Hey guys, it's been a while since I last posted. You'll have to forgive me, I've been going through some rough changes in my life. I feel like a chameleon being forced to adjust in order to survive.

Due to a bit of ill fate and bad karma, I've lost contact with my instructor. A couple months ago, I found myself trapped in a street gang. I don't know how it happened really. I just started hanging out with some old friends of mine, and before I knew it, I had people coming to my house every day, waking me up every morning, asking for favors all the time, and pushing me around to the point where they were driving me nuts, and attracting a lot of negative attention to my street. Although there's really nothing I could have done about it, I just have to bite my tongue and accept the blame for my own misfortunes.

So quickly, I went from a graduate fresh out of highschool to a lowlife on the street. Everywhere I went, there were drugs. Everywhere I turned, there were guns. Everywhere I ran, there were thugs. I was like a fly trapped in a spider's web with no way out. It was insane. I was surrounded by predators on every side. In order to survive, I was forced to become like them and share the same lifestyle. My focus changed from training in martial arts to surviving the streets. I spent most of my time traveling, rather than keeping in touch with my instructor. I tried to contact him a few times, but my cellphone cut off. Then on top of that, I got arrested.

Jail sucked. I was constantly getting into fights, and trying to defend myself from all the lunatics. Whenever I wasn't being harrassed by either the guards or the inmates, I was bored stiff. I spent most of that time reading books, trying to further my education. I just issued a bond today, and must return to court on July 6th. Nobody in the neighborhood knows I'm out yet, and I prefer to keep it that way for at least a little while. I like the peace and quiet. This is the first time I've been able to relax in 2 months. I'd try to contact my sifu again, but I'm afraid he wouldn't accept me back into his class any way. So I think that's the end of my journey in Jeet Kune Do.

Although I am no longer a student in Wing Chun or Jeet Kune Do, I am technically still an exponent of Gung Fu. From my recent experiences, I have learned a great deal about the reality of street fighting and thug mentality. This predicament, although painfully hard, does have a positive outlook. It has allowed me to re-evaluate myself, and the effectiveness of martial arts. I must admit, I no longer care for the millions of instructors in the world today. I do not believe in teachers any more, nor in schools, nor in training programs. I have taken only a few lessons to heart, discarding everything else I learned from the martial arts. Bear in mind the knowledge I have saved is all philosophical, and does not deal with any physical training. Although some people may disagree with my opinions, they are in fact "my" opinions, and I am not trying to teach the world anything or convert everyone to my beliefs. This is just something based from my own experience in the real world of fighting.

1.) Someone once said: "A good instructor never teaches the student, only guides him. The student teaches himself." I no longer believe that you need a certified instructor in order to learn martial arts. In fact, I am completely uninterested in the idea of coaching altogether. Training is a personal thing, and must come from within. Bruce Lee once said: "The only help is self help." I totally agree! You are your own teacher, and your own will to improve is the secret to progressing in martial arts. Forget about paying someone to show you how to move your arms and legs. Your arms and legs already moved before you came in!

2.) Martial Arts schools are a joke. You don't need dojos and gymns to train, you can train anywhere. Train in the park, in your garage, in your backyard, even in a jail cell. Gichin Funakoshi, the father of modern karate once said: "Leave the doors and face ten thousand enemies." Lao Tse, the founder of Taoism and author of Tao Te Ching wrote: "He who neither values his teacher nor loves the lesson has gone far astray, though he be learned." So throw the training program away too, along with the school cirricullum. All it will do is bind you to the traditions of your kwoon and the beliefs of your teacher!

3.) Here is the lesson I cherish the most, which is why I saved it for last. Bruce Lee once said: "The only way to learn how to fight is to fight." God, how simple those words are, and yet they couldn't be any closer to the truth. Bruce Lee also said: "Martial arts looks good, but 90% of it is ineffective." I agree with this statement also, even though many people may contradict it. His teacher Yip Man once said: "Dont believe anything I show you, for I may be deceiving you. Instead, go out and test it for yourself. Find out for yourself if it is true." I honestly believe the only way to learn how to defend yourself is to actually fight. There is no easy way to learn it without getting your ass kicked until it sinks in. Therefore, get rid of those fancy techniques and delicate forms. They are useless!

Again, I am not trying to push these opinions on anyone else, but they are my personal beliefs. Good luck converting me back to the other side of the fence, as I went through hell (literally) before coming to these realizations in my life. And do not label or judge the person without a rank or certificate, nor the person who claims to be self taught, merely on the fact that they have no background in martial arts. If anything, judge them only on their philosophical knowledge, and their ability to fight. Everything else is irrellivant. If you have ever been to a police academy, you know what training the officers have to go through in order to become prison guards. When I was still a student at the Gung Fu Institute, I worked with officers who had additional training in judo and karate, as they felt it would give them some kind of an edge over the prisoners. While I was in jail, I saw 2 guards try to tackle an inmate who got out of control. Even though the officers were trained, and sprayed the inmate with mace, he took them both down with his bare hands. This inmate was not a trained martial artist or a former military POW... He was simply a much bigger, and much stronger man than the officers. They ended up having to taze him with a stun gun, and take him and the 2 guards to the hospital. This witnessing experience caused me to rethink my principles. Hopefully it will make you rethink yours too.

Also, something else I just thought of. How do you "intercept" an attack you don't even know is coming? Forget about Jeet Kune Do, as the real world doesn't permit it. People do not bow or show respect on the street. They catch you off-guard and attack your blind side, often making sure they have won the fight before it even begins. If you want Jeet Kune Do to be effective, ignore your morals and "be" the bully. You cannot use martial arts to defend yourself, but you can use it to throw the first punch!

Many people these days also think JKD is losing its taste, so some of them are turning to Kali or Silat. To those people I have only one question... What good is a knife in a gun fight?

And last but not least, strength in numbers. I don't care how skilled you are at fighting, nobody is superman. If you have difficulty fighting one on one, imagine what it's like to fight a whole gang of people at one time. I've been there, it's no easy task. And I'm sorry folks, but most street fights just aren't one on one. Again, don't get demoralized or lose faith in martial arts just because of these factors. Just think about them and use these things to re-evaluate yourself so that you can be better prepared in case you are attacked in the real world.

I still consider myself an exponent of Gung Fu, and I respect everyone who has helped me in my own process of becoming a martial artist.

To hear that this has happened to you! Do not, I repeat, DO NOT let this experience cause you to lose faith in Wing Chun or Jeet Kune Do! These arts have served me very well throughout my entire career doing bodyguard, private security and bouncer work. They have NEVER, I repeat, NEVER let me down! You must attain the level of skill required to effectively apply the techniques under all circumstances and in all situations. Just because something may not work for you once, that doesn't mean that you just trash it! Maybe your skill wasn't developed to the maximum with that particular technique!

I find that for pure self defense purposes, it is best to pick between five and ten moves and work them over and over and over until they become second nature. Then work all possible combinations of these techniques in all possible scenarios. These are the techniques that you count on when the chips are down! I have found that at least 90% of the time, I can tell ahead of time when someone has ill intent toward me or another person. This should put you immediately "at the ready" to take action. When the person starts to move, take 'em out! I know, harder than it sounds, but definitely possible with enough practice!

Once again, I am very sorry to hear that this has happened to you, as I know you to be a good person! I hope you will learn from mistakes you have made and not allow this type of thing to creep back into your life! Take care and God Bless!

Keep Blasting!
Sifu Lamar M. Davis II
Senior Instructor
Hardcore Jeet Kune Do
Sifu@HardcoreJKD.com
http://www.HardcoreJKD.com
http://www.RealCombatOnline.com
Phone (205) 956-1901

"Hit Hard, Hit Fast, Hit First - ALWAYS!"

You know Sifu Davis, sometimes we just have to find the best in things. The glass can be either half empty, or half full...

While I was sitting in the stockade, I had plenty of time to read. Many of the books I read covered philosophy and theology. I spent lots of time trying to find my peace with God, and you know what? I think he made peace with me instead. I will never forget my place in the martial arts. I will always be an exponent of Gung Fu.

I haven't really "lost faith" in Wing Chun or Jeet Kune Do, just changed my 'Way' of them. It's the philosophy I cherish the most. There are many Wing Chun maxims that have great meaning to me, as I, personally, myself, have found them to be true. Also, Bruce Lee said many things which hold true to me as well. I guess in a quiet secretive way, I am still a JKD practitioner. Except, just like Bruce Lee, I have become more concerned with physical fitness and exercise rather than the actual training cirricullum and martial arts techniques.

I will continue to jump rope, hit the bag, and all the things which Jeet Kune Do requires us to work on. But as far as seperating a JKD punch from a Karate punch, I could really care less. I might continue to work on my trapping skills, but I doubt if I'll ever use them. My way of fighting is just to catch them off guard, throw the first punch, and beat the living **** out of them using what you JKD types refer to as 'jik chung choi'. I'm no longer concerned with this Chinese terminology either, as the phrase "bash their face in" works just as good, and is easier for people to understand. There is no need to make a technique out of it.

What I would like to do is further my knowledge and skills in grappling. It seems to me that many thugs (i.e. street fighters) who have no "fist game" end up trying to wrestle instead. The most common methods I've seen people use are tackles, head locks, and manipulation of your clothing--in other words, grabbing someone's pant leg or shirt collar, and swinging them around. My main concern is learning how to defend yourself on the ground while you have someone on top of you, and also how to escape from a headlock when someone is choking you. I do maintain that in a wrestling situation, it is usually (roughly 90% of the time) the bigger, stronger, more bulky guy who wins.




P.S. I still haven't recieved the Lee Family Archives video you sent me. Perhaps it either got lost, or just hasn't arrived yet. The Longstreet video you sent me arrived in just 2 weeks.

Hi Wesley! Your story reminds me of me when I was even younger than you. My socalled friends were a bunch of thugs, gang members, drug dealers, you name it! My oldest brother was one of the biggest drug dealers around. It took him getting shot to change his life.I'd just like to tell you that it has nothing to do with"ill fate or bad carma" it has everything to do with bad choices! I knew at 16 that I was either going to go to prison or get myself killed. There was something inside of me telling me I had to get out of there. Five days after I turned 17 I was in the Navy. I spent four years on a nuclear submarine. That was the best decision I ever made. While I was in the Navy one of my closest friends was stabbed to death over a quarter pound of pot. My other best friend was sent to jefferson city state pin for getting into a shootout with some other idiots. Needless to say, I would have been with either one of them, mabey both! I made the choice to get away and stay away from them. I am 43 years old now and some "MOST" of those people are still there, just where I left them, if they'er not dead or in prison! I hope you make the right decision Wesley! Your friend, Lance Webb

Thank you Lance, those are some inspirational words.

I know from expirience what's like to get in with the wrong bunch of guys. I spent most of my highschool in a gang too. Mostly for protection from other gangs. That's how it was in my highschool either you were in a gang or you got jumped by them. I'm only 23 so I'm not going to offer too much sage advice. Just hang tough and learn from your mistakes that's all you can do! I found a reason to turn my life around it was my girlfriend at the time. I didn't want to her to get into trouble for what i was doing. Even though her and I are not together anymore she still helped me to get out. You got to find a reason not to get back into that lifestyle or you may just find yourself where you don't want to be. Take care man and God Bless