bustr

I've noticed that American point karate fighters stand sideways, lean backwards away from their opponents and rely on their lead hand and foot. American point fighters throw wild strikes at targets against which they would not be effective and frequently throw themselves off balance. Apparently this is an optimum approach but it looks like it would be suicidal in a street fight. American point fighting JKA, WSKA and WKF fighters stand up in a back stance and use reverse punches and rear leg kicks. They never use backfists. Their karate looks like karate and they look like they could defend themselves if the need called for it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9GrGu5NHqok https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OdDOuW8cm88 Is this caused by a difference in the rules? What are those differences?

Does anyone remember this? Who was the American Indian guy who had this show? Anyone remember? It featured him and some kids in their early teens practicing martial arts moves to music in front of a Tipi and aired on one of the fitness channels.

http://www.taekkyonkorea.com/pds/replyr.php?wh=tk&class=??|???&sno=1&z_sno=20 http://www.taekkyonkorea.com/data/pds/2001/tk200106182.asf http://www.taekkyonkorea.com/data/pds/2001/tk200106183.asf http://www.taekkyonkorea.com/data/pds/2001/tk200106184.asf http://www.taekkyonkorea.com/data/pds/2001/tk200106185.as http://www.taekkyonkorea.com/data/pds/2001/tk200106186.as http://www.taekkyonkorea.com/data/pds/2001/tk200106187.as http://www.taekkyonkorea.com/data/pds/2001/tk200106188.as http://www.taekkyonkorea.com/data/pds/2001/tk200106189.as http://www.taekkyonkorea.com/data/pds/2001/tk2001061810.as http://www.taekkyonkorea.com/data/pds/2001/tk2001061811.as http://www.taekkyonkorea.com/data/pds/2001/tk2001061812.as

Scaramouche I know this is a few years late but here it is: http://wushusifu.com/ Whoops! I didn't see it in metalhead's post.

Cybren Erle is a complete gentleman and will answer most questions. I've talked to him a few times. He is right up there with Bruce Siddle and William E. Fairbairn IMHO.

http://taijiworld.com/download/RV.zip http://taijiworld.com/download/Free_books.htm

"It's not what you know but how well you know it." If that were true then ballet would be a self defense art.

Thanks

When?

MAR Are you looking for Scott Wong's school? He has some articles over at https://www.blackbeltmag.com but doesn't have a website relating to martial arts.

Karate looks like kickboxing when too much time is spent on sparring with protective equipment thus allowing the gloves to be used as shields and restricting the ability of the fighter to use shutos grabs etc. The appearance of kickboxing is determined by the rules and equipment used.

Not close by but you might find it informative. http://www.whitecraneinstitute.com/artsofcombat/index.htm

BTW Let's not blow this out of proportion. The guy using the switch was using it to correct their stances like some of the teachers in the 1980s Hong Kong cinema. It may not be really physically abusive (although a lawyer might prove it was) but it is degrading to the kids and reflects the teachers insecurity. I guess riding herd over kids reinforces already huge egos. And of course huge egos are the result of soft training. The right training gives confidence balanced with an awarness of one's own real (not percieved) limitations. And the student of such training has no need to belittle or hurt children.

"I believe you feel kids should master themselves before they attempt to master the art. But do you believe that maybe the art may be the key to teaching them to master themselves?" I believe that you must not have read my post. I said that I like to keep the class moving quickly. I wouldn't expect children to hold a horse for a half hour or even 5 minutes. When I teach they are constantly moving. They can ask questions after class. However, I'm constantly correcting their moves and making sure they understand so questions are few. If they're not moving then I'm constantly talking repeating what I've told them and reminding them that although I'm flooding them with info I don't expect them to remember everything and I'm only flooding because of their superior performance and understanding. So basically positive reinforcement, a fast pace and repetitive instructions are my strategy. The students I teach may not have birthday parties in their pajamas but they have clean powerful techniques which might actually work when it counts and they actually have the discipline and tenacity that these babysitting services like to use as selling points. You are right about the legal part and I accept your admonition there. This org generally likes to settle things with lawsuits because it's the only way they can win at anything.

Sens55 I've dealt with people from that org and they are generally closed minded and self-righteous. Even a good beat down (as one of our green belts gave to one of their black belts) doesn't convince them. Anyone who sees through their line of bull usually leaves the org right after getting to BB. Then they search out training partners from legitimate orgs. The person who told me about the switches was a very credible witness. "And Bustr, that doesn't mean a school can't be serious. The kids classes are for the kids and the adult classes are for the adults. The goals are different. The focus for most kids is to learn discipline and focus." I understand that. I noticed Zulfi Ahmed's school on that page. I would hardly catagorize him with these other guys. However it is still bloody embarassing that the general population now views karate as child's play rather then adult discipline. I'm all for kids training and having fun at it. But they can at least train with a decent level of intensity (You know, the kind you see in little league baseball and football). Personally I like to keep the class moving quickly since children have a short attention span which no amount of switching or belittling will cure. Also I think the parents like it when they go home tired. Parties for the class are okay too. But offering a "karate birthday party" to the general public? What kind of business are they in? How about offering open house instead? At least then it wouldn't come across as a daycare. But then again that's what some of these people are running.

Don't know how common it is but it's an embarassment to the genuine martial arts community. These guys are nothing but afterhours daycare operators. Worst of all their students either get a false confidence from the training or they compensate for their shortcomings by bullying.

Apparently I was mistaken. They are not headquartered in Beaumont. I believe that the Beaumont school had their own org at one time though.

This is one of them: http://www.tctkdplus.com/area_taekwondo_schools.htm Look at the unique services they offer here: http://www.martialinfo.com/owners/manuals/birthday_party/view.asp?state=tx

"Yeah, I've heard some horror stories from the TaeKwonDo Plus in Tyler! I was hoping it was just that one school, geuss not..." They have managed to infest the Gulf Coast of Texas. They are headquartered in a fairly affluent section of Beaumont. I didn't realize they had gotten as far inland as Tyler.

Karatemom Look for a less commercial school. Don't be scared off by heavy contact sparring or a little blood in the adult class. An instructor who specializes in full contact will be alot gentler with children. People who can give and take punishment have nothing to prove and do not act like bullies. There is a chain of schools in SouthEast Texas known as TaeKwonDo Plus. There instructors have been known to shout at kids and belittle them in front of the class and have also been seen using switches to correct them. This particular org only uses light contact in sparring (although I'm sure they will demonstrate with hard contact on a cooperative opponent) and awards black belts after 2 years of training. They will also promote children to BB, an honor that should be reserved for the mentally tough and physically mature. These non-contact schools are magnets for bullies and sociopaths. In addition they do not deliver on all of the sugary promises they make in their pitch. So in short if you're wanting him to learn something real you need to get him out of there and with an instructor who doesn't feel the need to play mind games with children.

What amuses me are these guys who train in boxing, wrestling etc. for 20 years, get a black belt in karate then open a school teaching all of their tactics and labelling it "karate" when karate makes up only 20-30% of their total training.

Even if they only know a little but are willing to organize the group and handle the administrative tasks then they can't hurt anything by starting a class.

"If you want to start a school in a spacific art you should go to a certified instructor to get ranked (in BJJ it is a gracie or a machado)" I agree. That is the ideal way to go. But if you live in a small town in the middle of nowhere or you haven't got the money or time to go to a certified school then I have no problem with someone opening a class as long as they are honest about their lack of credentials and don't charge the students too much. The instructor should also make it a point to get some professional training if it becomes available.

When I hear the word mcdojo I think of one particular TKD organization here in the Beaumont, Texas area. Basically they run night time daycares for spoiled children who's parents want to get rid of them for a few hours. Though they have produced a few good fighters their curriculum doesn't foster mental toughness. I'd also watch out for instructors who like to hurt their students. Pain and injury in live practice are good but excessive stretching or beating someone (especially a child or beginner) while demonstrating techniques is unacceptable. Also beating someone who isn't performing well but is still trying is wrong. People who do this are insecure about their own abilities and need to dominate others to feed their own egos. I really don't have a problem with the lack of a certificate or rank as long as they are up front about it. EX: If someone who was video or seminar trained wanted to start a grappling class because there were no schools in the area or no practical options for learning then they'd be doing a service.

http://www.kalari-payat.org/ http://www.geocities.com/HotSprings/1061/index.html http://www.geocities.com/Colosseum/Bench/4966/index.html http://coolshack.com/martial_arts/indian_martial_arts.html