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I don't think that all people who carry guns are cowards. I don't think there's anything cowardly about absolute resolution to a life or death situation, like an armed robber coming into your home to rape and kill your family, then loot your belongings. If someone like that came into my house, I'd rather blast them and have it done with than chance my hypothetical family being brutalized because I decided to act like a Samurai or demonstrate my technique only to be shot in the face or stabbed in the stomach. But, most people who carry guns are cowards. Especially inner city youth. It's easy to act tough when you have a hand cannon. It's hard to be tough when all you have is your fists. But these kids usually have a Catch-22 to deal with: put down the gun, be a man, get shot; or pick up the gun, be a coward like everyone else, live. Damned if you do, damned if you don't.

If that's so, why does my Hapkido instructor train black belts with bokkens, canes, and other weapons? She's American, I live in America. Er, um, fact check There are Gum Do schools in America, too.

One Suburito Bokken One Daito Bokken One Hardwood Tanto One Jo One Traditional Hex Nunchacku I'm a broke college student, I can't afford real swords Beyond that, I don't want to buy one until I have mastered sword arts to some extent. I'll probably pick up a hardwood shoto soon, as I need one to practice with. Beyond that, my wooden swords go from huge to big to small with no intermediate. It looks silly.

Oh YES they did. Do a quick Google search for Miyamoto Musashi. He won most of his fights with a Bokken. The wooden sword in itself is an extremely dangerous weapon, and when it's made out of good wood it will split your skull open without even taking a dent (like brazillian blackheart). As far as dull blades go, I don't know of any real Samurai who used them. Speaking purely from fiction, Himura Kenshin used a reverse-edge sword, but that's manga, not real-life

That's not true. The guy who runs the nearest martial art store stocks Paul Chen swords. He readily admits that the 420 and 440 stuff he sells is garbage, and takes the serious students/enthusiasts straight to the Paul Chen stuff.

Paul Chen makes a practical katana blade which isn't too terribly costly and gets the job done if you need a live blade for kenjitsu, cutting watermelon in half, whatever You can usually grab one for under $150 if you look in the right places (like eBay). They aren't 420 stainless steel worthless swords, either. They're actually forged like authentic katanas are. The swords Paul Chen make are all forged like a real blade should be, which is why they cost so much. I've held his top-of-the-line stuff as well as the Musashi one. That sword was so cool that I would've probably bought it if I had $600 on me at the time.

I was told by a swordsman that I could double the weight of my suburito bokken (45 1/2" long wooden sword) by drilling holes in it and putting in lead. Any idea as to how I could do this without having the lead come out? Or does anyone have a better idea? Thanks in advance yo.

When the Samurai was outlawed and people were not allowed to carry around swords after the Meiji Restoration in Japan, some rogue Samurai used swords that had a bamboo handle and sheath. It looked like a walking stick, but became a deadly weapon quickly. I think that if you have sword training it could be just as effective as bo or jo training. Miamyoto Musashi won most of his duels with bokken (over 90 percent), and he never lost.

Wouldn't a jo be more suitable? I usually come across sticks of various sorts that could serve as decent jos, but bos are friggin' HUGE! I'd have to go with a jo for most practical weapon. The most effective street weapon is a gun, though.