Bester- Here is the information I can share with you:
Was BramÂ’s Modern Arnis rank stripped from him?
During the 2000 Michigan state summer camp, there was a meeting with Remy, Kevin Black (one of Remy’s attorneys), Randi Shea, Terry Wareham and myself. It was about Bram’s book that he was releasing and how Remy didn’t want his name associated with that book. During this conversation, the status of Bram’s rank was brought up. According to Remy himself, Bram’s rank was no longer being recognized by the IMAF. Now, my personal opinion, this does not diminish the accomplishment of Bram attaining that rank in the first place. Many of the Black Belt diplomas that were issued by the organization came with expiration dates, and if people did not keep up their training as well as support of the organization, the status of their people could be in jeopardy (i.e. – revoked). Now before we start this argument about black belts can not be taken away, the way that I look at them, is that they are like a pilot’s license that you have to log a certain amount of hours to retain in validity. Furthermore, this was the Grandmaster’s call and no one else’s. If he tells you that your rank is no longer valid, then it is no longer valid. Obviously, no one can take knowledge away from you unless they surgically remover parts of your brain, but they can choose to no longer acknowledge your status which was the case.
Did he cut an assistant with a live blade on the training floor?
Several people told me this including Bram himself. From that moment on, I learned something about keeping live blades in your pocket during training sessions. This could have just as easily happened to me. As a matter of fact, I had just received my Emerson trainer of the CQC-7 that I carry. And during a seminar that I was teaching, I pulled out the wrong knife. As the knife came out of my pocket, I could feel that something was different. I looked down and saw it was my live blade. No harm, no foul, but a lesson well learned.
Did he attend a black tie event and create a poor impression by repeatedly playing with his knife?
I was told this by leaders in the martial arts business orgs that witnessed it themselves.
Did another attendee threaten to correct him if he did not stop?
Yes, I was told this by leaders in the martial arts business orgs that witnessed it themselves.
Did Grandmaster Remy Presas recognize Mr. Frank's program as Modern Arnis after stripping Mr. Frank of his rank?
Based on the conversation that we had at camp, I would say no. During that camp, we had a meeting with the Black Belts after the one with the Professor. We were instructed by Professor to let people know that if people put out Modern Arnis products in the near future, that some of them may not be endorsed by the organization. The black belts asked us how they would know what was authorized and what wasnÂ’t. The answer was simpleÂ…if you donÂ’t see the authors of these products attending our seminars, then they were not authorized/endorsed. Based on these actions by Professor and how he instructed us to communicate with other members of our group, my opinion would be that Professor did not recognize what Bram was doing as part of Modern Arnis.
Now let me say this – I have only once had a problem with Bram. That was when I delivered the news to him about Remy not wanting his name in Bram’s book. Basically, it was the old adage of “Don’t kill the messenger”. Unfortunately, I was the messenger and I had to deal with the brunt of Bram’s frustration. Personally, I don’t know if Remy ever gave him permission to write the book. That’s all I know is that Remy did not to be involved in it. And as far as me getting along with Bram, he has never done anything to me (other than the above). As a matter of fact, I let him use my school for an LEO seminar he taught at no cost to him while I was in Europe.
At the moment, Bram has a dark cloud above him with several controversies. Personally, I don’t want any part of it, which is why I have distanced myself from him, as well as several other people in the Modern Arnis community. We all have our skeletons, including myself. So you ask, why bother posting if I wanted nothing to do with this? Simple. Answer the questions so people can move on. The problem with this particular thread is that too many people who don’t know what they are talking about have helped perpetuate this thread, in addition to having to kicked in to the ”horror stories” of MartialTalk. And as far a seminar competition motivating my statements, I find that concept ridiculous. We all have our own clientele, and there are more than enough people in the world for us to find our own group of clientele to work with.