I realize this may be a bit controversial... but in the best of all possible worlds I'd like to have a more objective (empirical?) way of ... how to put this
... determining the pecking order. Straightforwardly, you can read that as "determining rank promotion". But it also extends to "being able to really know whether a given application of technique in a given situation actually works or not." I hope I worded that carefully enough. I have no desire to start a flame war.
But let's face it, the way most of us practice most of the time requires the cooperation of uke. This isn't a controversial statement, is it?
We don't have anything like true competition, and I wouldn't change that. I'm 100% behind the Founder's proscription of it. But you gotta admit, it does make it hard sometimes to know how "real" we're being.
So all I'm saying is: I wish there were a way to be able to judge more objectively.
Dave