What’s in a name?

There are those who argue against too many dojo, associations, world or international. That anyone outside of Okinawa or Japan should be remonstrated for naming their dojo or association by an asian name. Are we to believe that “one size fits all”?
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It isn’t a style or the name of a group that’s important. It’s the people we train with. The word ‘association’ can be defined as; “a group of people organized for a joint purpose.” That sits well with me!
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Marketing and the spread of dojo and associations, has effected the number of people practicing. What began as the interest of a select group of culturally inclined or militarily trained individuals, has evolved into a field that has attracted hundreds of thousands of practitioners. Could this have happened without the new associations or schools?
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Cezar Borkowski 9th degree black belt and founder of Northern Karate Schools stated that; “Over the last 30 years I have personally witnessed the provincial government of Okinawa getting into the karate business’. They changed the direction, but also greatly supported and popularized this beautiful art. You have to give and take.”
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Today there is so much information available to us, more so than ever before. We have sports science, detailed medical and technical information, we can travel to train with almost anyone that will accept us.
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Just because somebody comes from a certain lineage or association does not mean he or she is a good teacher, or has certain skills. What about the guys who don’t have this lineage? Are they bad teachers? Are they lesser martial artists? No….. What matters is the skills and methodology the instructor, or instructors, use to teach. Not the association, group or dojo they belong to.
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By being part of an association or group of like minded individuals, this knowledge and information can go further, move forward and not stagnate in the past. The draconian nature of some dojo or associations can really stifle progress.
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Choice is good. Having more choice is associated with more positive student learning, friendships and improvement, than having limited or no choice.
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There are some really good associations and schools out there that are not based in Okinawa or Japan, that teach for free, are non-political and teach high quality martial arts.….. and some of those have asian sounding names…. Get over it! 
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