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Old 10-15-2007, 02:58 PM   #17
mathewjgano
 
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Dojo: Tsubaki Kannagara Jinja Aikidojo; Himeji Shodokan Dojo
Location: Renton
Join Date: Feb 2005
Posts: 2,276
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Re: Organizations- How important are they to you?

Quote:
Giancarlo DiPierro wrote: View Post
I think those who judge credibility by membership in an organization are abdicating their responsibility to think for themselves and reach their own judgment about an individual on his or her own merits. While I would say that there are some organizations in which membership would immediately call into questions one's credibility, I don't know of any organizations in which membership would make someone instantly credible to me.

Finally, being a student and having a teacher does not necessarily have anything to do with belonging to an organization. One can belong to an organization for political reasons without putting much faith it in its leaders as teachers. I know a couple of people who operate dojos and that by their own admission (privately, of course) fall into this category. One can also be a student of a teacher without being a part of that person's organization, assuming that person even has one. The student-teacher relationship is something that occurs directly, in person, between two people. It cannot be reduced to something written down on a piece of paper.
I couldn't agree more.

Gambarimashyo!
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