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“Repetition is the mother to success” is just another cliché to all you pencil neck geeks out there.  But to surly cauliflower ear’d, muscle headed grapplers it’s the key to their martial future.

In order to be a good grappler, your body needs to be in tune with your reflexes.  One of the tools to keep this aspect in order is doing drills.  Drilling helps build up the muscle memory needed to slap on a submission, sweep, takedown or throw.  When fatigue sets in or if you’re just not feeling on your game, your body will react before you’re conscious of its movements, IF your muscle memory is tight.  The problem is finding the time to get repetitions in.  When most people go to the gym and the sparring begins, aspirations of  calm, disciplined drilling goes out the window.  If your coach doesn’t take the time to address drilling, it’s your responsibility to do so in order to sharpen your grappling ability.  If you can find a partner to drill with, you should utilize open mat time to work on the various holes in your game, but there are some worth while drills that you can do on your own with the right equipment.

Here is one drill that you can do without a partner, to help improve your takedowns.

Steps

1.  Pull cords up and towards yourself
2.  Your back leg steps in
3.  Bring your other leg to your leg that stepped in making an X

Your arm goes under the cord, continue pulling the cord and keep it griped between your for arm and bicep, bend your knees a little bit, drop your hips and twist into the throw.  Your Feet should be shoulder width apart when your finished.

It seems that President Obama’s intended Back-to School speech has caused a bit of an uproar across the nation.  All of this, taking place prior to the speech’s Tuesday morning delivery.  Parent’s are concerned that the speech will somehow indoctrinate their children in “socialist” values.  In response, many school districts have offered parents an opportunity to “opt out” of the speech for their children.  This proves yet another disappointing millstone for the neck of America’s future.  It is perhaps sophomoric even to mention that a staunch aversion to opposing viewpoints leaves little hope for ever arriving at a sound understanding of one’s own beliefs.  I digress.

I am inclined to believe that all politicians are silver tongued devils.  Democrat.  Republican.  The differences are superficial.  I did not vote for President Obama, and  I don’t tend to agree with his economic strategies or his social policies…but I have no problem whatsoever with his speech.  Upon reading the transcript, I found not one thing, even linguistically contrived, to be concerned about.  There is no underlying “socialist” agenda to promoting hard work, accountability and education.  From start to finish, it could just as easily be delivered by Ronald Regan.  It begs to question whether the objectors read it;  or if they can read at all.  If they had (or could) they would fine the speech is very conservative in nature, because it promotes personal accountability for one’s own actions and responsibility for one’s own success.  Whether the president will hold individuals to that at the end of the day, remains to be seen.  I say, “bravo!” I am personally inspired.

Here is a link to the Full Text of the intended speech.

A note:  Politics are such a bore to me, but I may, from time to time, feel the need to mention something in their regard.  I have little intention of creating an arena for insular sword-and-buckling.  If you would like to have an inane dual of the political minds, please do it elsewhere.  I believe with much fervor, in our First Amendment rights, and if you are so inclined, I urge you to start a blog where you are most free to exercise them.  For the sake of those who prefer to reflect on things worthwhile, on this particular matter, they will not be entertained here.

While it might not technically be vegan, I’d be willing to give it the old “ominus dominus.”  Though some will surely disagree, my issue with consuming animal products is based in the practices of the meat and dairy industries in America and other developed countries; factory farming, in particular.  It is their irreverence for life and unnecessary cruelty that are the problem.  I do not believe for a second that all people everywhere should abstain from animal based diets.  Veganism is a luxury that we have while living in a consumer driven country.  Many people throughout the world do not have that luxury.

What I challenge all vegans to consider, is that eating vegan is not always the most responsible dietary choice.  Consider this story I heard from my friend Krissi Green.  Her friends were in Hawaii on vacation.  At one point they were out to lunch at a local restaurant.  The man, whose name I can’t recall orders the mahi mahi and his wife orders a tofu dish.  Which is the more responsible choice?  The mahi was caught wild that day, by a local fisherman with one boat.  The tofu started as soybeans grown in Iowa.  During the process, the soil was tilled and fertilized, seeds were planted, crops were irrigated, harvested, shipped, processed, packaged in plastic, shipped again and only then does it arrive at the restaurant.  Which meal required the lives of more animals, directly or indirectly?  Which meal had a more profound affect on the source ecosystem?

I have been vegan for a very long time and I feel there is merit to maintaining that diet, however we seem to overlook the overwhelming negative affects that our agricultural practices have on the environment and human and non-human animals.  Would the worldwide acceptance of a vegan diet be any more sustainable than the current omnivorous one?  I think there is a strong argument to be made, that hunting or fishing for the meat that you eat and growing your own vegetables would, over a lifetime, lead to less unnecessary suffering than 90% of the diets vegans maintain today.  I know this is idealistic, and I am not trying to convert vegans to meat eaters.  I am only trying to promote real pragmatic thought about the goals you hope to achieve and whether those goals can or even should be met by your current diet.  When it is all said and done, eat responsibly and with intent.

As far as eating people…I don’t recommend it, but I guess if you kill them with your bare hands, it’s vegan.