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• Doctors and professors. Doctorate degrees are awarded by accredited universities to students have met all the requirements for the degree. A honorary doctorate is just that—honorary—it is meaningless in the academic world. Doctorate degrees may be obtained over the Internet for a fee without ever entering a university classroom. If the degree is not from a recognized, accredited university, it is useless. Professors are college or university teachers who, through years of teaching and published independent research, have earn the coveted position of professor. To maintain this position, they must continue to be published researchers.

  Many pseudo-masters claim to hold doctorates and professorships, but, with a little investigation, you will find the degrees are frauds or honorary and that the professor title is also self-appointed or awarded by an illegitimate organization. Some claim an honorary doctorate from a fraudulent college (you must be a rotten master if you can only claim a honorary degree from a diploma mill).

  Some pseudo-masters have real doctorates, but this does not make them less a fraud. Being a expert in one thing does not make you an expert at something else. There are many doctorate holders who are in prison for fraud. Being a doctorate does not mean you are any wiser than an ordinary person. There were doctorates among the thousands of people who drank poisoned Kool-Aid in the Jim Jones cult in Guiana in the 1970s.

  Some Internet martial art organizations bestow PhDs and the title professor based upon "life experience" or "work experience." If a person has been a martial arts instructor for many years and is a soke (often bestowed by the same organization), they qualify for an advanced degree or a sokeship.  It is no wonder that these organizations are not accredited by any nationally recognized accreditation agency. If life experience entitles you to a PhD, then I deserve a PhD for having to deal with idiots. There are hundreds of public school teachers with BA or MA degrees who have taught school for 30 or more years, often winning awards for teaching. Why are they not awarded PhDs or professorships because of their work experience? What makes a police officer who is a part-time martial arts instructor so special that he or she deserves to be called a soke or professor of the martial arts? Why do they not seek a PhD for work experience from a national police organization? (One reason is because they would be the laughing stock of their precinct)

• Consult doctor. Many pseudo-masters suggest that students consult a doctor before following their advice. Since they know most people probably will not consult with their doctor, this disclaimer protects the pseudo-masters from legal responsibility for any dangerous tactics since they told you consult a doctor.

• Your fault. Sometimes the pseudo-masters will say, "You may have come to me too late, but I will try my best to help you." That way, if you fail, you have only yourself to blame. For students who see the light and quit the training,  pseudo-masters the failure on their stopping training too soon.

• Cultural association. Some pseudo-masters ally themselves with religious or other cultural beliefs by associating their art with some prejudice in their target audience.

• Create governing organizations. Pseudo-masters not only create their own martial arts but also create "world" organizations that recognize themselves as legitimate masters, as well as other pseudo-masters. By uniting in this effort, pseudo-masters will be able to claim high ranks in numerous martial arts and have the "certificates" to prove it.

• Handling the opposition. Pseudo-masters are involved in a constant struggle with traditional martial arts. To maintain their credibility, they use a variety of clever propaganda ploys. Here are some favorites:

  • Resistance. The history of martial arts is laced with instances where great pioneers and their arts were met with resistance. Today's pseudo-masters boldly assert that they are another example of people ahead of their time, and, as such, they are persecuted and condemned by tradition martial art masters. However, close examination shows how unlikely this is. First of all, the early pioneers who were persecuted for their arts lived during times that were much less scientific. In some cases, opposition to their ideas stemmed from religious beliefs that rejected anything not associated with the church. Secondly, a basic principle of the scientific method is that the burden of proof belongs to the claimant. The early martial arts pioneers overcame their opposition because the soundness of their techniques and ideas could be proved.

  • Conspiracy. Pseudo-masters claim that mainstream martial arts organizations are involved in some secret conspiracy to discredit their efforts. They claim that these organizations are trying to suppress their ideas because they are so revolutionary.

  • Conflict. Pseudo-masters poses their opposition to traditional martial arts as a "philosophical conflict" or "paradigm shift," rather than a clash between proven versus unproven or fraudulent techniques and philosophies. This creates the illusion of a "holy war" rather than a conflict that could be resolved by examining the facts. Another diversionary tactic is to charge that critics are biased or have been brainwashed by mainstream martial arts organizations.

  • Science. Pseudo-masters like to charge that, "Science doesn't have all the answers." That may be true, but science does not claim to have all the answers. Rather, science is a rational and responsible process that can answer many questions, including whether techniques are safe and effective for their intended purpose. Pseudo-masters are the ones that constantly claim to have all the answers. Science may not have all the answers, but pseudo-masters have no answers at all!

  • Mistakes. Many techniques advanced by traditional martial arts have later been shown to be unsafe or worthless. Everyone makes mistakes. Such failures become grist for pseudo-masters in their ongoing attacks on traditional arts. Actually, "failures" reflect a key element of the growth of martial arts: the willingness to test its methods and beliefs and abandon those shown to be invalid. True masters have no philosophical commitment to particular techniques, only a commitment to develop and use techniques that are safe and effective. When a pseudo-masters techniques flunks an effectiveness test, he or she merely rejects the test.

  • Misdirection. Misdirection is what magicians use to shift the audience's attention away from what is important so as to deceive them. When faced with a criticism they cannot meet head on, pseudo-masters simply change the subject or attack the critic in an effort to direct attention away from themselves, much as the way politicians do.

Reference

• Quackwatch. [Online]. Available: http://quackwatch.org

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