sensei8

Most solid point I've ever seen! Very solid!

Sure it does! And when that fails; use whatever to survive! Use a truck, use a car, use a bat, use a stick, use your teeth, use everything and anything within your means, after that, when the opportunity arrives...RUN!!!!

I'm 6' 1", therefore, I'm going to attack your base repeatedly. Why? The bigger they are, the harder they will fall! I'm going to use combos for attacking your base. Yes, I might hit you one time, but, it'll be to only set up my combos to your base. I'm going to angle in/out, but, I'm going to drive forward at all times. Keep chopping at the tree, even with the smallest axe, it will still bring down the mighest oak!

For all the tournaments I attend, if this happened they would be virtually impossible to run because you'd have no judges. Most of the larger schools will enter students into every category and this would mean their instructors couldn't judge in any of the categories. No matter how large or how small a tournament might be, integrity must be upheld. There's no tournament so small that an instructor, for the sake of upholding the tournament integrity, can't bow out of that "ring" for the time being!!!! Don't judge your own student at any tournament...I won't!

That's an understatement! Kata's do, but, they should and they shouldn't. Huh? "Traditionalists" instructors will keep the Kata's the same within the style through and through. Nothing, for example, will be changed from one Shotokan Dojo to another "Non-Traditionalists" instructors will change the Kata's as they see fit based on the preferences of that instructor. Example....ABKA founder Denny Holzbauer, Judan, uses the Heian Kata's in his ABKA, BUT, he made changes to each of them to be unique to his style that he founded. His background: 7th Degree Black Belt (Sichidan) Sei Bu Kan Shoto-Kan and 5th Degree Black Belt (Godan) Kyokushin-Kai Kan. Is either right? I don't know; ask them! Their answers shouldn't surprise you.

My students!

Fear doesn't exist in the Dojo/Dojang! Or does it? Preception is reality to each person! Sensei's are respected by thier students but I think that the students are fearful of their instructors. How they're precieved by their students goes along way. How the instructor barks, carries themselves, and the awe struckness of what the instructor can do...to them if the instructor wanted to. Students shouldn't fear their instructors. Why? BECAUSE THE STUDENT IS THE CUSTOMER! Therefore, instructors MUST respect their students as just that...students that are their CUSTOMERS!

Dana White is nothing more than a businessman/promoter concerned only with Zuffa's bottom line! White's not even trained in the martial arts, which, I'm cool with because in his current role, White doesn't have to be trained in the martial arts. Wyatt Earp? I don't think so.

Pro-Wrestiling is preceived assumptions! Could the movements truly hurt? Yes. Would the movements be effective? Yes. Would've, could've, and should've are all possibles.

Sounds like what I'm reading here is akin to shunning. Works for me! Lessons must be taught in the martial arts, not just physical ones!

I'm not going to beat you up, and you're absolutely correct when you say its just a theory. Here's my theory/opinion based on your observation(s)... All 4 of your "phases" are infinite. Huh? Learning, understanding, applying/fighting, and mastery/perfection are REACCURING in the practitioner each and every time when the practitioner is faced with a "new" technique(s). When is it "new"? When something has never been experienced before! One never truly goes from one rung to another and stay there, therefore, each rung must be revisited as things are learnt no matter the rank/experience. Even within that, the 4 phases are constant with no end because one can't truly master anything in the martial arts. Why? One reason is that we're flawed humans, therefore, we're not perfect. Two, mastering something is no more than an illusion, therefore, mastery/perfection don't exist. Master/Expert are nothing more than labels attached, but, these labels assume alot about "us" as humans. I'm a Hachidan/Hanshi and blah blah, but I'm NO master and I'm NO expert because my learning curve changes from moment to moment as well as from discovery to discovery. This is my path in the martial arts!

First of all...great post! I thank you for it! It's not important to me! Why? Because after all of the many differences, it's still just the martial arts. Distinctions are nothing more than labels, imho! We can be compassionate about the distinctions but we shouldn't allow this to blind us to what it is that we all are doing...the martial arts! I don't care about the semantics because semantics are just that. They [semantics] muddle a conversation about the martial arts, therefore, they serve no valuable purpose. Am I guilty of it? Yes, from time to time, but, aren't we all from time to time! Let us not be worried about this and that because the this and that will take care of itself...just train!

This reminds us all...one can't judge a book by its cover!

Listed below are my picks of winners: Lesnar St. Pierre Fitch Bisping Akiyama Coleman Danzig O'Brien Kim Dollaway Grice Hopefully the way I've listed the winners of UFC 100 is appropriate.

Congrats on your Sandan testing. I realize it's your normal job to come up with more professional looking certs for Yudansha's and upper Kyu's...but...doesn't your organization have certs for your sensei/judging panel to sign already? Who came up with those? Those who came up with them before, couldn't they translate the kanji for you? Doesn't your sensei/judging panel already have a Sandan cert for you already?

Kanazawa Sensei has a great DVD out called "KANAZAWA MASTERING KARATE: TE-WAZA", this is an excellent DVD. This DVD is produced by Rising Sun Productions and it's found almost anywhere.

My bad! I wasn't trying to sound all Zen and that. I was just getting a little tired of reading and hearing the argument of what's better and all of that. Just shut up and train! I also like Funakoshi Sensei's answer to why he practiced Karate...to get better! A cheeseburger is better! No, a hamburger is better! SHUT UP...just be happy you're even eating at all! I know...it's the preference thing...that's fine...but...eat the darn thing and let's just move on for the love of cheeseburger/hamburger lovers across the world over.

MOVE THE WEAPON AROUND YOUR HEAD! NOT... MOVE YOUR HEAD AROUND YOUR WEAPON! What's the importance of this basic in Kobudo training? It never ceases to amazes me how often this rule is ignored/violated. It's violated/ignored in class, at tournaments, and during testing. Why? LACK OF PRACTICE! Lack of confidence! Respect of the weapon is what's needed, not being in fear of said weapon! Moving ones head around the weapon unbalances the practitioner, changes posture, and changes the center-line; these spell disaster for the Kobudo practitioner. Transitional changes with a weapon are then compromised by moving ones head around the weapon. What other things could happen by moving ones head around the weapon?

This martial arts versus that martial arts have been debated for as long as I can remember. Nothing's ever solved, imho, with these types of discussions for one reason or another. Both sides of the fence are just as compassionate as the other, therefore, only argumentations can only ensue from these type(s) of conversations. The missing the forest for the trees seems to become prevalent with these type of arguments. Conclusion...just be happy that you're even training in an effective martial arts at all!!!! Your thoughts?!?

When I was just a kid, my parents had me go through a series of urethal dilation to stem off my bed-wetting...QUACKS...every single one of them! The dilation is one of the most barbaric things to put any child/person through. WHY? It's done in the doctors office, you're put under anesthesia, something that resembles a long knitting needle is inserted into the male organ, thus, dilation is achieved somehow. Then, they bring you out of anesthesia and before you're allowed to leave the doctors office you've got to urinate...this is where the screaming and crying begins. Why? The dilation causes so much pain and so much blood when you first urinate after dilation, it's inhuman! It usually takes about 3-4 more visits to the bathroom at home before the pain/blood stops. The urethal dilation done at the hospital is 10 times worse as far as the pain and the blood is concerned. I'd never do this to my two sons and I pray that they never do it to their sons. After all of the pain/blood I endured as a child...the urethal dilation DIDN'T WORK!!! Please seek out other alternatives to cure bed-wetting if you're entertaining urethal dilation because it's beyond pain...and it doesn't work!!!!

Nobody's surprised that politics have raised its ugly head in tournaments! No matter where one might look in the martial arts, politics are evident. No instructor should EVER judge their own student, no matter the division! This destroys the integrity of the tournament. If one of my students were in a ring that I was one of the judges, I'd excuse myself to conserve the integrity of the tournament!

PRACTICE! PRACTICE! PRACTICE! Nothing improves anything without practice...tons of practice! Some good ideas have been covered in this thread and they can't be argued with, but, without practice nothing is achieved.

It's going to be difficult to write about Te waza's in general terms with any effectiveness without having the general knowledge. It'll show up in your writing, imho. Te waza can be such a broad topic, and in your writing, it'll show up as rambling. One must experience Te waza in order to write about Te waza...this can't be avoided. Good luck with your writings.

WOW! What a question! The martial arts is all I've ever known and it's all that I'm truly passionate about. To answer the question at hand... I'd be BORED out of my skull! I just don't truly know what I'd be doing if it weren't for the martial arts. Having said that... I would've been a police officer if I wasn't a martial artist. Yes, I know that as a police officer I would've been able to do both. That's fine, but, I would've dedicated my life to law enforcement and I would've done some self-defense as part of being a police officer.

I know I'm late with this, but, I've been a little busy... LAKERS WIN! LAKERS WIN! LAKERS WIN! With that win...that gives the Lakers...LAKERS WIN...LAKERS WIN...sorry...with that win the Lakers have won 15 NBA Championships...LAKERS WIN...LAKERS WIN!!!!! Ok...now...GO YANKEES!!!!!!!!!!!!