Treebranch

Don't let those kind of people see what's inside you. Don't let words get to you and even if it does, don't let them see it. You are the immovable mountain.

Lots of macho man kinda talk. Pride has no place in combat.

Learn to use a bokken and get some instruction before you buy a live blade. They are very sharp and if you don't know how to handle a blade you could seriously hurt yourself or someone else. Paul Chen Practical is a good starter sword, but the balance is a little front heavy and the tsuka is glued on, which sucks. The Practical Plus is excellent and if someone broke one they don't know what they're doing, but this sword is a little more expensive and worth it. Be careful.

Good point about TKD, but think about the general publics perception of MA's. They only know about the MA's that have good marketing behind it, and that they've actually heard of. Like I said before, just because it's popular doesn't mean it's any more valid than anything else.

Isn't it interesting that we only trust things that have had media coverage and marketing behind it. Just because money is involved doesn't mean that is going to attract the Master of MA's to come out of the woodwork and fight. I think BJJ is good for what it is, a ground fighting art, but it is not a complete fighting art. Just because some of their practitioners fight in NHB tournaments doesn't mean it is any more effective in a real situation than Combat MA's. I would say real situations are far more unpredictable and weapons may come into play. BJJ has little to no weapons training and that is their weakness. Also seeing every confrontation as a competition is dangerous.

Look, it all depends on your training methods and your mind set. If your mindset is to win and submit someone, that can distract you in a real situation where it is not fair and other people may get involved. Also, don't compare yourself with the NHB fighting champions, because they live this stuff and will do well on the street against almost anyone. I'm talking about us, the practitioners, not the professionals. A combat MA such as Budo Taijutsu taught in the proper context will prepare better for life, period. Sport MA will prepare you better for competition, period. That's all there is to it. One was created over centuries of war and the other was created for competition. Don't worry you probably will never have fight a Budo Taijutsu master, nor would you want to. It's all about cheating, tricking you into positions that make you really vulnerable to extreme harm. Kano knew Takamatsu Sensei and I don't think Kano would have agreed to death matches with the JJ guys. Kano's art was made during peace time and it is a very effective art in peace time, but is not made for the battle field. JJJ was designed for the battlefield so let's leave it at that.

See the only thing is BJJ only concentrates on ground fighting and there stand up skills a few a far between. JJ if it's a good school teaches all ranges, at least my school does. 1/3 striking, 1/3 standing grappling (throws, locks, etc..), and ground fighting. Also, weapons training permeated throughout as well.

There are many Jujutsu Ryu and many different approachs. I think the real problem is that TJJ is too caught up in tradition and not in the now. BJJ isn't perfect either, it has it's own problems. I think we are getting to an old argument here which is more about training methods than the MA itself. As far as joint manipulation is concerned, it is hard to pull it off in a real situation. It's also hard to knock someone out when they know what they are doing. It's a matter of strategy and experience. In Budo Taijutsu locks, throws, strikes, etc. happen naturally, we don't try to force them on someone. If they resist one way we go with it and get them into something else. Or we will strike you and then take it. The path of least resistance is a definite strategy. I consider Budo Taijutsu a Jujutsu, it's very similar in many ways. The key is to capture the balance first and the lock goes on without the person knowing it.

Well what if you are in a bar? What if you can't go to the ground for what ever reason? What if there is more than one person? What if you person may or may not have a weapon? What if you person is huge and powerful? I don't think you can say one MA is the best for the street, because the street can be anywhere. The street doesn't mean a back yard party fight.

Kunta did you say BJJ is the best MA for the street? How? It's an excellent if not the best groundfighting system out there, but you need to be well rounded for the street. It also depends what street you are talking about.

Quest is Stephen Hayes dojo I think. If it is he knows what he is doing. But I'd always check it out and see what you think.

Yeah, I've seen that too 1kickKO. It's amazing that Gracies threw away all the great throws that Jujitsu had in it. They should really keep evolving their art.

I recommend Budo Taijutsu and don't worry about mastering the art. Master your body first. That doesn't sound right, but you know what I mean, right?

Arnis. Now I still think a Warring States period Samurai would waste them both, but that's just my opinion.

Have a relaxed body, but an alert mind. You feel fear, show anger, you feel anger, show calmness. Yin and Yang. Sorry, bad paraphrasing.

Give the bully a really nice gift and compliment him on his appearance.

Bagua is what Ghangis Khan's army knew? It's an old form of combat fighting? I'd fight a BJJ beginner on the roof of my house.

It's very useful if you find yourself on the ground in a one person situation. You should know how to handle yourself on the ground, but it is only one aspect of fighting.

There is certain aspects of San Soo that you can use for sparring and I suppose you could wear padding. I just think there would be lots of injuries. Some of the throws are brutal and you would need to be at a certain level of skill to spar. I don't think sparring is a good idea for beginners. Beginner should be working on the basics and ukemi training first. San Soo is not about techniques it's about principles. The techniques show you possibilities of what can be done. San Soo isn't do this if someone does that type of art. Being able to flow from one movement to another effecting balance and destroying your attacker is what San Soo is about.

Move out of the way and hit at the same time.

I think what you say is true AnonymousOne, but it's not an absolute. Some people learn faster than others, some people are stronger and faster than others. Talent is a big factor in fighting. Also you can't teach someone to be aggressive when need be. You have to possess that fighting spirit, balanced with a calm mind. So if you are just training techniques over and over great, but you also have to cultivate your mind. Underestimating someone on the street is a big mistake. Street fights are like a box of chocolates.

Life is study. MA are amazing to me.

Did anyone see the Tito vs. Vitor fight? There were some good matches, but the main attraction was kind of uneventful. Did you see the Lidell and Tito doing the WWF thing and Shamrock and Tito talking smack. I thought Shamrock and Tito are friends. It was really disappointing.

My advice would be to stay away from Dux Ryu, because it isn't at all what it claims to be. There's no pure form of Ninjutsu being studied today. Bujinkan Budo Taijutsu is the closest art to it because of the 3 ryu stated above. It is an impressive and complete system. Budo Taijutsu is available to you, I highly recommend it. Considering your choices you mentioned I would choose the Kung Fu.

That's how we mostly train. We all go from work to the dojo and rarely have time to change, so we train in our work clothes. Jeans, t-shirt, sneakers, everyday clothes. I think it's smart. The Gi is basically what people wore back in the day. It's kind of strange how most dojos wear a Gi and no shoes when they train, but if you ever get into a situation you probably won't have time to put your Gi on.