Wado Guy

Luckily, the US government had the foresight to give us the 2nd Amendment...the right to bear arms. Contrary to some beliefs, there is wisdom in that. Part of being free is having the ability to live without fear and having the ability to defend yourself. Gun control does not work. Only criminals would own guns and use them. Once law enforcement gets involved, it's too late. The American media rarely to never (unfortunately) sites instances when guns are used to save lives and prevent crimes. It's sad. The biggest cause of death by firearms other than by criminal activity...is CARELESSNESS!!!!! Firearm safety education is the key. If one is going to own a firearm, they should be required to attend a handgun safety class. But that's just my opinion. I have a better idea.....let's ban pencils. Pencils can conceiveably kill people. Ban ALL pencils.

Cool Good to have you on here

Along those same lines...any idea what would happen if the US decided to collect on foreign debt?

It would be intresting to see the reaction of the countries who bash the US if we were to abruptly cut off all aid. Any thoughts?

He gave a seminar at my school a few months back. Really funny guy. I like him. He brought a few things to the table that definitely made you think. One can easily see why he was the champion he was. Great guy.

Nice website.

If all the American Idol contestants ( judges included) this season competed in a NHB tournament against each other, who would win?

I spar more like a kick boxer than a traditional karateka. But when i think about it, I actually use some principles from Pinan Nidan and some of the Kihon Kumite Katas when sparring though. As we say in TN : "There's sum valuable stuff in them thar katas."

The Pinans are full of practical applications

I read anything by anne rice, tim la haye and jerry jenkins. odd combo huh? I'm a sucker for a series of books.

I'm 28. In dog years I'd be 196. I was born pre "Star Wars". Man, I'm getting old.

That's awesome man!! I too attended a seminar of Otsuka II a few years ago in Nashville. It was amazing how he would communicate his thoughts/principles/ideas etc. The interpterter (his son) was great too, but when the Master spoke and moved...nothing else needed to be said. It was great. He walked by one of the lines and touched my shoulder in passing and nodded his head. Incidentally, a freind of mine who is a journalist was able to conduct and video tape an hour long interview with Hironori Otsuka II in his hotel room while he stayed in Nashville. Oh man, the topics that were covered. Everything from his father, training, the future of wado. His thoughts concerning "western" wado-ka and japanese wado-ka were very eye opening. A very nice man. Quick as lightening too.

I've seen the video footage of Otsuka Sensei. WOW! It is awesome to watch! Very graceful man. His son is the same way (even though his legs are like tree trunks:)

I am a Wado-ka. Wado Ryu means "The way of peace/harmony". It's a nice art. It's a blend of Shindo Yoshin Ryu Jujitsu, Okinawan Karate Do, and it has some Aikido influence as well. It's very defense and practical in nature. Stances are generally a little bit shorter than those of Shotokan Karate. It's graceful in nature and stresses relaxation when performing techniques. It's beautiful to watch when a seasoned Wado-ka performs kata. A very comprehensive website to check out concerning Wado Ryu : http://www.useasternwado.com

Newtoitall, First off, I would like to say that, yes, Wado Ryu is a great style (but then again, i'm a bit biased) It is heavily influenced by Shindo Yoshin Ryu Jujitsu, Shotokan, and like Kensai pointed out, it has Aikido influence as well. You're in TN. TN is has great Wado Schools. (Especially in the Middle TN area). Give it a try. I bet you'll like it :)

I posted earlier on Blade 2. I wasnt crazy for all the cgi stuff...in fact...it was annoying at times. For those of you who need the clarification : There is a BIG difference between between reality and what goes on in a movie. Now, that having been said I want you guys to watch the movie again. Check out the "flow" of the moves Snipes is performing. Check out how he performs the moves. It takes someone with a descent degree of skill to pull off some of the things he did. I'm not saying he is a martial arts deity or anything, but the guy is no joke for sure.

Iraq is a touchy subject. I'm very glad you asked this BlackI. To answer your question... I am in favor of a regime change. Saddam has proven himself many times since he's been in power that he is unstable. His country is suffering because of it. The thought of possible loss of life (on both sides) due to military action saddens me. I feel that large scale military action in the middle east at somepoint is now and has been inevitable. Given recent events (9/11) and the way that Saddam has blantantly thumbed his nose at the UN for the past 8-10 years, I'd say diplomacy has been a failure. Why wait for Saddam to develop the capability to damage us or Israel? Saddam should be taken out. The US will be involved in a large scale military action in the middle east. It's inevitable. Let's go ahead and get it over with. The longer we wait, the crazier it's going to be. It would be nice if some of you non - American users would post your views on this topic (either for or against). It's great to be able to share ideas and opinions.

Norris: I'd have to say is legit. AT his age, he is studying ( I believe) with the Machado brothers. Any style of jujitsu is hard enough when your younger, but aggressively pursuing BJJ at his age definitely says something about him and his abilities. Li/Chan/Sammo....all 3 could handle themselves if the situation arose. Van Dam....well....i dunno. He does have some physical attributes. He does have at least some training of sorts (in question as it is). He could handle himself somewhat I guess. Snipes : I'm going to go out on a limb and say that AT FIRST I felt that he was in the same boat as Van Dam. I've never seen him fight outside of the movies. After seeing Blade 2, and reading that he choreographed some of the fights, my mind changed. There was a flow to some of the fights (not the flashy cgi or pro wrestling crap) that only a trained martial artist could understand and pull off. Segal : Say what you will about the man, but he does have a significant amount of training in Aikido. He could handle himself. Joe Son : He made a few appearances in the first Austin Powers flick. If he wears a steel cup at all times, he might could at least survive most encounters.

Given my current art and training level, I think I would try BJJ. It's a great art and has MORE than proven itself effective.

I have nothing but respect for the Gracies and BJJ. In fact, I hope to be able to study BJJ someday. In pre fight interviews with Royce Gracie, he stated that he wanted to fight Yoshida in order to honor his father Helio (who is about to turn 90) who fought the Japanese Judo champ Kimura 50 years ago. Now....no disprect inteded here ..but...Royce apparently shoved the ref after the call and was saying some rather not so nice things. What a way to honor your father and sensei by acting like a complete jack*ss in front of over 90,000 Japanese fans.

I'm 28 and 5'10" Ya'll young whippersnappers still have some growing time left in ya *hobbles away with his walker*

Ni Kyu in Wado Ryu karate. Any other Wado-kas out there?

To me it means...the beginning.

Throughout my life, I was fascinated by the martial arts. When i was 24 and in my last semester of a double major in college, I woke up, looked in the mirror and realized that I had spent WAY too much time studying and pulling all nighters. I was overweight, stressed out, not healthy at all. So, I made up my mind that I was going to study karate and better myself So far so good

I've been reading this forum for quite a while now and thought it was finally time I say "hi" This is a great place. Kudos to the Adm.