Please take a look at Articles on self-defense/conflict/violence for introductions to the references found in the bibliography page.

Please take a look at my bibliography if you do not see a proper reference to a post.

Please take a look at my Notable Quotes

Hey, Attention on Deck!

Hey, NOTHING here is PERSONAL, get over it - Teach Me and I will Learn!


When you begin to feel like you are a tough guy, a warrior, a master of the martial arts or that you have lived a tough life, just take a moment and get some perspective with the following:


I've stopped knives that were coming to disembowel me

I've clawed for my gun while bullets ripped past me

I've dodged as someone tried to put an ax in my skull

I've fought screaming steel and left rubber on the road to avoid death

I've clawed broken glass out of my body after their opening attack failed

I've spit blood and body parts and broke strangle holds before gouging eyes

I've charged into fires, fought through blizzards and run from tornados

I've survived being hunted by gangs, killers and contract killers

The streets were my home, I hunted in the night and was hunted in turn


Please don't brag to me that you're a survivor because someone hit you. And don't tell me how 'tough' you are because of your training. As much as I've been through I know people who have survived much, much worse. - Marc MacYoung

WARNING, CAVEAT AND NOTE

The postings on this blog are my interpretation of readings, studies and experiences therefore errors and omissions are mine and mine alone. The content surrounding the extracts of books, see bibliography on this blog site, are also mine and mine alone therefore errors and omissions are also mine and mine alone and therefore why I highly recommended one read, study, research and fact find the material for clarity. My effort here is self-clarity toward a fuller understanding of the subject matter. See the bibliography for information on the books. Please make note that this article/post is my personal analysis of the subject and the information used was chosen or picked by me. It is not an analysis piece because it lacks complete and comprehensive research, it was not adequately and completely investigated and it is not balanced, i.e., it is my personal view without the views of others including subject experts, etc. Look at this as “Infotainment rather then expert research.” This is an opinion/editorial article/post meant to persuade the reader to think, decide and accept or reject my premise. It is an attempt to cause change or reinforce attitudes, beliefs and values as they apply to martial arts and/or self-defense. It is merely a commentary on the subject in the particular article presented.


Note: I will endevor to provide a bibliography and italicize any direct quotes from the materials I use for this blog. If there are mistakes, errors, and/or omissions, I take full responsibility for them as they are mine and mine alone. If you find any mistakes, errors, and/or omissions please comment and let me know along with the correct information and/or sources.



“What you are reading right now is a blog. It’s written and posted by me, because I want to. I get no financial remuneration for writing it. I don’t have to meet anyone’s criteria in order to post it. Not only I don’t have an employer or publisher, but I’m not even constrained by having to please an audience. If people won’t like it, they won’t read it, but I won’t lose anything by it. Provided I don’t break any laws (libel, incitement to violence, etc.), I can post whatever I want. This means that I can write openly and honestly, however controversial my opinions may be. It also means that I could write total bullshit; there is no quality control. I could be biased. I could be insane. I could be trolling. … not all sources are equivalent, and all sources have their pros and cons. These needs to be taken into account when evaluating information, and all information should be evaluated. - God’s Bastard, Sourcing Sources (this applies to this and other blogs by me as well; if you follow the idea's, advice or information you are on your own, don't come crying to me, it is all on you do do the work to make sure it works for you!)



“You should prepare yourself to dedicate at least five or six years to your training and practice to understand the philosophy and physiokinetics of martial arts and karate so that you can understand the true spirit of everything and dedicate your mind, body and spirit to the discipline of the art.” - cejames (note: you are on your own, make sure you get expert hands-on guidance in all things martial and self-defense)



“All I say is by way of discourse, and nothing by way of advice. I should not speak so boldly if it were my due to be believed.” - Montaigne


I am not a leading authority on any one discipline that I write about and teach, it is my hope and wish that with all the subjects I have studied it provides me an advantage point that I offer in as clear and cohesive writings as possible in introducing the matters in my materials. I hope to serve as one who inspires direction in the practitioner so they can go on to discover greater teachers and professionals that will build on this fundamental foundation. Find the authorities and synthesize a wholehearted and holistic concept, perception and belief that will not drive your practices but rather inspire them to evolve, grow and prosper. My efforts are born of those who are more experienced and knowledgable than I. I hope you find that path! See the bibliography I provide for an initial list of experts, professionals and masters of the subjects.

Static Interaction in Karate

Blog Article/Post Caveat (Read First Please: Click the Link)

In a recent, new blog to read for me, posting the blogger mentions words that best express how karate was and often is taught especially in regard to defense/offense. The use of not just technique based fense but in a static interacting model that means simply, “Not moving.” I realize this simply because I was taught that way when I started a dedicated study of karate and fense (I used MM term of fense meaning something like the use of defense/offense, etc.). 

Over the years, especially the last ten in the blogging communities, I have used a variety of ways to articulate in writing and words the model of, “Static Interactions in training.” In karate training we do move but when we apply some method or action we tend to root, root meaning we assume a static kamae where our feet and legs root to the Earth while we apply the supposed deadly technique against our adversary.

Even in kihon and kata practice, even when it is two person oriented training and practice this static interaction seems to be the way of things often as taught toward, “Self-defense.” We face off (often not a part of street fense where you are going to mostly be surprised and blitzed, etc), we present some specific patterned drill type attack, i.e., this problem and this response thing and we make both static targets with static attacks or prearranged, patterned and predictable attacks. The offense and defense are both static in nature and with facing off like would happen in competitions results in pre-ordained inappropriate defense/offense drills. 

Technically, this is not wrong and it is not right. If the teaching goal is something other than fense and its goals are more physiokinetic, etc., in nature then it is a good thing. Everyone, at that novice level has to learn how to do things and one of my more modern pet peeves is it must include two concepts and actions, i.e., you have to move and you have to rapidly change in response to movement - both yours and your adversary’s.

In order to reach a state of realism in training, practice and most critically important in applications you must go beyond static interactions in karate, you must apply movement, change, principles and technique to the training, practice and application to gain experience relevant to fense.

When you remain steadfast in drills that teach from a static interaction and patterns you encode the mind that must see the static attack and then connect it to the appropriate static defense and if that match doesn’t connect, guess what? Those types of things only work in those static trianing models. 

Granted, as a novice you will in all likelihood participate in a lot of static interactions and that is the crux of modern martial arts - the disconnect between novice and applicable proficiency in the chaos of rapidly changing actions, tactics, strategies and techniques of an adversary. It comes down to Takuan Soho’s immovable mind martial arts art of war training, to remove the mind from connecting and attaching to one that is no-mind but you already understand this because you studied those classics, right?

As the author who inspired this article says, “ … taking a long nap in a pool of his own blood … ” because you assumed that your novice level static interaction training and practice was valid and realistic when stepping across that line toward a higher level of training and practice should be sought out and accomplished properly and realistically. 

In karate, as this author stated, is about - currently in most schools - “Practicing and training with a guy standing still while striking at another guy standing still, who's counter only worked because the first guy was standing still seems obviously foolhardy at the very least.” 

Bibliography (Click the link)



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