FOR THE RECORD
by Sensei Neil Prime
October, 1996At a recent demonstration our club put on there was someone in the audience who was fromanother karate organization. This person was very quick to slander what we were doing and madethe statement that Sensei Shintani was kicked out of the Wado Kai Federation of Japan etc..
I praise our karateka for shrugging their shoulders and walking away. Anyone who would havethe audacity to single out someone without any knowledge of a situation should be ignored.
Politics can ruin an organization. It has literally run Tae Kwon Do out of the Olympics and isdefinitely the main reason Karate isn't there either. There are far too many people that prejudgeone another. For some reason in the Martial Arts contention rather than continuity runs rampant.
I know of clubs that tell their new members if they have a previous karate background (even ifthat person is a Black Belt) to throw it all away now your going to learn the real thing. If onlythese people where to listen to how ridiculous this must sound.
I will make my view of this subject very clear. This type of talk is outright disrespectful and Iwould hope never to hear our people make false or unsubstantial claims about any otherorganizations or persons. Martial Artists could gain so much from each other if they were topractice what they preach; open mindedness, humility and willingness to learn. Anybody who isdedicated to what they are learning has reason to continue, and nobody has the right to disputethat freedom. You wouldn't be dedicated to something if you actually believed that what you aredoing was a waste of time or non-practical.
If you see a demonstration or meet someone involved in another martial art you have theopportunity to learn something from a new perspective. Even if something doesn't seem quiteright it doesn't mean that have to change your style or even use it, but you should be aware ofit. I am a firm believer that you should learn what you can, from who you can. To slander,plagiarize, or prejudge is NOT the martial arts way nor the way any rational person should be.We can only try our best to pass these values on.
For the record, Sensei Shintani was not kicked out of any of the Japan Karate Organizations, hefreely cut off all ties on his own accord because of the way these organizations were being run.