Bitseach

Knuth, just stow the attitude, would you? You choose to live in your country with your laws, please do not be so disrespectful to the many others who do not live in your country, nor wish to, nor to their customs and laws. I would have thought a Marine or potential Marine would have a little more self-discipline than that.

A fellow in my old dojo graded one time when I couldn't make the grading due to a prior appointment, overtook my grade as a consequence and immediately became the most arrogant arse-wipe I'd ever met. He could no longer stand to ask my advice on katas that I knew and he didn't, and couldn't stomach when I slipped past his guard with a punch! He'd also try to teach me things he'd only just learned and that I'd done for years and tried to correct my technique - badly - just to show that he was my superior. Well you have to laugh, bemusedly, but it was sort of pathetic!

People really call their instructors/fellow students, "Sir"? I've never heard of this.

I've finally seen the Tyson fight and he was PANTS! A shadow of his former self. He had no speed, no punches, no tactics, nahing! His principal game plan seemed to be to attempt to injure Lewis' hand using his own chin and cheeks. Honestly, watching him I can only think he must have quite a bit of brain damage already - he looked punch-drunk in only the third round. Every time he tried to duck he'd juck to the left despite that being the danger area from Lewis' formidable right upper-cut! Bang! Straight onto Lewis' glove. Then what was that maudlin, pathetic speech at the end, "Thanks for my pay-cheque! Please, sir would you fight me again"? (okay, I paraphrase, but not very much). That man needs to retrain and invest the money he has - get a good honest job if he knows how, because he looks like he'll be killed in his next fight and that boxing match just didn't seem like sport, it was so one-sided.

It's only felt to be unlucky to thespians if they're performing it. I think a few performances were dogged by ill-luck and then the story just went round (similar to the thespian tradition of saying "break a leg" to the person about to go on stage. Apparently to confuse the evil spirit - kind of reverse psychology! However for that reason it's often referred to by those in the business (or the know) as The Scottish Play. (Weren't some of the Bruce Lee films thought also to be unlucky in the making? I seem to remember something about this!) Ah. According to this site (http://www.alt-usage-english.org/ucle/ucle13.html) it's because...oh hang on I'll just paste it here - I've cited the reference after all: The Curse of Macbeth Theatrical tradition holds that uttering the word "Macbeth" anywhere inside a playhouse other than on the stage will bring dire misfortune on all within earshot. There are also some bizarre remedies, which include spinning around and shouting quotations from the Bard. History tells us that Macbeth was a Scottish king from 1040 to 1057, and ascended the throne upon the death of his uncle, Duncan. Shakespeare wove these facts into a supernatural murder story where Macbeth suffers a violent death (but this is not uncommon in the Bard's canon), and the play itself does not contain a grounding reference to why it would be unlucky. Theatrical folklore has it that the "cure" for saying "Macbeth" inside of a playhouse is to step outside of the playhouse, turn three times uttering a profanity, and then requesting permission to return to the premises.

Monkeygirl - well inasmuch as it IS a gayometer, it will MENTION "that thing" but it is by no means explicit! Like I said, those of a delicate disposition should turn away!

Oh well you scaredy-cats! I will admit to being 43% gay according to the test! So there.

Monkeygirl - cool! What do you think of the New Mini? I have to say that they're not very mini - the wheelbase is actually kinda standard-sized! I am also what I drive, er, a 50cc Vespa Scooter! Slow but steady with good fuel economy.

True! But without over stretching the shoulder joints. Handy wee things! Not at all dear either.

My favourite is Sochin as I like the gradual winding-up before the release of energy. I find it unstresses me when I'm annoyed too! Unfortunately this doesn't mean I'm any good at it at all - that fudo stance is tough! My knees don't like it much either. Quite like Heians Yon- and Go-Dan too but CAN'T ABIDE Tekki Sho-Dan. Hate it hate it hate it.

See also http://www.shotokanforeveryone.com/kiai.htm and - always worth a look even if only for anarchy value! http://www.24fightingchickens.com

See also advice contained in another thread where this was discussed also: http://www.karateforums.com/forums/viewtopic.php?topic=2806&forum=19&11 Basically, your pal is probably overdoing it a bit! There is a balance to be achieved between overloading the muscles in a way that they will heal bigger/better/stronger and overloading them so that you are just repairing with scar tissue - no use to man nor beast in terms of strength or particularly flexibility. So no, you're definitely not talking "danglies" to him!

Not especially helpful for the dojo but one can get little stand-things to do press-ups on which give you the grip of a knuckle press-up but without the actual pressure on the knuckles. If I knew how to put pictures onto this message I'd find a picture of them but I don't! Okay if you go to the following site http://www.argos.co.uk and put in product code 300/3327 you will see what I mean! I am sure any exercise shop will have similar but I know there is a picture on this site! Personally I wouldn't do knuckle press-ups even if I could! It is FAR too much pressure on too small an area of the body - like an elephant wearing stiletto shoes! Remember pressure = force/area so the whole weight of your body is split between the two soles of your feet and the few cm^2 contact area between your knuckles and the hard floor. When you were performing these on carpet there was more area in contact as well as the cushioning, which spread the load a bit. As you do a job where manual dexterity is crucial you would be mad to continue knuckle press-ups on hard surfaces. If you want to toughen up the knuckles a bit, try punching into sand or something or at least use a padded, well-sprung makiwara!

Harvester - not tempted to join him? LOL

Also quite surprised this was not taught to you, although a lot of classes initially just get you to copy everyone else, so perhaps not so surprising really. As people have said, it's called a "kiai" (pronounced like key-EYE) but you don't actually say that word when doing it! In effect it usually comes out as "Ei!", "Ya!" or just a kind of "Eurgh!" sound! If the rest of the class are saying something like "Hi-YA!" then they are wasting air and giving themselves away with the "hi" bit as it is more effective as one syllable only. If you are doing drills then it is usually ordered on the last one of each set, so if you are doing ten punches, you would kiai on the 10th. Also, when doing something like 5-attack drills iwth a partner, usually on the 5th attack the attacker would kiai, and when the defender did the final counter-attack they too would kiai. It's the culmination of one's efforts. It also appears in certain set places in the katas, eg at the 8th and 16th moves of "kyon" kata (aka takyoko-sho). At least that's how it works in the Shotokan that I have practised.

CK - yes, a "dirty bomb" is a conventional explosive device with radioactivity near or around it. It's purpose is to spread the radioactivity over a wide area, contaminating that area. It is therefore unlikely to kill many people immediately but will cause widespread panic and disruption. I'm glad I'm not the only one to notice the very convenient timing of the release of this information, straight after the stinging criticism even from within America of the security services and even - gasp - the Prez there. Especially so soon after the announcement of the new body co-ordinating "homeland defence" (horrid expression!). As the chap who was arrested is an American citizen, how come he is being sent off to Gitmo Bay with the other Al Qa'eda lot? Surely as a home-grown terrorist he is technically breaking Federal law but not an "unofficial combatent" as the rest of the alleged terrorists have been branded (unfortunately not literally!)? As such, I would have though he'd have to - legally - be held in a federal prison and tried by the fed govt. Like that McVeigh fellow? Anyone know the answer to this?

And yet some wars ARE necessary. The most obvious example was the war against the Axis powers in World War II. It is evil, but war is sometimes a necessary evil.

Hear hear, Ti-Kwon-Leap. And bullies also will bully for other reasons if they don't have that. In mixed ethnicity schools kids will be bullied for being black, or white, or whatever, in all-white schools they'll be bullied for having ginger hair (as I was!) or glasses, or spots, buck teeth or whatever. So what should we do? Ban red-heads or ethnic minorities from classes because we think they might be bullied and we want to protect them from it or figure a way to deal effectively with the bullies? CKD I appreciate what you are saying - that you can minimise the risk to the kids, but really it's academic (pun intended!) when kids will find other stuff anyway. I have worked with emotionally and educationally disturbed adolescents and am convinced that a more pressing issue is ensuring young people have parenting skills rather than the exact living arrangements of their parents. I don't know about where you live but in the inner London school where I work there are very few children with "normal" family arrangements of a mother and father living together harmoniously in the same house! Kids stay with aunts, grandparents, their single mothers, bungeeing between both parents, foster carers, co-parenting with a brother or sister, care homes, etc, etc, and to find any sort of stable home (carefully vetted by Social Services and the Adoption Agencies of course) is a boon, whatever the gender of the parents!

Tsk tsk, your friends are clearly quite ignorant and will end up working as shelf-fillers at Waitrose! "But all's too weak for brave MacBeth - well he deserves that name. Distaining fortune with his brandished steel, which smokes with bloody execution"! May not be word perfect but I haven't studied it since 1986, English Lit "O" Level!! (showing my age now)

Take the fun test at http://www.channel4.com/life/microsites/G/gayometer/gayometer.html Not explicit at all but if you are under the age of consent or are easily offended you probably won't find it funny!

Would you explain briefly the difference between these forms? (to us beginners!) Cheers

zulu - good point about the countryside. Perhaps the difference is the way guns are viewed betwixt city and country. In the city it's something that makes you "hard" (ahem) and tough or gets you "respect" (tho' not true respect) whereas in the country you know that a gun is about killing things - usually for food or protection - and that means blood, bone, brains etc - much less glamourous. It's for a reason other than self-esteem or self-aggrandisement. Shooting paper targets and watching action films gives a person a different perspective to add to their weakness of character and simmering resentment towards life and decent people's society.

1) Why would anyone WANT to see someone getting their throat cut? That's just sick. One sees enough death and blood in day-to-day life without seeking more. 2) So when are you all joining the military? I believe the US Army, amongst the other services, is recruiting at present. Go to http://www.goarmy.com for more details. A lot of people do *talk* about joining the military but very few will do it! Instead of taking up the macho stuff that will seldom be needed why not try some voluntary work to build the society that you have, and that is work that definitely WILL be needed and used. It's not as "cool" as fighting but it's just as useful. Bits' (formerly British Army) _________________ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ My karma will run over your dogma ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ [ This Message was edited by: Bitseach on 2002-06-10 12:24 ]

Hey TigerKorea! Bruce Lee dead; Tyson got sore face now!

Huh? You've got to cheer for this rapist, thug, cannibalistic, anti-Semitic mental case just because he is American????! More fool you!