Thread: Ueshiba's Aiki
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Old 11-15-2011, 10:50 AM   #331
Ken McGrew
Dojo: Aikido at UAB
Location: Birmingham, Alabama
Join Date: May 2006
Posts: 202
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Re: Ueshiba's Aiki

Greg and Fred,

Ellis hasn't told us what Dobson Sensei allegedly rejected in the book (and in general) related to the importance of blending with momentum. If he has specific quote regarding that, then I may be persuaded. Despite your disparaging comments I am hardly someone who doesn't take evidence seriously. I am not someone who is unwilling to change views when warranted. But when weighing contradictory evidence one has a quandary. The written word can be understood. That's why people write. It's evidence. You favor the personal experience over other forms of evidence. How then could we ever resolve the differences between what Saito Sensei said and other direct students have said about he founder? Ellis is one person who knew Dobson Sensei well. I know a dozen people who also knew Dobson Sensei well, who had very in-depth conversations about some of these questions because they were working with him, and who tell me a different story. Dobson Sensei was known to bump an attacker off the line with his big belly, making an opening to the back where he could move. That is something far different from internal balance breaking. Of course, I've acknowledged that Dobson Sensie worked on internal unbalancing. But he also worked on other things. How should I weigh Ellis's views related to the totality of this evidence?

Quote:
Greg Steckel wrote: View Post
You know Ken, I was seriously thinking about coming back to you about some points associated with your Saotome quotes and Dan's aiki model that may have made some sense to you. However, I realized that would be futile. You just will not listen to anything that does not match your perception exactly. This is very evident from you challenging Ellis on Terry D - what part of Ellis saying he was very intimate with Terry that you do not understand and cannot accept. Ellis commented on what Terry felt about that book after the fact - why can't you accept that maybe Terry felt some things in that book were wrong after it was written.

Every one views the world via their own filters and tries to make things match their beliefs as best they can - that does not mean other people have to agree with you 100%, and if they don't, that does not mean they are wrong. Two people can read the exact same thing and come away with two totally different perspectives on what the writer was trying to convey - both perceptions can be correct to the reader because every thing is relative - to ascertain that one is wrong and the other is correct, both perceptions need to be presented to the writer at the exact same time for clarification - have you done that with Saotome? Of course, you cannot do that with Dobson, but you just received the next best thing, the opinion of someone that knew Terry very very well.

Good luck in your journey - I am afraid it will be a lonely one.

Greg

Last edited by Ken McGrew : 11-15-2011 at 10:57 AM.