Martial Art Ignorance

I know this is an older video, but I can't believe at how much people believed in the mysticism of martial arts, and continue to believe in them today.  I can see with all the kung fu movies that used to be popular how Karate gained such popularity, but this is something else.



People actually believe that they can "balls of chakra" at anyone who has the intent to harm, in order to dispatch their foe.  Watching the people's reactions are almost surreal.  I had to continually ask myself "Are they serious?" because there's no way they could actually believe that they were doing that.

Granted, this example is at the farthest end of the spectrum.  Even today with the popularity of MMA, people still believe that certain martial arts are feasible.  Now don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that MMA is the only way, they simply have one thing that most arts don't have... Pressure testing.

Many schools I've visited only practice drills, and always with a cooperating partner, never with resistance. Now I know not everyone studies a martial art for the same reason.  Some do it to keep a tradition alive, some do it for fitness and socialization, but most of them actually believe they are learning effective fighting techniques, but they never actual go against someone who fights back. So of course they believe their techniques work, because they "always work in class".  But put them against anyone who fights back, and suddenly, they can't pull anything off.  More people need to actually practice with an opponent who will fight back in order to actually learn how to defend themselves.

Edit: I'm not disapproving of any martial arts in general, I'm merely stating that no matter what art you choose to study, put it into practice with a resisting opponent.  Train safely, but train with someone who will do more than simply let you do forms.