FighterForLife

I hear you - it is a double edged sword. I, myself, as a child was a little snot in the dojo. Not mean, but I goofed around way too much and must have been distracting to the older and more serious students. I cringe when I think about how I used to behave. Then again, if I hadn't been enrolled or if they kicked me out, I might never have grown up to love martial arts the way I do, and Kyokushin would have never gained this student. My memory of how I used to behave, and my demeanor in the dojo now has helped me cultivate the first of my Martial Arts Maxims: "Have patience with kids in the dojo. You used to be that annoying, too".

THIS!!!! What will be most important, at his age, is that the school you choose has instructors that know how to keep kids involved and interested. When he gets older, then you can worry about style. And not to bring the thread to a dark place, but do a thorough background search on ALL the instructors who will have contact w/ your son. Odds are good everything will be fine, but there is no need to take chances.

you would have a CHILD face down an ADULT black belt?

Will your block/deflection END/STOP your attackers advances? This isn't a rhetorical question nor is it a general musing. If ones block/deflection lack stopping attributes, then there's no use, imho, to execute said block/deflection. Stopping attributes = solid mass + velocity + conflicting trajectory vs incoming attack. Yes, my blocks stop attacks. I still dont know what you're driving at. Sometimes the media in which we're a part of allows the written word to not come across clear. I'm driving at...Don't walk forward if it's not going to get one closer to where one is trying to arrive at. I give up.

Still seems like a crappy thing to do to somebody. What was his whole point of abusing you until you got angry enough to yell at him? Dai-Soke was never abusive, and if he was, I would've left Shindokan a long time ago. Dai-Soke always CHALLENGED us, that was his way, and that was the way of our Soke as well. While it may seem like a "crappy thing to do", I never felt it that way then, nor do I feel that way now. To know him is to understand him; he was very compassionate both on and off the floor. If the way that I wrote the OP has painted a negative hue about the situation as well as my Dai-Soke, then the fault is mine, and not Dai-Soke's. Fair enough. But what was the point of the "test"?

Still seems like a crappy thing to do to somebody. What was his whole point of abusing you until you got angry enough to yell at him?

Will your block/deflection END/STOP your attackers advances? This isn't a rhetorical question nor is it a general musing. If ones block/deflection lack stopping attributes, then there's no use, imho, to execute said block/deflection. Stopping attributes = solid mass + velocity + conflicting trajectory vs incoming attack. Yes, my blocks stop attacks. I still dont know what you're driving at.

As has been pointed out, the whole "register your hands" bit is a myth. As for the larger point of whether you'll have a harder legal time, I certainly think that your training will be under scrutiny. I am no lawyer, but I have always, in my mind, rehearsed running the heck away from the scene if I have laid someone out. If you aren't there, and witnesses can't give but a general account of the situation and your description then odds are better you wont be arrested and land in court. And as for leaving the scene of a crime, it is easily justifiable that you were terrified for your life and didnt know how many friends that guy had just waiting to pound you into dirt.

Apparently there is a different "C" word in Canada than there is in the US, lol. The more I think about it the worse this whole experience sounds. I mean, what was the purpose of this "test"? What gain is there to making him shout at his instructor? The only thing I can imagine is that he WANTED him to stop looking at him like an instructor and more of an equal (of course, I can think of several reasons why that couldn't be the case, too).

To the OP: If memory serves, the whole "one punch one kill" stuff started with Funakoshi when he wanted to make Okinawan fighting more relatable to mainland Japan. It is a nice sentiment, but I've never taken it literally. As for the question of blocks...what is your question? Is this rhetorical? Just seemed to be general musings rather than a conversation starter.

Thankfully I never have had someone pull that kind of nonsense on me during a test (passing a Kyokushin test is pretty straight forward: you fail if you quit) For someone to make it a requirement to break social etiquette in a martial culture that STRONGLY adheres to social etiquette seems like a bunch of crap to me.

No. Let's pretend it was for a moment. So what? Just because something "used to be" doesn't mean that it was "good", "right", "effective", or should continue at all. Remove the karate context - what if this boy's teacher, Scoutmaster, or parent did the same thing as punishment? You cannot automatically write off acts of violence on children just because they happen in white pajamas.

I used to take Combat Hapkido. 1. Like all fighting arts they are similar to one another, yet different. Both contain strikes, both contain locks. Both are (debatably) "reality based". 2. Far fewer groin kicks in CH and no hand grenade disarming techniques. 3. Commando KM is a "unique" brand created to avoid having to pay royalties to KM central. From what I was able to learn while I was looking for a KM school way back in the day, there is very little measurable difference to common KM

I'd have to disagree with that. A regular part of Kyokushin training is jissen kumite which is full contact fighting. Students regularly spar in class, and often with moderate to hard contact. Human beings are much sturdier than you think, and even a well trained strike from a martial artist is not always the killing blow (or even fight finisher) we think it is. This is the Kyokushin way of sparring. Note too that we rarely get any kind of serious injuries from this kind of sparring in the dojo too. Osu! In our dojo we have a lot of kids (small group - we dont have a separate kid-class) so I get my control training when I spar with them and will only make light contact. With the shodans and adults, that is where we take the gloves off (literally).

Uhm, I dunno about everyone else, but I didn't shop for my martial art at Ollivander's.

I only know what you have given us here, so I dont know if I can give you what you need. But I'll take a stab in the dark! If you enjoyed the basics your dad taught you and you like the simple and straight forward combatives of bouncer/LEO techniques then why are you going after a traditional art like Shorinryu? You may be best off with something like Hapkido, Aikido, Krav Maga, etc since they all have techniques that are applicable towards what you already have learned. But lets say you are dead set on going to a traditional karate school. Is the Shorinryu dojo "too" old school? Maybe. Though I am not sure whether you can make that call based solely on what you've told us here. Every style (Krav, BJJ, Karate, JKD, etc) blocks with forearms. Doing so is not outdated unless there is a new technique of blocking with telekinesis I am unaware of (which would be sweet!). Your gf sounds well intentioned, though it is a paper-rock-scissors argument about who developed what style due to perceived weaknesses in style X, Y, and Z. So don't use this as your sole barometer either. Bottom line, unless you see something that is dangerous (making children punch bricks, stabbing your hands into hot sand or gravel, gun disarming techniques with LIVE AMMUNITION, etc) then I don't think you should write them off simply because they do things differently than what you already learned. Best of luck!

I'm still new on this forum, so let me first say that I am not going to try to sound like some tough guy by saying this, but if a shodan in my dojo got knocked down by new student (of any level of previous experience) then it would be something to congratulate the newbie about, not punish. The shodan, on the other hand, would be subject to some good natured ribbing. Also, pushups as punishment for winning? Sounds like you showed them up and they got angry about it.

Can yo be more specific? By that I mean WHY do you want self defense instead of all your other alternatives? You mentioned your work and multiple opponents; are you a prison guard? Bouncer? Work with the mentally unstable? Is there anything that would stop you from using even a blunt force weapon like a kubotan or nightstick? To your questions I might suggest Combat Hapkido. I trained in it personally and while I do not like that many techniques rely on fine motor skills (which will go bye-bye in an emergency), it has many, many techniques that allow for using pain compliance on your attacker. It also does well in on-your-feet grappling without tying you up with your opponent (so if you do end up in a multiple-attacker situation, you will at least be on your feet and quickly able to disengage)

Sure. Just forward $37 USD to my pay pal per use!

You have a good handling strategy there, if the bully will walk with you to chat first. Though, with respect, to assume all bullies are cowards is overly simplistic and does nothing to prepare someone to deal with them. Some bullies are cowards and will back down when challenged. Some bullies WANT to be challenged so they can hit you to exert their alpha dominance.

Hitting anyone, male or female, is about the other person's intent and context: 1. Is she holding a weapon? 2. Does she have a history of violence or arrest? 3. Is she under the influence of drugs or alcohol? 4. Does she have a group of similarly angry and dangerous female friends with her? 5. Do you honestly fear for your life or safety? If yes to one or more of the above, (assuming deescalation is not an option) then lay her the hell out.

You're looking for a shortcut? Don't bother entering. While you are busy trying to "jazz things up" without practice you are losing to someone who is focusing on making their kata better.

Ah the age old "appeal to authority" argument. Dealing with people who believe that only black belt's opinions matter is a lot like dealing with a bigot: nearly nothing you can say will convince them otherwise and you are best off not dealing with them at all if possible. Sad to say, but this is the truth - many people get into the martial arts because of the ego stroking it gives them to be "teh d34dli3st" and as soon as that black fabric touches their ever-expanding waist, they immediately become martial elitists. Just move along. Nothing you can do.

Wow, man. Not cool. I am as much a real lawyer as Doogie Howser is a real doctor but I think you should consider pressing charges or even filing suit. Dojo or not, that is assault on a minor to my layman's eye. I also sincerely doubt that your son is the first and last child this "master" has done this to and he should be stopped. Save the next child he would do this to and report him.

You will do it all wrong...and that is perfect. The goal of home training is not to only do it if you can do it perfectly, it is to simply polish your rough movements and build the synaptic responses so that, over time, your slow, rough, choppy, uncoordinated moves will become smooth, fluid, and quick. As for spending a lot of money, you can buy a very decent punching bag from ebay or craigslist for under $100 - he shouldn't raise a fuss about something cheap like that. Bottom line: don't worry about "perfect" (it won't be). Don't worry about getting it wrong (it will be). Just worry about putting your heart into each movement and you will do fine.