Have you considered the idea that some people might actually enjoy martial arts lessons for the sake of it? Y'know, as a hobby? How much money do you spent on videogames in a year? How much do you think people spent on Warhammer, or building models? How many of these hobbies happen to coincidentally improve a person's fitness?Mr Montmorency said:
She's into pyramids...
- Thread starter Common Knowledge
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McDojo's-they fill people with underserved confidence.
To get a black belt in anything should not take less than about 3-5 years. If you get a black belt in 6 months, McDojo. It happens a lot with Karate and Taekwondo-Perfectly good martial arts getting bad names from people just trying to cash in on them.
But back on topic-You should bring her to your class and tell your sensei that she's a black belt, than suggest they spar.
To get a black belt in anything should not take less than about 3-5 years. If you get a black belt in 6 months, McDojo. It happens a lot with Karate and Taekwondo-Perfectly good martial arts getting bad names from people just trying to cash in on them.
But back on topic-You should bring her to your class and tell your sensei that she's a black belt, than suggest they spar.
those mcdojo things, while at first glance seemingly useless, can actually be a good introduction to martial art if their students retain humility. as one of my masters said once
"you've got your black belt now. great, now you're ready to start practicing real martial arts."
"you've got your black belt now. great, now you're ready to start practicing real martial arts."
things like this are sad, tae kwon do has an absoulte crap name because of all the cheap 6 month black belt scams. Im glad to have gotten my 2nd degree black belt from a legit and respectable place in 4 years.
You're a guy so you probably like to "fix" things. Like trying to inform your friend of some experience you had of her chosen martial that discredits it. You probably think you are doing her a favor. But girls usually don't want you to "fix" things, ESPECIALLY when they don't think it's broken in the first place. You are trying to be helpful, but to her it looks like you are trying to invalidate her accomplishment. So, you can either take a different course of discussion next time you see her, OR you can attempt to destroy something that she obviously takes pride in. If you are romantically interested in her or even if you just want to stay friends, I would not suggest the second route.
She most likely thinks you're just trying to be mean, she might really enjoy the class and be getting more confidence from it. So even if its not the greatest way for her to learn, if shes enjoying it then its best to let it be.
I doubt people want to be scammed. In fact, that's probably why she's not quitting now, because she doesn't want to believe that she was scammed. But you've pointed it out, you put that bit of doubt into her head, maybe she'll think about it and notice that something's odd about what they're doing.
Maybe you can recommend her taking one of your classes with you and she can compare the two.
Maybe you can recommend her taking one of your classes with you and she can compare the two.
It really doesn't matter if it's a scam in once sense. If it's something she mentioned, then to her having that black belt is an achievement that she's proud of. Not only that, but she probably has other investments in it as well, like money. So, let me ask you this, unless you think she's likely to ever end up in a situation where she really needs to defend herself, what does anyone gain by you convincing her that she got scammed? All you'll end up doing is making her lose something she's proud of, and feel embarassed because she spent money getting scammed. If you can't convince her, it'll only turn out bad for you if you keep trying, and even if you can, are the rewards really so great that it's worth the risk?
There's been a lot of similar scams in my area. I remember trying some karate thing once, it was just a room full of kids punching the air 3 times and then playing on some bouncy mats. You could get a black belt just for staying on the course for a long time, and wouldn't know anything other than punching the air 3 times.
If she won't accept that GKR is a scam would it be possible to get her onto a real karate course?
If she won't accept that GKR is a scam would it be possible to get her onto a real karate course?
That's no execuse for participating in a scam. I expect everyone gets scammed some time in their life and the trick is to hold your head up and say "okay, at least I'll know not to do it again." If you can't admit that you're wrong then you just bang your head endlessly against the same wall.Kpt._Rob said:
As I said I also have some experience in GKR, it was fine at first before I found out that my instructor was only a green belt and had been doing the course for less than a year. It was pretty annoying realising that what you put a lot of time and money into was pointless, but the alternative is to keep on doing so indefinately, which isn't an alternative at all.
Yes, but you're looking at this from the perspective of someone who did see through the scam. It's one thing to be the person who saw through the scam before going all the way through with it, it's another thing to be the one who went all the way and then was proud of what they achieved. There's an extent to which, if you're saying that anyone should be able to see through it, then you're making an implicit comparative statement about your intelligence as compared to hers.Common Knowledge said:
People are stubborn creatures, and we'll stick to our guns even when it's mindbendingly stupid to defend our pride. Unless you intend to actually begin actively campaigning against GKR on a large scale to take them down, then you're not doing anything on a large scale to hurt the scammer, you're just doing something on a small scale that wil add insult to the injury of the person who got scammed.
Even further, after reading your post I decided to to a little bit of internet research on GKR, and while the critiques you mentioned were certainly mentioned, they don't prove that GKR is not legit, they just suggest that it's not legit. That is to say that you don't have definitive proof that GKR is a scam. While what I read would lead me to agree with you in being very skeptical of GKR, the truth is that you and I just have an opinion. The issue is still up for debate, and it is quite possible that what you and I see as a flaw with the program is not something she considers to be a genuine flaw.
I'm still going to suggest that, unless you want to lead a larger campaign against GKR, you just let this little battle go. But, that's just my suggestion.