Comments on: The Trouble with Karate

By: Lia

Lia — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 23:32:26 +0000

I took karate for a while because my parents took it when I was really little, so I was naturally into it. I found it to be a great way to stay in shape and stay flexible. It had nothing to do with wanting to hurt anybody else, but I did take pride in knowing I could stop someone else from hurting me.

The art I took was from South Korea, so the studio was called a Dojang. The studio was clean, did NOT smell like feet. I would imagine the Do Bok (uniform) was also an idea from South Korea. At any rate, it was easy to work out in, and the colored belt was a symbol of rank that would earn you respect.

By: Tweets that mention The Trouble with Karate -- Topsy.com

Tweets that mention The Trouble with Karate -- Topsy.com — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 17:23:32 +0000

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By: Lance

Lance — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 05:49:27 +0000

Is the Dojo u drove by called "Golden Fist Karate"? Near the intersection of 30 and 41? Cause I went there for like a year and a half…and so did my dad. The End

By: tatumsmith

tatumsmith — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 04:38:35 +0000

dude! have you seen this?! you gotchyur judy chop... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2U-ZQMf56I

By: Jenny

Jenny — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 22:18:40 +0000

I’m not quite sure if a softball player has the right to make fun of Karate. How do tights compare to bathrobes? I’m just sayin’

By: meowee

meowee — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 20:00:37 +0000

Me and my brother took Judo for a little over a year. My brother was older than me. A tough kid. He could throw around a kid who had a brown belt. So i thought, i don't need Judo, i need to pick fights when my brother is around.

By: Keith

Keith — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 19:48:05 +0000

The thought never even crossed my mind growing up that my un-coolness and participation in karate were related… This was around the time when I thought "Walker, Texas Ranger" was the best TV show ever made, so clearly my rational thinking skills were not yet fully developed.

By: dustyken

dustyken — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 18:50:22 +0000

I took Karate when I was in 4th or 5th grade. I lasted about a year. And I was as close to being cool as the East is from the West. That wasn't due to Karate though. When I took it, it was right after Karate Kid came out and everyone wanted to be the next Daniel-san. I even had the cool (I'm using that term liberally) headband that Ralph Macchio wore in the movie.

I also agree with you about wanting to demonstrate what I learned. I don't think that there was a one of us in that class that wanted to learn self-control or only use what we learned in self-defense. We all had a "Johnny" that was constantly trying to "Sweep the Leg" of us "cool" karate kids.

Where the heck was Mr. Miyagi when I was getting picked on? Probably still pruning that frickin' Bonsai Tree.

By: timmcgeary

timmcgeary — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 18:48:34 +0000

My brother and I actually DID use our bathrobes as do karate moves against each other. Of course, these were karate moves imitated directly from the Karate Kid (without the elaborate choreography by referee Pat E. Johnson). The crane technique never worked on my brother, unless I did it from a fence post. But most times I would have my other little brother scream "Put him in a body bag… YEAH!"

Thanks to your post, we are now proven to be cool because we did this all without actually taking karate. But you are also correct – a younger sister of mine nearly did rip my shoulder out. She has a black belt… and she knows how to use it.

By: Saskia

Saskia — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 18:34:37 +0000

I did karate for years and years, and only stopped because the dojo master (a world famous teacher) wouldn't let us girls participate in all the sparring parts of the training. And no, I wasn't a cool kid, but that was more due to my book nerdiness than karate. My athletic abilities (especially as they were not feminine-I also played baseball (not softball!) for years) were somewhat redeeming.

And yes, it's called a dojo, not a studio. And no, they don't smell like feet. It's all cleaned properly, just like every gym is..

What karate taught me was not so much the moves and whatever (which I have never used on someone else. Besides, you have to be really good to use those moves on someone who is not obeying the rules of karate and not standing in a karate position, etc), but discipline, the ability to concentrate on the matter at hand, endurance..and it gave me a way to harness my rage. I was a very angry girl before I started. Much less after I stopped. Plus, I have very good reflexes now. That's also very useful. so yeah, don't provoke me. I might just be able to rip your still-beating heart out of your chest.