The Red Stripe Revolution.....

[RCastillo]

Originally posted by Seig
Excuse me, but that would be MY poison.

Yes, quite true, and you have the "Antidote!"

 

[Seig]

Originally posted by RCastillo
Yes, quite true, and you have the "Antidote!"

Antidote is not the right word, "OnTessIdote" would be more accurate.

 

[Kroy]

Originally posted by kenmpoka
Not only they are looked down upon, but they also look cheap an ugly.I vote for getting rid of them. And please don't replace them wih stars.

:asian:

I would agree to keep the stripes, there are so many styles of martial arts out there and the red stripes really sets us apart from the rest.:wavey:

 

[Goldendragon7]

thinking of putting "dragon claws" on instead of stripes! For me that would look cooooooooool!!

:boing2:

 

[Doc]

A brief historical review of the EPAK "red stripes" actually reveal that he decided to place the stripes on belts back when the system was in the early stages [Late '60's] to let people see and know that there were advanced ranks developing in Kenpo and to distinguish the new {during that time period} Ed Parker System from others. Many Martial Arts Systems believe that the show of rank on belts {stripes of any kind} or sashes are an arrogant and distasteful public "show off" of authority and not a humble attribute that any black belt should demonstrate.

History may be in process of repeating itself. We might be close to reverting back soon, and wear NO rank on belts or face the embarrassment of public ridicule if you do wear a belt full of red as if to say.......
"Hey! ! ! look at me, the Ultimate Great Grandmaster Super Pu Ba Lord High Mocus Mega High Pinnacle Paramount Awesome Stupendous Solitary Instructor of all that have ever breathed on this planet! [did I get them all in?]:rofl:

Whatdayathink?

As I recall Dennis when we first met I wasn't wearing stripes. I came up without them. I also hated all the patches the Old Man came up with for the IKKA uniform. For me it was no stripes and one patch at the most. I put them on when he looked at me funny when we were going for a session at West LA. I knew what he meant and why. When he passed it wasn't long before I took them off again. We don't wear them except at the request of someone for a picture. Even he didn't wear them until he was 7th as the organization grew.

 

[Drifter]

What if we did an 'inverted' stripe system?

In other words:

New Rank-Stripes according to current Method
1st-10th
2nd-9th
3rd-8th
4th-7th
5th-6th
6th-5th
7th-4th
8th-3rd
9th-2nd
10th-1st

It might help transition people out of the 'tiger' stage. The fact that they would go from wearing a brown belt to a black belt with 2 Bars might be a wake up call to people, moreso than a black belt with 1 stripe. It would be a visual reminder to people of how much they still have to work, and how much they have to live up to. The whole process would be a little more humbling. Maybe it's just a stupid idea after all, I don't know.

 

[Bill Lear]

What if we did an 'inverted' stripe system?

In other words:

New Rank-Stripes according to current Method
1st-10th
2nd-9th
3rd-8th
4th-7th
5th-6th
6th-5th
7th-4th
8th-3rd
9th-2nd
10th-1st

It might help transition people out of the 'tiger' stage. The fact that they would go from wearing a brown belt to a black belt with 2 Bars might be a wake up call to people, moreso than a black belt with 1 stripe. It would be a visual reminder to people of how much they still have to work, and how much they have to live up to. The whole process would be a little more humbling. Maybe it's just a stupid idea after all, I don't know.

Steve Spry has already done something like this. I saw him and his people at Bryan Hawkins' U.K.S. tournament in West Los Angeles. Boy... was it hard trying to figure out what everyone's rank was without asking them.

 

[Ray]

I was wondering how the particular striping system was selected (1 for first, 2 for second, etc to 5 where a bar is used; bar + 1 for 6, bar + 2 for 7th, etc to 9; and two bars for 10th).

I wondered if it was analogous to Roman (or other) number system. I also thought that Parker was in the Coast Guard(?) and noticed in my Funk & Wagnells that some officer insignias in the Navy went 1 to 4 stripes, followed by a bar.

Does anyone know the real reason? I'm curious. It's such a silly thing to wonder about, isn't it?

 

[Doc]

Steve Spry has already done something like this. I saw him and his people at Bryan Hawkins' U.K.S. tournament in West Los Angeles. Boy... was it hard trying to figure out what everyone's rank was without asking them.

Great! So everyone will running around with the same bars that Parker wore until they make 2nd. You need a reminder of how much you don't know? Getting dropped in class should take care of that.

 

[Kenpodoc]

Personally i like plain black belts for regular wear. I don't mind the show belts for formal occasions but I usually judge by what I see not by what they wear. If I don't respect someone I don't care if they wear 4 red bars with gold stars and purple spirals. If I respect them, i'd still respect them with a black leather JC Penney belt.

Personally i like my plain black belt because it gets me better partners at seminars. Otherwise, it's just a belt and I'm still a beginner.

Jeff

 

[dubljay]

An interesting bit of history I must say I have enjoyed reading this thread.

I personally don't care much for stripes on belts (or patches for that matter). Each serve their purpose I suppose.

I think the best display of time put into the arts is a plain black belt that has been worn out and is fading to white. I people running around with brand new belts that have all their stripes sew onto them and their rank is clear to see, but not the time and effort in the art (in some cases of course) and then I look at a person that has a black belt worn white on the tails and where the knot is tied, and while it is hard to tell what rank of black belt they are the time and effort put into the art is very clear.

Just my opinion and I could be wrong

-Josh

 

[Doc]

Personally i like plain black belts for regular wear. I don't mind the show belts for formal occasions but I usually judge by what I see not by what they wear. If I don't respect someone I don't care if they wear 4 red bars with gold stars and purple spirals. If I respect them, i'd still respect them with a black leather JC Penney belt.

Personally i like my plain black belt because it gets me better partners at seminars. Otherwise, it's just a belt and I'm still a beginner.

Jeff

Are'nt we all?

 

[Doc]

An interesting bit of history I must say I have enjoyed reading this thread.

I personally don't care much for stripes on belts (or patches for that matter). Each serve their purpose I suppose.

I think the best display of time put into the arts is a plain black belt that has been worn out and is fading to white. I people running around with brand new belts that have all their stripes sew onto them and their rank is clear to see, but not the time and effort in the art (in some cases of course) and then I look at a person that has a black belt worn white on the tails and where the knot is tied, and while it is hard to tell what rank of black belt they are the time and effort put into the art is very clear.

Just my opinion and I could be wrong

-Josh

Well I agree. However I've been around long enough to see guys instead of wearing a bunch of stripes, they would bleach and wash their belts, cut the edges with a razor blade, and even drag it behind their car to get that "worn" look. You name it, and someone will find a way to take advantage. When I ran the Internationals for Mr. Parker, I had tons of offers to "buy" an IKC Trophy, "just for display as a momento." Yeah, right!

 

[kenposikh]

I may be speaking out of place here as I am not yet a black belt but I think it would be a decent idea to "revert". Black Belt, while very important, is still a learning stage, right? I would not have a problem with wearing a plain black belt with no adornment what so ever.

That would mess up those people who love to befriend people simply because of their rank

 

[Seabrook]

Well I agree. However I've been around long enough to see guys instead of wearing a bunch of stripes, they would bleach and wash their belts, cut the edges with a razor blade, and even drag it behind their car to get that "worn" look.

Funny Doc, I was just going to mention that but you beat me to the punch. I know a guy who was an intermediate rank when all of a sudden a couple of years later, it looked like his black belt had gone through hell's fire and back.

Hee, hee.

Jamie Seabrook
www.seabrook.gotkenpo.com

 

[dubljay]

Well I agree. However I've been around long enough to see guys instead of wearing a bunch of stripes, they would bleach and wash their belts, cut the edges with a razor blade, and even drag it behind their car to get that "worn" look. You name it, and someone will find a way to take advantage. When I ran the Internationals for Mr. Parker, I had tons of offers to "buy" an IKC Trophy, "just for display as a momento." Yeah, right!

Thank you Doc, you really have destroyed my faith in humanity. *sigh* well to be fair its not your fault sir, I really shouldn't be surprised. I guess this goes to show that martial arts really isn't for everyone.

 

[Goldendragon7]

I had tons of offers to "buy" an IKC Trophy, "just for display as a momento." Yeah, right!

Hey....... I got one! and didn't have to pay nada!! well (I did have to fight a bit)..:ultracool

 

[Bill Lear]

Hey....... I got one! and didn't have to pay nada!! well (I did have to fight a bit)..:ultracool

I've got one too! The fighting was the fun part!

 

[rattlerbrat]

I don't think there's anything wrong with the stripes. What's next? Are we going to take rank away from military personnel?

Though I admit - that "destroying my black belt to make it look more worn" story is hilarious. I've had my bluestripe for nearly a year (part laziness, part injuries), and the bottom is all unraveled and the ends are so low that they basically scrape the bottom. It's a sign of hard work...but it's also a sign that I need to get off my rear, get serious and test to green!

 

[dubljay]

I don't think there's anything wrong with the stripes. What's next? Are we going to take rank away from military personnel?

Though I admit - that "destroying my black belt to make it look more worn" story is hilarious. I've had my bluestripe for nearly a year (part laziness, part injuries), and the bottom is all unraveled and the ends are so low that they basically scrape the bottom. It's a sign of hard work...but it's also a sign that I need to get off my rear, get serious and test to green!

You are right rattlerbrat, there is nothing inherently wrong with displaying rank stripes on a belt, however there are many out there that are taking it to extremes.