Fenrir

Even if I had engineering know-how and materials to make something like that, I lack the drive to actually see it through to anything resembling passing functionality. God forbid anyone ever make a joke, spoilsport.

I'm going to make an Assassin's Creed style retractable shiv. That would take care of pretty much any problem I could ever have if I were mugged. That + element of surprise = profit

Another version of Takeda's saying goes a little something like this: "If there is any reserve or hesitation, even a skilled practitioner can be easily defeated. Hear the soundless sound, see the formless form. At a glance, control your opponent and attain victory without contention." Contrast that with Ueshiba's description of Aiki: "Aiki is not an art to fight with or defeat an enemy. It is a Way in which to harmonize all people into one family. The essence of Aikido is to put oneself in tune with the functioning of the universe, to become one with the universe." Consider this as well: "The direct influence of Sokaku's Daito Ryu techniques on the formation of Aikido is not that great. It was but one element among many." - Morihei Ueshiba. Ref: Stevens, John. Abundant Peace: the Biography of Morihei Ueshiba, Founder of Aikido. Boston: Shambhala Publications, Inc., 1987. It's only possible to say that Takeda and Ueshiba espoused the same things if you generalize as broadly as possible. Takeda and Ueshiba were pretty much polar opposites, with their only point of intersection that of using aiki, and even then, their application thereof was completely different. I'm not trying to say that ignoring philosophies in martial arts makes you ignorant of some "deeper" meaning (Ueshiba would, but that's not the point). What I'm trying to say is that if I know that an art has a founding philosophy that shaped every kata and technique, it would behoove me to, if not practice, then at least understand that philosophy to better my understanding of what I'm trying to become more skilled at. But that's just me. I certainly haven't done that with every art I've practiced (it's kinda hard to grasp anything deeper than surface instruction when my Japanese ain't so good), but it certainly can't hurt. I have no interest in changing your opinion of philosophy and martial arts. No, you seem pretty dead set on hating everything about them, just like injin and ambient. I'm happy to debate the value and practicality of philosophy and martial arts, but if it's just going to degenerate to "I don't give a shit about..." or fallacious "anyone with a sober mind knows..." arguments, then what's the point? Civility comes cheap, but if that's too much to ask, then there's little to be garnered here.

Bullshit. Daito-ryu has no monopoly on the concept of aiki, and Ueshiba himself said that he didn't discover aikido from Takeda. He learned from him, sure, but removing all the limb-breaking "nastier" elements intrinsically changes what art you're talking about. And I'm sure he didn't add elements from Yagyū Shingan-ryū, Tenjin Shinyō-ryū, Kito-ryū or Shinkage-ryū either. Like I said, Aikido did not exist in its current incarnation until Ueshiba experienced that moment of satori in 1925. The philosophy and spirituality cultivated and shaped aikido. Without those elements, we'd have something completely different on our hands. Of course you don't have to be spiritual and shit to put someone on their back. Any asshat can do that, but I think if you understand the underlying concepts behind the art, you'll have an easier time grasping and learning the techniques themselves.

The funny thing about Aikido is that the philosophy is fundamental to the art. Aikido didn't exist in its current incarnation until Ueshiba's pivotal epiphany. The philosophy is what brought together the nine different arts that he studied into Aikido as we know it. To say that the philosophy is not an inextricable part of the martial art demonstrates a complete lack of understanding of Aikiko's base principles.

............ bump

Oh. Okay. What a compelling argument.

Hell Fuckin' yeah!

Of course it isn't integral. You can punch without any philosophical reasoning. I'd say that the philosophy is there to enrich the art, and facilitate its integration into daily activities which brings the practitioner closer to a more complete mastery of martial art X.

Call the philosophy unnecessary if you want but, call me crazy, there may just be a reason the masters included and practiced it.

I liked the Golden Compass, but didn't care much for the second two books. You don't get much more pretentious than writing about killing "God". Sounds like the premise got dreamed up by some angry fourteen-year-old atheist with an ax to grind.

I'm saying that if you're going to make sweeping generalizations about an entire martial art, you'd better well have sparred with masters from all over the world.

I've been fascinated with Iaido for some time now. I would love to get involved with it, not because I think I can gain something practical by learning how to draw a sword, but because the skills of concentration, fluidity, and precision can carry over into other aspects of my life. (unrelated) In truth, I think that engaging in a particular martial art for pure self-defense reasons is missing the point. To take the lessons and principles and exude them in daily activities in life is part of the experience of integrating the art into your very being. Of course, this doesn't really apply to things like MMA that don't have any particular philosophy. In reality, I think arguments about which martial art is "better" is an exercise in sophomoric stupidity. The deeper meanings are lost on braggarts and knuckleheads.

Repeal day has no business being during the week before exams

I want to learn whatever it is that Tony Jaa practices.

Judging a martial art by a few of its practitioners seems like a pretty flawed frame of reference to me.

Completely wrong.

Tae Kwon Do, Shorinji Kempo, and Aikido. TKD gives me mobility and kicks, Kempo strong, grounded forms and joint locks, and Aikido fluidity and...fuck, I don't know, inner peace? Circular motion? Something, but I can't fit it into words. Overall, I feel that if I explored each of them more fully, I'd be a pretty balanced artist. Right now, I've trained most intensely with Shorinji, so I'm inherently biased to that, but I value the other two as well.

So the next logical step is a merger between Square Enix and Blizzard Activision. They will be called Blizzard Enix Activision Square, and resistance is futile.

Bumpity bump!

My understanding is that game testing isn't all it's cracked up to be. You get a buggy game and have to write detailed reports about what doesn't work, why it doesn't, when it doesn't, how you made it not work, and if you're good at what you do, recommendations on how to fix it. If you're looking for ways to start hating video games, testing is a surefire solution.

That's some good stuff.

Endless free servers and endless variants and mods. I quit because RO is just an endless and unbalanced grind.

Thanks for taking this one so that I didn't have to.

Updated with a Megaupload and Sendspace mirrors. If they're finicky and obnoxious, I apologize.