http://mmacrypt.com/forum/blog.php?1032-Edamus Your respectful MMA Internet forum and MMA news site. en Sat, 18 May 2013 17:08:41 GMT vBulletin 60 http://mmacrypt.com/forum/images/ReptileGreen/misc/rss.jpg http://mmacrypt.com/forum/blog.php?1032-Edamus http://mmacrypt.com/forum/entry.php?9-The-End-of-the-quot-Machida-Era-quot-Wait Tue, 11 May 2010 19:52:07 GMT There was no "Machida Era." Simple. Just as there was no "Evans Era", "Griffin Era", or "Rampage Era"... Shogun Rua put an end to such nonsense.

Quite simply, there have only been three eras in the UFC Light-heavyweight division -- "Shamrock Era", "Ortiz Era", and "Liddell Era" -- and with that said, there is no "Shogun Era." Only until Shogun defends his title several times does it earn the name era.

Thoughts? ]]> Edamus http://mmacrypt.com/forum/entry.php?9-The-End-of-the-quot-Machida-Era-quot-Wait http://mmacrypt.com/forum/entry.php?5-Respect Fri, 12 Mar 2010 00:20:44 GMT Forest Griffin, in his hilarious and must read book _Got Fight?_, states that there is a difference between a Fighter and a Martial Artist. He states... Forest Griffin, in his hilarious and must read book Got Fight?, states that there is a difference between a Fighter and a Martial Artist. He states clearly that a Martial Artist is one who wears pajamas and tells stories about how great they could be. A fighter is one who, simply, fights. He names Georges "Rush" St. Pierre as a martial artist with an identity crisis -- one who needs to find his pajamas quickly.

I disagree vehemently. However, I acknowledge that while they are different, they are not completely "Non-overlapping magisteria." One key difference is Respect. A fighter respects other fighters, a martial artist respects other martial artists. But, there doesn't seem to be any respect given both ways. I think that needs to change.
I consider myself a martial artist and respect fighters for the sheer fact that they CAN fight. Fighting is hard, and certainly not for everyone. With that, I'd like to see more fighters respect Martial Artist.

Why? Because without Martial Artists, there'd be no Mixed Martial Arts.

The UFC have been majorly influential to martial arts -- as I stated with in my previous blog. But, with it, the "fighter" mentality has taken over. No longer is it about testing one's Martial Ability. It's about beating the shit out of each other. No longer are your instructors held in high regard -- they are merely old men. Who trains Brock Lesnar? Who trains GSP? Ask an average UFC fan and they'd have no idea.
Brock has two main "coaches", Greg Nelson out of Minnesota and Erik Paulsen via California. Erik Paulsen has a long list of credentials -- as does Nelson.
Here is Erik's take on Respect and the MMA world...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4lHwL...layer_embedded

Respect comes when earned -- sometimes that never happens -- but I want to help give these instructors the respect they deserve. I want the ignorance of the fans to subside and educate themselves on who teaches, influences, and mentors these young (sometimes old) athletes. So, I'm going to try educate the fans on these coaches and gyms where these fighters train. ]]> Edamus http://mmacrypt.com/forum/entry.php?5-Respect http://mmacrypt.com/forum/entry.php?4-Jeet-Kune-Do-The-Martial-Legacy Wed, 10 Mar 2010 22:48:56 GMT Jeet Kune Do was created back in the 1960s by a very famous actor named Bruce Lee. Bruce Lee was a formidable Martial Artist taught by Yip Man in... Jeet Kune Do was created back in the 1960s by a very famous actor named Bruce Lee. Bruce Lee was a formidable Martial Artist taught by Yip Man in Hong Kong in the art Wing Chun; upon Lee's return to America he taught Jun Fan Gung Fu, a modified version of Wing Chun. When he moved to Los Angel es, he and Dan Inosanto termed their new art "Jeet Kune Do" or Way of the Intercepting Fist. Bruce's kwoon or school was run by Inosanto and had many students -- some were even taught privately by Lee. Those esteemed individuals include: Larry Hartsell, Jerry Poteet, Bob Bremer, Ted Wong, Joe Hyams, Kareem Abdul Jabaar, and that guy from Snow Dogs.
After the school closed, a select few were allowed to continue training in Inosanto's backyard and occasionally Bruce would come back and check in. Very few individuals, after the school, had closed continued to train with Bruce; but, all that trained with him understood Lee to be a genius.
Bruce Lee died in July of 1973, one month before Enter the Dragon made it's debut. Upon his death, Lee left a wake in the martial arts world.
As far as Jeet Kune Do was concerned, the practitioners had lost their Sifu or Master. No one wanted to capitalize on his fame and so JKD took a back-burner when Inosanto opened the Kali Academy. JKD was only taught to those who were chosen by the practitioners. But, slowly, people began to capitalize on Jeet Kune Do -- some having never trained with Bruce, Inosanto, or anyone of direct lineage. This caused the true JKD men to break out of their seclusion to bring Bruce's art to the forefront.
However, with such time being passed, and the principles of Jeet Kune Do the art changed. And now people are preaching that their Jeet Kune Do is the right Jeet Kune Do. To understand this argument, one must understand the principles of JKD and understand Bruce's ideology. This is very hard to do because of his Taoist influences and Taoism is an extremely simple, yet amazingly deep, religion.
The main principles of Jeet Kune Do are: Simply to Simplify; Closest weapon to nearest target; Absorb whats is useful, discard what is useless, and add specifically what is your own; Using No Way as Way and Having no Limitation as Limitation. These ideals are easy to say, but hard to interpret; especially the line "add specifically what is your own." Jerry Poteet expresses that it means add your own attitude -- while not everyone agrees with that, most understand that the line doesn't mean add anything and call it Jeet Kune Do. Everyone's JKD will be different from everyone else's. That much is understood. However, the basic core -- some term it Jun Fan Gung Fu -- remains the same. That's where people begin to argue about what is and what isn't JKD.
There are two schools of thought: Jeet Kune Do Concepts and Original Jeet Kune Do (sometimes called Jun Fan Jeet Kune Do). The Concepts branch, under Dan Inosanto, follow the ideology that Bruce would want his art to evolve with the Martial Arts zeitgeist. The OJKD people find this very thought egregious, thinking that it de-glorifies Bruce in some manner. Which ever is right or wrong is up to personal opinion. If you believe Bruce had all the answers, then you're on the right path with OJKD. If you believe that Bruce had it right and we should continue to evolve and adapt with the times, than the Concepts branch is the way to go. It's kind of like interpreting Bible verses. Which for most, is a daunting task.
One thing that seems odd, is that these 1st and 2nd generation students are claiming some people are teaching things wrong -- but they never name names! The 3rd and 4th generation students will say names at the drop of the hat. Jerry Poteet will say " Bruce only wanted to use the front arm and lead leg, some people are saying this isn't true and they're wrong!" Who's wrong, Mr. Poteet? Is it Dan Inosanto? Is it Ted Wong? C'mon, quit insinuating and say who so we, as students, can do our own research and figure out the answer for us!
Let's do away with "They're wrong, I'm right" mentality. Instead, I propose a solution -- "Bruce told me this." Great! We can understand that Bruce told you this and not someone else this and determine that is best suited for you and maybe for us as well. Quit calling each other out entirely and say, quite simply, that Bruce showed me this, told me this, explained to me this. So, that way, the ambiguous name calling will cease and we can get back to training...

Why? Because "he'd" want us to.
http://www.martialdirect.com/user_me...images/196.gif

"Jeet Kune Do is just a name. Don't fight over it" -Bruce Lee ]]> Edamus http://mmacrypt.com/forum/entry.php?4-Jeet-Kune-Do-The-Martial-Legacy http://mmacrypt.com/forum/entry.php?3-Martial-Arts-in-the-21st-Century-and-their-Evolution Wed, 10 Mar 2010 22:47:25 GMT Martial Arts have evolved since their inception, which some would argue their origin. Regardless of this fact, Martial Arts have seen a variety of... Martial Arts have evolved since their inception, which some would argue their origin. Regardless of this fact, Martial Arts have seen a variety of changes in the last ten years. With the intensifying magisteria of MMA, there seems to be no room for the traditional – unless we're speaking of children, then the traditional is the only way to go. But, this is an egregious circumstance on the view of traditional martial arts. Does their classification of "traditional" invalidate them? Here we shall look at the Mixed Martial Arts world and the "Traditional" martial arts world and compare the two.
Mixed martial arts, popularized by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), have taken the combat sports world by storm. With such famous practitioners such as; Tito Ortiz, Chuck Liddell, Randy Couture, Frank Mir, BJ Penn, and Brock Lesnar, MMA has been a phenomenal marketing machine for Martial Arts. However, with such zeal, many have "poisoned the well." As with anything popular, there are people looking to make a profit off of MMA; they can misrepresent the art – teaching people incorrect techniques and leaving out details. This is dangerous if anyone ever tries to compete, and a poor ambassador for the sport. The fans of MMA also add an interesting dynamic. Fans are die-hard, they entrust their feelings and money into the sport, but also can be poor ambassadors for the entirety of Martial Arts. Wearing TapOut shirts and not training, commenting on one fighter's ability saying "they could do better," and the crème de le crème, "just stand up!" Believe me, sir or ma'am, if it was just that easy to stand up, then they would. But these are just pet peeves me and my training partners/seniors have picked out. Some would argue that this is a good thing, and mostly I would agree, but with any sport, you have great fans and you have bad fans.
"Traditional" Martial Arts previously did not have such a name, MMA created the idea of "Traditional" – as Modernity created the idea of Traditional when it comes to eras – and with that, the name "Traditional" somehow invalidates it. This is most certainly not the case. Just because something doesn't work in the cage doesn't mean that it won't work in the street – and vise-versa. MMA is a sport and the creed that the UFC dictates – "As real as it gets" – is a misnomer. It's as real as it gets as long as you don't eye-gouge, groin-hit, stomp-kick, 12 o'clock elbow, knee a downed opponent, et cetera; then, yes, it is as real as it gets. Also, what about running away? If you encounter a situation where there are 5 people versus you, will you pull guard? Shoot for a double leg takedown? Box them? Good luck with that. Martial Arts have always taught self discipline and techniques that were fun and, most of the time, practical. Mixed Martial Arts teaches self discipline and techniques that are fun and, some of the time, practical. That doesn't invalidate MMA as a way of self protection; it is just more geared towards the sport. A right straight will knock out an opponent, given proper strength and technique, no matter if they are on the street or on the mat.
Mixed Martial Arts is simply a new art, not a replacement for all Martial Arts. Let's do away with the idea of "Traditional" versus Mixed, and stick with the regular debate on which Martial Art is better. But, that's not really a good question either, but a topic for another discussion. Jiu-jitsu is a fantastic way of defending yourself against larger opponents who tend to grab or punch you with hay-makers. Jeet Kune Do is a fantastic way to protect oneself against a variety of attacks. Kendo is a great way of defending oneself if someone ever swings a sword at you. You get the point. I am merely stating that MMA and MA are great and have overlapping magisteria when it comes to ideals, techniques, and sport. I would certainly put MMA within the circle of Martial Arts, but not outside.
My instructor and I were discussing this many months ago and compared the idea to religion. The practitioners of the various Martial Arts can be compared to the practitioners of the various religions. Many believe their religion to be correct and others to be wrong or misguided. This can be said about Martial Arts and exemplifies the situation perfectly. I would compare MMA to the ever populous Christianity and their control on the main-stream. MMA is ever present and almost become synonymous with Martial Arts, as when one mentions Religion in the US one immediately thinks of Christianity. I'll leave that point there as to not offend anyone, that's certainly not my point – just making an analogy.
Overall, MMA and MA have similar goals – as should their practitioners – and those goals are simple; have fun, test your strength, and grow as a person/art. With these ideals in mind, one can hope that MMA and MA will continue to expand and maybe one day, the negative spin on the pre-MMA Martial Arts will dissipate and the respect it is entitled will be given. ]]> Edamus http://mmacrypt.com/forum/entry.php?3-Martial-Arts-in-the-21st-Century-and-their-Evolution