if it can be argued that static stretching is bad for the muscles...
The NYT article is not arguing that.
What the studies that the article refers to found is that static stretching inhibits the speed and power at which muscles can act in
athletic endeavors, like playing football or basketball, or running in a track and field event. The reason lies in nervous system's response to static stretching - specifically, the inhibitory reflex that the article mentions.
Static stretching, including isometric and pnf stretching, can indeed improve your flexibility. The key is knowing when to do these stretches in your workouts and training. If you're about to do a martial arts class in an art like TKD or karate, static stretching before the workout won't help your performance in any athletic aspect of your class (for example, sparring), because it will slow and weaken your muscles' responses. On the other hand, doing static stretching at the end of your class is an excellent way to improve your flexibility, provided that you practice the dynamic stretching that is inherent in your techniques.
In short, there's a danger of drawing a fallacious conclusion from this article. The article does
not suggest that static stretching is ineffective. Rather, it says that static stretching is ineffective, and even counterproductive,
when done before an athletic activity.
As Ninjamom noted, this is "old news". There are numerous academic studies that confirm what the NYT article says.
