by James Coplin

Created on: September 20, 2009   Last Updated: September 22, 2009

Some time ago martial art students were shocked by this news head line -"State Martial Art Champion Killed in Daylight Assault."

The story went on to describe how this talented young competitor had become involved in an altercation with two street thugs and ended being beaten to death. How could this be? A high degree Black Belt; a State TaeKwondo Champion who had rigorously trained for several years and overcome countless opponents savaged by a pair of unarmed drunks? It defied belief.

It shouldn't have. The Champion was a well liked, socially well adjusted college student who practiced fair play inside the ring and out. His murderers turned out to be vicious, opportunistic sadists who knew nothing of "Score/No Score", three minute rounds and the presence of the referee. When they hit it was not to score a point and there were no restricted zones. It was not the Champions knowledge, skill or ability that failed him nor the quality of his Art. It was the conflict within the schizophrenic training system that offers one set of rules for the ring and another to defend your life.

Martial Art is one of the purist examples of evolution and adaption to particular environments. Kicking arts developed on open battlefields, unrestricted by brush and trees. Infighting styles like Wing Chun or the shifting angles of Kali-Silat evolved in crowded streets or thick jungles. Ju-Jitsu was devised for use by Samurai wearing armor. The African and Brazilian styles of Capoeira descended from slaves seeking to fight while their wrists and ankles were hampered by chains. The one object shared in common was to disable the enemy quickly and safely as possible.

To try to identify one as being better then the other is only possible by putting each in its own bottle and stoppering the cork. How well does a kicking art do on a slippery Chicago sidewalk in January? Would a Brazilian Ju-Jitsu fighter do well against a Wing-Chun man if they were fighting in a phone booth? How would a Shoto-Khan master fare against a Silat stylist fighting in the mud swamps of Indonesia? Each art developed from situations most common to their practitioners and there's some heavy adaption to be made outside of them.

So for pure self defense, is there a best art?

If so, it would cover all these criteria. It would offer the widest variety of situations and circumstances. It would lend itself to the largest stratum of student and not depend on age, strength, size or elaborate physical conditioning. It's practical

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