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Old 03-13-2007, 04:31 PM   #15
George S. Ledyard
 
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Dojo: Aikido Eastside
Location: Bellevue, WA
Join Date: Jun 2000
Posts: 2,670
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Re: "Non-Aikido Martial Traditions" Forum

Quote:
Mark Murray wrote: View Post
You know what really gets to me? This hypocrisy about non-aikido people not knowing anything about aikido. It's simply amazing that all these naysayers jump all over Dan and Mike about them being outside of Aikido and not knowing anything about *their* Aikido because Mike and Dan don't *do* aikido. Yet, they'll turn right around and lap up everything Ellis posts about the history of Aikido and Daito Ryu. To coin a phrase from some teens, OMG!
Actually, Ellis is a 4th Dan in Aikido, given to him by Kuroiwa Sensei. He was an original student of Terry Dobson Sensei as well both of which gives him a good solid take on Aikido. The terminology he uses in his discussions is familiar to Aikido practitioners; not technical jargon which Aikido people do not understand. The main thing with Ellis is that he will point you towards certain things, ask some thoughtful questions, and generally tries to get people thinking. But he always posts with great respect for others. He isn't aggressive about what he puts out there, you can take it or leave it. If he thinks you don't know what you are talking about, he just doesn't reply to you.I think his great skill in presenting his ideas is one of the reasons he has such influence. He knows better than to push too hard.

As for what Ellis has to say about about martial arts history and Daito Ryu in particular, like the other folks who did koryu in Japan. he was also a student on the academic side. He was a member of JMAS along with folks like Don Draeger, Phil Relnick, Meik Skoss, etc. He is a walking encyclopedia of info, so of course people pay attention to him. I fail to see how that makes anyone hypocritical.

George S. Ledyard
Aikido Eastside
Bellevue, WA
Aikido Eastside
AikidoDvds.Com
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