tommarker

Don't answer what you "think" is right... Just honestly answer how you practice them.

ahem. April Fools!

well, you know that TKD is just an inferior bas-turd-ized offshoot of Tang Soo Do, which is the best Art ever to be created by man. Strike that. Tang Soo Do was created by an advanced alien race and was demonstrated to the human race in the early 16th century to a korean monk: Hwarang Dan. Dan, high on a mixture of peyote and kimchee recorded these arts in the Mooyae Dobo Tongji. In a fervor of Korean Nationalism, Dan made 6 more copies of the books -- all slightly different -- and sent 6 of his fastest men in 6 directions. The man who went East sadly died in the Pacific Ocean, and his book floated to Hawaii, where LuaLua was created. Another went to China, and presented the book to Boddhidharma, and is often considered the root of Chinese Gung-fu. From there, it went further south, to Thailand where the savage illiterate population imitated the bizarre pictures and devloped Silat. This also explains Shotokan. That's why shotokan has no fluidity and why they do the same forms as we do. I don't know WHAT the Okinawans were smoking when they modified our forms.

Good point

excellent job! keep moving up the ladder, and you can be a spiffy yudanja before you know it

Jonny, stay focused on what you're supposed to be learning now.

no one:) i'm just being a smartass...

i don't think that is Soo Bahk Do, although it may be vaguely related.

shotokan doesn't use weapons.

I'd rather be trained in martial arts AND have the good common sense to know when I should or shouldn't use my gun. Understand that I am extremely pro-gun.

I would highly suggest trying them out. Soo Bahk Do (and I am generalzing here... SBD people, give me a break) is the style of Tang Soo Do as it was modified by Hwang Kee in the early 1970s. Now keep in mind that the late Hwang Kee is largely thought of as the father of modern Tang Soo Do. Everyone who does Tang Soo Do should be able to tie their lineage back to Master Hwang at some point. Why the name change? Well, there was a great deal of organizational splitting within this organization throughout the 1970s and 1980s. (Again, I'm speaking in very general terms, and NOT trying to start a flame war.)I believe a large part of Master Hwang's art name change to Soo Bahk Do was an attempt to show his art as different and evolving. Soo Bahk Do schools will perform two sets of hyung: Chil Sung and Yuk Ro that are based in a large part on Tai Chi philosophy. You won't see many TSD schools perform these sets unless they left the SBD organization after they were developed. I've heard that these forms are also copyrighted, but I'll defer that to someone who knows more. So my personal opinion is that TSD and SBD are more or less the same right now, but will probably evolve in different ways such that they may be considerably different 20 years from now. For more info... search on google for: Hwang Kee Moo Duk Kwan Soo Bahk Do Tang Soo Do

Silat can only become more and more popular in the US. It's gaining popularity now, but I think it will be the next BJJ in the eyes of a lot of people. I don't mean that as a slight to either BJJ or Silat...

I like the way ninjamaster thinks.

beware... the following is a rant that makes me sound like an old, old man. ramymensa posted in another thread: I wanted to make sure more people saw this post. I'm going to guess that most of us have no idea how fortunate we are that we can take for granted spending $50+/month on training, not to mention of uniforms, videos, fancy weapons, tournaments, clinics, etc. Or if we're aware, we don't think about it everyday. I've sparred guys from Puerto Rico who couldn't even afford to buy targets. They go out and punch and kick trees. They have one uniform, and it carries the grass, mud, blood, and sweat stains from their training. When it rips, they sew it back up and keep training. I'll add that these guys take their training seriously, and I couldn't hang with them in the ring. And that's 3 minutes. I can't imagine a whole class and I train hard. Our Grandmaster tells stories of being so poor during the Japanese Occupation of Korea that he had to make his own shoes. He trained in an old rail station with giant cracks in the floor. You don't need a $150 Sang Moo Sa uniform or the "Adidas Grandmater" dobahk with sweat-wicking action. You don't need the newest graphite bo with crackle colors, or the latest video. Heck, you don't even need a uniform or a belt, mats, targets, flags, gatorade, smooth floor, mirrors, etc. However, we could probably all use the humility that comes from sewing your frayed belt, mending the holes in the uniform, making due with ugly pit stains, getting feet dirty from training outdoors. My favorite pair of nunchaku are my oak pair that I've had since before I started training. I've oiled them, sanded them and re-strung them. Even though I'm obsessed with nunchaku and probably have 15 pair, these are my favorite, and will remain so until one of the rods splits in half. "You can have anything you want in life. You just can't have everything." Rant over... move along, nothing to see here.

It's not the cloth that matters !!! My friend is also in Karate and she doesn't wear a karategi, because she can't afford one (still. She is saving up). So when it's grading time and tourney time she just borrows one from another coleague. That didn't hinder her in practising karate for almost 3 years. Ramy my friend, I'm afraid I was making a joke that you could conceal your lack of true technique by wearing the fancy clothes. I apologize if I have offended. I applaud your friend who trains without a karategi. In the US, buying a gi is inexpensive compared to the price of the studio many times. You can buy a gi for $20US although it may not be of the highest quality. It sounds as though your friend is learning the true essence of martial arts. It lies not in your belt, gi, or any other material possesions. All you need is room to train and the heart to do so. Oh yea.. YOU NEED A TEACHER TOO, FOLKS!

Carrying a firearm is not necessarily legal in all 50 states of the Union. Trust me, I live in one that has no concealed carry law. Carrying openly, while legal, is really not the best course of action either.

I hope animal styles work, since many claim that okinawan karate has its roots in Shaolin White Crane

As a former cross-country runner, I'll take offense to that conclusion. If we only had 4 inch vertical jumps, the steeplechase would be a limbo I will agree that running will not do much for fast-twitch muscle fibers, but that's what cross-training with weights, plyometrics, and some hill sprints are for.

-Royce Gracie I agree with a Gracie quote!!!! Fireka, Have you looked at the nearby universities or community centers? They often offer martial arts at a SUBSTANTIALLY cheaper price. example: the studio I attend at Ohio State charges $30 for a 10 week quarter. 3 classes a week x 10 weeks = a DOLLAR a class. Some places are flat out free. The university or center provides the space, and the instructor is just there for the love of the art. You say you might have to wait until May.. I say wait until May. Anything worth doing is worth doing well. Martial arts are a lifetime pursuit, and will always be there for you. If you want to get the most out of the experience take the time until then to get in excellent physical shape. I will second and third the others who have asked you to keep an open mind towards other arts. The art means precisely squat.... the value lies almost all within the teacher.

There is the tendacy to "age out" of those sorts of situations. If you're still getting into bar fights in your 30s and 40s, I don't think there is much that the martial arts can do for you. At some point, someone is going to punch your ticket. Avoidance is a huge part of self-defense. And a lot of people advocate the art of run-fu or nike-do. That's great when you're by yourself and in good shape. Can you outrun a wiry athletic kid in the prime shape of his life? Can your wife, child, or anyone else who looks to your for protection? Pepper Spray is good... And I can make some great recommendations on brands. Just remember that OC is something that doesn't work equally on everyone, and is not whoop-ass in a can. Most police departments have a section in their training where cadets are sprayed in the face, and required to shoot a target, move around and obstacle and cuff someone before they can de-tox. Why do they do this? If you use OC on a suspect, you're probably going to encounter some blowback. Or you're wrestling a guy, and your eager partner douses you both in the hot sauce. Either way, you have to be psychologically prepared to know that you can fight the physiological effects long enough to finish your job. If a cop can fight through it, a criminal determined to kill you can as well. Are brass knuckles and blackjacks legal in Florida? I would check before getting caught with them If there is interest in the subject, I wouldn't mind sharing what little i know about them, or referring you to places and people with lots more info. Tom

no offense, but I doubt it

look harder for a teacher. not all teachers hold class in a strip mall or business setting. depending on where you are in VA, I may be able to lead you to the something affordable and educational.

ehh, i just know a bunch of tai chi trivia..

9/10 on the tai chi. I didn't know that the Tai Chi classics had been found in a salt shop 9/10 qigong. I had no clue as to the orgins of the name qigong. 6/10 acu-points. I need to learn the proper names for those points and meridians 8/10 history. I guessed right on the Dao Ying Xing Qi Fa question though. 5/10 taoism... I really stunk it up there:)

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