Why do Westerners train in exotic unrealistic weapons and ignore practical ones like baseball bats?

Buka

Sr. Grandmaster
Staff member
MT Mentor
Joined
Jun 27, 2011
Messages
12,952
Reaction score
10,444
Location
Maui
Besides death and taxes, there are other "certains" in life.

I personally know a few people who if you want them to state something with complete conviction - just state the exact opposite first.
 

Hanshi

Blue Belt
Joined
Oct 9, 2012
Messages
232
Reaction score
176
Location
Virginia
Well, all I can comment on is that I spent many years training traditional weapons, sai, bo, kama, etc. But I also spent years training with "environmental" weapons. This would include knives, combs, cane, guns, chairs, and, baseball bats. And yes, common weapons like tire tools, fire pokers and sticks are ubiquitous and effective. I would guess whatever one feels comfortable with makes a good weapon.
 

jobo

Grandmaster
Joined
Apr 3, 2017
Messages
9,762
Reaction score
1,514
Location
Manchester UK
Just because something is used by many people, and is used as a non-medicine, that doesn't preclude it also being a folk remedy. Things can fit in more than one category.
only if your going to make the categories so big that they become meaningless, like say potatoes are a medicine as they cure anorexia symptoms, or you could just go the whole d
hog and say food is a medicine as it cures/ preventsl desease, rickets malnutrition, scurvey, t etc etc , so yes if your classifications are that big, milk is a medicine. in reality of any sensible discusion its not

a d he was talking about tradition medicines, not folk remedies
 

skribs

Grandmaster
Joined
Nov 14, 2013
Messages
7,446
Reaction score
2,517
only if your going to make the categories so big that they become meaningless, like say potatoes are a medicine as they cure anorexia symptoms, or you could just go the whole d
hog and say food is a medicine as it cures/ preventsl desease, rickets malnutrition, scurvey, t etc etc , so yes if your classifications are that big, milk is a medicine. in reality of any sensible discusion its not

a d he was talking about tradition medicines, not folk remedies

Considering that several people in this thread have had no problem with the categories presented, and you're the only one arguing against them, I'd say the categories are fine.

If you have symptoms, and you use something other than drugs to cure them, then that is a remedy.

If you can get someone with anorexia to eat the potatoes, then yes it's a cure.
 

Rusty B

Blue Belt
Joined
Nov 17, 2019
Messages
249
Reaction score
50
I didn't read the thread (I'll need to hit up the black market for some adderall to get through 10 pages), but I don't think things like baseball bats and rocks require "training." The how-to is pretty straightforward. Do you really need someone to teach you over a period of years how to whack someone upside the head with a bat?
 

Gerry Seymour

MT Moderator
Staff member
Supporting Member
Joined
Mar 27, 2012
Messages
29,976
Reaction score
10,538
Location
Hendersonville, NC
I didn't read the thread (I'll need to hit up the black market for some adderall to get through 10 pages), but I don't think things like baseball bats and rocks require "training." The how-to is pretty straightforward. Do you really need someone to teach you over a period of years how to whack someone upside the head with a bat?
No. But if you want to actually use it in a fight, some focused practice of efficient technique will improve your effectiveness. If that someone is moving their head and fighting back, the factors change.
 

Rusty B

Blue Belt
Joined
Nov 17, 2019
Messages
249
Reaction score
50
No. But if you want to actually use it in a fight, some focused practice of efficient technique will improve your effectiveness. If that someone is moving their head and fighting back, the factors change.

That someone won't be able to keep that up for more than a few seconds before getting their skull cracked. And that's assuming they're stupid enough to try to fight someone swinging a baseball bat around in the first place.
 

Gerry Seymour

MT Moderator
Staff member
Supporting Member
Joined
Mar 27, 2012
Messages
29,976
Reaction score
10,538
Location
Hendersonville, NC
That someone won't be able to keep that up for more than a few seconds before getting their skull cracked. And that's assuming they're stupid enough to try to fight someone swinging a baseball bat around in the first place.
Folks who have taken bats away from others will disagree with that.
 

JowGaWolf

Sr. Grandmaster
MT Mentor
Joined
Aug 3, 2015
Messages
13,961
Reaction score
5,857
drinking milk isn't traditional medicine its just drinking milk,
By definition of medicine, if you drink it for the purpose of dealing with an ailment then it's medicine. Again. You are doing the "Either- Or" thing. The third possibility is that Milk is a food and can be used as a medicine.

Milk for managing blood pressure.
"Milk can also plays an important role in maintaining healthy levels of blood pressure. The reason why consumption of milk is linked with managing blood pressure levels is due to its rich composition of three essential minerals namely calcium, potassium and magnesium. Therefore, regular consumption of milk provides the body with important minerals required to stabilize blood pressure." Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life-style/food-news/drinking-milk-can-reduce-the-risk-of-chronic-diseases/articleshow/71047000.cms

Got Milk? It may lower your blood pressure. Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life-style/food-news/drinking-milk-can-reduce-the-risk-of-chronic-diseases/articleshow/71047000.cms

so your NATURAL remedy isn't natural at all
Again, I'm not talking about natural remedies. For some reason you keep trying to present what I'm saying as if I'm some kind of "Natural foods, Traditional Medicine only Fanatic? The term "natural foods" is actually a term created by marketing departments to help sell food. The definition for natural foods is simply this "food that has undergone minimal processing and contains no preservatives or artificial additives" I think the FDA, by law, requires that all food products with preservatives to state that the food has preservatives. So if milk had no preservatives or artificial additives then it would be considered a Natural food by definition. Again the term Natural Food is something created by marketing departments. "Natural foods" and "Organic foods" are not the same thing but both were created by marketing departments to sell more of a specific food.

building a case around this is better coz its natural doesn't work if its not infarct natural.
Again this is not my argument and it's not what I'm saying. Here's an example. I can take pill to help me deal with the symptoms of the flu. I still have to eat and I still have to stay hydrated. If chicken noodle soups helps to manage the systems equally as well or better then I can just eat Chicken Noodle soup which has the additional benefit of providing nutrients and hydration that my body needs. So instead of taking a bunch of pills, I can just eat and provide my body with nutrients that it needs to recover. The last time I checked cold and flu medicine doesn't provide nourishment. If chicken soup doesn't work then pop a pill and eat a hamburger.

Again. Just because someone thinks that something is "old or out dated it doesn't mean that it's useless."
 

Rusty B

Blue Belt
Joined
Nov 17, 2019
Messages
249
Reaction score
50
Folks who have taken bats away from others will disagree with that.

Right, just like guys who catch bullets with their teeth will disagree with anyone saying it's a bad idea to fight a guy with a gun.
 

JowGaWolf

Sr. Grandmaster
MT Mentor
Joined
Aug 3, 2015
Messages
13,961
Reaction score
5,857
i am contesting his whole '' anti modern science'' the old ways were the best '' philosophy, which he has failed to support at all.
Again. My family has had cancer treated with Modern Medicine. I take modern medicine myself. Not for cancer but If that happens then yes. I will take modern medicine. You keep trying to place me in this "either or" box and I keep telling you that's not me. I'm also not "anti modern science". The majority of the post that I make with references come from organization that depend on science and research. This has always been my way of talking of about things. I try to provide reliable sources.

Things can fit in more than one category.
Exactly. I didn't think this was such a big impossibility

Oh I am well aware of Jobo’s engagement style in the forums. That is why I ignore him.
I used, lately he's been good with the discussions and has, at least with me, debated less. I'm not a fan of debating anything. Debates don't require truth or accurate information so it naturally isn't productive when trying to share knowledge or one's understanding of something. Which is probably why congress in general is so inefficient. Arguing for the sake of Arguing.
 
Last edited:

JowGaWolf

Sr. Grandmaster
MT Mentor
Joined
Aug 3, 2015
Messages
13,961
Reaction score
5,857
One day you're going to be one of these "old things". Should people not value you at that time because of your flaws?
ha ha ha.. I do now he doesn't have to get old. lol.. Sorry I couldn't resist. Someone had to say. Sometimes he has good things to say, just not when he's in his debating moods.
 

JowGaWolf

Sr. Grandmaster
MT Mentor
Joined
Aug 3, 2015
Messages
13,961
Reaction score
5,857
If you can do the job with abacus is there anything to complain about?
This reminds me of this

The big difference between the 2 is that you are using your brain for one and the other you are not computing anything. Then people wonder why math scores are so low in the U.S. because school allow kids to use calculators.. I'm not saying that the abacus doesn't have limitation, but in terms of developing math skills, I'm sure it does a better job than just using a calculator. I think calculators are fine once the brain actually knows how to calculate math.

Stuff like this is amazing to me., especially when they start doing it mentally.
 

JowGaWolf

Sr. Grandmaster
MT Mentor
Joined
Aug 3, 2015
Messages
13,961
Reaction score
5,857
Medicinal uses of the potato
Caution: How you prepare foods is equally as important, if not more important, as the food that you are preparing. The information below didn't state which potatoes are being used. Not all potatoes have the same benefits or nourishment. In addition. Everything must be taken in balance. The information below doesn't mean that you should eat french fries every day. That will more likely affect your health in a negative way. The purpose of posting the information below is to show the duality of things. How Foods can also be medicines, which is probably why we often see such things in old home remedies and traditional medicines.


From a biological perspective it only makes sense that things that can be use as medicine are often things that we can eat. Animals will often eat certain plants to help deal with illness and symptoms.. Humans have always done the same as well.

Source:https://www.webmd.com/vitamins/ai/ingredientmono-809/potato

People take raw potato juice for stomach disorders and water retention (edema). A purified protein powder made from potato is mixed with water and used to control appetite for weight loss. Some people put raw potato directly on the affected area for arthritis, infections, boils, burns, and sore eyes.

Source: https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/280579.php#10_possible_health_benefits
2) Blood pressure
A low sodium intake is essential for maintaining a healthy blood pressure, but increasing potassium intake may be just as important. Potassium encourages vasodilation, or the widening of the blood vessels. According to the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), fewer than 2 percent of American adults meet the daily 4,700-milligram recommendation. Potassium, calcium, and magnesium are all present in the potato. These have been found to decrease blood pressure naturally.

Source: Potato Uses, Benefits & Dosage - Drugs.com Herbal Database
Uses and Pharmacology
Antiproliferative effect
An antiproliferative effect on human colon and liver cancer cells has been demonstrated in vitro.3, 15 Glycoalkaloids from other species have demonstrated inhibitory action on tumors in mice and human solid tumor cell lines, as well as on basal and squamous cell carcinomas and adenocarcinomas.15, 16, 17 The traditional use of potato juice for the management of dyspepsia has been supported by limited clinical trials.18, 19
 

pdg

Senior Master
Joined
Feb 19, 2018
Messages
3,568
Reaction score
1,034
Haven't read the whole thread, so this may have been said already or this may be an entirely different discussion by now...

Fun weapons are fun to play with, so people play with them.


Unless your occupation puts you in dangerous situations there's quite frankly no requirement for active and constant self defence in the western world these days - or if you seek it out. You have to have pretty bad luck to come across street roaming gangs of thugs that you have to defend yourself against using improvised or 'boring' weapons on a daily basis. Or even in most cases on a once in a lifetime basis.

So why train for it if you don't find it interesting?

I'm exceedingly unlikely to be accosted by a 7' tall mugger, but it's fun to practice flying side kicks against a target 6-7' high, so I do. When that 7' tall guy tries to get my wallet, I'll kick him in the throat ;)
 

Tez3

Sr. Grandmaster
Supporting Member
Joined
Oct 13, 2006
Messages
27,608
Reaction score
4,901
Location
England
Then people wonder why math scores are so low in the U.S. because school allow kids to use calculators..


All a calculator does is enable you to add/minus/multiply etc numbers quicker. You still have to understand the maths problem and to know how to calculate the answer before you can use the calculator or abacus. it's just a tool.
 

skribs

Grandmaster
Joined
Nov 14, 2013
Messages
7,446
Reaction score
2,517
All a calculator does is enable you to add/minus/multiply etc numbers quicker. You still have to understand the maths problem and to know how to calculate the answer before you can use the calculator or abacus. it's just a tool.

The argument made sense when I was in school and teachers would say "you're not going to carry around a calculator with you everywhere you go." Back then, drilling in math was important.

Today, with smart phones having calculators built in...
 

Tez3

Sr. Grandmaster
Supporting Member
Joined
Oct 13, 2006
Messages
27,608
Reaction score
4,901
Location
England
The argument made sense when I was in school and teachers would say "you're not going to carry around a calculator with you everywhere you go." Back then, drilling in math was important.

Today, with smart phones having calculators built in...


I am totally unable to do arithmetic in my head, I had really good teachers and I tried to learn my times tables by can't, I have the number equivalent of dyslexia, its called dyscalculia. I didn't get to take maths just try the arithmetic but I could do it if I used a calculator or pen and paper. Calculators in mobile phones are the greatest thing ever for people like me. My father could never understand why I had O and A levels plus a degree and other qualifications but can't add up in my head.
 

JowGaWolf

Sr. Grandmaster
MT Mentor
Joined
Aug 3, 2015
Messages
13,961
Reaction score
5,857
All a calculator does is enable you to add/minus/multiply etc numbers quicker. You still have to understand the maths problem and to know how to calculate the answer before you can use the calculator or abacus. it's just a tool.
I don't know about that. What's the square root of 765? All you need to know is symbol on the calculator to get answer. You don't have know anything about square roots or how to calculate it.

5789 +5684.2 =? same thing. You don't have to know anything about addition. Just enter the numbers into calculator. GPS devices are also an easy one. If you travel at X speed, how long will it take you to get there. That's a math problem that is rarely calculated by anyone with a GPS. Even when I didn't have a GPS, I've never calculated that. So when you say that you still have to know how to solve the problem, I'm going to say that's not always true.

Weight conversions, distances, and temperature are also other examples of you not having to know the math .and you can still get the answer.
 

Latest Discussions

Top