The Japanese terms Budo (martial way) and Bujutsu. (martial science) are differing ways to view a martial art. Martial art styles based in the martial way focus more on the development of moral character. In contrast, martial art styles based in martial science focus on the functional value of an art as a method of combat. It is difficult to sell the parents of a prospective student on the claim that their child will be learning one of the most effective scientific fighting methods in the world. However, is easy to sell them on premise that the child will be learning "self-discipline," "self-confidence," "courtesy," etc. as well as getting lots of exercise.

Many people say Taekwondo is just a sport and is useless on the street. They say that the best self-defense style is grappling, as popularized in Brazilian Jujitsu seen in Ultimate Fighting Championship matches. Other mixed martial arts claim to be the best for the street. But is there one "best" art for the street.

For the sake of this discussion, "street" refers self-defense situations that common people may have face on the street, not street fighting or other supposedly no-holds-barred (NHB) fighting. In NHB fighting, there are written rules that help prevent serious injury, such as no eye gouging, biting, or weapons. In street fighting, there are also rules, unwritten, but still strictly enforced. Street fighters like to street fight, so they have to have rules to prevent serious injury so they may keep street fighting.

So is grappling the best self-defense style for the street?

• What does a grappler do when attacked on stairs or on a subway or in knee deep snow or on a crowed street?

• What about an attacker with a knife or other concealed weapon? A person in a submission hold may not have an empty hand way of getting out of the hold, but a knife in the kidney will end the hold, and the holder. Thugs do not walk around with just one weapon. You may control the arm with the gun, but the other arm may pull a knife.

• When dragged into a broken glass filled alley, do you want to grapple on the ground?

• Do you want to get into a test of strength with an attacker who is high on psychoactive drugs.

• What does the grappler do when the attacker has a friend? Do you want to be on the ground holding an attacker, when a friend comes to his or her aid? While you are holding down one attacker, what will the other attacker be doing with your spouse?

• An attacker may not be able to escape from your hold-down, but he or she will bite and spit.

• If you are a law enforcement officer, do you want to grapple with a suspect and give him or her an opportunity to grab your firearm or other weapon.

Karate and its Korean counterpart, Taekwondo, were developed as a civil system of fighting. They were never intended to be used on a battlefield or in competition. In their truest forms, they did not include ground fighting. Patterns contain locks, arm bars, chokes, etc. but no ground fighting. Why? Was it a mistake, or was it intentional?

When the civilians designed the original techniques, the techniques were for use against violent and unprovoked attacks. There were no sparring competition techniques and, since there were no attackers that were planning to grapple with you, ground fighting was not needed. In a self-defense situation, you goal is not to win, but to safely protect yourself and escape.

Most modern ground fighting techniques were derived from competition fights. Even Judo, which was designed as a sport, did not originally have ground fighting techniques. In 1882, Jigero Kano founded Judo. It was based upon the Tenshin-Shinyo-ryu and Kito-ryu systems of Jujitsu that were well known for their striking techniques and throws. These were battlefield arts that were designed by samurais who would probably be decapitated by another opponent if they remained on the ground very long while on the battlefield. In 1900, Kano arranged a competition against a Fusen-ryu-Jujitsu school. In a strategy developed to confuse the Judo fighters, the Fusen-ryu fighters fell to the floor when the matches started. The confused Judo fighters joined them on the floor and were quickly overcome by the locks and chokes of the Fusen-ryu fighters, bringing the first losses for the Judo fighters in eight years. To help regain Judo's superiority in competition, Kano added ground fighting.

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