Quest33

Actually as I have given breif thought to this throughout the day I must admit I was a bit disturbed by the story line. Only in the sense that it was almost a copy of the movie Shogun. I did wonder why they so blatently altered the storyline. So yes I do agree. I don't watch much of the junk that comes out of Holywood but when I do I go with an expectation of that it is going to probably be far fetched. So that being said, I suppose that I could agree. I just can't stand unchecked American bashing, I mean get off of it already. I have absolutely heard enough of that crap to last me a lifetime. Every country has it's problems and every country has it's bad leaders. But that is another thread in a political forum. It did leave me curious about the roots of martial arts. Each style has it's own history. They say that Kung Fu is the oldest?

I believe this film never professed to be a "historical account of an American" I do believe it accurately potrayed the Japanese culture though. It's a freeking STORY for goodness sake. Much like the English adopting the tale of King Author from French lore.

this is definately not ego but I have always been a pretty good fighter. I had to spar against a black belt once and was left wondering "why was I able to get the upperhand so much?" Then I sparred Rod Boslo and my perspective changed... somewhere inbetween trying to recover the wind that got knocked out me

ROFL Fat Donkey

Gumbi, I definately think that you have come from a culture of martial arts where you have witnessed this type of mentality in instructors.. I must say that I have seen it myself. But tend to think that even if an instructor doesn't "deserve" to be called a particular title it shines better on the student to refer to the instructor by title than for that student to issue disrespect. That is the essense of the Japanese/Asian culture that I have been exposed to and I respect it. They have something there that many Americans (I being an American for one) don't have. Do you remember the quakes in Japan a few years ago that left thousands waiting in line for food and assistance? I remember the commentaries surrounding the fact that no one jumped out of line, no one cut or pushed. They had mutual respect and value for their fellow human beings. I would rather call an Instructor by title to show humility and humanity in myself than to not have those qualities. I am not talking about groveling humility here. I am talking about the type of humility that shows care and regard for another human being.... Christ like humility.

Yeah I knew I would provoke a couple of things there.. but I really don' care to. It is not my purpose here. I don't intend on cutting down boxing either.. Infact the whole post was rather rash.. so please disregard it. Instead let me say that martial carries no less respect than boxing.

I have been in a few "potential" situations with multiple attackers.. but thanks be to God I never was. I do play out the possibilities in my mind though. When I was a teen I used to cruise with a friend that loved to pick fights. In one situation my would-be attackers flanked me on four sides (four guys) and where definately going to follow through with it if provoked. *a distance strike would have been a big advantage here. If I had become immobilized in any way..even for a second, then they would have got me. My best defense would have been to be on the offense and effeciently. Precise, Deft and destructive is the key. If I am a seasoned martial artist I can take control of that adrenaline dump and use it in my favor. If I go for a neck strike with a Knife hand for example...would that not K.O. if not kill an attacker? (if it is executed properly and that is not to hard to do). Remember this is just and example. So I basically disagree that a precise strike is excluded as an option. It is actually in order. I believe that a martial artist can become a master at all rings of defense that suround them. Distance, medium range.. close quarters. That of course takes a lot of practice.

I just remembered something; My old Kenpo instructor used to call the ability to fight and spar "fighting merrit". He would separate it from the lower belts but required good fighting merrit for higher belt ranks. I think that is a perfect way to handle this dispute.

I have one question; Why would years of hard work, discipline, fortitude and skill be downplayed? Why would a 1st year student want to equality with one who has 20 yrs of experience? Boxing? sure boxing is good and there is nothing wrong with calling someone coach.. But do they call Boxing.. Fist ART? There are so many other things covered in martial arts that boxing is only a shadowy reflection in comparison. Again, if you talk about taking your martial art and using it for combat.. well then that SKILL needs to be practiced. It is not something you get by doing only Katas and punching a bag. It comes from trial by fire.. by practical application...FIGHTING. That fighting needs to be as realistic as possible without causing serious injury. Why should a man or woman who has poured their life and soul into becoming a martial artist for years not be given the respect of being called Sensei? I can tell you why, it is part of our modern liberal PC CULTURE.. that is why. Don't dare stand up and discipline your child you tyrant!!! ...sheesh (boy is that a can of worms)

ROFL DLOPEZ I wonder which one would be the politicaly worse thinig to say.... HEHEHE

Primarily I study martial arts for self-defense. I hope it is not a dis to tell a women to strike and run.... Martial ART is a beautifull thing and should be respected as such especially when practiced to the point where the artist is in complete touch with their body and mind. It is harmony. However, you all should well know that for the purpose of fighting and practical street application there are a number of other factors that need to be practiced and highlighted. Fighting on the street is an ugly, grimy and painfull thing. It will NOT go down beautifully.

LOL, that would be pretty creepy. YIKES!! "mmmm you smell good" ...that would go over well. SHEESH Well, I could imagine that I simply need to set down guidelines and only work with the level that the woman is comfortable with(well of course). She was definately exhilerated that she was able to throw a big dude to the ground. I guess the people at the front desk said that she came up raving about it. I just want to appeal to these gals because I am in this for the sake of helping equip women and children in combatting perps and bastards that attack them. I want a class with high standards, hi expectations and very long duration (I believe this is what is required). What more could they ask for? They have a big rag doll they can beat on.

I am apprehensive as an instructor to "get physical" with a female student. I do make it realistic but..... ground struggling? It is nessesary and I see this but how do you convey to the female students that it is nessesary and how do you keep it professional? It is a touchy subject to me. Two weeks ago I asked the girl who was taking a little bit of the class what she would like to practice and she asked for rear attacks. She seemed comfortable with it and she actually threw me to the ground a few times. She walked out seeming very happy but hasn't been back since.. ugggghhh.

What is the most ideal class for a woman who is seeking self-defense? How would it be structured? What do you expect from the instructor? Do you appreciate an instructor who gets physical (creating as real as situation as possible)? I have had various women ask about self defense but none seem to be serious enough about it to stay with it. I had one female prison gaurd who seemed more interested in actually sparring and having it out with the attacker than to learn fight/get away tactics. The girl that has attended came for a couple of weeks has unregular attendance. She claims that the class is good and has given good feedback. Do most women have a lax attitude about self defense? Are they intimidated by it? How can I reach these ladies so as to help them best?

I am thankfull that I am a man... that is for sure. I can imagine that it does "bite". I am pretty invigorated to help women and children combat preditors. Men have always been the same since the beginning of their creation...well since the fall of man anyway. If they see something weaker than themselves and they have no morals or they do not fear God then they will victimize that weaker thing. Combine lust with the absense of morality and even some hatred and a man becomes a criminal. No a woman should not need to know how to break a knee or shove a nose into someoness head before she should feel safe. Don't forget in the same hand that there are men/friends/brothers/strangers who would give their life on your behalf to protect a woman or child if they could. I hate it as much as you do. Relish in your friends and allies while you have them. Awefull things happen to good men too. The world is not safe.

This is what Martial Arts means and does for me; 1. Discipline 2. Physical Fitness and well being 3. Self Confidence 4. Defense of Family, Friends, Country and Self 5. Mentorship (giving and recieving)

When I took Kempo under Rod Boslo out of Boise, ID he had that instruction style. He would always make us think of what we were doing and have us correct ourselves.... guiding us along. I am going to give a IKCA a good eval. We shall see. Thanks again for the info.

Delta1, the danger to a man still exists. The motive of the criminal may be different but men need to know how to defend themselves just as much. I heard a story from a guy that used to be a rail bumb. He told me about a time where a woman and her husband/boyfriend had been hopping the rail system and landed in LA or something like that. A few black men cornered them there, attacked the man and held him in between two cars that were hooking together (you can imagine the result) and then raped the woman. THIS is awefull and evil. It highlights the point of; If you live a certain way you can expect a certain enviroment and a certain result. You go to shady spots you will meet shady people. Here locally a few years back there was a man and woman in Nampa who left their front door onlocked. A perp entered the house and jumped the people in their sleep. He tied the man in bed while the perp proceeded to rape the man's wife right in front of him. A little caution and knowing self defense may have helped here?

Beka, there are situations that yeah I think "what on earth was she doing there dressed like that?!". But most of my time my reaction goes something like this "GRRRRRR, that scumbucket. I need help women how to protect themselves!!" I rarely blame the woman, she by all rights should freaken feel free to jog down a park path if she feels like it! Unfortunately we live in a world with evil men it and she can't. It is not her fault, the blame rests fully on the perp. The woman should always assume the possibility of danger and take precautions. Fenris, yes both men and women need to learn how to take a hit and drive on. I have met a lot of MEN who whimper when they get hit in sparring.... shame, shame.

I must say that the one woman that I actually think would possibly beat the crap out of me is Shellie Blanks. I saw her ability when I visited LA and I must say that she can hold her own.. though she is probably 110 lbs and 5'2". Unless a woman is absolutely good at the martial arts I would not want to give them a false sense of security. The honost question is whether or not she could handle someone on the street. Could she fend off an attacker who has a knife? Could she take him on one on one until he is down? I teach women in self defense to hit hard, hit fast and play dirty.. then break away making lots of noise. I taught a girl recently to punch for the throat for a rapist/mugger/perp she practiced this and I must say that it was effective. I am pretty big and muscular and I quickly realize that if she successfully landed a blow to my throat that I would be on my knees attempting to figure out how I would be taking my next breath. This girl is a small and petite type too. It takes technique and it takes cool thought. A woman needs to know how to use the flush of adreneline for her advantage. She should do what she can to disable the attacker and get away. It is not arrogance or macho stupidity that I say this but I have yet to find a woman who can handle an onslaught from me. I use this as a teaching opportunity for the women I teach to show them how to decieve me and to land effective blows that I would not be ready for on the street if I were criminal. So to say it one last way; A woman should be absolutely good before she should feel confident to "take a man down" in a real life situation. The dojo is much different, even though she may be good there. Giving a false sense of security could be absolutely devastating.

In danger of being extremely simplistic here I am going to post this; Main Entry: mar·tial Pronunciation: 'mär-sh&l Function: adjective Etymology: Middle English, from Latin martialis of Mars, from Mart-, Mars 1 : of, relating to, or suited for war or a warrior 2 : relating to an army or to military life 3 : experienced in or inclined to war : WARLIKE - mar·tial·ly /-sh&-lE/ adverb Main Entry: art·ist Pronunciation: 'är-tist Function: noun 1 a obsolete : one skilled or versed in learned arts b archaic : PHYSICIAN c archaic : ARTISAN 2 a : one who professes and practices an imaginative art b : a person skilled in one of the fine arts 3 : a skilled performer; especially : ARTISTE 4 : one who is adept at something I see this in an extremely simple way. I train for the sake of defending myself, my family and my country. I train for the fitness and peace that it brings me. I do not need the eastern religion to guide my way...I have Christ. Just as any culture has intermixed military and religion so have I. Christ is my primary focus and if I can avoid conflict I will...for the sake of my fellow man and primarily for the sake of God. I am training in the military arts..I am seeking expertise at war. In light of that I should think that I would know how to defend my self at distance with ballistic weapons then into hand weapons.. after that it falls into kicks, punches and wrestling. My other post that I started has brought home the idea to me that I should probably take Judo as a way to augment my training. What good am I in the expertise of war if I only know how to attack/defend in one way? The simple fact is that people DO want to defend themselves... I would rather know how to disarm or kill a terrorist with a box cutter knife than fight him unequiped. It is a simple matter of survival in a world of pain, strife and conflict. Do I seek trouble? The martial arts actually gaurantees more that I will stay out of it.

Sevenstar, that is a good point. I know the Judo instructor here to be one of the best around. His sons have done quite well internationally I guess.

Wow you guys have are giving me some awesome ideas. Where do I begin? **35$ per hour is just plain robery, no one is worth that much. It raises the point that he is not in it for the student. His motivation is money not instruction, that already disqualifies him for for what I am looking for..... He did say he would have one private non-charge session....sheesh.** If I could find the type of instructor that you mention Shorinryu I would love it. I have checked but Delta is right, it would be out the back of someone's garage. I like the Kenpo style and it's adaptability, like I said it seems the most practical to me. I have been raised on hard style martial arts and it would be a real mind screw for me to try and switch.. but I could broaden my mind I suppose. Delta1, I am interested in what you have in that program. I would love to review it. I can tell when something is practical or not and if I can touch base with an instructor everynow and then so he can right my wrongs that would be great. Furthermore I have the perfect opportunity to get practical application with my comrades here. They are as eager as I... I have brought what I know to them and we have all sponged it up. We spar frequently. I tend to get more "hearty" in sparring then some of them. I want the realism and I believe we will all get full contact gear sometime soon. What I have found is that by taking the martial arts with the upmost seriousness and dedication you draw men and women of the same mentality to you. I train with intensity and I instruct a TaeBo (met Billy Blanks, he is an awesome Christian guy) fitness class. I believe I can get a handle on a video program... I know I can. But to find a excellent instructor would still be in order. It is a small world indeed if you have been to Payette, ID!!!!! How long ago were you here?

$$$$$$ I talked to an instructor in Boise, he said that he could work with me and train me at $35 per hour. Stating that he would drive and meet me half-way. He did say he was willing to work with me on price though.... My old instructor sold his Dojo in 95 but still lives in the area of Boise. I guess there is a possibility that he could train me but the question is at how much $$$$? What is reasonable to you guys?

Shorinryu - apology accepted I appreciate it, you may have a point there. If I only had a Hog to make the trip with . I will have to see what I can muster up.. there are a lot more instructors in the Boise area. Video training is cheesy I know, but then you enter in desparation and all manner of hanus ideas come forth. If the sensei can work with me on price.. now that would be good. I don't want to pay full tuition for 1 day a week. I think I will make some phone calls and see what I can dig up. If only there were a dojo closer, it would be a whole heck of a lot easier.