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Professor Sauer must be an exceptional martial artist with extraordinary skills because I noticed that his rank tenures from 5th Dan to 8th Dan were short; 2000 to 2010. I only mention this, not as a critic, but only as a sign of my deepest respect to him!!

Brian, In a normal world, no, it shouldn't make things to much different. However, I believe that a USA Branch Office would solidify the continuity here in the USA.

Good points! Only testing candidates for Godan and above are required to test at the Hombu. All other testing candidates aren't required to test at the Hombu. However, if those candidates from Yondan to Jukyu want to test at the Hombu, then that's allowed with prior Hombu approval. Most, if not all candidates who want to test at the Hombu and not their dojo are always welcomed...and by that, I've never known the Hombu to refuse such requests. I can tell you that there are the following petitions for Hombu testing in June/July 2011, and those ranks are: 2 Yondan's testing for Godan 1 Godan testing for Rokudan 1 Nanadan testing for Hachidan That's 4 that will need to go to the Hombu!! Now there is a sub-article within Article #1 that states that the Hombu can send representatives to a hosting dojo and conduct Regional Testing Cycles, however, the following Ranks from the Hombu must be available: A) Minimum rank for the Center Seat: 1 Hachidan with a Hanshi title. B) Minimum rank for the Co-Center Seat: 1 Nanadan with a Kyoshi title OR 1 Hachidan with a Kyoshi title. The Sensei of the Hosting Dojo will sit to the very first chair to the immediate left of the Center Seat. Remaining seats (4) are filled in at the discretion of the Hombu, and they must be active Godans. Total Hombu presence: 6 plus the Sensei of the Hosting Dojo. Either way, it was very doable when the Hombu was in the USA already. Now, well, without a USA Brance Office, that will not be as easily doable as before.

CONGRATS...and it's well deserved!!

Doubts raise many questions within ones abilities and the like. Without doubt in your training, you'll stagnate in your journey. They'll appear when you least expect them, and you'll defeat them when you're feeling your lowest. It's natural, imho, to doubt oneself from time to time. What we do, the martial arts, isn't easy, and it shouldn't be! It requires some unbelievable trials and errors while on our journeys. Working through your doubts might be the best way to erase them. However, where one doubt has been silenced, another doubt waits in the wings to create havoc in ones MA training. Without doubt, there is no question, with no question there is no point to our training in the MA. Doubt is the beginning of faith; faith in our abilities allows us to see it from all angles, and no matter the discovery, it's true...for only the moment until one works through it completely. It's unreasonable to doubt things that you can't do. You can't fly without an airplane. On the other hand, it's reasonable to doubt that you can't fly an airplane until you've had flying lessons. You can't leap tall buildings, but, you can climb up and over tall buildings. "I'll never get this" is unreasonable, while "I'm having a hard time learning this for the moment" is more of a reasonable doubt. One surrenders while the other won't surrender in it's quest. It's what one does while experiencing self-doubt; this will separate one from the defeated to the victor. All lies in patience and in patience one learns to understand what's at the root of ones doubt. After all, there's nothing wrong with the technique. The technique in itself is fine. However, what's wrong is us, for the moment because with time, the fix will reveal itself to you through the most unlikely event and/or person. Believe in yourself; this is key to erasing doubt. Separate oneself from those who would feed your doubt with their own negative for their enjoyment. If you haven't doubted, you probably haven't thought very hard about what you believe. Your thoughts? EDIT: spelling errors!

I suppose I'd put 'it' on a t-shirt.

You're very fortunate Cliff to have Mr. Palhares as your instructor, as well as your solid lineage. I enjoyed the video and most of all, I've always truly enjoyed martial artists with an affable mannerism. Thanks for sharing him with us!!

Albeit, I'm not a Kyokushin practitioner, but if I may offer my answer to your question. Punches and kicking techniques are very similar to other Karate styles, but Kyokushin places a lot of emphasis on low leg kicks. Kyokushin is full contact and toughens you up. But because of no hitting to the face I would not rely on it exclusively; imho, cross training is the key.

Will the Yankees sign Cliff Lee? I don't know. After the Yankees upped their offer from 137.5 Million to 140 Million, the Rangers went to Arkansas to present their offers to Lee personally. That might make the difference! I'm hoping that Lee would like to see himself in Yankee stripes, because that would benefit his MLB resume, imho. Washington is quite sure of himself that Lee will stay as a Ranger. Aren't negotiations just fun...and suspenseful? Heheheeheee Go Yankees!!

Maybe the Steelers and Raiders of the late 70s early 80s. Ravens - Steelers are great.... even more when Baltimore wins ! I got into the city around 3 pm, tailgated then froze my butt off at the game. I can still close my eyes and see Flacco throw that ball to the FEET of the TE to end the game. Ouch I see the Ravens having no problems against the Texans!! Your Ravens will be ok when it's all said and done in their division...I've no doubt!

Ok, I'm still SHOCKED that the Cowboys beat the Colts. WOWWY!! I didn't jump up and down with glee because that was only one game! Still, congrats to the Cowboys against the Colts. Brian's Chiefs against the hosting Chargers...this will be a game or not. The Chargers have won 4 straight AFC west titles, and they'll not be able to extend that any further if they don't defend their week #1 loss to the Chiefs. This is a possible barn burner; one I want to watch. How well will the 0-9 Brodie Croyle do, since he's not played this year...I see this to be a Chief running game. Then theirs the hosting Jets against Patricks Dolphins. The Jets are still wondering what happened against the Patriots when they bashed them 45-3...ouch! Can they bounce back against the Dolphins? Don't forget that Rex buried a game ball at their training facility...that's a message. Henne has thrown 12 touchdowns and 15 interceptions with a 77.5 passer rating, calling into question whether he’s capable of leading Miami in the future. I'll be watching this game as well. Good luck to both teams! The Cowboys will be hosting the Eagles. While the Eagles are carrying a better record than the Cowboys, the Cowboys are coming off a great win against the Colts, and hopefully this momentum will carry against it's rival, the Eagles. The Cowboys have won 3 out of 4 with their new interim coach Jason Garrett, however, the Cowboys have to face a different Eagle team in the surge of their quarterback Vick, and Vick has been pretty darn good across the board. Will I watch this game? No, because I don't want to jinks the Cowboys. GO COWBOYS!! Good luck to your favorite team!!

I give this bear a...10!! I especially loved the use of adding his back paw in manipulating the staff, as well as the eating his back paw; a secret technique. Excellent flexibility!! Thanks for the videos Joe!!

An update! I don't know if this is of no surprise or not, but NOT one employee of the Shindokan Hombu will be relocating to Okinawa, no matter how generous their package was. You can take the Hombu out of the USA, but it appears that you can't take the employees to Okinawa. The Hombu will have to restructure it's rank and file as well as it's hierarchy from those available in Okinawa. Now! Those of the hierarchy that are going is few, at best. Here's the list of those positions that ARE going to relocate to Okinawa: San Dai-Soke Board Of Regents ~ Secretary Board Of Regents ~ Director PR Department Board Of Regents ~ Qualifications Department Board Of Regents ~ Assistant Director Human Resources Department Board Of Regents ~ Assistant Director Planning Department That's 6 out of 15 important positions to refill. These individuals have spoken out about their excitement to the new opportunities that await them in Okinawa, and their equally excited about the challenges that will occur for them while establishing the Hombu in Okinawa. Key positions not relocating: Kaicho Kancho Kaiso Board Of Regents ~ Assistant Directing Manager of Technical Departments & Qualifications Department Board Of Regents ~ Qualifications Department Board Of Regents ~ Director Accounting Department Board Of Regents ~ Director Human Resources Department Board Of Regents ~ Director General Planning Department Legal Team Sure, vacant positions can be fulfilled, but if the By-Laws are to mean anything and if the By-Laws are to be upheld, then this would take a unanimous votes for each vacant position and the like. Not that simple per our By-Laws! What confuses me is that I was told that the vote to relocate the Hombu to Okinawa was unanimous, which meant to me that all of the Hombu hierarchy were relocating to Okinawa. But, to my amazement, that's not the case. Reaction to this news by our San Dai-Soke wasn't all mute! The Hombu, per San Dai-Soke is still relocating to Okinawa. How? Should the By-Laws be thrown into the trash? An excerpt of a letter to the Executive Team from our San Dai-Soke states the following...."These are the wishes of my father, your Dai-Soke, and if I'm the only one that relocates to Okinawa, than let it be so. I will fulfill my fathers wishes to the best of my abilities. I was hoping for everyone's support in this matter. However, it is not to be so."~San Dai-Soke I know this might not mean anything, but, our San Dai-Soke was born in the USA, therefore, he's not Okinawa by birth. Yes, our Soke and Dai-Soke were Okinawans by birth, but that's where it ends. Many of us high ranks have trained in Okinawa at the Okinawan home of our Soke, but that doesn't mean we have a right to relocate ourselves to Okinawa. If a USA Branch Office is ever needed, than, well, it's needed now!

While the similarities between the original and the new one are quite evident and apparent; my family and I truly enjoyed the new Karate Kid.

I apologize in advance for my answer....however, there's no such thing as the "best", imho, because the "best" is nothing more than an illusion because things change from one moment to another; nothing is consistent. For me, for something/someone to be considered the "best", it/they must be consistent across the board. That's difficult because we are fallible by nature.

"How do I get out of that?" Sometimes you can't, no matter what!! What happens after that? I suppose that that will be left up to your attacker.

Absofreakinlutely right. Doublelytriplely ditto.

Great question! It's quite possible that we'll evenly pick either offense or defense. This, imho, is more than likely because of a personal preference more than what a style dictates to its practitioners across the board. Both, offense and defense are critically vital across the board because one can't live without the other for long. Offense will need to depend on defense for one reason or another, and vice versa for the defense. Shindokan teaches us that a well placed defense/block/deflection can stop an attack. Therefore, per Shindokan through our Tuite; our offense IS our defense and vice versa.

Very solid, and I concur!!

To all; I sincerely thank each and everyone of you from the bottom of my heart. For your nominations, and for your voting, for your confidence in me across the board. Congrats to the other winners, for they are well deserved! This is unexpected, however, it's greatly appreciated! THANKS TO ALL!!

Yes, there are other Shindokan dojo's in the US. Although, the Hombu, for a very long time, was the only Shindokan dojo. I can only assume that the current student body of the Hombu will be referred to neighboring Shindokan dojo's. I'm not for sure what's going to be done in that regard. I'm not in the room! You bring up some valid points in your first paragraph. Here's the thing. I, nor anybody else for that matter, that I'm aware of, knows what our Dai-Soke said, if anything concerning the future of the Hombu, to his eldest son, now our San Dai-Soke, in private before he passed away. If need be, then my retirement was short lived. I've already offered my services to them in any capacity that they feel might be necessary for the betterment of the Hombu, and its students. Time is running out fast!

Hind sight and all that! Yes...I retired from the Hombu this year. I was the Kaicho (President) and Chief Instructor of the Hombu. Before that, I was a member of the Board of Regents for over 21 years. Now, I'm Kaiso, and in this role, I've no voting obligations and/or power. I had refused, just very recently, an offer to resume my prior responsibilities as the Chief Instructor of the Hombu.

I've just finished talking with Kaicho Forsythe, and what he informed me of this morning is, to me, both shocking and very upsetting. The Shindokan Hombu is relocating to, of all places, Nanjo Okinawa. As of January 3, 2011, the only home that the Hombu has ever known is CLOSING!! Yes, closing; it's not even going to remain as a USA Branch of the Shindokan Hombu of Nanjo, Okinawa. What in the world is going on? November 17, 2010, the Shindokan Hombu was in session at the request of our new San Dai-Soke, Iwao Takahashi, the eldest son of our late Dai-Soke, Yoshinobu Takahashi, brought a petition [to move the Shindokan Hombu from it's current USA location to Okinawa] for a vote to the following Teams and their departments: 1) Executive Team, [Kaicho, Kancho, and the Board of Regents], and it's three departments---> A) General Affairs Department B) Instructors Department C) Administration Department 2) Legal Team After several closed, as well as open door meetings, and on December 7, 2010, the vote was unanimous in the favor of our new San Dai-Soke. I was not part of the vote, as I'm now only the Kaiso (Senior Advisor), and the Kaiso has no voting options, just an advisory role. My advise wasn't counseled until the after vote was passed. That's fine, as that is their right because our By-Laws are structured concerning the Kaiso in such a way that my advise is at the discretion of the San Dai-Soke, as well as the Executive Team. However, I've always been very outspoken, and possibly because of this, only now, they're seeking my advise. I've given my advise, however, the move out of the USA is a go! Reason(s) as to why our San Dai-Soke has decided this is quite understandable to some degree. Seeing that our San Dai-Soke is the eldest son of our late Dai-Soke, after all, he's now our leader, so, he felt that the Shindokan Hombu, and more importantly, Shindokan itself must return to where it was founded by our Soke, Fuyuhiko Saitou; Okinawa. But why Nanjo? Our late Dai-Soke was born in the tiny village of Tamagusuku of the Shimajiri District. In the neighboring village of Ozato is also where our Dai-Soke first meet our Soke when he was about 8 years old, and thereafter, started a life-long relationship between these two that well surpassed teacher and student. Okinawa is the birthplace of Shindokan Karate-do Saitou-ryu. Therefore, "Shindokan is going home" per our San Dai-Soke. Moving the Hombu so drastically across the world is going to be quite an insurmountable task across the board. Not only are they literally ripping the Hombu away from the USA to Okinawa, but they're going to be ripping away from the students that daily attend the Hombu for classes. This isn't to mention the fact that our annual testing cycles at the Hombu will be in Okinawa. Well, who can afford to travel to Okinawa? Not many! The Hombu isn't just a dojo, but its an entity, to say the least. How big is the obscure Shindokan Hombu? Here's a KF post I wrote, entitled "A Glimpse Into A Hombu"... http://www.karateforums.com/a-glimpse-into-a-hombu-vt36501.html?highlight= By this, you can possibly see what's involved in moving across the ocean. Not only are Shindokan students going to be greatly affected by this decision, but also are those who've depended on the Hombu for employment. Their decision, imho, also concerns more than what's on the surface. Yes, employment has been offered to everyone who wants to move to Okinawa, and the Hombu has agreed to pay for all that's required to relocate those employees. For those who choose to not relocate to Okinawa, well, a handsome severance package is being offered, however, that severance package depends on how many years one has been employed with the Hombu. I've no desire to live and work abroad. Study abroad, yes, but that was then, and this is now. My path is clear, even more clearer than it's ever been before, as to what I must do as Kaiso...and that is this. Convince the Hombu to establish a USA Branch Office!! If I fail at convincing the Hombu about a USA Branch Office, then I would've failed the entire Shindokan student body, and in that, I feel that I've already failed every student by my retiring. Because if I was still there, I'm pretty sure that I would've been able to squash this petition during the voting procedures. If I fail, then this will be, imho, the beginning of the end of Shindokan. It seems that way, it feels that way, and it tastes that way. Did the passing of our Soke and our Dai-Soke already doom Shindokan, as well as its Hombu? I'm trying to make sense of this, but I can't become a proponent of what the Hombu and it's hierarchy is...no...HAS done!! Your thoughts/advise...etc will be greatly appreciated and respected!!

LOL don't get me wrong I'm not just open the being grabbed or struck. However I believe whether it's grappling or striking I feel more like you could escalate the situation out of your favor. An unsuccessful attempt on the groin will bring dire consequences. Besides you can't attack the groin with them on your back choking the life out of you. With an experienced bjj practitioner you will find very few opportunities to apply these tactics. There are strategies used to make the opponent think of only what one wants them to think about while grappling. An example is attack the neck and they will give up their arms. Unless you spend and extensive amount of time being choked and defending chokes the brain will override what you think you would do when no fresh oxygen is being received in the brain. Everyone goes night night with the choke. That just simply cannot be argued. Let me preface what I've tried to say by just saying...when the moment is right, and not until then; whether I create it or it occurs on its own! But the 4 rules of engagement still apply: Study your opponent, study yourself, make a plan, and then carry out the plan!! Not all plans are successful!

Hehehehehee... I sure did start something by just using the word..."beginner"! Sorry!!