The Martial Brain

Remember the words of Voltaire who said "anyone who can convince you of absurdities can get you to commit atrocities."

The Pulahans arose from a specific cauldron of local grievances, traditional values, and foreign interference that so often gives rise to millennial movements.

The story of the Pulahan War is a sad tale of exploitation visited on the poorest of the poor Filipinos, leading them down the rabbit hole of fanaticism .

The stories of these six regiments extend beyond the war in the Philippines.

"I want to tell you that we are not bandits as the Americans have accused. but members of the revolutionary force that defended our mother country, the Philippines!"

On May 6,1903, Makario Sakay proclaimed himself El Presidente Supremo of the "Tagolog Republic of the Philippines."

The very idea of arming Filipinos and turning them loose in the countryside was utterly abhorrent to the American military brass.

"These people are right and we are wrong...terribly wrong!"

I hold Waller's actions in Samar as reprehensible, as egregious abuses of his constitutional privileges as a a military commander.

In the meantime, General Smith's combined Brigade was following his orders to turn Samar into a "howling wilderness."

As the now infamous town of Balangiga burned behind him, Capt. Bookmiller famously quoted the book of Hosea: "They have sown the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind!"

No matter what you call it, the event at Balangiga was the worst defeat of American troops since the Battle of the Little Big Horn!

Funston, four other Americans, and a renegade Spaniard would pose as POWs in the "custody" of a group of Macabebe Scouts in captured Insurrecto uniforms.

"To see nine men, the officers in their drawers and the privates naked, cross such a stream by such means, and drive off an entrenched force not less than ten times their number, in broad daylight, where their number must soon become known, is something not soon to be forgotten!"

I find the story of David Fagen fascinating. We seldom rationally depict such figures in history.

The leaders of the Philippine independence movement had tremendous admiration for the American founding fathers and the government they wrought!

The depth and breadth, the sheer comprehensiveness of Filipino martial technology stands as a shining example, a tribute to defiance in the face of tyranny and oppression!

But it turns out that the Filipino people didn't WANT themselves and their property to be the property of the United States!

On June 12, 1898, the Filipino rebels officially declared independence from Spain, in a document that, ironically, in light of what was to come, drew elements from the American Declaration of Independence.

Pershing was an instructor at West Point when the war broke out, and quickly sought to rejoin his old unit, the Buffalo Soldiers of the 10th Cavalry.

In order to get to Santiago, his troops would need to get past the fortified San Juan Heights on its outskirts, which loomed across their path like a fortified roadblock.

The history of the world in the upcoming decade would have played out quite differently if Teddy Roosevelt had perished on that hot June day in the Cuban jungle!

If there's one thing that can be learned from human history, it's that there is no crisis so bad that it cannot be made worse by our tendency to engage in over-emotional, "monkeys in shoes" behavior!

When you picture a scene from the old west in which the cavalry comes charging to the rescue, in reality at least ten percent of the time those "boys in blue"...were black!

The epic story of the relationship between the USA and the Philippines started in war a little over a century ago.

Despite the fact that ethical jiujitsu players shouldn't SEEK to render their opponent unconscious, it's not at all uncommon for unintended "choke-outs" to occur.

It's almost like taking out an opponent with Mr. Spock's Vulcan nerve pinch!

The myth that chimpanzees are 3 to 5 times stronger than humans stems from a poorly done study that was done nearly a century ago.

The Roman practice of pitting humans against animals in the arena not only slaked the blood-lust of cheering crowds, it also appealed to the human obsession with hierarchical organization; in particular seeking evidence to help answer who and what would defeat who and what in combat.

How deeply frightening must if have been to people who had no idea that they lived on a giant sphere spinning in space as it also orbits around the sun, spinning on an axis that is tilted relative to the plane of its orbit in such a way that in the temperate latitudes the year is divided between seasons of darkness and of light.

So, of course, before the science was more thoroughly understood the supplement industry promptly built the bandwagon and then enthusiastically jumped on it; producing, selling, and heavily advertising antioxidant supplements.

If you would like to be "that person" who always seems to have a thoughtful, logical point of view in any discussion, who doesn't easily fall prey to scams and pseudo-science, who doesn't allow the primitive parts of his brain direct his actions; learning the basics of Scientific Skepticism is a great way to start!

I had been forced to endure the presence of bullies for much of my young life; I would be damned if I was going to add to macho martial culture by producing martial arts bullies through my teaching!

When I contemplate what a dark place my mind was inhabiting prior to Dave's visit, it's perfectly possible that he saved my life that night.

The study of the martial arts lies precisely at the intersection of the worlds of survival and self-expression.

When sparring is done badly it's at the very least a poor use of training time, is probably very frightening, dangerous as hell, and really painful to watch.

If such a student leaves the academy before being "certified" by his instructor, and then starts his own academy many people will label him as "illegitimate." A martial arts "bastard," if you will.

Here's a thought...Is it a stretch to substitute the word "competent" for the word "authentic" when referring to a martial artist?

Did I mention that I have new shoulders?

In a preliterate world if you wanted to remember something you had to do just that, REMEMBER it!

Please keep in mind that these are the words of a fictional character, not mine.

If you run a martial arts academy, keep in mind that it's more productive to think in terms of business and science instead of the kind of personal politics that is a tired artifact left over from our heritage as dominance hierarchy primates,

Many budding martial artists pay only enough attention to their opponents to know where they are, and maybe if they are trying to do something right this second that you, as their adversary, don't want them to do.

My fascination, indeed my QUEST, is to hit the sweet spot in this equation as many times as possible from now until I die.

If one more "twenty-something" says to me that "age is just a number" or "you're as young as you feel" I'm going to hit them with my cane!

Isn't it ironic that exercising a lot can make you weaker?

Most of us are aware of the martial arts movie trope of the hero or villain who is supremely, indeed magically aware of his surroundings at all times.

Is it possible to become too detail-oriented? It can be if it causes you to lose sight of the bigger picture.

While the natural weapons of your body like your fists, shins, elbows, and knees can be quite formidable; without the brain to run things they are only parts to memorize for an anatomy test.

It's the burgeoning kicker's job, ideally with the help of a good coach, to learn to make sure that it's not easy for an opponent to gain an attachment to his or her kicking leg; and also to learn what to do when the opponent succeeds in doing so.