Unpopular Opinions

• Karate and other martial arts often have little street value. Want to really defend yourself? Get a gun and learn how to shoot.
• Running away from a fight isn't always cowardly. Sometimes it's just smart.
• Learning pre-arranged forms or kata will not make you a better fighter.
• Training with traditional weapons such as sai, or nunchaku have no practical utility. Like weapons? Learn a live stick fighting art, like Escrima.
• Punching a makiwara (striking post), or shin striking hard objects to toughen your limbs is self-mutilation.
• There are no "good" styles, only good teachers. And truth be told, there really are some bad styles.
• A high ranking instructor once told me that the more skill you have as a fighter the less you'll want to fight. My observations of some highly skilled karateka through the years leaves me to conclude: if only that were true.
• Masters and so-called luminaries in the martial arts are not life coaches. In matters unrelated to training, do not ask them for advice. Ever. They are not equipped to help you deal with your personal problems.
• Colored belts do more harm than good in developing competent practitioners.
• Realizing all the aforementioned items doesn't make you a pessimist. It makes you a realist. Enlightenment is not cosmic consciousness, but the rare ability to see things as they really are.