dvcochran
Grandmaster
Do you not understand what the word "exactly" means?
If it's "exact" it's 1-to-1. If it's not exact, then it's not 1-to-1.
That's rich, coming from you.
I'm not giving out personal information over the internet. Especially when there are plenty of unstable people on this forum. (You're one of them).
I also don't answer every question you post, because I have you on ignore. This site has a lovely feature that let's you view ignored content, which is how I manage to get dragged back into arguments with people that my better judgment has said to just ignore.
Jee, what a brilliant idea! I wish I'd have thought of that! I wish I'd have thought "how to practically use the double knife-hand block?" That would have been a great question to ask several years ago! I wish I'd have thought "how do the forms translate to fighting?" That would have been a great question to ask several years ago! I wish I'd asked questions on multiple forums, watched videos, read books, and done everything in my power to uncover this connectiveness you speak of. That would have been a good idea to have done several years ago. It would have been a good idea to try some of the things out and see how they work. Man, I wish I'd have thought of that years ago.
Oh.
Wait.
I did.
What I did is follow the scientific method.
This is where I'm at with it right now. You ask the question "wouldn't it be nice if it connected together?" Well, yes. But it doesn't. I spent 5 years trying to find those connections, and they simply are not there. I am open to corrections. But those corrections need to be convincing enough to make me change my mind. And when the person "correcting" me thinks that "exact" and "1-to-1" are two completely different things, I have a hard time accepting that opinion.
- Question - How to use these techniques effectively?
- Background - I know the forms. I know Karate does Bunkai (even though TKD does not). I know many practical applications of martial arts moves.
- Hypothesis - There is a connection between the techniques and the practical application that I'm not seeing.
- Gather Data - asked questions online in general forums, through PMs, and to high-ranking people I train with. Watched videos from TKD and Karate guys doing practical explanation. Watched videos and read articles from KKW guys (and other TKD/Karate guys) attempting to answer this question. Read books such as The Taegeuk Cipher.
- Analyze Data - Data shows there is not a 1-to-1 match of the poomsae to useful technique. In almost every case, the technique has to be de-stylized or have a lot of other pieces added for the proposed application to make sense. As a teaching method, the kata are superfluous, because you can teach the techniques themselves without the kata.
- New Hypothesis - There is a purpose that I am missing from the forms.
- Gather New Data - Ask the question again "what is the purpose of forms?" Post my opinions on Taekwondo forms and see what kind of responses I get - does anyone challenge my opinion that they are not practical, and offer sufficient argument to make me change my mind? Talk with people in person. Watch videos of the forms with explanation, such as excerpts from the KKW master class, or going to another art and watching Jesse Enkamp dissect Karate kata and explain why things are done the way they are done. Reflect on my own training, and what I enjoy about the forms.
- New Analysis - The forms are stylized. They are useful for training, in that they really work your legs (if you're doing proper stances), and they teach the body mechanics of how to move and transfer weight in different ways. I personally prefer the stances and shifts in the Palgwe forms to the Taegeuk forms (unfortunately the Taegeuks are what's required). Ironically, I more often see the footwork in the forms useful than the hand techniques. I also see them as a way to practice attention-to-detail, an important skill for kids to learn, and for older adults to maintain their memory.
You say you don't want to spoonfeed me. I'm not asking to be spoonfed. I've done tons of legwork and come to a conclusion. If you actually want to convince me that you're right, I'll need facts to prove me wrong. Providing facts to support your argument is not "spoon-feeding." It's debate. Either you have those facts and you refuse to give them (which would suggest you're not helpful, as you claim to be), or you don't have the facts, because they don't exist.
This is why I say people who make the claims you make are selling snake oil. What you suggest sounds nice, but there's no evidence to back it up. And when I ask for evidence, you say I have to find it on my own, and chastise me for not looking. You make it about my character, instead of about the evidence. You call me a bigot and claim you're trying to help. Are you? Are you really? Or are you just trying to silence my voice, because you feel offended that I dare say anything against Taekwondo?
I hesitated replying to this post but here it is. If you are convinced in your theory why don't you make your grievance to KKW? It could be valuable information.
I am truly sorry you think some of us are selling snake oil; I imagine more than just me feels there are major inadequacies in what you are being taught or at the least in what you are digesting. This is purely based on what we hear from you. I have zero information on your school or no factual proof that you even attend a physical school.
I have said this over and over; a school that is only teaching KKW forms and WT sparring leaves a Lot to be desired. And an instructor who follows that directive is the same. A Ton is missing. I am sorry but that is just the way it is. You cannot work your way out of that no matter what rank you achieve, especially in the same environment.
You are a big school. I get it. How certain are you that you are not the one in the McDojo? You leave tons of evidence to think this.