Question 099: Certificate mills

Reader Point: I agree I am offended also when others "learn via video" and test while the rest of us worked hard to achieve our rank, however for those of us who worked very hard since a rank was initially given in person (with me: I worked very hard as in fighting competitively for 9 yrs(regionally/nationally), taught for seven yrs, had my arm broken once and nose broken 8 times in tournaments and was a Third dan/teacher/competitor for 7 yrs "since I got my 3rd dan in person". Getting a higher rank through correspondence was more than deserved and that took another 2 yrs to get after 5 yrs of trying! There are many others who have that same story and or got there higher ranks based upon the industry standard of "TIME in GRADE"!

TKDTutor response: A black belt is no longer a lofty, highly respected, and difficult to achieve rank that was awarded to a person with a warrior spirit who had the capability and willingness to perform as a warrior if required; it is now just another rank awarded for attendance, school loyalty, and a fee. At one time, if a person was attacked, they wished a black belt was near because they knew the black belt was a warrior and would defend them. Now a black belt may be a child or other person who does not have the mental, emotional, or physical ability or the will to perform as a warrior. At best, you could only hope the black belt would call 911.

I am busy all day every day programming martial art software, maintaining TKDTutor.com, training in TKD, teaching TKD, and answering emails, so I have to allot my time between it all. A few years ago, I wrote about problems with specific organizations, but people are loyal to their instructors and organizations and do not let logic, reason, and facts get in the way of their beliefs. As a result, I spent too much time answering their irate emails. Therefore, I stopped criticizing specific organizations and kept my writings generic, letting the readers make their own decisions.
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