Martial arts vs. stupidity

[vladone97]

Why does everyone praise karate? Not as in "karate is the best and no other style compares to it", but as in "when you say martial arts, you refer strictly to karate". I mean, most people think karate is the only martial art in this world. I do kung fu because I hate karate with all its stereotypes and misconceptions (such as the "karate chop" thing, or "knife hand", for those who know it's not specific to karate). Some examples of what I mean:

• Some of my younger friends know that I've been doing kung fu since I was 5. One day, we were all doing some "sparring" matches (light to no contact, of course). At first, one of them said "Whoever doesn't know karate at all, raise your hands" (most of them would use only the moves they saw in cartoons and video games). I raised my hand. And she said "I thought you've been doing karate since you were 5".
• Another younger firend of mine doesn't do any martial art, but thinks any kick that looks awesome is karate. For example, whenever we meet (it's not very often), she asks me "Can you show me those awesome karate moves of yours?". Every time, I explain her the differences between kung fu and karate (and I think it's not hard to understand that they are completely opposite styles), and every time she forgets. Also, her godbrother does kickboxing, and she asks him the same thing.
• Even one of the famous people from my country (Romania to be exact) said in an interview or something "I was a real tomboy when I was a child. I used to do jiu-jitsu because my childhood was full of Chinese movies with karate". (Seriously? "Chinese movies with karate"?). And to cap it all, she made a reference to Bruce Lee (I don't remember exactly what she said about him, though). Bruce Lee, the creator of Jeet Kune Do!

So, for short, what makes people so stupid? Is it because of TV shows like "Kickin' it", which is about some teens who do karate together but make references to all martial arts? Or is it just something like "if I've never heard of something, then it doesn't exist"?

 

[Kung Fu Wang]

"when you say martial arts, you refer strictly to karate".

Do you know the only MA job category that US Labor Department had back in the 70th was "Judo instructor". If you are a Kung Fu, Karate, or TKD instructor, you are categorized as "Judo instructor". Back in the 70th, when you say martial arts, you refer strictly to Judo.

Many years ago, one day my ex-girlfriend's mother asked me, "Do you still do that chop chop stuff?" I said, "Yes! I'm still doing my chop chop stuff." I felt no need to explain to her. When people has attitude like that toward MA, any more words that may come out of my month will be a waste.

One day someone asked a friend of mine, "What's your style?" My friend said, "My style is the style that can beat the .... out of you." I like his "simple" answer.

One day I did my pole hanging on a street sign. One guy asked me what I was doing. I gave him a detail explanation about what I was doing. He then gave an ugly look and left. After that, when I did pole hanging and if people asked me what I was doing, I just told them, "I was a monkey in my previous life."

Sometime a stupid question will deserve a stupid answer.

 

[Xue Sheng]

Why does everyone praise karate? Not as in "karate is the best and no other style compares to it", but as in "when you say martial arts, you refer strictly to karate". I mean, most people think karate is the only martial art in this world. I do kung fu because I hate karate with all its stereotypes and misconceptions (such as the "karate chop" thing, or "knife hand", for those who know it's not specific to karate). Some examples of what I mean:

• Some of my younger friends know that I've been doing kung fu since I was 5. One day, we were all doing some "sparring" matches (light to no contact, of course). At first, one of them said "Whoever doesn't know karate at all, raise your hands" (most of them would use only the moves they saw in cartoons and video games). I raised my hand. And she said "I thought you've been doing karate since you were 5".
• Another younger firend of mine doesn't do any martial art, but thinks any kick that looks awesome is karate. For example, whenever we meet (it's not very often), she asks me "Can you show me those awesome karate moves of yours?". Every time, I explain her the differences between kung fu and karate (and I think it's not hard to understand that they are completely opposite styles), and every time she forgets. Also, her godbrother does kickboxing, and she asks him the same thing.
• Even one of the famous people from my country (Romania to be exact) said in an interview or something "I was a real tomboy when I was a child. I used to do jiu-jitsu because my childhood was full of Chinese movies with karate". (Seriously? "Chinese movies with karate"?). And to cap it all, she made a reference to Bruce Lee (I don't remember exactly what she said about him, though). Bruce Lee, the creator of Jeet Kune Do!

So, for short, what makes people so stupid? Is it because of TV shows like "Kickin' it", which is about some teens who do karate together but make references to all martial arts? Or is it just something like "if I've never heard of something, then it doesn't exist"?

What style of "Kung Fu"?

 

[vladone97]

Do you know the only MA job category that US Labor Department had back in the 70th was "Judo instructor". If you are a Kung Fu, Karate, or TKD instructor, you are categorized as "Judo instructor". Back in the 70th, when you say martial arts, you refer strictly to Judo.

Many years ago, one day my ex-girlfriend's mother asked me, "Do you still do that chop chop stuff?" I said, "Yes! I'm still doing my chop chop stuff." I felt no need to explain to her. When people has attitude like that toward MA, any more words that may come out of my month will be a waste.


One day someone asked a friend of mine, "What's your style?" My friend said, "My style is the style that can beat the .... out of you." I like his "simple" answer.


One day I did my pole hanging on a street sign. One guy asked me what I was doing. I gave him a detail explaining about what I was doing. He then gave an ugly look and left. After that, when I did pole hanging and if people asked me what I was doing, I just tell them, "I was a monkey in my previous life."


Sometime a stupid question will deserve a stupid answer.

I only give my friends explainations in a manner that's easy to understand. All I tell them is that kung fu has fluid movements while karate is more like stop and go. Yet, they don't understand. So I'm asking again, what makes them so stupid that they don't understand this (especially the ones who study karate, since they should have a starting point in making the comparison)? Also, I live in Romania, not in the US, so I didn't know about the Judo instructor part.

 

[vladone97]

What style of "Kung Fu"?

Bajiquan, Praying Mantis, Lian Huan Quan, Changquan, Tai Chi and Jeet Kune Do (yes, I consider JKD and Tai Chi styles of kung fu)

 

[Kung Fu Wang]

Bajiquan, Praying Mantis, Lian Huan Quan and Changquan

Those are good TCMA systems.

Bajiquan - power generation,
Praying Mantis - speed generation,
Lian Huan Quan - not familiar with this style,
Changquan - excellent foundation training.

 

[Langenschwert]

One day someone asked a friend of mine, "What's your style?" My friend said, "My style is the style that can beat the .... out of you." I like his "simple" answer.

Consider it stolen.

To the OP: if it makes you feel any better, I've had my German longsword classes referred to as "karate".

Really, MA are a really specialized endeavour. People just don't care enough to learn about it, and why should they? I had the same thing in my music career... I'd get asked if any given talentless hack was the greatest guitarist/drummer/whatever. I'd reply, "he's not really my cup of tea". I can't expect a layman or even a casual amateur musician to know who Jaco Pastorius was, considering they may only have heard of Miles Davis in passing, if that. Likewise the distinction between say Karate, Kung Fu and Silat is academic to the average person. So don't sweat it. Sweat in your training.

-Mark

 

[Langenschwert]

I only give my friends explainations in a manner that's easy to understand. All I tell them is that kung fu has fluid movements while karate is more like stop and go. Yet, they don't understand. So I'm asking again, what makes them so stupid that they don't understand this (especially the ones who study karate, since they should have a starting point in making the comparison)?

See my previous post. I could go into the distinction between linear and vertical improvisation in jazz, or stylistic differences between bebop and modal jazz, or what a "ii V I" is, and no one short of another musician is going to get it, and even then maybe not. Likewise, J.S. Bach is not "classical" music, it's Baroque music. But it's all "classical" to the layman. And that's fine.

-Mark

 

[Touch Of Death]

Do you know what the terms mean?

 

[Takai]

Do you know what the terms mean?

Which terms? The conversation seems to be getting a little muddled.

 

[Xue Sheng]

Bajiquan, Praying Mantis, Lian Huan Quan, Changquan, Tai Chi and Jeet Kune Do (yes, I consider JKD and Tai Chi styles of kung fu)

Kung Fu is a generic term for Chinese martial arts, albeit a bad translation it is what we are stuck with.

As already stated Bajiquan, Praying Mantis, Lian Huan Quan, Changquan, Taijiquan are all with in the Kung Fu container. As for JKD, that's debatable but then again it is not really worth wasting time debating.

And how long have you been training these individually?

 

[Tames D]

What style of "Kung Fu"?

There is more than one style? Learn something every day

 

[Touch Of Death]

Which terms? The conversation seems to be getting a little muddled.

Well if a lay person were to accuse me of doing either Karate or Kung fu, I would not bother to become upset. They mean the same damn thing, to the lay person. If you must correct them, correct them politely. If you get upset, you give martial arts a bad name with your attitude about a simple generic term, and when you finally do identify the art you study, they may laugh about it, remembering the incident.

 

[Kung Fu Wang]

what makes people so stupid?

Back in the 70th, if you couldn't kick as good as Bruce Lee did in his movie, you won't be able to get any students. Back then, all MA schools were doing high kick, high kick, and still high kick. If you can do the

- hook kick,
- inside crescent kick,
- spin back hook kick,

as good as Bruce Lee did in his movie, you won't have problem to get students.

 

[Takai]

Well if a lay person were to accuse me of doing either Karate or Kung fu, I would not bother to become upset. They mean the same damn thing, to the lay person. If you must correct them, correct them politely. If you get upset, you give martial arts a bad name with your attitude about a simple generic term, and when you finally do identify the art you study, they may laugh about it, remembering the incident.

I get that. I wasn't sure if you were asking about the musical terms or the martial terms. The conversation seems to diverge and I wanted to be sure I was following the right track.

 

[J W]

To most people, "Karate" simply means martial arts. For most people, martial arts are all pretty much the same thing. Karate, kung fu, judo, whatever. They don't know or really care that there are different types of martial arts. So what? When people ask me if I still do karate, I just say yes. I currently train Wing Chun and have never actually studied Karate, but I don't usually bother to correct them. All they're really asking is if I still do martial arts, and if they prefer to call it karate then fine.

 

[Kung Fu Wang]

When people ask me if I still do karate, I just say yes. I currently train Wing Chun ...

For historical reason, some Chinese just don't like to give Japanese the credit that they don't deserve. I won't be happy if someone said that I'm doing "Chinese Judo" instead of "Chinese wrestling".

 

[Xue Sheng]

Tell my Taiji Shifu he does karate he will say no....but then....if he does not know you and you tell him he dies taiji he will likely also say no.....and he is Chinese

But I do know what you are saying, the Japanese thing can be a problem to varying degrees depending on the generation

 

[vladone97]

And how long have you been training these individually?

10 years in JKD and 2 years in the rest of them.

 

[donald1]

You bring up a point but what is happening isn't stupidity, being stupid is like knowing what is wrong but doing it anyways

What your dealing with is ignorance or lack of knowledge. It's common amongst a lot of people because they don't see different martial arts in different perspectives /usually they view it all as a whole which answers the calling all martial arts being karate part(mainly lack of knowledge)