On Saturday, October 30th, a group of martial artists got together at the Beulah United Methodist Church in Knoxville, Tennessee, for a day of martial arts training while raising money for Knoxville’s Children’s Hospital in honor of Charla Alley. Sadly, Charla, the wife of Sensei Jim Alley, succumbed to a terminal illness some time ago. The seminar, originally planned by Sensei Bob Noel, was canceled and rescheduled several times due to the Covid pandemic.
Several instructors from different styles volunteered their time to teach a variety of topics to a group of about 30 attendees. Nearly $1,000 was raised for charity and every participant had a great time.
Here is the lineup of instructors for last Saturday’s event.
Sensei Bob Noel Uechi-Ryu Karate Event Host & Organizer
Sensei Noel teaches traditional Uechi-ryu Karate at the Knoxville Uechi-ryu Karate School located at the Street Beatz Studio.
Sensei Noel led a warm-up session consisting of Uechi-ryu basic exercises and the Uechi-ryu version of Sanchin Kata.
Sensei Eddie Satterfield Isshin-ryu Karate
Sensei Satterfield led a great session on Qi Gong breathing as a tool for relaxing, energizing, and healing. It was a great way to get charged up for the seminar.
Sensei Danny Satterfield Isshin-ryu Karate
Sensei Danny Satterfield led a very informative session on the framing mechanics of Sanchin Kata. I think it was an eye-opening session for a lot of participants.
Sensei Danny Smith Isshin-ryu Karate
Sensei Smith led a session on a sai kata from the Tokushinryu Kobudo system. It was clear from participant’s comments, that they really enjoyed this session
Sensei Scott Britt Isshin-ryu Karate
Sensei Britt presented a fascinating session on the Suruchin, a traditional flexible weapon from Okinawan Kobudo. Scott has written a book on this intriguing weapon.
Sensei Darren Gilbert Isshin-ryu Karate
Sensei Gilbert presented a great session on using stances to break the line of attack and avoid getting hit, while still allowing you to effectively strike your opponent. This foundational skill is key to unlocking techniques in kata.
Sensei Michael Patrick Torite Jutsu
Sensei Patrick presented a session on using pressure point techniques to control and subdue your attacker. Understanding pressure points is a big help in understanding the techniques found in kata. This is always a popular topic with participants.
Sensei Mike Allen Isshin-ryu Karate
Sensei Allen led a well-enjoyed session on Tegumi, which is a traditional form of Okinawan grappling. Many participants commented that this session was a lot of fun.
Sensei David Higgins Shorin-ryu Karate
Sensei Higgins, a black belt in Shorin-ryu as well as a student of Uechi-ryu, led a session on Shuji No Kun, a Yammani Ryu bo kata. This session was particularly enjoyed by a few of our younger participants, and I enjoyed it as well.
Sensei Jim Alley Isshin-ryu Karate
Sensei Alley ended the day with a session on techniques from Naihanchi, which with Sanchin Kata, is referred to as the mother and father of Isshin-ryu Karate. It was a great end to a great day!
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The in-line stance drill is a great little drill that teaches the practitioner to break the line of attack and remain safe, while staying close enough to deliver an effective counter. This is not a kata. It is just a drill designed to develop understanding of a few key concepts in Okinawan Karate.
In my dojo, this drill was typically taught after the Basic Kata and before learning the Tachi Kata, which was developed by Sensei Harrill as an intermediary step before starting into black belt level kata. The Basic Chart Kata and Tachi Kata will be examined in future posts.
In the two videos below you will see both a front and side view of the drill performed as a single-person exercise, much like a kata. And while, not a kata per se, this drill is made up of techniques taken from kata to illustrate the concepts.
In-Line Stance Drill from the front.
In-line stance drill from the side.
However, this drill is a two-person drill and is worked back and forth repeatedly. Beginners will start out slowly and perhaps give themselves a bit more “working room.” As you become comfortable with the drill, your speed and power can increase, and the distance may decrease a bit. You will learn to control your distance and remain safe while being close enough to deliver effective counters. And, not so close that you cannot execute good technique.
Here is an how the drill will look with two people.
Right-handed initial attack.
The nice thing about truly understanding techniques, is that you begin to realize that it does not matter what your opponent does, so much as how well you can utilize your technique. In this drill the attacker started with a right-handed punch. What if he hadn’t? Suppose he had attacked with his left-hand first? Do I change what I am doing?
Nope, the nice thing about good technique, is that it works (as we say, “Right, Left, Up, or Down). Yes, of course there are specific techniques for certain types of attacks. But for most techniques, if you truly understand them, it does not matter. In this next video, the attacker will initiate his attack from the other side, and I will not change what I am doing. It still works.
Left-handed initial attack.
I would like to thank Lucas Davis for helping me with the two-man aspect of this drill. Lucas trained with me in Isshin-ryu for several years before I moved to Raleigh, NC for about three years. He now trains in Uechi-ryu with Sensei Bob Noel who is also an excellent instructor.
So, what does a rusty Ford tractor have to do with karate?
Well, nothing really. But then again, everything. Hey, that’s kind of like a Zen riddle isn’t it?
Several years ago, say late 90s, at one of our post seminar workouts, Sensei Harrill was working with me and a couple of my senior students on Sanchin Kata.
Now first let me say there are several versions of this kata and while they have commonalities, they are not the same. A version of Sanchin can be found in several Chinese and Okinawan styles including Fujian White Crane, Five Ancestors, Uechi-Ryu, Goju-Ryu, and Isshin-ryu. There are certainly others as well. Tam Hon taught a style that was called “Saam Jin” which is Cantonese for “Sanchin.”
At its essence, Sanchin is taught to help the practitioner understand body mechanics and condition their body, while learning to deliver properly focused techniques from a stable platform.
It is also, unfortunately, a kata about which a prodigious amount of “bullshit” has been has been propagated. But that is not the subject of this post.
Isshin-ryu Karate’s Sanchin
The Isshin-ryu version of this kata is really quite difficult in its simplicity. It consists of only five steps (three forward and two backward) and there is a great deal of repetition. But, like an onion, there are many layers to this kata and as your understanding grows, and the more layers you peel away, the more you realize there is to learn. It gives a new level of understanding to the idea, the more I learn the more I realize how little I know.
I had been working with Sensei Harrill for sometime now, and had made a lot of changes in how I trained, and this included Sanchin. I now practiced Sanchin most often with the vertical fist (which I liked because it fit our basics). I still, on occasion, will practice with the corkscrew punch as I had originally been taught, and sometime I will mix it up. At that time, I was trying to get a handle what the kata taught as far as body mechanics, as well as the many different breathing patterns found in the kata (none of which, by they way, resembled a gasping pressure cooker about to blow its top).
However, there was one movement in the kata that always gave me a fit. I practiced and practiced, trying different ways of executing the movement, and nothing seemed to work for me. I had once seen Sensei easily demonstrate the use of that movement at a seminar on a pretty big guy, but I was not even getting close. And of course, as I demonstrated my Sanchin Kata while Sensei watched, that was readily apparent to him.
You’re not doing that properly …
I probably felt like that was the “understatement” of the year. I was painfully aware of that fact. especially seeing what he had done with that very same movement.
I am sure that I replied with something to the effect of, “I know, Sensei. I just can’t seem to get it right.”
And I remember him saying something like, “You don’t have the right focus.”
The hook …
So, how did I change my focus? By listening to what my Sensei told me!
He said to imagine a rusty old red Ford tractor that’s been sitting in the field for awhile. Now you’ve got to crank it up and plow that field. You finally get the tractor started, climb up into that seat. and reach for that big old shift lever with your right hand. Then you squeeze and give the lever a strong tug. And what happens? It doesn’t budge. It’s pretty much rusted into place. What do you do?
I thought about it a second … stand up and give it a real yank, I was thinking.
Then he added … but, you have to keep your butt in the seat.
Now that’s an altogether different proposition.
Which muscles would come into play and when? In what order would you use them? How would that feel internally? Think about it.
I did.
And over time, that earlier “movement” that had previously been using the muscles of my arm changed. It began to originate at my core. It employed the rotation of my hips, my abdominal muscles. the lats, the shoulders, and finally … the arm. The pull became a properly-focused, mechanically sound whole-body movement. And after working on it awhile, when I tried it in the dojo, people began to move.
And that is what an old rusty red Ford tractor has to do with my Isshin-ryu Karate.
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If two hands meet in the air, can you “suddenly enter?”
This post is a continuation of the thread started in my last post, No First Strike. If you are unfamiliar with my thoughts on this idea, you may wish to read that post first. And again, there is no right or wrong here. This is just one of my understandings and interpretations of these concepts after many years of training and research into Okinawan Karate. And, in no way do I imply that I am the originator of these ideas. They are things I learned from many other karate practitioners I have met on my journey.
In the Kenpo Gokui (also known as the Isshin-ryu Code), we have line #6, whose kanji can be translated as, Hand : Meets : In the air : Suddenly : Enter
The more common interpretation of this idea found in the U.S. is, the time to strike is when the opportunity presents itself. As mentioned in the previous post in this thread, I prefer the more exact translation of the kanji.
First, a quick example of understanding body mechanics.
Try this exercise with someone strong.
Have someone get into a solid stance, make a fist, and extend their arm. Stand in front of them and ask them to resist the pressure you apply to their arm.
First, press down on their fist. Can they resist that?
Second, lift or press up on their fist. Can they resist that?
Push their fist to the left. Can they resist?
Push their fist to the right. Can they resist?
Now holding their fist with your thumb and second finger, move their fist in small circles. Can they resist that? Not so much…
There are muscles in place that allow your body to resist the up, down, left, and right pressure pretty effectively. Of course, to what extent does depend somewhat on how strong you are. However, there are no muscles, specifically in place to resist those small circles. That is a simple example of understanding and applying the concept of body mechanics.
So, let’s think about this for a few seconds.
If that same arm was being extended toward you in an attack, and you met that arm with your own, could you use that understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the arm structure to redirect the attack and suddenly enter with your own counter? … as in
Hand Meets In The Air, Suddenly Enter
In the above illustration, arm A. is the punching arm. Arm B. has met arm A. in the air. There would be several options open to arm B. at this point, one of which might be the basic Isshin-ryu low-level block.
They’re not blocks! They’re really Ninja Delayed Death Strikes!
First, let me just go out on a limb here and say that I do not subscribe to the idea adopted in recent years by some Isshin-ryu Karate practitioners that there are “no blocks in Isshin-ryu Karate;” that the blocks are actually ” some kind of top-secret pressure point, Ninja delayed death strikes.”
It is much more likely that nobody ever showed them how to properly practice and employ these blocks in technique. The blocks do, in fact, work extremely well for me and several practitioners I know quite well.
So, the answer to the above question is …
Of course, you can. In fact, this is one of the key elements of blocking in Isshin-ryu Karate. A second is that Isshin-ryu does not typically employ linear blocks. They are designed as circular blocks. However, the circles are tiny. Can these blocks be used linearly? Of course, they can. But many of the Isshin-ryu kata techniques are set up through the use of this “two hands meet in the air” concept combined with circular blocks and then followed up with an aggressive counter-attack.
However, it is important to remember that combat is fluid and ever-changing, so as soon as you understand a concept, someone tosses in an exception. This, too, is also fine. That is where years of training, experience, and flexibility come into play.
Experience and Flexibility
As an example of this experience and flexibility, the third seminar we held in Clinton, Tennessee, with Sensei Sherman Harrill was on Seisan Kata. The opening technique in that kata is essentially a mid-level block followed by a reverse punch. We probably spent the first two hours of the seminar exploring variations of those two basic techniques. And nobody was bored! Two hands would meet in the air. The entry would vary with each version, and therefore the counter-attack would target different areas of the attacker’s body. But the technique was the same.
Then, of course, there would come the “those are the things I do with these techniques. What Sensei (for him that was Master Tatsuo Shimabuku) showed me was this …
It would be a simple block/punch karate technique. But it would also be very effective. Two hands would meet in the air, a sudden entry, and then – the fight is over. Ikken Hissatsu
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The popular interpretation of this guiding principle of karate is that karate is for self-defense only. And there is absolutely nothing wrong with this interpretation, especially if you are just getting started on your martial arts journey. Teaching this maxim to your students helps instill the rule that karate techniques should not be misused. But is that truly all there is to it?
There is no first strike in karate.
Hmmm. Okay. This phrase does not say, “Karate is for self-defense only.’ It clearly says, “There is no first strike in karate.” Why is that? If they meant to say, “karate is for self-defense only,” why didn’t they just say that. Part of the problem is that these maxims were not coined in English. Most were probably originally written in Chinese, then translated into native Okinawan languages such as Uchināguchi, then possibly Japanese, and finally into English.
Another consideration is the translation itself. Chinese and Japanese languages are rather different from their western counterparts. One-to-one translations of characters into letters can be problematic at best. Thus, the age, knowledge, and life experience of the translator becomes a translation factor.
To provide an example of what I am talking about, I will use the Isshin-ryu Code, which is basically a streamlined adaptation of “The Eight Poems of the Fist” found in the Bubishi.
The Isshin-ryu Code
Version 1
Version 2
A person’s heart is the same as Heaven and Earth
The Blood circulating is similar to the Moon and the Sun
A manner of drinking or spitting is either hard or soft
A person’s unbalance is the same as weight
The body should be able to change direction at any time
The time to strike is when the opportunity presents itself
The eyes must see all sides
The ears must listen in all directions
Man’s spirit, heart, mind : is like (same as) : Heaven : Earth
Blood, hope, range, pulse : is like : Moon (day – date) : Sun (month)
Stiff – hard, strong. stubborn, inflexible : Soft-gentle, mild-tender, mellow : Take in (soak in) : Throw out
Fear, horror : March : Past (pass) : Leave : Meet
Directions : Any : Time : React (respond) : Flexibility (change)
Hand : Meets : In the air : Suddenly : Enter
Eyes : Should : Watch : Four : Directions
Ears : Laterally placed : To listen to (to comply with) : Eight : Directions
Clearly, the two versions of the Isshin-ryu Code are pretty similar. Version 1 would certainly be easier to “read” for most English-speaking Americans. Version 2 is definitely much more cryptic and makes you want to scratch your head. But beyond that, there are some notable differences. I like to highlight #6 and #8 as the first differences for my students to explore.
Version 1 is found in most books on Isshin-ryu Karate. I have no idea where it comes from. Version 2 is a direct translation of the code’s Kanji by an elderly Chinese gentleman known to my instructor. It is the translation his students use and has shaped our training a little differently.
So, where is all this going?
First, if differences in translation can occur in one text, they can occur in another. Second, phrases that mean one thing to a beginner often mean something else to an intermediate, advanced, or long-time student. As an example of this, take The Book of Five Rings by Miyamoto Musashi. If you have read this book more than once, say at different times over your training years, you will understand exactly what I mean. While the words themselves have not changed, your understanding of them will have.
So, here is an alternative “understanding” of the phrase, there is no first strike in karate.
The words could say, there is no first strike in karate because, quite literally, there is no first strike in karate. By way of explanation, here are two examples.
A traditional story
There is an old story of two early karate masters in nearby villages on Okinawa. Each village was very proud of its resident Sensei, and therefore talk soon began around the topic of which was better. Over time, this argument grew to such a fevered pitch that a match became inevitable. Finally, the two masters met on neutral ground and squared off. The residents of both villages gathered to watch. The villagers waited in breathless anticipation for the action to begin. The two masters calmly faced each other, each waiting for an opportunity. It never came. After what seemed like an eternity, the match was called a draw, and the disappointed villagers went home, grumbling to themselves.
A student from one village, following his Sensei back to their village, finally worked up the nerve to ask, “Sensei, why did you not fight? What was settled by this?”
The Sensei smiled, “We settled the fact that we are both excellent karate-ka. Each of us understood that the first one to strike would surely lose. Therefore, neither of us was willing to strike first.”
From the sport side of things
While over the years, I left sport karate behind, there were many years I did participate. I was never a “Hall of Famer,” but I was a solid competitor. I won some and lost some. Eventually, I refereed matches and judged the kata competitions. I also hosted the Tennessee Valley Karate Championship on the Tennessee Karate Circuit for about seven years. I am not sure that circuit even exists anymore.
In my experience, there are basically three types of tournament karate fighters: 1) the charger, 2) the runner, and 3) the counter-fighter. Which fighter is harder to beat?
The charger comes right at you, straight on, fast and hard. However, if you get fairly adept at working angles, you can do well against the charger.
The runner runs, and you have to chase him all over the ring and try to pin him in a corner. Typically, they get a lot of warnings for running out of the ring. However, if you can learn to control the ring and cut the runner off, you can do well against the runner as well.
The counter-fighter sits and waits patiently for you to attack. When you do, he simply shifts position, parries, or blocks, and then counter-attacks. And, for my money, this is the toughest competitor to beat.
You cannot initiate an attack with out creating an opening
If your opponent simply has the patience and skill to take advantage of the opening you have just provided them with, you will lose. Perhaps, this is another reason there is no first strike in karate. Especially when losing might be a matter of life or death.
Just food for thought …
That is the beauty of art. It is open to interpretation. And karate, after all, is a martial art. I am just sharing one of my interpretations with anyone interested. It is neither right nor wrong. It is simply another avenue to explore. And, for those who want to argue, I leave you with a few additional thoughts from Mr. Miyagi …
“The answer is only important if you ask the right question”
“Only root karate come from Miyagi. Just like bonsai choose own way grow because root strong you choose own way do karate same reason.”
“First learn stand, then learn fly. Nature rule Daniel-San, not mine.”
Then, of course, if you do understand the point I am making, and when you pair this take on “There is no first strike in karate” with “Hand meets in the air, suddenly enter,” pretty cool things begin to happen. But that’s a subject for another day.
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I hadn’t gotten too far along on my Isshin-ryu Karate journey when I heard rumors of something called Master Tatsuo Shimabuku’s “Secret Scrolls of Kumite.” I envisioned Master Shimabuku walking over to a dusty intricately carved old chest in the corner of the dojo and opening it. After the dust had settled, he’d reach in and take out a dusty old cloth wrap containing a traditional scroll. With much reverence, he’d remove the cover, unwrap the scroll and share some of its ancient and mysterious knowledge with a chosen few.
Imagine my disappointment when someone told me they were just listed on the dojo wall in plain sight. The reason they were so secret is that they were very cryptic. Most Marines were not stationed on Okinawa long enough to get to a point where they would learn these techniques. A typical tour for a Marine on Okinawa might be 14 to 18 months. That is barely enough time to get a thorough grounding in a system’s basic techniques, never mind lessons from the “Secret Scrolls.”
From discussions I’ve had with my Sensei, Sherman Harrill, and others, It has become clear that these techniques were mostly taught to his Okinawan students. This was simply because they lived there and therefore trained long enough to have a base of knowledge sufficient to make practical use of them.
But we got lucky …
First, Sensei Sherman Harrill was lucky enough to be in Tatsuo Shimabuku’s dojo when he was teaching his Kumite techniques to a group of his Okinawan students. Sensei was drafted to be “uki,” meaning Shimabuku’s students practiced these techniques on him. I guess Master Shimabuku figured if they could make them work on a big, strong U.S. Marine, they understood them properly.
Second. Sensei Arcenio Advincula made repeated trips back to Okinawa. This was for several reasons. He remained in contact with Master Shimabuku’s wife and his second son, Shinso. He also visits his in-laws, having married Michi Nakamashi in 1961. And he continued to train and research Okinawan Karate and Kobudo. Because of his additional time on the island of Okinawa, Sensei Advincula did learn Tatsuo Shimabuku’s Kumite.
Sensei Harrill would often incorporate these Kumite techniques into his classes in the dojo, depending on what he was teaching at the time, and did not “separate” them out for special classes. At one point, he did compare notes with Sensei Advincula to ensure what he remembered from being on the receiving end of these techniques jived with what Sensei Advincula was taught. Once satisfied, they were both on the same page, he began teaching them more openly as Tatsuo Shimabuku’s Kumite.
Sensei John Kerker demonstrating one of the kumite on me.
One of the early seminars Sensei John Kerker did for us in Clinton, Tennessee, covered Tatsuo Shimabuku’s Kumite. John was Sensei Harrill’s Sempai and inherited the Carson Dojo when Sensei Harrill passed away in 2002. This seminar, held in March of 2005, was a real eye-opener for many Isshin-ryu folks who attended because they had not seen these “secret techniques” before.
So, what are these Kumite all about?
Essentially, they are keys to understanding Tatsuo Shimabuku’s karate. From my experience, they are multi-faceted in that they are solid techniques on their own. They also give examples of how Tatsuo Shimabuku viewed the techniques in the kata he taught, and perhaps why he modified them as he did when incorporating them into his system.
There are fifteen Kumite Techniques. The last five are knife defense techniques. I will list these below. When you look at the list, I think you will understand why they were “secret.” If someone did not actually show you what each technique was, you would be hard-pressed to figure it out on your own.
Also, several have multiple variations, so the fifteen expand to about forty-five if you look at the “official” variations. Personal variations are really only limited by your level of knowledge, your imagination, and, of course, the rules of body mechanics.
Tatsuo Shimabuku’s Kumite
The lefthand hold the right wrist
Outside block, punch inside
Punch back of the hand
Knuckle block for kick, counter kick
Hold arm, use against a punch
One handhold gi, grab, twist, kick
Full nelson, karate cut groin
Bear hug waist, hands-free, grab one finger, break, or hit back of the hand
Devil’s handshake, grab your fist, pull, kick.
Two-hand straight choke, break, grab adam’s apple
Straight stab, grab hand and writs, twist kick, trip kick.
Ice pick stab, block across, kick.
Straight stab, both hands up, karate cut block, kick.
Straight stab leaning forward, grab the hand with both of yours, pull. trap at elbow
Two knife straight stab, squat kick
Well, there you have them, or at least the primary fifteen. The Secret Scrolls of Kumite is not so secret anymore. I do think, however, you can see why a new Marine standing in Master Tatsuo Shimbuku’s dojo might look at this list and say to themselves, “what the heck is this?”
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This morning I had the opportunity to visit a traditional Uechi-Ryu dojo in Knoxville run by Sensei Bob Noel. I was invited by a former student who, since I moved to Raleigh, NC, started training with him. Lucas and I had discussed this over the years I was away, and Lucas had mentioned that he felt comfortable with Sensei Noel because of how he taught and that the things he had learned from me about body mechanics and technique allowed him to understand what kind of an instructor Sensei Noel is. And I will say that Lucas chose well.
I have often stated that Okinawan systems of karate have more in common than they do have differences. Of course, the early karate pioneers on Okinawa had “favorite” techniques and preferred training methods that created differences. However, you must remember that Okinawa is a tiny island and many of the early masters knew and, at times, trained together. In fact, Kanbun Uechi (the founder of Uechi-Ryu) and Tatsuo Shimabuku (the founder of Isshin-Ryu) were good friends and often trained together. Add to that the fact that good technique is determined more by body mechanics than anything else, and you should be able to see the logic in my statement
Adding to the visit’s pleasure was that I learned that Sensei Noel grew up in Williamstown, MA, which borders North Adams, MA. I studied Uechi-Ryu for a brief time while still in high school in North Adams with an instructor who was one of Sensei Frank Gorman’s students. It bothers me that I can’t remember my instructor’s name. I only remember that he also played guitar in a local band called Steele. But it turns out that Sensei Noel trained with Sensei Gorman at Williams College while we worked there.
Then I discovered that Sensei Noel was in Boy Scout Troop 70 in Williamstown. I had a good friend, Camden Pierce, for many years who was in Troop 70. Don Gilbert (no relation) was the scoutmaster of Troop 70 at that time. I was in Troop 88 in North Adams, and Douglas Filkens was our scoutmaster. Camden and I did a lot of backpacking and canoeing together over the years. And we had an annual New Year’s Eve campout on the top of Mt. Greylock, which is the tallest mountain in Massachusetts. It was cold, and the snow might be up to your armpits, but it was a blast. I guess we did that three or four year in a row.
Sensei Noel has an efficient and straightforward approach to how he teaches and a deep understanding of his art. Lucas did a great job of choosing him as an instructor.
It really is a small, small world when you are dealing with those who practice traditional Okinawan karate.
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Did this title strike a nerve? I hope so! Too much is at stake here to be worried about political correctness. If a few people are so insecure that a few words trigger a total psychological meltdown on their part … too bad. We are reaping that which the “no individual responsibility, everyone gets a trophy, you can’t play tag on the schoolyard at recess, helicopter parenting” mentality has sown in our country. There are just not enough blankies, puppies, and cups of warm cocoa to go around. It is too bad, and I hope the pendulum begins to swing back the other way soon … before it is too late.
We desperately need a few more sheepdogs!
Why do I say this? Well, step back, clear your eyes, and take a good look around. America, the greatest nation on this planet, is being attacked by a coordinated and well-funded radical left movement, and we are in real danger of losing our country.
This post has been stewing in my brain since the first presidential debate. Yes, the event was a complete catastrophe. I think both candidates performed like two spoiled 70-year-old toddlers. President Trump came on way too hard and aggressively. The endless whoppers Joe Biden told were utterly unbelievable. And Chris Wallace? Well, Wallace should probably move over to MSNBC or CNN. The most fabulous “moderator” in modern history quickly lost complete control of the debate, and his bias was blatantly evident.
Here are just three examples:
Proud Boys
Chris Wallace asked President Trump to go on the record [again], and denounce White Supremacy. President Trump answered that he had already done so numerous times.
In fact, President Trump had just recently announced a plan to prosecute both Antifa and the KKK as terrorist groups. The last time I checked, the KKK was a white supremacy group.
Of course, that was not the answer Chris Wallace wanted, so he pressed harder. President Trump asked exactly which group Biden and Wallace wanted him to denounce (which was a tactical blunder on his part). Biden replied, “Proud Boys.” Trump answered by telling the Proud Boys “stand back and stand by.” I don’t know, maybe Trump should have said, “stand down.” You know how we love to parse words these days.
Here is my problem. Did Chris Wallace then turn to Joe Biden and ask him to denounce Antifa or BLM? No, he did not.
Yes, the Southern Poverty Law Center and the ACLU consider Proud Boys a violent right-wing hate group. However, they believe that almost all conservative organizations are violent hate groups. They are both incredibly left-leaning, after all.
Side Note: Did you know the ACLU was initially a communist organization? It was. I read the memo where they announced the decision to change their name because too many Americans really disliked communists. A copy of the memo was available on the internet at one time. It may have disappeared by now.
After President Trump’s “stand down'” request, Enrique Tarrio (hardly a WASP name), leader of Proud Boys, is reported to have stated, “That’s my president.”
Picture from NBCMiami.com
FYI: This is Enrique Tarrio. He is Afro-Cuban. Enrique is the national leader of the Proud Boys, which includes a large number of Black and Hispanic members. The media reports that Proud Boys is a white supremacy hate group. However, the truth is the group is anti-Antifa, anti-rioters, anti-communism, anti-socialism, and anti-looters. They are pro-law enforcement and pro-USA.
Aside from Enrique, could some white supremacists be lurking among the ranks of Proud Boys members? Of course, there could.
Now, here’s a hard question for you. Can you be honest with me! Could there be black supremacists included in the ranks of BLM? Hmmm.
Antifa
Biden laughed, saying that Antifa doesn’t exist – that Antifa is just an idea. Ok, Joe! If Antifa is just an idea – it is one that uses real bricks, clubs, Molotov cocktails, fireworks, and other ideas to threaten, intimidate, and destroy Americans and American businesses. You should get out of your basement more often, Joe.
Photo from therightscoop.com
I mean, we could say that the Waffen-SS was just an idea as well. Of course, they murdered millions. But here’s the rub. Did Chris Wallace press good old Uncle Joe on this comment? Nope!
So, Antifa attacks Americans, burns American businesses, beats up American journalists, and yes, sometimes accidentally set themselves on fire with Molotov cocktails.
Who do the Proud Boys clash with? Antifa! Maybe if law enforcement was allowed to do its job, other Americans wouldn’t have to step in to help.
BLM
I have a real problem with this one. I will tell you upfront, I am not a racist. You certainly don’t have to belive me, but it’s true. My family is one of incredible diversity. I just believe all lives matter. In my opinion, if you have to put a color in front of “lives matter,” you’re a racist.
But BLM is not about race at all. If they were, they would care about all the black communities being destroyed by BLM’s “white” useful idiots. They would care about the Black on Black crime in our big cities, the shooting of innocent children in drive-by attacks, , the fatherless children, the drugs, the poverty, and the millions of Black lives and families being ruined every day. But they don’t. That is because BLM is a Marxist movement. They just use race to achieve their goals.
Photo from freewestmedia.com
You don’t believe me? Have you read their mission statement, their charter, or any of their handouts? Incidentally, you can’t find any of this on their website anymore. It was there, I saw it! But, they recently scrubbed it all clean. I guess some people were beginning to take notice, after all.
Here, let me help!
Read these quotes carefully. They look innocuous at first glance. But what do the words actually mean?
We disrupt theWestern-prescribed nuclear family structure requirement by supporting each other as extended families and “villages” that collectively care for one another, especially our children, to the degree that mothers, parents, and children are comfortable.
We cultivate an intergenerational and communal network free from ageism. We believe that all people, regardless of age, show up with the capacity to lead and learn.
We see ourselves as part of the global Black family, and we are aware of the different ways we are impacted or privileged as Black people who exist in different parts of the world.
Handout 1 – Black Lives Matter Document Set
You won’t find these statements on their website anymore. I wonder why? And I am sorry, but there is a massive difference in the knowledge, wisdom, understanding, and leadership abilities of 16-year-olds and 50-year-olds. Wisdom is accumulated through experience, which requires time.
BLM leaders have even admitted in several interviews that they are a Marxist organization. This isn’t new news, but it may indeed be news to you. This guy really sums it up very well in his video, which also includes a historically accurate portrayal of Fascism.
Yes. The lunatics are now running the asylum. “Protected groups,” long separated, isolated, protected, and coddled by the Democrat Party because they were “useful” as voting blocks, have escaped the plantation, and joining together in “collective” entitlement thinking, are burning down the house.
In short, some groups of really unpleasant people with an incredibly dangerous left-wing agenda are running around this country doing bad things to good people. The Dems don’t want to stop it! Why? Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that both the DNC and BLM raise money through ActBlue. Antifa doesn’t need ActBlue because they have George Soros, who seems to have bottomless pockets.
So, who are you going to call?
When a group of BLM protesters decides to drag you out of your car and beat you to a pulp, or an Antifa mob decides to burn down your small family-owned business because you have an American flag hanging out front, who are you going to call?
Well, the way things are going, you might as well call the Ghost Busters! Combine the radical left’s push to defund or eliminate the police with the backstabbing and “stand down” orders from radical left politicians like Bill de Blasio and Ted Wheeler, and you have a severe problem. The cops won’t be there. Or, even if they are, good cops will be reluctant to act out of fear of being falsely charged with a crime for doing their job.
You may find yourself completely on your own!
There is a reason gun sales have surged since March. And a large percentage of these sales are to first-time buyers. People are scared and want to be able to protect themselves and their families. And I do not blame them one bit.
We all think – it won’t happen to me. However, I was accosted not too long ago in a grocery store by a twenty-something punk who looked like prime Antifa material. He didn’t like my patriotic t-shirt. Fortunately for him, he did not push things too far. I am pretty confident he would have had a terrible day. He simply saw an older man … and did not know he was picking a fight with a veteran who served with the 101st Air Assault Division, and who is also a trained bodyguard, a 5th-degree blackbelt, and who carries. Of course, I am glad he decided to stomp off muttering curses rather than escalate things. The fact is … you just don’t know.
Become a Sheepdog
Are you buying a gun?
Don’t just buy a gun. Learn to use it proficiently. Go to the range regularly. Take classes. I train regularly to stay proficient at certain skills.
Can you get your weapon out of its holster quickly … and without having it taken from you in the process (weapon retention)?
Can you shoot accurately from any position?
Can you shoot well one-handed … right and left (what if your “shooting hand” is injured)?
Can you reload or rack your pistol one-handed?
Can you shoot when breathing hard?
Do you know when not to shoot!!
What do you do if you are involved in a shooting incident (I recommend joining USCCA)?
Get in shape
Join a gym, run, bicycle, dance, hike, do yoga, lift weights, but do something. You don’t have to be a super athlete. After all, you are not training to fight eighteen rounds. Most serious self-defense situations are actually over pretty quickly.
Study a serious martial art
We are not talking sport karate here. When your life or the life of those you care about is on the line, there are no rules. The driving need is simply not to lose. A back fist to the forehead or a jump spinning roundhouse kick to the head just isn’t going to work. There are dojos out there that train martial arts as they were initially intended – a system of personal combat, and not as a sport or a pathway to some kind of omnipresent supergalactic oneness. Find one, join, and train seriously.
On the upside, those dojos usually cost much less to join than Supreme Ultimate Grandmaster Billy Bob’s Karate Super Center and Health Food Emporium.
OMG! You’re advocating violence!
No, I am not advocating violence here. But I do believe that you, as a free and law-abiding American, have the God-given right to protect yourself, your family, and your livelihood from injury or the wanton and idiotic destruction of radical left-wing rioters that are determined to destroy America. That right, clearly enunciated in the Declaration of Independence, is guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights. That is why the left wants these documents gone and forgotten.
Also, this is not about being paranoid; it is about being prepared
Of course, you may choose not to protect yourself. That is certainly your right as an American citizen. However, you do not have the right to deprive me of the means to protect my family and those I love.
I would also add that when you are sitting in your car, and Antifa thugs are smashing in the windows with sledgehammers and threatening your family with Molotov cocktails, it is a little too late to make that decision to be prepared.
So you decide … it’s your choice; sheep or sheepdog?
We can always be a bit more prepared than we were yesterday. No matter your age or condition, you can do something to improve your ability to protect yourself and those you love. Make that first step in your decision to be a sheepdog and not a sheep. America needs you to step up.
While it is way too early to crack open a bottle of champagne, I am indeed discussing the possibility of a movie based on the book Montagnard with a film production company.
I have been talking to the CFO of an independent film company I was introduced to by a mutual friend. He was receptive, so I sent him a synopsis of Montagnard. He looked it over and pitched it to the CEO. Now they are both interested in the book and researching the possibility. How about that?
These are exploratory discussions on the feasibility of a movie at this point, and there are obstacles to overcome. There could be a thousand reasons why the deal falls apart. To make it this far is motivational by itself! I am excited.
A mentor advised me to proceed thoughtfully but with zero expectations. I think that is a great plan. And precisely what I intend to do.
By the way …
I have experimented with another book trailer, this one for Montagnard. Take a look and let me know what you think. I am trying to decide if I like the idea of these book trailers or not.
Trailer
If you got a kick out of this post, please take a few minutes and check out some of my other blog posts by clicking here!
And, if you love reading a great, award-winning, action-adventure thriller, check out Montagnard! Just click the button below!
Advanced techniques are nothing more than applying a thorough mastery of the basics.
I remember meeting Sensei Sherman Harrill for the first time in 1983. He was a guest at Wheeler’s School of Karate in Powell, Tennessee. I had just been discharged from the U.S. Army and had a red belt (equivalent to brown in most systems) in Tae Kwon Do. But I was not too happy with Tae Kwon Do.
Not being overly flexible, I was looking for a style that didn’t require me to be like Gumby. I discovered Isshin-ryu Karate. Sensei Harrill taught a few classes I attended at the dojo … and then disappeared. I did not know enough about Isshin-ryu at the time to understand exactly what was going on, but the man really impressed me.
I again saw Sensei Harrill sometime later at an Okinawan Karate-do Union seminar where he did a bo bunkai session. He took the first movement out of the bo kata, Tokumine No Kun, and spent two hours astounding us all by what he could do with just that first movement. Bo’s went flying everywhere, and many fingers were pinched or smashed. It was glorious.
I did not see Sensei Harrill again until the mid-90’s when he and Sensei AJ Advincula gave a benefit seminar in Michigan for Sensei Don Bohan, who was battling cancer. By this time, I was a black belt, had my own dojo, and thought I knew something about karate. However, to put it mildly, when I saw what he was doing, my jaw hit the floor. I had never seen any karate instructor anywhere do anything like what he was doing. It didn’t matter who you were, how big you were, or what you knew. You hit the floor when he put his hands on you. It was the kind of karate you read about in karate history books but never saw on the dojo floor.
What was the difference you might ask? I quickly came to learn it was a thorough understanding and mastery of the system’s basics. Prior to that time, I had trained with just three other world-class instructors who had that same kind of mastery of their art, and who were true masters. They were Remy Presas (Arnis), Joe Lewis (Full-Contact Karate Champion), and Wally Jay (Small Circle Jujitsu).
All advanced techniques are made up of combinations of basic techniques.
If this is not true where you train, I suggest you hunt for another dojo, dojang, or school.
And I am not just talking about the basic Charts I and II of the Isshin-ryu curriculum followed in most Isshin-ryu dojos. Understanding basics, body mechanics, stances, distance, timing, etc. transcends any particular art or style. It is the key to real success in any technique, method, or system.
I remember returning to a dojo I had not visited in some time. Upon entering, I spotted one of the head instructors on the floor going through Isshin-ryu Chart 1. He was performing the techniques precisely the same way I was shown when I was a brand new white belt. How’s that for consistency? Great, huh?
I’m going out on a limb here and say, “No, not really.” If you are still practicing the basics today the way you did 20 years ago, what did you learn? Could you not have improved them over that period. Twenty years and this man had never gotten off the porch (most serious Isshin-ryu practitioners will know what this refers to).
Here is an analogy. I remember in elementary school being taught to write. We were given lined paper and shown how to form the letters. You’d make a row of A’s, a row of B’s. a row of C’s. etc. Do you still write that way today?
Before you say, “but that’s how I show a new student …,” I am not talking about working with a new student. I am talking about your own personal workouts (which is what this guy was doing. Sunday morning workouts were restricted to black belts).
A difference in basics …
The first year I brought Sensei Harrill to Tennessee for a seminar, it was great. Friday night and Saturday, I got mercilessly pummeled in a very instructive sort of way. However, I loved it. Each pain, each loss of breath, or loss of balance was a light bulb going off in my brain. It was effortless, almost casual on Sensei’s part, but totally disruptive to me. And there was nothing I could do about. They were all simple techniques. However, they were executed in a very advanced manner; nothing like I had ever experienced before.
Sunday after the seminar, we had several hours before I had to get Sensei to the airport for his flight back to Iowa, so we hit the dojo to train. I remember it being just Sensei, Charlie Taylor, and myself. But one or two others may have been present.
Sensei asked, “What do you want to work on?”
I replied, simply, “Whatever I have to … to understand what you do.”
The sad but straightforward answer was that I had to start over with how I did my basics. Many trained with Sensei over the years, mostly at seminars, and would sometimes mimic his techniques successfully while at seminars. Often, however, this was with cooperative attackers.
But they never changed the way they practiced back at their own dojos. Therefore, they could never really make the techniques their own and would eventually give up. It’s just the same old adage: You can’t train one way and fight another way!
We went through Chart I, one technique at a time. First, I would demonstrate a technique from the chart. Sensei then showed me how he did it and why. He never told me what I was doing was wrong, but there was no question in my mind after we finished each technique which way was better, and more importantly, WHY!
You cannot learn basics from a book, a website, a blog, or even a videotape or DVD. You need practice time, one-on-one interaction with an instructor who understands all of these things, and enough repetitions to create CORRECT muscle memory.
However, here are a few tips that might help
Stand on stakes
Never violate the principles of body mechanics
As your understanding progresses and your basics begin to smooth out, your hands should start to NOT cross the body’s center line.
Always use crescent steps when you move forward or backward (or even sideways).
Each technique is a whole-body movement.
The “snap” in the “snap punch” comes from your waist (Understand that the knot in your obi is not just to tie your belt around your waist. Pay attention to how it moves).
If the knot’s not moving, you’re not doing it right.
Sensei would always say, when sizing up a new opponent or training partner, watch the knot on his obi. It will tell you whether you want to let them hit you or not.
Isshin-ryu Karate Charts I and II
Practice at least 10 repetitions to each side, several times a week.
Chart I
Chart II
RFF / RH Straight Punch
RFF / RH Upper Punch
LFF / LH Straight Punch
LFF / LH Upper Punch
RFB / LH Low Block – RH Reverse Punch
RFB / LH Mid-Level Block = RH Reverse Punch
RFB / LH Open Mid-Level Block – RH Gouge (Nukite)
RFB / LH Open Arc Sweep – RH Upper Punch
RFB / LH Upper Block – RH Reverse Punch
RFB / LH Bridge of Nose – RH Reverse Punch
LFF / LH Low Block – 3 Punches
LFF / LH Mid-Level Block – 3 Punches
LFF / LH Strike to Mid-section – RH Strike to Base of Neck
LFF / LH Palm Heel Block – 2 Hook Punches
RFB Bear Hug Break
Bend Forward / Touch Floor
Back Bend – 5 Exhales
LH Hold Right Heel – RH Push Knee Down
Leg Stretch
Front Kick
Cross Kick
Angle Kick
Side Kick (Heel and Edge)
Side Kick (Ball of Foot)
Squat Kick
Toe Rip Kick
Knee Smash
Knuckle Push-ups
Side Twists
Breathing
Note:
In Chart I, 5 – 15 repeat to the other side.
In Chart II, 3 to 12 repeat to the other side.
RFF = Right Foot Forward. LFF = Left Foot Forward
RFB = Right Foot Back, LFB = Left Foot Back
RH = RIght Hand, LH = Left Hand
Remember, simply practicing does not make perfect. It takes proper practice to make things perfect. If you practice incorrectly 25,000 times, what have you gained?
D.C. Gilbert 