Previous Articles

WHERE HAVE THE "UNWRITTEN"
RULES GONE?
 

            In every walk of life there are written and "unwritten" rules that govern an activity. Mr. Long use to lay these "unwritten" rules at your feet when you broke them. I see a trend to over look some of them now, as there is no one with his statue and wherewith all to enforce them. Call them trite, silly, archaic, old school or what ever. But if you do, read them again, because you may be in need of an "unwritten" rule make over.  

            Here are some that have kept us working together as individuals and as a group, while keeping the prima donnas in their place.  

            Never offer advise to anyone's student unless asked or with permission of his Sensei. This includes telling him that he ran his kata wrong, or he wasn't using good techniques in a match. Tell the Sensei. In reality it is none of your business. If this is the way the student was taught, you have just stepped squarely on the Sensei's toes.  

            Never come over to tell your opponent how you beat them. You may think you are being a good sport, but this is called rubbing it in.... deliberate or not.  

            Never cry after losing a match or jump up and down after winning one. From a practical standpoint, if you cry you have just shown that your opponent has beat you physically and emotionally. No one needs to know that, some may enjoy it. Celebrating is, El Toro Po Po!! Act like you've won before. Wait until you've won a grand Championship and then celebrate... Outside the ring.  

            Never look at a referee or judge when you think you've scored, or hold your hand over your head. The experienced officials will suddenly go blind when you score the next time. Don't try to steal points by thinking you can influence a good judge. A couple of years back I walked outside the ring and stopped calling point for anyone. They had both been trying to steal points by looking at me every time they got close. They just stopped and looked at me. I asked them if they were ready to let me call it. They got the point and we went forward.  

            Don't apologize to an opponent for drilling them. It is their fault for getting hit in the first place. They should be thanking you for letting them know they have a hole in their defense. In the street, no one will be so courteous. A simple touch of gloves is enough. If they are injured or the fight stops momentarily, turn your back and go to the zen position. Don't stand and gawk or look around grinning. Besides most people aren't at all sorry they just drilled someone, they are happy inside. It's an Isshin-ryu thing. 

            Always bow in and out to all officials. Also, congratulate your opponent, especially if you won. When a competitor doesn't bow in my ring, I let him know immediately. I don't have time to run and find a Sensei who hasn't stressed courtesy. If it is a black belt, I put them on notice big time. If they still have a courtesy problem, I stop calling points for them. So sue me!!!  

            Please Sensei's, watch your kids running full blast around the gym with Si's, Bo's, or just horse playing. Also, control the parents from your school. They can turn a ring into a little league baseball atmosphere in a hurry. Three years ago, I kicked one of my student’s parents out of the tournament and put another on notice. It was my third student parent in the last eight years. I just won't have it. I know parents spend a lot of money on these tournament trips and sometimes have to watch their kid get some sorry calls. This is however still Isshin-ryu and parents will respect the system even more if they understand the difference between this and baseball.  

            I personally feel that ball caps with gi's, refereeing in a tee shirt, or worse yet street clothes, is inappropriate. At and after the bow in, I feel every one should be in a gi or in the stands.

            When judging a kata, please lets all pay as close attention as possible. If it bores you don't do it. Just don't sit with legs stretched out in front, looking bored and detached, or watching everything that's going on around you except the competitor. You might also leave the flip cards alone until the end of the kata. Getting your score ready in the middle of the kata is suspect. Afterwards, as I said before, don't rush to a competitor explaining what they did wrong. Especially if it pertains to the sequence, or waza of the kata. My students have orders to bow, request that the advisor come to me, and excuse themselves. If a competitor asked why I gave them a score, I just say, because that's the way I saw it. If I am close with their Sensei and have their blessings, I will generalize. As I told a black belt who asked me what all he did wrong at the last tournament; "I'm not comfortable giving advice to anyone who has such a knowledgeable Sensei". "I'll discuss it with him if he wants". I always figure that if someone wants me giving instruction or advice to their students, they will invite me to their dojo to give a seminar. Even at a seminar, let’s remember that we are some ones guest. We've been asked to add information and education to an already successful program. Let's don't act and talk as if we have come to save them from further ignorance.  

            At a seminar, do not select the Sensei as your uke. This is an insult. Also, do not rough up his students past what is necessary to make your point. I personally have a protective instinct toward my students. I don't care how rough it gets as long as they can hit back when it gets too hard. Just don't use their good nature and my dojo to show how hard you can hit a defenseless uke. My guys are instructed to retaliate if I don't get there first. Demonstrator bullies need a surprise punch in the face.  

            No one should take a student from another Isshin-ryu dojo unless the Sensei is contacted and asked his or her permission. This is thin ice we tread on here and gives dojo gypsies too many open doors. If I am in the same town, I take no black belts from another dojo. If they were there long enough and liked their instruction long enough, to get a black belt, then they owe more to their Sensei. After they have been with their Sensei that long I suspect prima donna behavior. I don't believe in personality conflicts settled by letting a guy jump ship to your dojo. You are usually just inheriting the other Sensei's problems when you take the person. Even if I know his Sensei is a meat head I still wonder what took him so long to figure it out. I'm not into cleaning up someone else's mess. I recommend he start his own school. He'll run out of things to teach in six months anyhow and fade away, or kiss and make up with his original Sense. It's like a bad divorce. Stay out of it. 

            When corresponding with another Isshin-ryu person, there are two circumstances. One is formal, the other is casual. I recommend you don't put down all your titles when signing a personal, casual, correspondence. Some body has a real, official, broom stick up their rear end that does that. If it is a formal correspondence, then protocol of rank, ect, should be followed. Let’s not let titles and self importance, get in the way of friendships and relationships.  

            When addressing someone at a martial arts gathering, I feel that titles, or at least mister, is the right protocol. This is especially if lower belts are present. Just as military officers and nco's address rank, I feel it is the right policy to follow.  

            There's nothing worse than ingratitude. There are only a few web pages that highlight or compliment other karate ka other than their own. So it is not as if some of the people who are singled out for praise receive it every day. That being said, why is it some of these people fail to ever say thank you. Lack of appreciation goes beyond poor manners. It is outright arrogance and ignorance combined. We give a "Dragon Tab" award. We've had a couple of luke warm thanks you's, but mostly we've felt very good about our choices and comments from the recipients. I'm sure the day will come when we will select someone who doesn't give a hoot about the award. I hope not, but even the best laid plans can hit a snag. We'll just keep it as quiet afterwards as possible.

            Don't go around knocking someone’s rank, when their students are kicking your students back sides. Or when their seminar makes yours look like day old news. If you want to look really bad, lay those sour grapes around.  

            Please don't take refereeing or judging jobs that you can't handle. If you aren't still training regularly, you loose your feel for kumite and you lose the nuances for judging kata. A truly trained eye requires a trained mind and body to govern it. You aren't doing anyone a favor by showing up at tournaments with training rust all over you and trying to keep up with the action.  

            Don't show up late to events or even class. Everyone gets behind themselves once in awhile but, if it happens to you all the time, you have a problem. According to psychologist, this always late person either, has a bad organizational problem, or is arrogant enough to think that they are exempts from the same structure everyone else lives by. Late people aren't real leaders and can't particularly be trusted. I ran a business with over 1000 employees plus my karate schools. If there was one thing that people knew about me was, not to keep me waiting. Remember how it was to keep Mr. Long waiting? I've seen some poor souls do that and it was brutal to watch...... but very funny!!!  

            Basically the old, "try to do it right and it will start turning out that way" is true. Preach it, practice it, and hold everyone around you to that same standard. Positive energy is contagious and rubs off on other winners and people trying to figure out how to become winners. The losers (people who start at the bottom and like it there), will just drift on away.... Good riddance! 

            Basically let's just protect our styles code of honor. Let’s keep the values alive and well. Don't allow anyone for one minute to tear down what so many good people have worked so hard to build up. Isshin-ryu is our house. Let’s keep its foundation strong.