samwisekoi

Thank you all for the input. Nearby are generic McDojos, MMA/TKD dojos, Shotokan dojos and three Aikido dojos. I'll take my "banged up and/or aging" body around to see the latter three and hope one will work for me. Thanks again! - Sam

I've heard some people refer to the "Aikido Wars", with a West Coast Aikido (gentle, flowing, blend with your opponent, gently immobilize your opponent, hug your opponent afterwards) and East Cost Aikido (gentle, flowing, rip your opponents arms off). I think of the rap wars when I hear this...drive by wrist lockings and all that....Hyperbole, of course, but it does seem that Aikido has diverged into 2 separate styles, one of which is more internal like Tai Chi, and the other that seems closer to its Daito Ryu roots.... After training in Kenpo, a couple of motorcycle racing injuries made it very hard for me to pursue such a hard style. Once I turned 50, I wanted to resume MA training, and Aikido seemed to be less stressful on the joints. Living in California, I am concerned with a style ending in hugging. (My Kenpo dojo was tossed out of a tournament or two for excessive use of elbow strikes. Hmmph!) Anyhow, are there ways to detect Martial-style Aikido vs Hugging-style? There are three Aikido dojos close to where I work; one is very Zen, the other two are not. Wierdly, they are all non-profits, which seems as anti-McDojo as can be. (I like that.) Anyhow, I can tell serious Karate dojos from wimpy ones. How can I tell a serious Aikido dojo from a snuggle-bunny one? Thanks in advance, - Sam

I have a 10YO son with an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), and one of the best therapies is Martial Arts training. Exercise, respect, self-control, self-defense against bullying and a very predictable environment where important people are literally color-coded. He did some foo-foo Wushu at a McDojo for a while, then I got him into a more structured and traditional program at another school very close to my office so he can go after school and I can bring him home. It is working out well for him; he has his orange belt now and has absolutely memorized the elements needed for his next test. So this is very good for him, but as is true of the individual mentioned above, people with ASD can become aggressive if confused or over-stimulated by a situation. His doctors say the best thing in that situation is to remove other children from the area and wait for the individual to calm down. So the training is good for him, but if he progresses far enough, and gets big enough, it could become a risk. My take on the situation is that one does not "get" a black belt, one "becomes" a black belt. And it is much, much more than the techniques that are the key. My answer to the question is to focus on the mental, spiritual and self-control aspect of the Art from the beginning. I expect that by the time he is 18 or so, he will have learned enough technique, but that the key to him earning that black belt is his ability to demonstrate a deep understanding of the tenets of the art and an ability to control himself in all circumstances. And it seems to me that well-supervised matches are good places to learn those skills; far better than when confronted by a bully because he looks or acts "different". To return to the actual topic, I agree that black belts should be given as the mark of someone who has gained the wisdom to properly control the techniques in all circumstances. Humbly, - Sam