Thread: Ueshiba's Aiki
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Old 11-10-2011, 04:46 PM   #60
Ken McGrew
Dojo: Aikido at UAB
Location: Birmingham, Alabama
Join Date: May 2006
Posts: 202
United_States
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Re: Ueshiba's Aiki

Your response seems to reveal a great deal of insecurity hiding behind arrogance. Quite frankly I have no idea what it is you do. There are no videos available to see what you do, your writing and arguments are unclear, and your statements about Aikido and the practices of Aikido being clueless are outlandish forgiven the lack of anything tangible to back them up.

It is not aiki do. It is ai Ki do. This is not an opinion. This is what O'Sensei said. this is what my teachers say.

So once again you speak without detail and your supporters say to test your claims I have to go to your seminar. This is the genesis of my statement about money. I have been trying to give you and your followers a fair reading, but it is difficult to do when bad writing, unclear arguments, outlandishly insulting comments abou Aikido and Aikido practitioners, meet defensive responses like this one.

As I said in my post what you do (whatever "it" is) may be very good. It may even have aspects that are complimentary to Aikido. That does not make it Aikido. And it doesn't make Aikido The ineffective joke that you've claimed it is.

The thing is, I have eyes to read what O'Sensei wrote, what Saotome Sensei wrote, and watch videos of O'Sensei. I have ears to hear what my teachers tell me about O'Sensei. I see no support for the often repeated claims about everyone having missed the meaning of Aikido except yourself. I can see on the videos O'Sensei doing aikido, and students doing Aikido while he watched them, that contradicts what I take your claims to be (to the extent that I can read them). I see him doing the same Aikido that I see many schools practicing.

It would be more helpful if you would spell out in detail what I said about Aikido that is wrong in your view and what it is exactly that you are describing.

Quote:
Dan Harden wrote: View Post
Mr. McGrew
You would do better to stick with questions. You clearly do not understand what I am talking about and teaching. At it's very foundation, all that I do is nonresistance.
As far as it being Aikido? Lets just say that men far more qualified than you consider it Aiki...do at it highest level. What aiki...do is supposed to be. I don't necessarily care to argue the point either way, but I will take the view of 14 shihans and dozens of 4th, 5th and 6thI dans...over yours.
And for the record, your comment that I say or think "Come pay me and I will show you true Aikido" is rude, dismissive and does a disservice; not only to yourself and your teacher-it speaks ill of the judgement of hundreds of teachers who find this work (which is very old, and well established training) valuable.
I assume you don't know, but your teacher has approved and spoken favorably of what this teaching has done with some of HIS highest ranked students.
I think you should do a little more research before embarrassing yourself further. This work is uniting different lines of the art, and making friends of different teachers who have never met. It is embarrassing to write or reveal some of the heartfelt letters I have received about what this work is doing for someof teachers Aikido. It's all good, and moving in a very positive direction.
Just say'n
Dan