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Messages - Russ

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1
Martial Arts Topics / The Cop Mind is formed by unique circumstances
« on: December 13, 2014, 05:46:29 PM »
It is not the role of the public or the press to determine whether an officer involved shooting was justified. That investigation is done by the State's/ District Attorney/ or Grand Jury in some states.. Also, "an officer's evil intentions will not make a Fourth Amendment violation out of an objectively reasonable use of force; nor will an officer's good intentions make an objectively unreasonable use of force constitutional." (Graham v. Connor, 490 U.S. 396, 397 (1989)). That means that the purpose of the original stop, the circumstances of the encounter, and the intentions of the officer are irrelevant as to whether a shooting is justified or not. The only relevant factors are related to whether the officer on the scene believed that his life, or the life of another was in danger. For example, did the suspect attempt to grab the officers gun, or did he attack the officer? You are considered armed if you are attempting to grab an officer's gun. Once these factors are examined through a proper investigation, then the public and the press will know that information. Also, if it is determined that a shooting is justified, that does not prohibit legal action for claims of civil rights violations, or other civil legal action against the officer.

Here is the Constitutional standard for use of deadly force by the police:

“[T]he reasonableness of a particular use of force must be viewed from the perspective of a reasonable officer at the scene, rather than with 20/20 vision of hindsight….”

Moreover, “allowance must be made for the fact that officers are often forced to make split-second judgments in circumstances that are tense, uncertain, and rapidly evolving about the amount of force that is necessary in a particular situation.”

The question is whether the officers' actions are “objectively reasonable” in light of the facts and circumstances confronting them “(Graham v. Connor, 490 U.S. 396, 397 (1989)).



The cop mind is formed by unique circumstances

By DAVID BROOKS, Associated Press | Posted 2 days ago

Like a lot of people in journalism, I began my career, briefly, as a police reporter. As the Michael Brown and Eric Garner cases have unfolded, I've found myself thinking back to those days. Nothing excuses specific acts of police brutality, especially in the Garner case, but not enough attention is being paid to the emotional and psychological challenges of being a cop. Early on, I learned there is an amazing variety of police officers, even compared to other professions. Most cops are conscientious, and some, especially among detectives, are brilliant.

They spend much of their time in the chaotic and depressing nether-reaches of society: busting up domestic violence disputes, dealing with drunks and drug addicts, coming upon fatal car crashes, managing conflicts large and small.

They ride an emotional and biochemical roller coaster. They experience moments of intense action and alertness, followed by emotional crashes marked by exhaustion and isolation. They become hypervigilant. Surrounded by crime all day, some come to perceive that society is more threatening than it really is.

To cope, they emotionally armor up. Many of the cops I was around developed a cynical, dehumanizing and hard-edge sense of humor that was an attempt to insulate themselves from the pain of seeing a dead child or the extinguished life of a young girl they arrived too late to save.

Many of us see cops as relatively invulnerable as they patrol the streets. The cops themselves do not perceive their situation that way. As criminologist George Kelling wrote in City Journal in 1993, "It is a common myth that police officers approach conflicts with a feeling of power — after all, they are armed, they represent the state, they are specially trained and backed by an 'army.' In reality, an officer's gun is almost always a liability ... because a suspect may grab it in a scuffle. Officers are usually at a disadvantage because they have to intervene in unfamiliar terrain, on someone else's territory. They worry that bystanders might become involved, either by helping somebody the officer has to confront or, after the fact, by second-guessing an officer's conduct."

Even though most situations are not dangerous, danger is always an out-of-the-blue possibility, often in the back of the mind.

In many places, a self-supporting and insular police culture develops: In this culture no one understands police work except fellow officers; the training in the academy is useless; to do the job you've got to bend the rules and understand the law of the jungle; the world is divided into two sorts of people — cops and a—holes.

This is a life of both boredom and stress. Life expectancy for cops is lower than for the general population. Cops suffer disproportionately from peptic ulcers, back disorders and heart disease. In one study, suicide rates were three times higher among cops than among other municipal workers. Other studies have found that somewhere between 7 percent and 19 percent of cops suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder. The effect is especially harsh on those who have been involved in shootings. Two-thirds of the officers who have been involved in shootings suffer moderate or severe emotional problems. Seventy percent leave the police force within seven years of the incident.

Most cops know they walk a dangerous line, between necessary and excessive force. According to a 2000 National Institute of Justice study, more than 90 percent of the police officers surveyed said that it is wrong to respond to verbal abuse with force. Nonetheless, 15 percent of the cops surveyed were aware that officers in their own department sometimes or often did so.

And through the years, departments have worked to humanize the profession. Overall, police use of force is on the decline, along with the crime rate generally. According to the Department of Justice, the number of incidents in which force was used or threatened declined from 664,000 in 2002 to 574,000 in 2008. Community policing has helped bind police forces closer to the citizenry.

A blind spot is race. Only 1 in 20 white officers believe blacks and other minorities receive unequal treatment from the police. But 57 percent of black officers are convinced the treatment of minorities is unfair.

But at the core of the profession lies the central problem of political philosophy. How does the state preserve order through coercion? When should you use overwhelming force to master lawbreaking? When is it wiser to step back and use patience and understanding to defuse a situation? How do you make this decision instantaneously, when testosterone is flowing, when fear is in the air, when someone is disrespecting you and you feel indignation rising in the gut?

Racist police brutality has to be punished. But respect has to be paid. Police serve by walking that hazardous line where civilization meets disorder.

2
Martial Arts Topics / Re: The Dog Brothers Tribe
« on: April 17, 2014, 07:06:21 AM »
Woof All,

We are coming out of hibernation after a long cold winter in Connecticut.  It actually snowed yesterday!

The time off from teaching gave me the opportunity to dive back into regular yoga training.  I used it as a chance to extract some movements that focus on lower back and hip rehabilitation/ maintenance, and combine them into an easy to follow progression for students to learn.

As usual, DBMA Connecticut will be focusing on Combining Foot and Stick Work, Double Stick, and Edged Weapons training this Spring.  Classes will be starting up again this weekend.

C- Bad Dog
RussEsq@gmail.com
DBMA Connecticut

3
Martial Arts Topics / How and Why to Be a Leader (Not a Wannabe)
« on: August 21, 2013, 06:46:48 PM »
Here is an excellent article about how to step up and make things better around you.  I put this in martial arts topics because it has to do with tactical awareness of what is going on around you and how to influence it to your and others benefit.

It isn't about what you have, and how much — but what you do, and why — if you're to live a life that matters.

Woof,
Russ

How and Why to Be a Leader (Not a Wannabe)
by Umair Haque  |  12:00 PM July 8, 2013

We need a new generation of leaders. And we need it now.

We're in the midst of a Great Dereliction — a historic failure of leadership, precisely when we need it most. Hence it's difficult, looking around, to even remember what leadership is. We're surrounded by people who are expert at winning — elections, deals, titles, bonuses, bailouts, profit. And often, we're told: they're the ones we should look up to — because it's the spoils and loot that really matter.

But you know and I know: mere winners are not true leaders — not just because gaming broken systems is nothing but an empty charade of living; but because life is not a game. It isn't about what you have, and how much — but what you do, and why — if you're to live a life that matters.

Leadership — true leadership —is a lost art. Leaders lead us not to a place — but to a different kind of destination: to our better, truer selves. It is an act of love in the face of an uncertain world.

Perhaps, then, that's why there's so little leadership around: because we're afraid to even say the word love — let alone to feel it, weigh it, measure it, allow it, admit it, believe it, and so be transformed by it.

Wannabes — who I'll contrast leaders with in this essay — are literally just that: wannabes. They want to be who leaders are, but cannot: they want the benefits of leadership, without the price; they want the respect, dignity, and title of leadership, without leading people to lives that matter; they want the love leaders earn, act by painful act, without, in return, having the courage, humility, and wisdom to love.

When you think about chiefs, presidents, and prime ministers that way, I'd suggest that most of our so-called leaders are wannabes: those who want to be seen as leaders, without leading us anywhere but into stagnation, decline, fracture, fear, apathy, and comfortable, cheap pleasures that numb us to it all. Leaders — true leaders, those worthy of the word — do the very opposite: they lead us to truth, worth, nobility, wonder, imagination, joy, heartbreak, challenge, rebellion, meaning. Through love, they lead us to lives that matter. Wannabes impoverish us. Leaders enrich us.

So here are my six ways to start being a (real) leader — and stop being just another wannabe.

Obey — or revolt? Are you responding to incentives — or reshaping them? Here's the simplest difference between leaders and wannabes. Wannabes respond dully, predictably, neatly, to "incentives," like good little rational robots. They do it for the money and end up stifled by the very lives they choose. Leaders play a very different role. They don't just dully, robotically "respond" to "incentives" — their job is a tiny bit of revolution. And so they must reshape incentives, instead of merely responding to them. They have principles they hold dearer than next year's bonus — and so they think bigger and truer than merely about what they're "incentivized" to do. If you're easily bought off from what you really hold dear with a slightly bigger bonus, here's the plain fact: you're not a true leader.

Conform — or rebel? Are you breaking the rules or following them? The rules are there for a reason: to stifle deviation, preserve the status quo, and bring the outliers right back down to the average. That's a wonderful idea if you're running a factory churning out widgets — but it's a terrible notion if you're trying to do anything else. And so leaders must shatter the status quo by breaking the rules, leading by example,= so that followers know the rules not just can, but must be broken. If you're nail-bitingly following the rules, here's the score: you're not a true leader.

Value — or values? Why do people follow true leaders? Because leaders promise to take them on worthwhile journeys. The wannabe creates "value" for shareholders, for clients, for "consumers". But the leader creates what's more true, more enduring, more resonant: lives of real human worth. And they must do so by evoking in people values that matter, not merely "value" which is worthless. Which would you choose? In a heartbeat, most people choose the latter, because value without values is what reality TV is to a great book: empty, vacant, narrow, arid. If you're creating value — without setting values — you're not a leader: you're just a wannabe.

Vision — or truth? The wannabe sets a vision. With grandiloquent gesture and magnificent panorama, the vision glitters. The leader has a harder task: to tell the truth, as plain as day, as obvious as dawn, as sure as sunrise, as inescapable as midnight. Vision is nice, and many think that a Grand Vision is what inspires people. They're wrong. If you really want to inspire people, tell them the truth: there's nothing that sets people free like the truth. The leader tells the truth because his fundamental task is that of elevation: to bring forth in people their better selves. And while we can climb towards a Grand Vision, it's also true that the very act of perpetually climbing may be what imprisons us in lives we don't really want (hi, Madison Ave, Wall St, and Silicon Valley). Truth is what elevates us; what opens us up to possibility; what produces in us the sense that we must become who were meant to be if we are to live worthy lives — and one of the surest tests of whether you're a true leader is whether you're merely (yawn, shrug, eyeroll) slickly selling a Grand Vision, or, instead, helping bring people a little closer to the truth. And if you have to ask what "truth" is (newsflash: climate change is real, the global economy is still borked, greed isn't good, bankers shouldn't earn a billion times what teachers do, CEOs shouldn't get private jets for life for running companies into the ground, the sky really is blue) — guess what? You're definitely not a leader.

Archery — or architecture? Wannabes are something like metric-maximizing robots. Given a set of numbers they must "hit," they beaver away trying to hit them. The leader knows their job is very different: not merely to maximize existing metrics, which are often part of the problem (hi, GDP, shareholder value), but to reimagine them. The leader's job is, fundamentally, not merely to "hit a target" — but to redesign the playing field. It's architecture, not mere archery. If you're hitting a target, you're not a leader. You're just another performer, in an increasingly meaningless game.

love — or Love. Many of us, it's true, choose jobs we "love" over those we don't, readily sacrificing a few bucks here and there in the process. But this isn't love as much as it is enjoyment. Love — true love, the real thing, big-L Love — is every bit as much painful as it is pleasant. It transforms us. And that is the surest hallmark of a true leader. They have a thirst not merely for love — but to love; a thirst that cannot be slaked merely through accomplishments, prizes, or honors. It can only, only be slaked through transformation; and that is why true leaders must, despite the price, through the pain, into the heart of very heartbreak itself, lead.

And yet.

We're afraid, you and I, of this word: love. Afraid of love because love is the most dangerously explosive substance the world has ever known, will ever know, and can ever know. Love is what frees the enslaved and enslaves the free. Because love, finally, is all: all we have, when we face our final moments, and come to know that life, at last, must have been greater than us if we are to feel as if it has mattered.

The old men say: children, you must never, ever believe in love. Love is heresy. Believe in our machines. Believe in operation and calculation. Place your faith in being their instruments. Our perfect machines will bring you perfection.

I believe lives as cold as steel will only yield a world as cruel as ice. I believe cool rationality and perfect calculation can take us only a tiny distance towards the heart of what is good, true, and timelessly noble about life. Because there is no calculus of love. There is no equation for greatness. There is no algorithm for imagination, virtue, and purpose.

Even a perfect machine is just a machine.

If we are to lead one another, we will need the heresy of love. We must shout at yesterday in the language of love if we are to lead one another. Not just to tomorrow, but to a worthier destination: that which we find in one another.

It's often said that leaders "inspire". But that's only half the story. Leaders inspire us because they bring out the best in us. They evoke in us our fuller, better, truer, nobler selves. And that is why we love them — not merely because they paint portraits of a better lives, but because they impel us to be the creators of our own.

http://blogs.hbr.org/haque/2013/07/how_and_why_to_be_a_leader_not.html

4
Martial Arts Topics / Re: Top Dog & Crafty Dog Demo, 2002?
« on: November 05, 2012, 10:46:23 AM »
Wow... a blast from the past!

This was September 2001 I believe.

Thank you Guro C. for letting me participate.

I was so surprised (and honored) when Top Dog called me up.

I was just passing through LA on the way to a job interview in San Diego.

That's what happens when you "show up."

5
Martial Arts Topics / Re: Conditioning
« on: July 25, 2012, 09:59:33 AM »
Road Run

Bolton Lake Kora- clockwise run around the Lake (6.5 miles/ 10.5 km.). 

From a current Marine Corps Officer and former U.S. National Champion in Rowing:

It is all about just getting out there and getting after it. Training for running is just like training for any other endurance type activity. Go longer but slower to get your aerobic system used to going for that long, then go faster and shorter to build muscle / push your anaerobic system to handle the pace. The two should meet in the middle and you will be all set.

Cool down-

160 meter swim with 54 lbs. of weight on my back (i.e. one almost seven year old young lady- Fei Fei Iger)!


6
Martial Arts Topics / Re: Conditioning
« on: July 21, 2012, 11:20:20 AM »
DBMA Connecticut

Road Runs-  July 21st, 2012

1) Morning- Vernon Road to Bolton Road roundtrip to the Bolton Lake Dam wall (1.5 km, slow & smooth, untimed).

2) Early Afternoon- Vernon Road to Quarry Road (up steep hill), (2.6 km, moderate pace, 15:01).

Cool down- swim in the Lake (160 meters).

7
Martial Arts Topics / Re: Conditioning
« on: July 18, 2012, 08:52:59 AM »
I just starting running three weeks ago, and after two weeks of road runs, I switched to running on a track last week.

Here is my workout from today.

Two sets of 800 meters running (2 laps) followed by 400 meters (1 lap) walking.

The running times were:

4:09
4:01

Two sets of 400 meters running and 400 walking.

The running times were:

1:48
1:40

Total distance was 4000 meters.

I had planned to run split 400s (400 sprinted/ 400 walked) for 4800 meters, but I thought the above method would be a better workout today.


On Saturday, I ran six laps with these times:

Lap 1-  1:38

Lap 2-  3:50 (2:12)

Lap 3-  5:40 (1:50)

Lap 4-  7:42 (2:02)

Lap 5-  9:40 (1:58)

Lap 6-  11:45 (2:05)


Last Thursday, I split it like this:

1200 meters (3 laps)-

Lap 1-  2:06

Lap 2-  2:14

Lap 3-  2:20

Total-  6:34

This was too slow.

I wanted to get my body used to feeling a faster lap, so I shifted to splits (400 meters walking/ 400 meters sprinting).

Here's how they went:

Lap 4-  5:00

Lap 5-  1:40

Lap 6-  5:00

Lap 7-  1:30

Lap 8-  5:00

Lap 9-  1:28

That's a lot of rest time, but I was going for speed on the 400s.


Later that day, I ran these:

800 meters-  3:50

1:30 rest

800 meters-  4:01

1:30 rest

800 meters- 4:03

1:30 rest

400 meters- 2:12 (cool down)


The split lap training really helps you pick up your speed.

I went from running a 13:25 on Wednesday to running an 11:45 on Saturday.

It also really helps to time yourself and see if you are improving or not.

8
Martial Arts Topics / YEAR OF THE RAT!
« on: February 06, 2008, 05:06:21 AM »
The sky is alight with fireworks here in Kunming, and it sounds like a warzone outside.  In China, every stret has explosions non-stop for days to celebrate the New Year and to scare away bad luck and bad spirits that might be lurking.  What a great tradition!

I have been told that because the Rat is a water sign, and normally earth beats water, which are in ascendant this year, but because of the Rat's strength, it will mean a year of upheaval.

Here we go!!!!!

春节快乐!   :mrgreen:  Happy Spring Festival!

Russ
DBMA Kunming

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Martial Arts Topics / Re: Larry Hartsell died
« on: August 21, 2007, 10:19:41 PM »
Larry Hartsell was a very insightful martial artist, and one bad dude.

Several years ago at a seminar in Connecticut, I demonstrated some of the Snaggletooth material and DBMA Siniwali for him and he loved it.

It was an honor to receive his praise and it inspired me to train harder.

I'm in Bangkok today...  I will be sure to go out tonight and celebrate in his honor!

Woof,
Russ

10
Martial Arts Topics / Re: Good Luck everyone at the Gathering.
« on: June 20, 2007, 10:30:12 AM »
I remember seeing Sled Dog fight, along with two generations of his students, at the Summer 2001 Gathering after the first DBMA Camp.  He drove his opponent's straight to the walls (hence the name "Sled Dog")!

What a great memory....  :-D

WOOF!
Russ

11
Martial Arts Topics / Re: VIDEO CLIPS OF INTEREST
« on: June 08, 2007, 10:20:01 AM »
Needs some work, but not bad...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E8PEIVitHXQ

 :mrgreen:

12
Martial Arts Topics / Re: Yoga
« on: May 20, 2007, 04:46:43 AM »
Yesterday, we began class at the Kunming Botanical Gardens with some Yoga stretching.

A) The first exercise was a fairly traditional movement that Raw Dog used to have us do before training Muay Thai:

1) legs Indian style (Native American I should say!), chin up, reach forward with your arms and rest your elbows on the ground in from of your knees as far forward as you can manage.  Keep your chin up and face forward.

I was shocked to see that one of my students, a 2nd Degree black belt in TKD and current teacher who is very athletic and flexible, could barely place his elbows on the ground in front of him.  Does this indicated that flexibility within the hips versus in the hamstrings and quads (as most TKD requires) are perhaps not similarly attained?  I warned him that as he got older, hip injuries from TKD could be debilitating if he did not loosen up his hips.

2) keeping legs in the same position, place either hand at the base of the spine, palm down, wrist facing toward base of spine.  Use the other hand on your knee to assist you in twisting your torso so that you are facing backward and looking directly over your shoulder.  Often, this will crack my back as well!

Complete 3 sets of the movements above.

B) Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Yoga stretch-

This is an isolation of a Yoga Jiu Jitsu movement that Crafty Dog showed us in June 2001 in the IAMA DBMA Class.

The full movement rotates your legs either clockwise or counterclockwise beneath you at the knees while you move between a seated position to rising on your shins to complete a circle with your legs.  No hand involvement is allowed.  You simply allow your legs to rotate beneath you while you maintain a quiet upper torso.

The isolation takes place while one leg is to the rear and one leg is in front of you bent at the knee with the sole of your foot facing toward your opposite quadricept.  Lean forward onto this front leg and feel the stretch in your hip.  Alternate legs.  Raw Dog showed this isolation to one student who was having a lot of lower back pain.  Actually, I think he mentioned he had seen Dr. Gyi do this one.  Hmmm......

The next movement is a common stretch:
Seated, soles of your feet together in front of you, push knees down with elbows as you pull up on your feet.

To cool down, we worked two of Dr. Gyi's Dhanda Yoga movements using a 36" stick for assisted stretching and massage:

1) side grip deltoid stretch
2) overhead lat. dorsi stretch

And one Letha Yoga movement (I believe) that Guro Crafty showed us in the DBMA Class at IAMA the day before the November 2003 Gathering:

Partner lies face down, wrap your arms at your bicep around his or her ankles.  Adjust your legs into a squatting position (commonly seen in Asia as waiting for the bus or taking a dump, also seen/ known in the West for the posture of skiers while tucking during the Downhill Event in Alpine Skiing) as you extend your partners legs into a stretch position and raise their hips from the ground slightly.  Use your leverage from this squatting position to stretch your partner's hips.

And if that's not thoroughly confusing.... you should see what we did during the actual class!

13
Martial Arts Topics / Re: VIDEO CLIPS OF INTEREST
« on: May 13, 2007, 07:07:47 AM »
OK... Don't laugh too hard.... I only had this Korean Cha Cha music and several Chinese love songs to choose from for the background music.

However, you may like the blade work! 

Enjoy,

Russ

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2hCbamDuuiI[/youtube]

New blade in Shangri-la (Yunnan, China).


14
Martial Arts Topics / Re: VIDEO CLIPS OF INTEREST
« on: April 25, 2007, 09:47:54 PM »
Russ or Robert,
  What backround did these guys have?  In clip 9 there is some great footwork going on.

Gruhn

Just saw these today!

The crew in Beijing have mostly MMA backgrounds.  Some have worked a little Illustrisimo.

We had a lot of fun that day!

Woof,
Russ

15
Martial Arts Topics / Re: The Dog Brothers Tribe
« on: February 09, 2007, 04:53:34 AM »
Congratulations "C-Cyborg Dog!"  I can only imagine....  :mrgreen:

Miss ya',
Russ

16
Martial Arts Topics / Leo Gaje Seminar in Connecticut
« on: March 08, 2006, 09:02:33 AM »
My good friend and teacher, Ron Kosakowski, is hosting GT Gaje for a Seminar this April:  http://psdtc.com/Events/Leo_Gaje_seminar.htm

Ron just got back from training in Mindanao!

17
Martial Arts Topics / Krabi Krabong in the Movies
« on: September 08, 2005, 08:42:18 AM »
Shockingly enough....

There is a Bond movie with Roger Moore as 007 in which there is a Krabi Krabong sword fight!

I just saw it two weeks ago on AMC.

18
Martial Arts Topics / Australian Whipboxing
« on: September 06, 2005, 08:47:27 AM »

19
Martial Arts Topics / New Staff DVD
« on: July 25, 2005, 08:29:54 AM »
Ouch!  :oops:

What a great looking DVD!

20
Charles is a good teacher.  I've trained with him many times.

Enjoy,
Russ C-"Bad Dog" Iger

21
Martial Arts Topics / Leo Gaje in Connecticut, April 9th & 10th
« on: April 09, 2005, 08:35:12 PM »
The seminar today in Connecticut was great!

We ended it with an hour of Dumog...., some of the most practical and efficient empty hand fighting I have ever been taught.

I've been to Guro Inosanto's seminar where he teaches Dumog and it is always puzzling, but the material today was presented masterfully.

GT Gaje showed his incredible skill and talent today.  Seeing him teach reminded me of the DBMA phrase: "Walk As A Warrior For All Your Days!"

Don't miss a chance to train with this man.  Exhausting, but well worth it!

Woof,
Russ

22
Martial Arts Topics / Leo Gaje in Connecticut, April 9th & 10th
« on: February 24, 2005, 07:59:17 AM »
Leo Gaje in Connecticut, April 9th & 10th:

http://www.psdtc.com/Events/Leo_Gaje_seminar.htm

24
Martial Arts Topics / Marine Charged With Murder in Iraq Deaths
« on: February 15, 2005, 06:57:07 AM »
This is total bs!  A soldier being charged with murder during a combat operation!

http://www.military.com/NewsContent/0,13319,FL_marine_021205,00.html

From: Talbott 1ST Lt

go google - check out ilario pantano marine - #1 guy in IOC class after me.

25
Martial Arts Topics / Filipino Kun Tao Workshop in Connecticut
« on: January 05, 2005, 08:57:47 AM »
Interesting and practical system for tactically minded individuals:

http://www.psdtc.com/Events/Kuntao_WS.htm

Filipino Kun Tao Workshop
Conducted by Ron Kosakowski
Sunday, February 6th 2005, 10:30am to 3:00 pm

Location: Practical Self Defense Training Center, 2148 South Main St., Waterbury, Connecticut

26
Martial Arts Topics / Tsunami Relief: What we can do
« on: January 03, 2005, 09:15:31 AM »
I just made a small donation to Save the Children.  I have worked with them before in SE Asia and they are excellent at getting aid out to those in need.  Anything you can afford to give will help.  It doesn't have to be a lot.

http://www.savethechildren.org/radio_asia_earthquake.asp?stationpub=hp_asia_overview

27
Martial Arts Topics / Projectiles Training
« on: December 06, 2004, 09:41:04 AM »
Here is a clip of my teacher Carl Atienza doing projectile training in his garage.  Actually that is where he does all his training!

The various throws:
-left and right hand half spin throws from draw
-left and right hand full spin throws from draw
-half spin throws from draw. left hand loading
-full spin throws from draw, right hand
-full spin throws, underhand
-behind the back half spin throws
-combo throws, projectiles on the run

http://www.atienzakali.com/pages/videogallery2.html

Woof,
Russ

28
Martial Arts Topics / DB Gathering posts
« on: December 01, 2004, 08:26:45 AM »
Dog Corey,

Congratulations on a recognition well deserved!

You represent the true spirit of the organization in willing to test yourself to the greatest degree.

Seeing you fight last November was quite impressive!

Woof,
Dog Russ

29
Martial Arts Topics / Good luck at the Gathering
« on: November 05, 2004, 02:12:27 PM »
I'll give a loose translation of what the magazine cover says:

Top title- "This is the world underground fighting."

Text to the right- Something about Vale Tudo in larger text and then literally "Do you know about America's Dog Brothers?"

Lower left-
"No trophies"
"No judges"  (I think)
"No referees"

The next part is too small for me to read, but it probably says something about "Being friends at the end of the day."  It then goes on to mention the Dog Brothers being in Los Angeles and something about underground fighting.

Damn.... I need a refresher course in reading Japanese!

30
Martial Arts Topics / DBMA Manhattan
« on: November 03, 2004, 07:35:22 AM »
Tuesday, November 2, 2004 (NYC- Russ' Patio)  7:30-9PM

My former student Miguel and I celebrated election day with some no armor stickfighting.  Miguel has really picked up his training to an intense level over the past 4 months and has worked himself into a good fighting weight and condition.

We started with knife, wearing 16 oz. gloves and using large daggers (8" blades).

Next we moved to machetes.  Using a live blade without contact puts your mind in the right state to fight.  You move away from thinking and just begin to feel.

After that we were ready for stickfighting.  We used 31" medium to light sticks.  No armor was used (ie. the only thing you have to protect yourself is your stick, your footwork and your fighting strategy).

We took a short break and then picked up the actionflex and the large daggers.  We also did a round of single stick action flex trying to keep the same respect for the rattan that we had been using earlier.

Back to the machetes and then rattan with no armor for a few more exchanges and then we called it a night.  It was a good chance for us both to try out what we had been training on someone we don't usually fight.

To finish off, we did some stretching of our hips and lower back.  It was a great night of fighting!

Woof,
Russ

31
Martial Arts Topics / staff fighting
« on: August 08, 2004, 06:04:29 PM »
Woof Pampangafighter,

No.... it's just regular fencing masks in the staff fights.  I momentarily blacked out 3 times in my staff fight with True Dog (Chris Clifton).  Staff fighting is no joke!  Enter at your own risk....  Many fighters get broken hands and fingers from this as well.

Guro Crafty has some awesome staff material.  The best I have ever seen.  It's primarily based on the material he learned in the Philippines from GT Gaje with some Inosanto Blend staff mixed in to it.  It's also very theraputic for your back to swing the staff in this manner.  It develops all the muscles equally and tends to reset it.

Woof,
Dog Russ

32
Martial Arts Topics / say a prayer
« on: May 27, 2004, 08:42:04 AM »
My thoughts and prayers are with you Myke.... wherever you are out there!   :D

Myke has been a strong contributor to our political discussions on the DBMA Members Forum and we've missed his input these days.

Woof,
Russ

33
Martial Arts Topics / DBMA Manhattan Recent Class Notes
« on: April 20, 2004, 07:20:41 AM »
DBMA Manhattan Central Park
April 19th, 2004

DBMA Double Stick Basic and More....

We are finally back in the Park after a long, cold Winter!  We met at Columbus Circle at 7:10 and then headed over to Sheep Meadow to train.

As we walked, I explained the nature of the training we were preparing to do.  Our training would begin with some basic coordination drills which meet the force in a mirror image (ie. heaven six).  We discussed the concepts of meet, merge and follow and how our double stick training would be aimed at creating the merge.  To do this we would need to break the mirror image pattern of drilling that we are so often used to doing in Filipino Martial Arts training.  This is where the Upward Eights would come in to play.

Class began by warming up our bodies using several Snake Range movements with our double sticks:
1) Gunting (scissors)
2) The clock (counterclockwise)
3) Umbrella movment
4) Redondo 6
5) Upward Eights

Footwork- we worked to major footwork principles:
1) Lower Canines across the Gum (/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\)
2) The Diamond
-Each person coordinated stick movement into the foot work to the best of their ability.

Siniwali- all on the Female triangle:
1) Heaven 6
2) Upward Eights
3) Upward Eights against Heaven 6

At this point, several girls in string bikinis got up off the lawn to dress and leave.  For some reason, there was a pause in the training.....

Adapt in DBMA footwork principles into the matrix of #3:
1) Outer Diamond
2) Drive By
3) Lower Canines

By the way.... this is a tremendous amount of material.  We have been building up these separate principles one at a time (as is the nature of DBMA training).  This allows each individual to work to the best of their ability.

Now.... just to totally screw up everyones thinking, we added in the Redondo 3 Siniwali from the Off-Lead.  This is a more Krabi Krabong influenced footwork matrix combined with the Redondo 3 stickwork.  You can also add a hinge step after the 3rd strike combined with a 4th strike of course!  We trained the Redondo 3 more horizontally than diagonally or vertical.

We drilled these until our brains were fried and the sun was down and then walked out of the Park toward the light of the new AOL/Time Warner building and the "Biography" sign.  Ah.... New York in the Springtime!

34
Martial Arts Topics / GT Gaje in Connecticut
« on: April 13, 2004, 07:24:02 AM »
The new date for this seminar is June 26th and 27th.   :D

It was rescheduled as not to interfere with Guro Dan Inosanto's seminar in Princeton on that previous May date.

Ron has a nice, big school covered in wrestling mats and he says he wants GT Gaje to do a lot of Layog and Dumog for the seminar. Of course, he will be doing a lot of stick work too.

Hope to see some of you there,
Russ

http://www.psdtc.com/Events/Leo_Gaje_seminar.htm

35
Martial Arts Topics / GT Gaje in Connecticut
« on: April 01, 2004, 09:02:05 AM »
Here is a seminar well worth attending!  Ron said he's going to ask GT Gaje to do a lot of Layog and Dumog (Takedowns and Grappling).  :D

"Grand Tuhon Leo Gaje will at the Practical Self Defense Training Center from the Philippines. Go to http://psdtc.com/Events/Leo_Gaje_seminar.htm for more information. I have been doing quite a bit with him as of last year and he definitely blew my mind with his knowledge and the way he gets the point across. A real Martial Scientist.

Take care and play safe!"

Ron Kosakowski
Practical Self Defense Training Center
2148 South Main St.
Waterbury, CT 06706
203-596-9073
info@psdtc.com
http://www.psdtc.com

36
Martial Arts Topics / DBMA Manhattan Recent Class Notes
« on: March 30, 2004, 10:04:34 AM »
DBMA Manhattan (LG Russ' Patio)
Monday, March 29th, 2004

In attendance: Sean Bohan, Agapito Gonzalez, Brandon Carter, LG Russ.

I.  Warm-up: Single Stick (Left Handed)- Diagonal Down Forehand Strike (Caveman) to Redondo (lifting punoy high to bring the Redondo strike as close to the body as possible when it drops).  Step forward with rear leg for Diagonal Down Backhand Strike to Redondo.  Repeat for each forehand to backhand movement.  Switch to right hand.

Next I had each student try it with a baseball bat to help get the kinks out!  Literally, if there are any kinks in your wrist elbow or shoulder when you are swinging a heavy weapon, your body will let you know it!  They then went back to rattan (left handed and then right handed) and looked much smoother.

II.  Explanation of DBMA Dumpag structure (see DBMAA Dog Bytes, Archives #1).  

Translation of this structure to Knife Defense.

Freeflow: apply these principles in an unstructured scenario against more than one knife (two to be exact- one drawn, one concealed.... later to be drawn).

III.  Two Against Two Knife Fighting Principles:
1) Divide and Charge
2) Pick and Roll

We ran these scenarios freely several times switching the dominant team.  Guro Crafty taught us this material in November 2003 at Inosanto Academy (Brian Jung, Rog and Milt Tinkoff, and a few of the DBMA regulars in LA were there for that class).

IV.  Review of the material from Parts I. and II.

It was an excellent class!  

Woof,
Russ
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

DBMA Manhattan Class
Friday, March 26, 2004

Using Stick Fighting Body Mechanics to Emphasize Empty Hand Skills: I wanted to improve the empty hand body mechanics of one of my guys, so I decided to use the stick swinging mechanics he was already familiar with to illustrate proper empty hand hip and shoulder movement.

1)  Single Stick- Diagonal Down Forehand Strike (Caveman) to Redondo (lifting punoy high to bring the Redondo strike as close to the body as possible when it drops).  Step forward with rear leg for Diagonal Down Backhand Strike to Redondo.  Repeat for each forehand to backhand movement.

Empty Hand translation- Jab, (step back to switch lead), Jab

The Jab can be replaced with an open hand check if the Metrinome is rushing in on you, it can also be an eye gouge.  What this does is maintain your fighting distance as you are being crowded.  We drilled this with the Metrinome rushing in and the Fighter hitting then stepping back to hit again.  This is a good structure if you are worried about a weapon being drawn (such as a bouncer in a bar) because it allows you to monitor the Metrinome, instead of getting close and personal just yet!

2) Double Stick- (Krabi structure) Double Jab with lead hand as you drawn back rear hand for a Caveman and step through to opposite lead.  Step through once more for a lead Hook with the tip of the stick.

Empty Hand translation- Jab, (step forward to opposite lead) Jab, (step forward to opposite lead) lead Hook.  This works an aggressive advancing attack.

Pad work- remembering the hip and shoulder movement needed to make the sticks swing properly, we moved to some basic Muay Thai boxing drills.

1)  Jab
2)  Jab, Cross
3)  Jab, Cross, Hook
4)  Jab, Cross, Hook, Cross

This was all done with movement and with the Metrinome striking back at the Fighter illiciting the Fighter?s proper cover or parry.

In preparation for the Los Triques material, we reviewed proper mechanics of the Muay Thai round kick: feed leg to partner stepping on the 45 degree (hold for 5 seconds checking form).

Next, we reviewed the two stick patterns above and then finished off with Inosanto Blend Siniwali Abecedario:

1) Abecedario 6 Count- High Labik/Low Witik/ High Labtik on each side

2) Abecedario 8 Count- High Labtik/Low Witik on each side and then High Labtik/High Labtik on each side.

3) Combine Abecedario 6 and 8 Count

4) Add Heaven 6, Standard 6 and Earth 6 to the mix.

All of this material was designed to bring our basics up to par so once we are out in the park again we can really hit the DBMA Siniwali and Los Triques material hard!

Woof,
Russ

Hope to see some of you out in the Park with us this Spring.  Check back here (at the Public Forum) for details!

37
Martial Arts Topics / Camp X-Ray's Alsatian
« on: March 12, 2004, 07:38:44 AM »
Check out the part about the Dog!
 
March 12 (Reuters) - A Briton flown home from U.S captivity in Guantanamo Bay says conditions were so inhuman that animals in the prison camp were given better treatment than the detainees, the Daily Mirror newspaper reported on Friday.

Jamal al Harith, 35, was the first of five men to go free on Tuesday shortly after the group landed at RAF Northolt air base in west London having been handed over to British custody by the United States. The others were released on Wednesday.

"They actually said that -- 'You have no rights here'," Harith, from the northern city of Manchester, told the Daily Mirror. "After a while, we stopped asking for human rights -- we wanted animal rights.

"In Camp X-Ray my cage was right next to a kennel housing an Alsatian dog. He had a wooden house with air conditioning and green grass to exercise on.

"I said to the guards, 'I want his rights' and they replied, "That dog is a member of the U.S army'."

Held in captivity for two years, Harith also said he was assaulted with fists, feet, knees and batons after refusing a mystery injection.

"One of them attacked me really hard and left me with a deep red mark from my backbone down to my knee," he told the Daily Mirror. "I thought I was bleeding, but it was just really bad bruising.

"The whole point of Guantanamo was to get to you psychologically. The beatings were not nearly as bad as the psychological torture -- bruises heal after a week -- but the other stuff stays with you."

A further four Britons remain at the Guantanamo prison in Cuba. Washington says they are more dangerous than the five it decided to send home, who have all been released without charge.

38
Martial Arts Topics / Sadness...
« on: March 01, 2004, 07:13:39 AM »
I'm so sad to hear about Moro.  He was such a good boy!  :(

I wish you all the best,
Russ

39
Martial Arts Topics / umbrella/roof block
« on: February 23, 2004, 11:27:15 AM »
Woof All,

The roof/ umbrella terminology issue can be quite confusing.

In DBMA, we sometimes use Roof to describe a tip down deflection while the palm is down.  Umbrella describes a tip down deflection (palm up).  However, sometimes they are used interchangably.

Another issue is whether or not these are actually blocks.  More accurately, they are deflections if they are done properly.

Still, sometimes they are intentionally blocks, as in the DBMA "Attacking Blocks," which are not deflection, but rather distinctly intented to be blocks.

 :shock:

Woof,
LG Russ

40
Martial Arts Topics / Manhattan DBMA Class Notes 2/16/04
« on: February 19, 2004, 07:50:06 AM »
Some fine points added by Ron Kosakowski:

'"Next we worked in a break at #3.  In Rossi Kun Tao it is referred to as a
Three Quarter Turn Break:"
 
That is what is called a 3 quarter turn throw using the 3 quarter footwork pattern.

"C.  Knife Thrust w/ Lung Drill

These are some of the drills that Vunak used with the SEALS.

1)    close range
2)    lunge range (exchange of three)
3)    far lunge range (exchange of three)

My guys really liked this material!"
 
This progression is rather athletic to say the least. But this type of work will get you 8 stitches as opposed to 800 so it needs to be done. Remember this is more long range.... where knife in-fighting is more body endurance and reflex.'

Hope you enjoyed the notes.  We are looking forward to getting back out to the Park in April!

Woof,
Russ

41
Martial Arts Topics / Manhattan DBMA Class Notes 2/16/04
« on: February 18, 2004, 12:15:19 PM »
Manhattan DBMA
February 16th, 2004

A.  Double Stick- Inosanto Blend ABCDario Drills

To warm up and refresh out Siniwali muscle memory, we went back to these basic, but imperative drills.

1)   ABCDario 6 Count- High Labik/Low Witik/ High Labtik on each side

2)   ABCDario 8 Count- High Labtik/Low Witik on each side and then High Labtik/High Labtik on each side.

3)   Combine ABCDario 6 and 8 Count

B.  Knife- Inosanto Blend Palusot Drill

I believe this drill has a lot of merit as a ?Generator? to work several different types of material.  Here we worked in a Break.

1)   Start with a simple Palusot off of Mentrinome?s Angle 1 slash (Caveman angle).  Fighter has Bakal grip w/ right hand.  Metrinome holds knife in Heaven grip w/ right hand.  The Palusot will position Fighter?s knife at the Metrinome?s kidney.  Checking hand will trap Metrinome?s arm at the elbow/ forearm area.

2)   Metrinome checks Fighter?s Kidney thrust at the forearm and returns with a slash to F?s neck.

3)   F raises knife hand to meet M?s slash and traps M?s arm to thrust at M?s heart/ subclavian/ deltoid (LEOs) (choose appropriate target for the situation).

4)   M passes F?s thrust with checking hand (Palm In).  This creates the loop for the drill.

-   Partners switch roles after several cycles.

Next we worked in a break at #3.  In Rossi Kun Tao it is referred to as a Three Quarter Turn Break:

As F raises knife hand to meet M?s slash,  F?s blade traps M?s wrist and F?s chest and checking hand bicep straighten it to hyperextension.  Simultaneously, F steps through to an off lead which puts F?s leg between M?s and turns ? of a circle.

C.  Knife Thrust w/ Lunge Drill

I actually found myself almost exclusively using these defenses in the knife bouts at the last Gathering.

1)   close range
2)   lung range (exchange of three)
3)   far lunge range (exchange of three)

The goal here is a slight "deflection" of the opponent's knife hand using your checking hand in order for you to get your thrust in and using lunge footwork to get in and out of range.

D. Mass Attack Drill

Metrinome?s use one slash or thrust for a single direct attack on Fighter.    Fighter must use proper footwork to set up the sequence of Attackers.  This is something we train often in Atienza class.  Starts with two attackers and then a third is added during the skirmish.

Woof,
Russ

42
Martial Arts Topics / Happy Year of the Monkey!
« on: January 22, 2004, 08:29:26 AM »
CHUC MUNG NAM MOI!  (Vietnamese)

GUNG HEI FAAT CHOI!  (Cantonese)

KUNG SI FAA SHAI!  (Mandarin)

Wishing you all a happy and healthy Year of the Monkey!

We are going to celebrate in Chinatown here in NYC tonight....

Woof,
LG Russ

43
Martial Arts Topics / DBMA in BUDO Magazine
« on: December 30, 2003, 06:15:32 PM »
"PS: What is your C-DB name again?"

Good Question!  Suggestions are welcome.

Raw Dog suggested "C-Law-Dog" for obvious reasons.  I'm a practicing Attorney (by day)!

I'd love to hear from those who have seen me fight or have fought me as well.  What would you call it?

By the way, I live close to Times Square and it is already packed!  I have no idea how I'm gonna cross through Midtown tomorrow to work.

Happy New Year,
Russ

44
Martial Arts Topics / Happy Holidays from NYC!
« on: December 19, 2003, 01:47:03 PM »
Happy Holidays from NYC!

Happy Holidays from NYC!


*************************************************************

Happy Holidays from NYC!

Happy Holidays from NYC!



Woof,
LG Russ

45
Martial Arts Topics / looking for Long Island school
« on: December 09, 2003, 07:54:33 AM »
The Kali instruction at Progressive Martial Arts is second to none.

Inosanto Blend Kali is on Mondays from 8:30-10PM.

Sayoc Kali is on Wednesdays also from 8:30-10PM.

There should be little or no traffic this time of day.

I travel by public transportation (as many others in the classes do) to train there and it regularly is an 1 and 15 minute trip for us.

There was also a Dog Brothers Martial Arts class held by PMAA from May-October this past year outside at Kissena Park.

You may want to check out Tuhon Roberto Torres in Brookhaven at:
www.taliosilat.com

Woof,
Dog Russ

Lakan Guro Dalawa
DBMA Manhattan

46
Martial Arts Topics / Historical & Cultural Views of The Last Samurai
« on: December 08, 2003, 10:55:47 AM »
The Last Samurai: Movie Myth or History?

Stefan Lovgren in Los Angeles
for National Geographic News
December 2, 2003


Mythology colors all history. Sometimes, legend and lore merely embellish the past. Other times, mythology may actually devour history. Such is the case with the samurai, the military aristocracy of feudal Japan.

The samurai are known as strong and courageous warriors, schooled with swords. In reality, they were an elitist and (for two centuries) idle class that spent more time drinking and gambling than cutting down enemies on the battlefield.

But it's the ideals to which they aspired?discipline, loyalty, and benevolence?that endured and shaped the romantic image of the samurai that is now ingrained in the Japanese cultural psyche.

That's in large part thanks to the movies. From Akira Kurosawa's masterpiece The Seven Samurai to the new Hollywood epic, The Last Samurai, starring Tom Cruise, the movie samurai are usually noble and heroic characters.

Ed Zwick, the cerebral director and co-writer of The Last Samurai, makes no apologies for embracing idealism over reality for his movie. He says each version has its uses in storytelling.

"It's as important to celebrate what's poetic and idealized as it is to understand the reality," Zwick said in a telephone interview. "We're inspired by the mythologizing of the samurai as heroes."

A Time of Transition

The Last Samurai is the fictional tale of a broken United States Civil War veteran (Cruise) who travels as a mercenary to Japan soon after the overthrow of the old Shogunate and the restoration of imperial rule in 1868. He ultimately rediscovers his honor by joining a samurai rebellion against the encroaching world of the West.

The dawn of what's known as the Meiji era was a time of change as Japan emerged from 200 years of self-imposed isolation and began to shed some of its traditions. The samurai had served as a standing army with no one to fight for the last 200 years. Now they represented the past.

"It's a country that tries to modernize itself in a hurry," said Harold Bolitho, a professor of Japanese history at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. "It wants to get rid of a non-productive class of samurai to replace it with an effective fighting force. It wants to stand up as an independent nation and not be pushed around by Britain or the United States."

The movie rebellion is led by a samurai named Katsumoto, who is loosely based on the real-life samurai Takamori Saigo. Known for his obstinate conservatism, Saigo supported the Emperor in the Meiji coup, but then led an 1877 revolt against the government in which his followers were defeated by imperial troops drawn from the peasantry and equipped with modern arms. Saigo committed suicide.

Today, Saigo is a folk hero, a symbol of devotion to principle. In real life, he was also a pampered aristocrat bent on retaining his elitist standing.

"The samurai were very much backward-looking and no more courageous or loyal or wise than anybody else," said Bolitho. "They were just more privileged. In the end they fight for those privileges, and they are defeated by the new Japan. It's the new Japan overcoming the old Japan."

Mythologizing the Hero

But it's the idealized image of the samurai as brave and noble warriors that has survived. Zwick attributes it to the Kurosawa movies he watched as a 17-year-old student.

"I was as influenced by movie culture as I was by academic history," said Zwick. "When you're 17, you look for inspiration in different places. The idea that had most importance to me was how the samurai embraced the imminence of death and how antithetical that was to the culture in which I was living. The samurai code corresponded to an appreciation of life, the beauty of things transitory, and an absorption of the moment."

Zwick points out that Kurosawa himself was perhaps more interested in iconography than literal history, and that Kurosawa was heavily influenced by John Ford, the American director of classic Westerns, and the image of the lone frontiersman seeking justice with a gun.

"It's a kind of fusion of Western and Eastern culture that's bouncing back and forth," said Zwick. "It's important to realize this is a movie and not a historical document. That's why I chose to name the character Katsumoto, not Takamori."

But Zwick also wants his movie to depict Japan's first significant encounters with the West and to capture the rise of imperialism.

"There's a temptation to depict Japan's imperial impulse as having existed in a vacuum, when in fact they were certainly influenced by the circumstances of the world," said Zwick. "Our relationship with Japan did not begin 60 years ago with Pearl Harbor, but 150 years ago."

With the coming of the modern, explains Zwick, there are winners and losers; things are gained and lost on both sides.

"It's easy to appreciate the technological marvel and the world competitor that Japan has become," said Zwick. "But to be there in Japan and see the absolute disappearance of anything of the natural world, the aesthetic that was so celebrated and is still celebrated in the culture, feels also tragic."

Crafting the Image

The samurai may have been defeated in the late 19th century, but their virtuous and noble image has been carefully molded ever since.

"It's an idealized image that's been pushed onto the entire Japanese people," said Bolitho. "It's built into the education system and the armed forces, so that everyone who goes to war sees himself in some sense as a Samurai. It's a tremendous public relations job. Samurai images are brought out again and again, even to people whose grandparents where pushed around by the Samurai."

Still, Bolitho says he thoroughly enjoyed the new movie.

"We're dealing with a fantasy, and fantasy always tops reality," he said. "The samurai is a great movie theme. Like all ideals, it's going to be around forever."
------------------------------------------------------------------------

And a view from a friend in Japan:

"Yeah, I have mixed feelings about this movie.

There are a lot of Japanese who are lapping this up because it is about a down and out yankee who finds true meaning in Japanese culture blahblah self satisfied bullshit, Japan is better than every other country, of course!

Then, there are some other Japanese who are insulted that once more Hollywood steals another country's traditions, culture, and history and stick Tom Cruise in to be the hero, yeah yeah, America has a rich history *and* every other country's history was dominated by Americans too! Of course!

I think I would find this more palatable if it wasn't Tom Cruise.

That Koyuki bint....I'm sure she will be very popular in the West, but I find her difficult to take seriously considering I have seen her adverts for Happoshu fake-beer.

Haven't decided if I will see it yet. I did see Tears of the Sun though - very surprised, I thought it was really, really good."

47
Martial Arts Topics / the last samurai!
« on: December 07, 2003, 01:04:31 PM »
There is truly some great fighting in this movie.  It was great to have so many quality actors from Japan in there.  At least they made it a little more palitable to see Tom Cruise help lead the Samurai into battle!

Hiroyuki Sanada, who plays Ujio (the best swordsman), is like the Tom Cruise of Japan (I mean that in a good way).  He comes from the same production company that Sonny Chiba heads.  You can see him in "Ring" (Japanese version) as well.  Sanada-san, what a badass!

Shichinosuke Nakamura, who plays the Emperor, comes from one of the leading Kabuki families of Japan.  These are the most respected actors in the country.

Seizo Fukumoto, who plays Tom Cruise's guard in the village (aka Bob), has been making Samurai movies for 40 years!  He has the distinct honor of being the poor bastard that gets cut down in EVERY movie by the hero (called a Kirareyaku).  He is dearly loved among fans of these movies.

Shun Sugata (my favorite), who plays a gruff lead Samurai, is also an action star and was recently in Kill Bill.  I love this guy's attitude!  Great beard too.

Shin Koyamada, who plays Nobutada, the son of Katsumoto, is brilliant in his first movie.  You really get to know his character and his bow and arrow add a lot to the movie's fight scenes.

Ken Watanabe plays Katsumoto, the leader of the Samurai.  What can I say.... just see the movie already!  He steals the spotlight from Tom Cruise and has best shaped bald head in showbiz.

Japanese friends here in NYC are very excited about the movie too.  They feel it is great for their favorite actors to get such worldwide exposure.  And.... they are excellent.

48
Martial Arts Topics / An Invaluable Lesson Learned...
« on: December 01, 2003, 11:11:28 AM »
Woof Colin,

I totally agree about the effects of participating in these Gatherings.

Going through the process of preparing and then actually fighting in them gives you the courage to step up and do what is right when others would look the other way.

This is what it is all about.  Cultivating courage!

Woof,
Russ

49
Martial Arts Topics / November 2003 Gathering Observations
« on: December 01, 2003, 10:44:39 AM »
I had a great trip out from NYC for the Gathering this November.  I got into LA on Friday night and stayed at the Furama Hotel right next to Inosanto Academy.  The next day I headed over there for DBMA class and was greeting by Guro Crafty with his son and nephew.  When I went inside it was good to see Paul behind the desk as usual and C-Porn Star Dog, Brian Jungwiwattanaporn, by the Shooto ring.  Brian and I had plans to hang out after class and it was good to see him for the first time in a year.  I was anxious to see how he had progressed as well.  We were training partners at the first DBMA Camp (July 2001) and have kept in touch ever since.  

Just before class started Dogs Rog and Milt Tinkoff showed up as well.  It was a great class.  We started with The Prison Riot Drill Siniwali, worked on some 2 on 2 Knife Fighting strategies from Inosanto Blend, got an introduction to the Los Triques Single Stick Loop, and reviewed some material from The Rico.  We finished with the Redondo Three Los Triques material.  Pappy Dog showed up towards the end of class as well and at the Gathering the next day he would truly shine as a premiere Dog Brother fighter!

After class, Brian and I went to the Furama and I showed him some of my single stick fighting strategy for the next day.  I had been working a lot of single stick this time since last November I was not happy with my single stick repertoire.  Yes, I could hit people, but it was mostly light head shots that did no damage.  I really wanted to change this.

That afternoon we headed up to Santa Monica with my girlfriend for dinner.  Brian was feeling quite nervous.  This was clearly the Gathering where he was under the most pressure of any DBMA fighter.  Last November it was my time, this was his.  We had a relaxing meal and made it an early night.  Brian was ready!

The next day he and I teamed up for a 2 on 2 knife fight with Steve Feng of the LA Sayoc training group and Dog Bryan Lorentzen.  We used the strategies that Guro Crafty had taught us with great success at first, but as the fight went on I took some terrible shots to the kidneys!

Next I tried something risky: a 3 on 1 knife fight where all participants were armed.  I recruited Marc Scott to join us for this (a Shooto guy who took down his opponent in a duel that day without getting cut?. at first!) and I though they would have me down in a matter of seconds!  Using Mass Attack strategies, I was able to keep on the move for about 30 seconds.  After that they began targeting my head and I received several stabs to my face mask.  After I got two cuts on my neck, I stopped the match.  That was after about 60 seconds I think.  Next time, I?ll remember to jump off the mat and run through the crowd after I get my first round of cuts in!

C-Porn Star and Pappy Dog started off their day together.  It was quite a brawl.  I was a bit surprised to see how hard they were going at it!  While I went to get another stick for a match with Greg ?Junkyard Dog,? Chris ?True Dog,? lured him onto the mat for their first fights.  I talked Steve Feng to get out there with me and we had a great fight.

During the fight he switch hands after a hard hand hit and continued fighting leftie.  So I switched too for a while.  When the fight was over and he removed his right glove, his ring finger had become a bloody pulp.  He needed a trip to the hospital, so he ended up going with C-War Dog on his trip to the Emergency Room!

Dog Bryan Lorentzen and I fought double stick with big, thick, 31" sticks.  During the fight,  Bryan scored a solid Caveman to my mask which pushed the metal down onto my scalp.  A couple of seconds after the shot, the blood started coming out.  This ended my day, but gave me a lot to work with.

Last year, my emphasis was siniwali and lots of footwork.  This effectively kept me out of range most of the time.  This year, I tried to be more tactical and stay in close.  This left me open for hard shots if I could not deflect them.  I wanted to try something new and that is what a Gathering is for.  Now I have to figure out a way to combine these two methods!

Seeing C-Porn Star and Pappy Dog fight that day were my highlights.  Pappy was incredible.  I loved his Roof to Headbutt technique!  Truly classic!  But this day was Brian?s.  He was so nervous on Saturday, but when the time came, he fought beautifully without reserve.  I felt so happy for him.

It was also good to see how strong the Pack is becoming:

Dog Bryan was quite a formidable presence towering over me and with hands of steel from 13 years of rockclimbing!

Dog Milt seriously held his own against Iron Dog (the most fearsome fighter there that day).  What is it with you brothers?  You?ll fight anyone!

Dog Rich and True Dog demonstrated their Bolo and Krabi games with much success.

After the fights, many of us headed out to a bar on the beach and drank and talked about our fights and how we can improve.  Later we met Guro Crafty for dinner and had all you can eat Sushi.  I jumped on the plane that night for my long ride back to NYC overnight and got there just in time for work.

Woof,
Russ

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Martial Arts Topics / Gathering Of The Pack Photos
« on: November 25, 2003, 04:47:28 PM »
Hey Marc,

You did a great job on Sunday!

Thank you for helping us test the Three on One Knife.

Hope to see you again next Gathering.

Woof,
Russ

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