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Chris Parkerson · 01-16-2008, 07:08 AM

[PHP]Would you teach morales or ethics of the use of what they are learning ?

Good question. My answer is no.

I limited my response to address only physical martial capacity.

Ethics and morals create some interesting issues surrounding martial capacity.

Ethics and morality create a framework upon which we make decisions about when it is appropriate to use martial capacity.

It frames things in terms of a spectrum of appropriateness. That is, when it is appropriate to use what force, tools, etc.

Within the context of aikido, we can take it even further and refine the spectrum to say that all force is bad and disruptive to harmony and peace, and develop a frame work that attempts to teach us in a very skillfull way to use the least possible force to resolve conflict.

From my experiences, it gets very tricky when you start teaching morals and ethics, and when it is appropriate to apply what and when. If you start teaching it as a doctrine or dogma then, IMO, you are doing your students a very dangerous thing that may get them hurt or killed in a physical confrontation.

I think many times we walk that walk in aikido and it is why we have issues many times.

I think what we have to do is show options along the spectrum of conflict.[/PHP]

I was never in the military. In the Spring of 2004, I (at age 51) found myself manning the tail gun of the last vehicle of a personal security detail (PSD) team about 1/4 before we entered the Green Zone in Baghdad.

A Mercedes Benz began to get rather close. He did not respond to my hand signs or the empty bottles I threw out of the rear window to get his attention. Still, I did not shoot. It just did not feel right. His body language seemed more like someone who was offended at how intrusive we had been rather than someone who was going to kill himself and us with a car bomb.

A young fellow (about 24) inside my vehicle who had just left the Marine Corps tried to ostracize me from the detail during the debrief. Therein lies the rub. Experience versus exuberance. I sensed that this Iraqi probably had business in the Green Zone. For all I knew, he was going to meet with the Corp of Engineers. Per5haps, looking at the car he was driving, he was an important Sheik.

He is lucky to be alive today. I kept my Karma intact. Perhaps the State Department benefited in the long run a little bit.

Last week, I saw the movie, "No Country for Old Men". Old men spend allot of time engaging in philosophy to find closure (clean the fish) to things they did in their youth.

01-16-2008, 07:08 AM	#47
Chris Parkerson Dojo: Academy of the Martial Arts Location: ohio Join Date: Nov 2007 Posts: 740 Offline	Re: real world aikido [PHP]Would you teach morales or ethics of the use of what they are learning ? Good question. My answer is no. I limited my response to address only physical martial capacity. Ethics and morals create some interesting issues surrounding martial capacity. Ethics and morality create a framework upon which we make decisions about when it is appropriate to use martial capacity. It frames things in terms of a spectrum of appropriateness. That is, when it is appropriate to use what force, tools, etc. Within the context of aikido, we can take it even further and refine the spectrum to say that all force is bad and disruptive to harmony and peace, and develop a frame work that attempts to teach us in a very skillfull way to use the least possible force to resolve conflict. From my experiences, it gets very tricky when you start teaching morals and ethics, and when it is appropriate to apply what and when. If you start teaching it as a doctrine or dogma then, IMO, you are doing your students a very dangerous thing that may get them hurt or killed in a physical confrontation. I think many times we walk that walk in aikido and it is why we have issues many times. I think what we have to do is show options along the spectrum of conflict.[/PHP] I was never in the military. In the Spring of 2004, I (at age 51) found myself manning the tail gun of the last vehicle of a personal security detail (PSD) team about 1/4 before we entered the Green Zone in Baghdad. A Mercedes Benz began to get rather close. He did not respond to my hand signs or the empty bottles I threw out of the rear window to get his attention. Still, I did not shoot. It just did not feel right. His body language seemed more like someone who was offended at how intrusive we had been rather than someone who was going to kill himself and us with a car bomb. A young fellow (about 24) inside my vehicle who had just left the Marine Corps tried to ostracize me from the detail during the debrief. Therein lies the rub. Experience versus exuberance. I sensed that this Iraqi probably had business in the Green Zone. For all I knew, he was going to meet with the Corp of Engineers. Per5haps, looking at the car he was driving, he was an important Sheik. He is lucky to be alive today. I kept my Karma intact. Perhaps the State Department benefited in the long run a little bit. Last week, I saw the movie, "No Country for Old Men". Old men spend allot of time engaging in philosophy to find closure (clean the fish) to things they did in their youth.