Uechi-Ryu.com

[I pulled this off the internet this am. Sounds like a science fiction movie to me! Is this actually going on in the dojo?)
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Yes indeed LSD is being put on stickers. Also on postage stamps ect. In the prison system all mail has to be opened and searched for these items they do in fact exist.

As far as this relates to the Dojo, sensei need to be aware of what to look for to idetify gangs. If you have a student showing several markers you may have a gang banger or wanabe on your hands.

If you see the star of david jewlery or graphiti combined with the color blue, cothing,bandanna ect. you may have a folks wanabee. Black gangster deciples, Gs ect. Gerogetown hoya apparel. It would be wide to watch and council with that student. Watch for hand signs,sideways and backwards hats.
The 5 pointed star is used by the people nation with the color red.Chicago bulls apparel,pyramids,playpoy bunny with both ears up forming a V.=A0Vice lords, people nation,etc.

Both gangs like strange hair doos part of head shaved or groved representing the right side and blue for folks the left side and for people. Also an infatuation with rap "music" and grossly oversized clothes to hide contraband, and aid in hiding stoles items as well as hiding weapons.

One pant leg up one down, belt hanging down one side or the other.

Notched eyebrow, the hair grooves tilt of the hat belt hanging down and pant leg cuff will be coordinated to one side or the other.

A Sensei must take care because some of the kids showing these signs are just emulating a bad example they have seen in entertainment. But if you see consistant markers you may be able to bail the kid out of a life style that ends up in a prison cell and early grave.

Sounds a bit like stream of consciousness.

Yes, LSD can be put on "lickable" items. It doesn't take very many molecules to produce an effect. The first person to "discover" the effects of LSD was a chemist who was a little careless with his new synthetic creation. Must have wiped his nose or didn't wash his hands before eating lunch. That night he had a most unusual experience. The next day he thought he would reproduce the experience and intentionally dose himself. He almost fried his brain with what he *thought* was a proper does to reproduce the desired response.

Clothing and jewelry have been defining groups of people for generations. When I grew up I was "dangerous" because I had long hair and wore faded Levis bellbottoms. I got stopped a lot when driving. I was threatened with bodily harm by the blue-collar workers I worked beside in my summer jobs. And what was my crime? Trying to fit in with my fellow college students. Trying to express my OWN view of the world - naive as it may be.

When I was young, a lot of long-haired people who wore Levis did heavy drugs. So did a *lot* of service people in Vietnam who were clean-shaven and wore their military best. I know - I went to school with a lot of them who were on the GI bill. I was often called upon to be a straight for a group of kids that wanted to party.

But don't get me wrong - I wasn't pure as the driven snow. I was just more conscious of my body because I was a serious athlete.

And so today there are a lot of folks who dress various versions of the hip-hop (rap, etc) style. Some of them belong to gangs and are involved with weapons and drugs. Some just want to a) make a fashion statement with clothes and music, b) fit in with their peers, or c) rebel from their parents - a natural part of adolescense.

I've taught martial arts to teenagers and twenty-somethings for many years. Some things never change. The only thing that seems to change is the WAY adolescents and young adults express their rebellion and individuality. In West Side Story, they had a "social disease". Now they are dangerous gang-bangers. When you have a supressed generation overflowing with energy and hormones, what do you expect? I find that *many* are reachable - if only you try.

Sensei,

Yes, anyone who works with kids should be on the lookout for gang "signs" and "colors". Each locality has its own variation and there are "national" stuff. Here in New England, the Latin Kings are on the rise. They have elaborate hand signals. I don't pay attention to it because they are not yet recruiting in the Asian community. In the Lowell, some Hispanics with possible Latin king connections are in a miniwar with the Southeast Asian kids who have formed their own local gang. A fifteen year old Khmer kid was blown away just this past year on his front stoop. There has been a number of skirmishes not widely publicized outside of the community.

Here in Boston, some of the Asian Kids are being recruited, or emulating the Crips and the Bloods, wearing the respective colors of blue and red. Last year, at the Latin School (Boston's most prestigous high school) Asian Night cultural performances that was organized by some of my kids, several youth were beatened up and one stabbed seriously for wearing the wrong colors. There was a retaliation after that. In Allston/Brighton an Asian Kid wearing blue was seriously "dinked" by baseball bats by a group wearing red. Some in the red group were Asians as well. In nearby combat zone, I see southeast Asian kids, 10 - 15 at a time, sporting red. They venture into Chinatown once in awhile and tensions go way up, and there are occaisonal skirmishes.

Generally speaking, if you have a "gang" prescence in your dojo, it'll be more than one kid. Gangs are territorial (except in schools where they fight it out constantly). One gang will not let members of another gang onto their turf. Look for some conformity in dress, colors, hairstyles, tattoos, use of "signs". If see this, you would do well to investigate further. You can help kids who are not in "deep" yet to think it through. If they're in too deep, you may want to ask them to leave the dojo. To not do so is to risk other dojo members becoming possible, inadvertant recipients of stray bullets from a drive-by or a badly aimed "hit".

Sorry, this is the reality out there.

david

Bill,

You and I must have posted at the same time. We see a different reality, each valid for the life experiences we have and the circles we travel. I totally agree with you that any kid is worth the effort of saving.

J.D.

>>Gangs: unfortunately, despite some "true" gang urban legends, this is a potential problem. Senseis need to take the responsibility to screen
their students.

We agree this is a potential problem and should be screen for. Being aware and taking precaution are the main points here. As far as discerning what is "true" and what is "legend", I'll leave it to those who know me and what I do to decide.

david

JD- you're right about the "urban legend" of the lsd on stickers. Check out "the Choking Doberman" "and other urban legends" from your library. A college professor from the mid west wrote this interesting book. I believe there is a chapter on the lsd stickers in there.

VTY
Kevin

Obviously there are two discussions going on here.

I think there is a difference between what is theoretically possible (delivery system for LSD) and what is prevalent. It is indeed theoretically possible to have a significant dose of LSD on a lickable. However this takes a whole lot of work. Most folks who are into preparing lysergic acid for recreational consumption aren't concerned with packaging and marketing. The little dab on the blotter paper is probably still the most common delivery method.

I think the reason this gentleman was entertaining the idea of LSD being on a postage stamp was because there are some people in confined places (i.e.jail) who need to find creative ways to continue to engage in illegal activities. There are a few smart people in prison and they have nothing but time on their hands. The issue was whether or not it would be possible to get enough on the back of a postage stamp (sent in a letter to the prisoner) to get high. It IS possible, and I have seen documentaries on TV (wow, it must be true!!) about the creative ways to deliver this chemical.

By the way, organic chemistry was one of my favorite subjects in undergraduate. I subsequently spent two years as a chemist before going back to school to become a biomedical researcher. My fascination is strictly intellectual (and I have J.D.'s editor bound and gagged!!)

On the "gang" side of things....I have found that a good "process" in the dojo takes care of most problems. I've always made it a point to have lots of requirements to master and several tests to pass satisfactorily before anyone ever gets a chance to spar in class. I find that this process works well to discourage those that have shallow goals in life. Virtually all with bad intent either quit or change.

I also know that I've been insulated from a LOT of big-city problems. By design, I teach where I expect reasonably responsible people to congregate.

Bill,

You wrote - "I've always made it a point to have lots of requirements to master and several tests to pass satisfactorily before anyone ever gets a chance to spar in class."

Could you elaborate? Are these the "normal" requirements for rank advancement or do you have more esoteric things in store for the minnows?

Moe

This varies a little from one of my dojo to the next. But these are the standard requirements that one must have SUCCESSFULLY tested for AT LEAST ONCE before being allowed to spar.

* Hojoundo (all)

* 4 of the 12 hojoundo bunkai (home-grown routines)

* Sanchin

* Kanshiwa

* Kanshiwa bunkai (tested twice)

* Kyu kumite

* Kotekitae

* Rolls and falls

* Questions (the standard Uechi stuff)

As you can see, the person has a number of opportunities to learn technique, use this technique with a partner, and develop the body so that sparring will be safe for both that individual and the person they work with.

Built into the bunkai and kumite is my expectation for how a fellow training partner is to be treated. My standards for bunkai and prearranged kumite are rigorous and completely in line with what I expect for sparring. In other words I expect light contact with partial extention of striking limb to the body, and no contact with exact placement of technique and partial extention for the head shots. In addition, I expect the person to demonstrate complete control of the partner before executing the final technique in each of the 5 kyu kumite sequences.

This is just an amplification of the standard. And it is done with sparring in mind. The extent and manner in which I demand that the standard be met is what causes the malcontents and near-do-wells to reconsider using me as a means to their own illegitimate ends.

Hope this helps.

Bill