Index said:
Like I said in my first post, it makes no sense to say you are a "first dan in Ninpo". Secondly, their motto is "...where the obsessed train...".
Well, English isn't everyone's strong suit. "Obsessed" probably means something else to them. I don't think that makes them frauds. Don't know about the "ninpo" thing, though. Maybe they just got the terminology wrong.
Index said:
Anyway, I don't think the stuff they showed on the TV programme was particularly impressive from a pain tolerance point of view (except maybe the groin kicks; but maybe they were wearing groin guards). Firstly, did you see the size of those guys? Most of them, except the first blonde guy were fat and had God knows how many kilos of padding, and the so those kind of attacks were useless. The first guy was padded with muscle. As an aside, unless you have experienced it, you'd be surprissed how much damage you can take.
I don't think that they had too much padding in their throats. And according to Steve Harvey and the Discovery Channel guy they weren't wearing groin pads or cups.
Index said:
Furthermore, if you have ever been kicked in the groin (or anywhere for that matter) when you are running on adrenaline or prepared for it, you can deal with it at that moment. You feel the damage much later. Like the doctor interviewed stated, just because they don't feel the pain does not make the attack any less damaging. There are lots of anecdotal cases of soldiers being injured, shot etc. and not realizing until much later (or when they fall unconscious or die).
Well, I suppose I shouldn't doubt that some people are this stupid, but why on earth would you constantly allow yourself to take hits if you
know that it will hurt later, and possibly cause permanent damage? Crashing a beer can on your head is one thing, but to take so many hits to the groin is quite another. If your forehead swells, then it's a bit of an inconvenience. If your testicles swell then you're probably seriously thinking about suicide. By the way, what do you mean by "much later?" Do you mean hours, days, weeks, months, or years? I wonder when these videos were done, and if they were a few years ago, I wonder how these guys are doing now. But I have to believe that they'd been doing this for years before the videos.
Also, what about the testimonials from the magazine editor who claims that Ed Parker, James Lew, and other well-known martial artists kicked and punched these guys and got the same results? Do you think that's a mere fabrication? I wish I could look at it again, but for some reason their site isn't working right now.
Index said:
In regard to being kicked in the street, of course they wouldn't let anyone kick them in the groin on purpose. Anyone who had any idea about martial arts would kick them when they were not expecting (I would have thought that would be so obvious that it would not have to be said).
I don't think it was so obvious, because this is how you originally phrased it, and this is what I was responding to:
Index said:
It will be really funny when he lets someone outside the dojo do it to him in a real confrontation, when the kicker has a knife sticking out of his shoe.
Index said:
Anyway, there is much more to martial arts (as opposed to sports martial arts) than kicking and punching like you see in that programme. I don't think you'd be left standing if the guy kicking had steel capped boots or a knife in his shoes and kicked you while gouging out your eye with his thumb or chopstick, ripping you ear off, kicking your knee out or breaking your elbow. Actually kicking or punching someone is the last thing you do anyway, after you have taken their ability to balance and move effectively. It is then that the kick and punches work.
Actually that was something that I was wondering about. Does this "Combat Ki" protect the body, or is it merely controlling pain? It seems that if they take no damage then it would be protecting them. If it's just controlling pain then it wouldn't help them much if they had an eye gouged out or a broken arm, as you said.
Index said:
Finally, I have seen training videos of guys from the middle east who beat the hell out of each other with wooden planks, baseball bats, etc. That was somewhat more impressive, though easily just as stupid.
I would find that impressive too, should I see it.