the rum soaked fist: internal martial arts forum

Well put, Dmitri. I guess I'm a little old-fashioned in the sense of expecting and expressing that civility even if we are afforded the luxury of internet anonymity. In this particular case, I don't really see a bridge to burn in the first place. Dan obviously wouldn't see any value in meeting me, whether personally or martially, and I'm certainly not interested in seeing even yet another real-deal internal guy if it's just another one-way "look how great I am" show. Been to way too many of those...one of which you and I mutually attended when we first met. I can't count the number of times I've met guys who were all "Look at me, I'm the real deal, you guys are all a bunch of crap" in my 37 years as a martial artist. Some of them even were the real deal. However, I've never met, seen, read about, or even heard about someone whose skill was so good that it justified all that nonsense. In my view, such a person simply cannot exist because I just don't put that kind of value on martial skill no matter how good it is. The way I look at it, if somebody trustworthy says Dan is a great guy in-person, fine. I can accept that for all the reasons you outlined above. However, if he's gonna come across the way he does on the internet, especially if that's his initial default, I'm not really interested in seeing what he's like in-person. The same is true of any of those guys who take that attitude. I'll just accept that they are somehow different in-person than how they are on the internet and move on. My only interaction with him, and others of that cloth, is online, so if they can't get it together on that level, I'm just not interested in further investment.

This thread is now locked.

Thank the lord!

Dmitri wrote:I do notice that at times your tone of voice I mean, "tone of typing" does sound "harsher" online than in person, although you probably don't (can't?) notice... (Or maybe it's just me? )

I can see that I guess. Although it is funny thinking of me being...harsh.
Yet...I still don't go to the personal side. Although I think your mentioning the well known rule of would you say that to someones face... is applicable. It is probably worth adding..and expect to not get hit.
I can't help but thinking how "Most of you don't understand internal power as evidenced by what you write..." makes someone want to hit you!
Where I can imagine some of the bars I have been in and you calling someone a dick, unstable, a liar and paranoid would get you a trip to the hospital.