Martial Arts and Skepticism

So as you all know, I hope you do anyhow, I am a great skeptic.

Now, you may ask, what does martial arts have to do with skepticism?
Well I will tell you what. You see, the problem is many school of modern martial combat function like religions rather than institutions of science. Your teacher tells you something, and you have to buy it. That's it, you are not allowed to question it in the slightest. Especially if you train at one of the mac dojo's.

Each style has it's own set of techniques, and they are fundamentally very similar, however the fact remains that none of these styles are all powerful, yet many people versed in just one style tend to think it is the ultimate. I have known of Muay Thai fighters that scoff at karate and wing chun or tae kwon do, and vice versa. Only rarely does someone take a lesson from all the styles.

Now I'm not the greatest fighter, heck, I wouldn't even probably match up against any of the people I am criticizing in a "fight". However, that has a lot to do with my passive attitude, since I find fighting to be extremely stupid, and when I spar my goal is to try and defeat my opponent without harming them. Of course in a life or death situation, the only option would be a savage and brutal offense on my part until my attacker was immobilized or I was slain.

Returning to the original idea however, I will explore two different kicks. Both of them are called a roundhouse. However they hold their origins in two branches. The first being Tae Kwon Do, and the other being Muay Thai (I know other styles also have roundhouses but I will use these two for the sake of this article.)

The Tae Kwon Do Roundhouse features a snap and a return, while the muay thai version has a follow through.

Now if one were to only be versed in one school of combat, they would likely claim that their version is superior. However the problem, is that neither kick is perfect, and it is best to have both in ones arsenal. In actual combat you have to deal with circumstances like terrain, weather, environment, clothing (if you're in a suit and you get attacked, you will have to react differently than if you had your gi)

I'm not saying that these martial arts terrible, but I do ask that anyone who partakes in any type of training question every part of it. And don't be afraid to experiment, just know, that if you claim something is the ultimate style, it truly must be unbeatable in any circumstance.. I have yet to come across such a style or such a martial artist.

Learn from them all, but do not fall victim to any.