David Carradine found dead

May Sifu Carradine rest in peace.

Thank you for all you gave us Grasshopper. . . .

More Self Defense Stuff

As an add on to my notes yesterday (and all warnings still apply) . If someone grabs a hold of you and you still have one hand free keep this in mind. If you rub your knuckles back and forth across the back of their hand or if you strike the back of the hand with your knuckles (hard) it will probably get them to let go. This action is rather painful but should cause no permanent harm, a pressure point thing. . .

Give it a try on yourself, rub the back of your off hand with your other hands knuckles. You may note that the closer to the target's knuckles you rub the more it hurts. You do need to be able to apply some good pressure for it to work right. . .

And that is your tip for today. . . .

Respect for me and you. . .

This post was inspired by a few things that have happened over the last few days. . . Starting with the great report on us gunnies from Lissa you can find here and a few things that happened at Karate last night. It is a longer post based on the one I hammered out quickly a few posts ago.

Now I am a martial artist. By that I mean that I have spent years studying karate (like 16+ years) a couple of years of Tai Chi, and shooting (like 25+ years). I have spent a good number of years of my life learning all the icky things most liberals in MA hate and think are evil. Somehow the modern liberal seems to think martial arts are bad and make us into crazed killers (just look at their reactions to folks that shoot). They will ask “ Why would you want to learn that?” and “What good is it? You want to hurt someone?” As I thought about things it really hit me. What is it about folks that they don’t seem to have any respect for other people? Not only don’t they have respect, but sometimes they are surprised that others will show them respect. So many folks seem lost in their own self centered world these days and I think that causes a lot of the problems we have today. The other thing that hit me is most true martial artist I have met don’t have this problem. . . they want to teach me thing and learn from me so we can both become better people in the end. That is one critical thing, we both grow, not what can I take from you without giving back, it is how do we both gain and learn. . . . why isn’t this the normal way of thinking???

I think knowing a martial art leads one to have more respect for oneself and to have more good old fashion respect for others too. If you have not read Lissa's post on learning to shoot then go do that now and come back, I’ll be here. . . .

OK, done reading it? Good.

Now what does she mention? How all these gun folks were respectful of each other, careful and all around acted like grown ups and gentlemen and gentlewomen. Why do so many folks not into martial arts find this suppressing? This is not the first time I have heard this reaction although she had one of the best explanations I have seen in long time. It is sad that folks get surprised that we watch out for each other and try to share what we know with each other without thinking “OK, what do I get out of this. . .”

I already mentioned a bit about what I have seen and heard myself here but I will go over it again. Our karate school shares our building with a drama club. We both rent space in the building, Us on the top floor and them on the bottom with a common lobby and rest rooms. I have seen the post from their teacher listing all the great folks she has taught and claims to fame in NY and the left coast. . . she comes across in this write up as totally full of herself. I also know that she does nothing to help keep the common areas clean. My teachers get to clean the rest rooms so they don’t reflect badly on her school, she also redid the lobby, as in fixed the walls (full of holes from drama posters) and repainted them and redid the wood floor. Within weeks of finishing this work (which she did over a few weeks) the theater folks have put all the posters back up putting holes in the walls again and someone even put a big dent (knocking out plaster) in one wall. She left NO room for the karate school to post anything – heck, you would not even know we were there. Talk about selfish and self centered. . ..

My daughters use to take dance lessons. The few times I met the teacher she had an air of arrogance that I could feel. She always ran the class over 5 to 10 minutes and just expected the parents to sit and wait. Hey, sure, not like we may have other kids or commitments we need to get to right? What could be more important than her? I was usually the one to pick up the kids and I can tell you that this teacher never said a thing such as sorry we ran over or anything else. . . if she did come out of class it was to get a payment from us for the next month. I guess it was all about her. She finally pushed me too far when she booked an all afternoon dress rehearsal that the kids had to be at or they could not go to the recital. . . . . On Fathers Day. . . . ya, no one makes plans to do family things on Fathers Day – good thinking there. Glad your head can still fit through the door. . ..

And we have all see the way folks drive. . . cutting folks off in traffic, won’t let folks change lanes, won’t let that truck move over.. . . . it goes on and on. . .

Folks you all need to learn some good old fashion RESPECT. Now I know this will kill the liberal movement because that is all about telling me what I should and should not do and not having any respect for me or my ability to make my own choices. You know what, too bad. This liberal attitude of no respect and I should get it because it is OWED to me has got to go. . . .

I am getting to the point that I think we need to get back to teaching every kid some kind of martial art in school, from Karate to shooting, they should have some experience with it. They will learn respect that way. . . .When you reach the point that you know you have the power to hurt or kill someone or something you change. I think if you have learned things properly from a good teacher the knowledge that you have this power is more than a bit humbling and gives you a new view on the world. It is only then that you truly can respect how easy it is to hurt someone or worse. It is also a this time that you realize that so much crap we get all pissed at every day is just that, crap and not worth getting worked up over. You sure as hell learn that all that crap is not worth hurting or killing someone or getting hurt or killed over. I think it also takes your ego down a few notches to see how easy you can get hurt, and to lose a few times when sparing, or in a competition. You learn that you are not the best at everything and to get better you actually have to work for it. No one will hand you anything, you EARN it. You liberals should try it some time, there is nothing like the feeling of getting a thing or award that you actually earned, and I am not talking about today’s sports where all the kids get a trophy at the end just for showing up – that is worthless. Winning and loosing is required to learn about yourself it adds value to what you gain when you win, and teaches you how to do it better next time when you loose – not to mention not to give up when things don’t go your way.

Maybe I am just getting old or becoming more of a mush because I have kids but I find that by learning a martial art, and helping other to learn that art I have become more empathetic towards others. I can feel it when they get frustrated trying to learn something and I want to help them learn it. It is no longer about me being better than them it is about what I can teach them and what I can learn from them. You can learn something from everyone even if it is just to keep trying till you get it right. I get a bit more emotional about things such as someone getting hurt. I think it is because of my training – no, I know it is. I have gained a respect for how easy it is to get hurt and how big an impact that can have on your life. That makes you stop and think about things and it makes you a better person

To learn to respect and empathies with others by itself is worth the time taken to learn to shoot, or do some other martial art. It should be required to be a good citizen to know these things. If we all did, it would be a much different place. . . .

Martial Arts – Tai Chi

This week we had a guest teacher at class. . . My teacher’s teacher was visiting the area and stopped in to say Hi and go over some stuff with us. This was cool as he is really good and tends to bring in some new self defense moves when he visits.

This time he showed us a few moves of the Yang form of Tai Chi that he is studying in addition to his normal karate. It was rather interesting in that I have learned the Yang short form a few years ago and wanted to get back into it a bit. The thing that stands out is that he is the third person I have learned some of the Yang form from and each of them has shown me a slightly different way to do it.

Now most martial arts seem to be rather specific in the way they do a form, and although you may see a slight change from school to school you usually don’t. The differences I have seen in the Yang Tai Chi form is rather drastic in comparison.

I find that they change the stances a bit, or how long the form is, sometimes adding or removing parts.

I find this all rather interesting and wonder if anyone else has seen this kind of change in any arts they may have studied.

Self Defense Thoughts

Before karate class last night I watched a bit of a self defense tape that the teacher and one of the black belts had on. We all found it a bit amusing to tell the truth. I find it interesting that in all these “How to Defend Yourself” tapes things are shown as so easy and so simple. I wonder if anyone has sued them when it didn’t work in the real world.

The other interesting thing was the attacker always did one thing then stops so the girl can get the best of him. . . . talk about stacking the deck. I have yet to hear of any mugger taking one punch then waiting to get hit. . . . What is probably my biggest complaint on these things is the idea that you can watch the tape or take a course for a weekend and that is it. People think they can defend themselves after watching the tape or doing the one weekend. . . . Sorry folks, if you don’t practice the moves over and over you won’t be able to do Sh$T when things go bad. A best you will freeze, at wost you will get hurt or killed.

While I am talking about self defense I have found it rather interesting that the martial artist I have delt with probably are less aware of what it takes to defend themselves than the gun owners I have met and read books by. For some reason I have found I learned more about being aware and avoiding problem situations from how to carry your gun books than I ever did in a martial arts class. It seems to me that this would be good information to bring into the martial arts classroom to help people avoid problems. With that in mind here is a listing of probably the best self defense information you will ever get. . . . The color codes for mental awareness:

Developed by Col. Jeff Cooper (I believe, please correct me if I am wrong)

You can find this list a number of places on the net. . . .

Condition White
Complete mental unawareness

Total mental blackout. Unless one is asleep, there is no
reason to be in condition white. You are totally unprepared
for any circumstance, and even the smallest thing will shock
you out of your trance, and be a complete surprise. If an
attack comes while in this state, you will be easily defeated
and if it involves deadly force, you will most likely not
survive.

In a perfect world, we could all live in this state, but it is
not a perfect world.

Condition Yellow
Relaxed alertness

This is the condition that we should be in all of the time
we are awake. You are aware of immediate surroundings.
This is however NOT a state of paranoia. You are
simply aware of your surroundings, but have not identified
any specific threats. You are unlikely to be attacked when
in condition yellow, as predators look for easy prey. You
are ready to elevate to a higher level to defend yourself if
nessessary if a threat is detected.

Condition Orange
Potential Threat Situation

You are alerted to a specific potential threat.
You continue to observe the situation and evaluate to see
if the potential threat turns into a real threat. You may
also take action to give you a tactical advantage if the
situation level escalates to a higher level. You have not
produced a weapon, as the potential threat is not a distinct
personal threat yet. It could be concindental circumstances,
or simply a predator who upon seeing your actions, decides
to find easier prey elsewhere.

Condition Red
Specific Real Threat

In Red, your observations are such that there is no doubt
that the threat is real and your life, or lives of loved ones,
is in real and immedate danger. You have taken action to
avoid the threat, when it first appeared, and formulated a
plan of action, and are now carrying it out. You have also
drawn a "line in the sand" or a "mental trigger" that will
determine when you will deliver your defensive response.

When the line is crossed, you WILL deliver your
defensive response, as by now your response has been
determined, and the plan has been made. There is no
hesitation, as you response is instantaneous.

Condition Black
Line in the Sand Has Been Crossed.

Simply put, this is where you deal with the threat.
At this point you survival depends on the level of training
that you have, and your ability to control your mind.

This is where the Combat Mindset comes into play.

Combat Mindset

This quite simply, is the state of mind that replaces fear,
in a life or death situation, with the knowledge that you have
trained for this, expected it to happen at some time, and
are ready, able, and willing to handle it.

You are at a level that you are not allowing fear, doubt,
astonishment, or surprise to enter your mind. You have the
confidence, through training, to handle the situation.

You do not think of fear or being killed, you think of what you
know will get you through, and that is the front sight, and
your training.

Martial Arts and TV Shows

Martial Arts and TV seem popular again. For a number of months now I have been watching a show called Human Weapon on the History Channel with the hosts Jason and Bill.

Now for me, this has been a very interesting show. I grew up reading anything I could get on the martial arts, and have been formally studying them for about sixteen years now. I hold a second degree black belt in Shotokan, have studied Tai Chi and am currently studying Uechi Ryu with a green belt. Why do I tell you this? Not to brag but so you can see where I cam coming from in my comments on this show. . . . I like it

The point of this show is that the two hosts (Jason and Bill) travel the world spending a week at a time studying a martial art somewhere then have to fight someone the teacher picks to show what they have learned. These guys are great at it! They don’t always win but they do always teach you about the art they are studying, show respect for the style and go into detail on a few of its key moves so you can see what is going on and get a feel for the art. It is on every week with new shows most weeks. . . I highly recommend it as a way to get an overview of many styles of martial arts and where they come from.

Now there have been posts around the net making fun of the show. One of the things mentioned was the formulas they throw up on how hard a kick or punch is landing when they do the in depth graphics of how to do the move. I am an engineer but I have to admit I don’t look at the formulas and could care less if they are right. What I am looking at is the graphics showing how the move is done in detail so I can decided as a martial artist if I buy what they are saying about it. Most time I have to say I do. Sure they formulas are a bit flashy but it is a TV show and you have to keep the masses impressed.

Along with the close up of some key moves the other thing I enjoy about this show is the hosts. They both obviously know what they are doing. You can see this in how they move, how they fight, and the respect, comments, and questions they ask when training in a new style for the show. You never hear any disrespect of the form, teacher, or teaching style, they know they are guests in the dojo and act accordingly. That aside they do joke with each other and comment and it is funny and does not come across as forces or fake. They both seem like guys I would love to train with at the dojo.

Now Discover Channel has started a show to compete with them – Fight Quest. So far I have one show and have one more on tape to watch. My first impression is it is a poorly done knock off of Human Weapon. The hosts don’t seem to have the background in the martial arts to do this.

Jimmy is a real ass and his comments a few times on the first show make me think he is a brawler, not a real martial artist. He is just looking to fight. He seems to miss the fact that he is a guest at the dojo and the master teaching him may actually know something he may want to learn. . . we can’t always be pounding each other to learn to fight. He comes across as the wise ass in class that hurts people because he wants to show off or puff up his ego. . . . not someone I would want to train with.

The other host Doug seems much better and at least acts like he is really trying to learn something from these teachers being good enough to teach him for a week. I like Doug and he does seem like the kind of guy you would want to train with.

Much like Human Weapon at the end of the week they spar with someone the teacher picks to show what they have learned. The difference is both of them will fight, not just one of them. The other big difference is this show lacks the educational value if you will. They don’t get enough into the history of the art they are studying, and they don’t break down any of the moves to help you really get a feel for what is going on. I like the idea I can pick up a few things from Human Weapon and must say I have. We will see if I can say the same about Fight Quest after a few weeks pass.

I will be watching a few more episodes of this in hopes that it improves but if doesn’t I think it will be over quick. I could be wrong, the wrestling (WWE) crowd may save it since they like the acting and watching folks get pounded for fun but unless it changes I don’t see much interest here as a martial artist.

Thoughts on the Martial Arts

I had an interesting Karate class last night with my old instructor. I have been going back to my old teacher one night a week for a month or so now to try to get back into my Shotokan Karate before I forget too much of it. Well, to make a long story short I was asked to leave a bit early so the teacher and the rest of the Black Belts in the class could discuss something. Now I don’t know what they talked about, it could have been me, or something about the class, or moving the class who knows. Please understand that I have a lot of respect for my first teacher, he is very good at what he does and also good at teaching it to others. Anyway I got to thinking I may be asked not to come back since I go only one night a week instead of the two everyone else does. I will be disappointed if this happens but life will go on.

The interesting thing that hit me is the way my first teacher seems to have changed his attitude towards me as soon as I started to study with other teachers. This started years ago just after I got my first degree Black Belt from him when I started to do Tai Chi one night a week also. I don’t know but he seemed to take offense at my move and I don’t know why. I was still doing karate with him two classes a week but somehow the idea I was training with someone else seemed to offend him. I know that later on it delayed my next rank, he commented to me about my time off to do Tai Chi. . . .

The most startling thing to me was how different my new teacher is. She not only supports my training in my old style, but actively takes her students to other teachers in her style of Karate to get her students a broader view of the style and to get input from many teachers. Since joining the new school, I have been introduced to at least four other teachers by my new teacher and been to their classes. Each has given me different things to work on and seen different things in my karate – both good and bad.

This has shown me that to be what I consider a true Martial Artist you can not have only one teacher. To me one teacher gives you too much tunnel vision. By working with all these different people I have been exposed to many different ways of teaching, seen the different things teachers focus on, and been given constructive criticism of my karate from many different viewpoints. All of which has done me a lot of good. My karate is better, and every time I feel my ego starting to get in the way someone points out something I need to work on and deflates my head back to its proper size for training.

I have also been given the opportunity to show some of what I have learned in other styles to these folks too. This has proven to me more than anything that to truly practice martial arts and be a Martial Artist you can not be so focused on one style to the exclusion of others. A Martial Artist should be willing to share what he knows, and learn from other Martial Artists no matter what style they study. The martial arts are not about learning one style, but continuous learning. You are never done, there is always someone new to teach or learn from and in truth you tend to do both at the same time. . . Teaching brings up questions and can show you new ways to look at things you have done since day one. It is amazing how much you can learn from trying to answer a good question. . . .

All of this brings me to another point. . . Martial Arts is not just the oriental stuff you think of. To me the Martial Arts is exactly that, the art of fighting. By this I mean that I find the study of Karate and its self defense aspects is only improved by also studying weapons, from standard martial arts weapons like sword and bo all the way to modern firearms. It all ties together. A good example of this is the show Human Weapon which could probably be its own post when all is said and done. In a nutshell the hosts of Human Weapon spend each week studying a new martial art, from traditional ones to modern Krav Maga. Throughout the show you can see a common thread in the martial arts in how people move, many of the blocks and strikes, and how they use weapons from ancient to modern. All I can say is personally I recommend the show as a good over view of the arts they study.

Well, I am rambling and this post is long enough. . . more later