Taekwondo Dispute Goes Too Far

A 44-year-old, British taekwondo teacher and Olympian reportedly admitted she was "hot-headed" and said "it was not a good idea."

I think you can safely say it is far worse than a bad idea when you wrongly accuse someone of being a pedophile, posting fliers all over the man's neighborhood. The end result is that the man gets attacked on several occasions.

Some times it is a good idea to take a deep breath (or two) and use your brain before you act like a real moron... just saying. Here's a news article regarding the case, supposedly going back a long time and being about a dispute at a martial arts school.

Training Martial Arts With Disabilities

Martial arts belt - From Flickr.com

It appears that training martial arts with disabilities is another subject which may bring about discussions of pros and cons.

The debate goes primarily on what the best suited martial arts style for someone with a disability might be.

Also, it is also being discussed whether or not it is fine to grade some martial arts students with special needs and disabilities. After all, it is not uncommon that these students can not perform the things that able bodied, "regular" students can.

You can go here read more about the topic of the best martial arts for students with disabilities. It would also be great if you would take the time to leave a comment on your view on this topic.

My view is basically this: Martial arts training can great for anyone - no matter what their starting point may be. It is, to me, more about how the school and teacher is able adapt to the students needs, and also about the personal preferences that we all have - one way or the other.

Anger in Aikido

Anger in aikido? Image from Wikipedia.org

What are we suggesting here ... anger in aikido? The art of peace, harmony and humanity? Noooh, say it ain't so!

What would O-Sensei say if this was even remotely true?

These nice folks in hakama are supposed to be the very embodiment of cool and tranquility - no room for primal anger or aggression here mate!

We'll it appears that at least one aikidoka takes it very personal that someone dare claim that his hero, non other than movie star Steven Seagal, has been choked out by a "simple" judoka, an old school hard man in the form of Judo Gene LeBell.

True or untrue - keep smiling, and read more about it here.

Coach Allegedly Assaulted Boys

 Old painting - Illustration from Wikipedia

Police in Taiwan reports that at least 12 boys have been assaulted sexually by a trainer teaching judo and softball at local schools.

The man, called "Daddy Hu", allegedly also claims to be a pastor. He is believed to have targeted victims from impoverished families.

Below is an excerpt of the original article from sundaytimes.lk.

Coach allegedly assaulted boys

A Taiwanese man who coached softball and judo at schools has been arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting at least 12 boys, police said Tuesday.
The man, identified only by his surname Hu, was taken into custody late Monday after the parents of some of the boys discovered obscene messages on his Facebook page and turned him in, police said.
Hu, who also claimed to be a pastor and was nicknamed “Daddy Hu” by some students, was suspected of sexually assaulting at least a dozen boys in several elementary and junior high schools in Taipei, an initial probe found.

MMA Fights at Home

Fighting - Illustration from Flickr.com

It appears that some folks have decided to take things a step further (and way too far) by staging MMA fights at home.

Yup, there are apparently combat arts fans who perhaps sees mixed martial arts fights as a great way to get some action right there in their living room.

Here's an excerpt of what marconews.com reports about privately held MMA matches in Florida.

MMA fights at home

A Lee County family is accused of hosting unlicensed fights.Lee County Sheriff's deputies arrested Angela Harrison, 36, Brandon Harrison, 27, and Gauge Ford, 17, for staging Mixed Martial Arts style fights on the 1400 block of Hightower Avenue South in Lehigh Acres.Lee County detectives were able to confirm allegations of illegal fights by finding Facebook videos capturing juveniles and young adults engaging in full contact fighting. Detectives with the help of a school resource officer at East Lee County High School were able to identify some of the people in the videos.

Perhaps the family thought this would be a good way to make a few extra bucks. In any case, not the smartest martial arts move to pull off.

Kung Fu Instructor

Kung fu - Illustration from Flickr.com

A Texas based kung fu instuctor has been found guilty and sentenced to eight years in jail recently, according to http://scntx.com. You can read an excerpt below and get the whole article here.

Just want to mention briefly that - although you can read about quite a number of these cases here - the vast majority of martial arts schools are very safe places in all respects, and that all but a very few martial arts instructors and teachers are hard working, trustworthy and decent people.

That said, it never hurts do use some due diligence when seeking out a suitable training facility for your child in your local area.

Kung fu instructor

On March 16, area resident Ricky Earl Anderson, 48 was sentenced by a Collin County jury to eight years in prison for sexual assault of a child following a jury trial in the 199th District Court of Collin County announced Collin County District Attorney Greg Willis Friday. The trial began on March 12 and concluded March 16.
Anderson, a kung fu instructor, sexually assaulted one of his female kung fu students in his Richardson apartment on Feb. 15, 2004. The victim was 15-years-old at the time of the crime, and under Texas law, a child under the age of 17 cannot consent to sexual contact with an adult. The victim out-cried to Garland Police Detective Curtis Hale in July 2007. Hale investigated the case and coordinated the filing of the case through the Richardson Police Department.
Testimony showed that Anderson, who had conducted many kung fu classes over the years, lived and, or taught kung fu in recent years in Garland, Frisco, McKinney, Richardson, Royce City, Las Vegas, and Ft. Worth.

The good thing is that these individuals are caught and brought to justice. The really sad part is of course that this stuff is allowed to happen in the first place.

Torturer, Martial Arts Maniac

Illustration - From Flickr.com

Well, at least we've got another addition to the ever expanding Martial Arts Maniacs chronicle..

And this fellow, who's running a juvenile boot camp in China, is apparently a real nutter.

The former criminal used to run a martial arts school, and he was not exactly your regular Mr Nice or a guiding star of infinite wisdom and compassion there either, judging from the reports:

The founder of a boot camp for juveniles with behavior problems has been arrested for torturing and raping students despite charging them an annual fee of 50,000 yuan (US$7,940).
Teng Xiaohu, who runs the boot camp in Pujiang County, eastern Zhejiang Province to help youngsters get rid of Internet addiction and develop interest in study, allegedly forced three girls to offer him massage by turns every night and sexually assaulted them, local media reported.
Teng was jailed several years ago for a fight in a martial arts school and he threatened his students not to disclose his criminal past to their parents, the paper said.

Dear, oh dear, there are some really wicked individuals out there...

Former Karate Teacher Indicted

Illinois -- A 43-year-old Minnesota man has been indicted for allegedly having sexual contact with two minors, aged between 13 and 18. The man used to teach karate in Roselle and South Elgin, according to mysuburbanlife.com.

The DuPage County Sheriff's Office said the incidents allegedly occurred while the man taught at karate schools in the area.

The alleged sexual acts is reported to have taken placed between June 2001 and May 2006.

Taekwondo Instructor, Sex Assault

Canada -- A former, part-time taekwondo instructor in Oakville is facing several charges stemming from a sexual assault of a 12-year-old boy, according to insidehalton.com.

The incident reportedly occurred at the taekwondo school in 2002. The victim was a student there and the accused was an instructor.

Stop the karate violence!

...Or: "Holy Batman, our non-violent masked intruder got a karate lesson for free."

Indiana -- Journalgazette.net reported about a man who entered a karate school in Fort Wayne with a Batman T-shirt as a mask.

When the 37-year-old man was told to leave by the instructor, he reportedly punched the instructor and was subdued.

The batmaniac, who allegedly had been mumbling to himself without anyone being able to tell what he was talking about, later told police that he had tried to give the other man a note with the words "Stop The Violence" on it.

Karate Instructor Facing Trial

Pennsylvania -- A 27-year-old instructor is facing trial on charges he raped a 12-year-old karate student, according to wnep.com.

The man reportedly was an instructor at a martial arts school in Pocono Summit, and it is alleged he had sex with the young girl in the girl's home in Tobyhanna on several occasions from August 2011.

School Employee Arrested

Ohio -- A school employee and karate teacher in the Columbus-area has been accused of sexually assaulting a 10-year-old student. The incident allegedly occurred in December 2011, according to 10tv.com.

The alleged victim's mother said the man was a physical education teacher and that he also was a martial arts instructor. She said the incident happened when her daughter changed outfits.

Former UFC Fighter Sentenced

Oregon -- A 37-year-old, former UFC lightweight title contender was recently sentenced to prison after being convicted of sexually abusing an underage female student at his martial arts school in Clackamas in December 2010, according to oregonlive.com.

The MMA fighter was reportedly arraigned in May 2011 on seven counts of first-degree sexual abuse and two counts of second-degree unlawful sexual penetration.

Great Kids Program

Here's a video from a US based martial arts school - showing an obvious great and fun martial arts program. This is what children's martial arts should be all about; great fun and educational at the same :-)

Kung Fu Teacher Pleads Not Guilty

California -- A Fremont kung fu instructor and school owner, aged 48, has pleaded not guilty to three felony child molest charges, according to mercurynews.com.

The defendant was arrested September 23 at a Houston, Texas airport, after leaving the country when he became aware of police investigating the case.

The man is accused of molesting two female minors who were students at his martial arts school.

Anything to add to this case or similar ones? Feel free to add your comment below.

Judo Instructor Guilty

Even though a staggering number of complaints have emerged for years regarding dangerous teaching activities in Japanese school judo - nothing has apparently come out of it ... until now. Here's an article from google.com (feel free to comment below):

Japan -- A Japanese court on Wednesday found a martial arts instructor guilty over the death of a six-year-old boy, a court official said, in the first criminal case over judo training in Japan.

The Osaka District Court found the instructor guilty of causing the boy's death by repeatedly slamming him to the floor during training, ordering the defendant to pay a fine of one million yen ($13,000), the official said.

It is the first criminal case filed by Japanese prosecutors against judo trainers, according to a victims' group, despite over 100 child deaths blamed on harsh training or hazing between 1983 and 2010.

----

Have your say about these judo related injuries and deaths in the comment field below. It appears this has to do mainly with inexperienced instructors and teachers. What's your point of view?

Closing Martial Arts Schools

When martial arts businesses are closing down with little or no warning, it puts a bad name on the martial arts community as a whole and students and parents alike are left in the dust.

What is even worse is that some of these closed schools is down to criminal activities of the operators, or quarrels and disagreements among instructors and owners - often times "political" issues over power, control or money.

The following two cases are recent examples:

South Dakota -- A Sioux Falls martial arts school abruptly closed its doors Monday morning. Now, the owner of the school and parents of students taking lessons are accusing each other of wrongdoing.

Each side says the other took money and failed to live up to various obligations. And it's the kids who are being caught in the middle of a very different kind of fight.

The first word many parents of those students received about this dispute was notice during the school day that the vehicle that normally picks up their children to take them to classes wouldn't be showing up.

The Elite Martial Arts Academy was officially formed on August 1. Back in April, when it was called the Sioux Falls Martial Arts Academy, owner Tom Werner asked for $35 membership fees for students to join USA Taekwondo.

That membership allows kids to travel to national competitions. But according to former instructors, as well as some parents, those applications haven't been processed more than five months later.

----

South Carolina -- When a Boiling Springs mom went to drop off her children at a popular martial arts business last Thursday she found a sign on the door that said "no more classes."

The woman (...) says she paid $1,132 to All-American Martial Arts Center in Boiling Springs on August 31. The money was paid as a six-month advance, but she says her children received only two and a half weeks of classes before the place closed.

The woman says another mother at the facility told her, "The owner's been arrested, and they're closing, and I said wait a minute. I just paid for six months! ... I paid in full.

Spartanburg County deputies did arrest (the owner) on August 16 and charged him with 2nd degree burglary, petite larceny and obtaining goods under false pretenses. Deputies say (the owner) stole jewelry from the home of one of his clients and later pawned it.

----

What's your take on situations like this? Any experiences about martial arts businesses closing down you care to share with the rest of us? Feel free to comment below!

Not What it Appeared to Be

Update, October 16:
Newsinfo.inquirer.net reports that local police has found several holes in the woman's claims and that they consider it a case of "fatal attraction".

Police said the allegations of the British-born woman were just "figments of her imagination," and that documentary evidence and medical tests had debunked her claims.

----

Update, September 27:
Globalnation.inquirer.net reports that The mayor of Iloilo City demands an apology from the woman in the story below who claimed she had been held captive and made a sex slave in the Philippines.

The mayor reportedly said the British born woman had tarnished the image of the city and Ilonggos through her "baseless" allegations.

----

The following story is sad and disgusting indeed, something which again shows the importance of doing proper background checks.

Philippines -- Au.news.yahoo.com had a story about a 39-year-old woman from New Zealand who said she was lured with a Facebook invitation to join a martial arts school in the Philippines - only to be robbed and forced into prostitution upon her arrival.

The martial arts enthusiast reportedly replied positively to an invitation to participate in an intense training camp in October.

"They were meant to be world class and I thought this was a chance for me to learn from the best," the woman said.

Feel free to comment on this story below. What is your take on invitations to training camps and the potential dangers? Is this an indication that we all too often take things at face value within the martial arts?

Sex Offender Protected?

Australia -- A Jewish community in Melbourne and some of it's prominent senior members, have been accused by police investigators of covering up sex offences alleged to have been committed by a man who worked at one of the schools run by the order.

A 43-year-old security guard at the college in East St Kilda, was arrested and charged with 29 counts of indecent assault and gross indecency relating to former students, according to news.com.au.

The alleged offences is said to have occurred between 1984 and 1991. The alleged victims were between the ages of 7 and 17 at the time of the incidents, and it is alleged to have occurred through the suspects connections with the school. These connections reportedly included private karate lessons and a teaching group.

Judo Worries Parents

Japan -- From 2012, martial arts such as judo will be compulsory in schools across the country, according to english.aljazeera.net.

The program will help preserve the country's national sport of judo according to Japanese government officials, and for people who love all martial arts like we do, it comes as an apparently great decision.

However, many Japanese parents and also experts are voicing their concern - something which is understandable from the following numbers.

It is shown that 114 students have died (it is even said at least that number) and another 261 have been seriously injured while practicing the sport in school over the last 30 years, a number which is claimed to be five times higher than those shown in other large sports.

Is judo a dangerous sport? Of course not. Under safe guidance and qualified instruction it is way less dangerous than most other sports. If you take a country like France, where judo is a huge sport, there has been no reported deaths among children practicing the sport.

The point here is rather that you have no safety instructions in the Japanese school judo as well as non qualified, highly inexperienced teachers/instructors. Some of them apparently have been given just a basic three days of training before being set to teach children judo.

Combine that with a (Japanese judo) sports culture that is said to celebrate toughness, and you may have yourself an unfortunate road to more serious incidents.