to know why the human
species would be fearless one day and then
frozen in fear another causing him or her to
die? Mr. Peterson would discover and verify
after 20 years of personal research that he
had created a process to eliminate fear.
This meant the total destruction of fear in
the human brain. Not controlling fear with
over training or conquering fear with shear
willpower, he simply removed it from the
psyche of the human brain, accomplishing the
first goal of human control, a fearless mind
set. He knew that the mind controlled all
body processes that would inevitably lead to
life or death in a high-risk action.
Between November 1988 and February 1989 Mr.
Peterson and the US Navy began testing the
SCARS project with combat veterans within
the SEAL ranks. The Navy was restricted to
combat veterans that had either real world
hand to hand combat and/or advanced training
in any form of fighting art [martial arts].
After three months of physical testing the
Navy agreed that SCARS had proven beyond a
shadow of a doubt not to stem from a style
of (Martial Arts). SCARS is 100% effective
in all CQB actions. This system could
possibly be the standard for hand-to-weapons
combat for the US Navy Special Warfare
Command Department (SEALS).
