I love this paragraph taken from
http://www.northernwu.com/

General Information

It is frequently observed by practitioners of "hard" martial arts such as Taekwondo or Karate that Taijiquan is ineffective as a fighting art . As it is generally taught and practiced today in the West it must be conceded that this is indeed so. As with any martial art, the fault lies not in the substance of the style but rather with the lack of combat realism employed in training methods. The rationale of any kind of training is that one will become skilled at what one practices. If the emphasis in training is on kata, then one will develop skill in form work. if the focus is on fixed-step push-hands, then that is the skill that will emerge after long training. If you break many bricks, you will become a great brick breaker. Nonetheless, there are those who believe that by simply persisting in the practice of solo forms in Taijiquan, over time will come high skill in employing the concepts and techniques of Taijiquan in practical application. Vague and mystical references are made to "internal energy" and "chi"; the lack of any combat realism in training is excused on the basis of Taijiquan's supposed superiority as an "internal" art, and it is claimed that by simply practicing the soft solo exercise, "extreme hardness" will develop. This sort of faith may be admirable but it is quite unrealistic. More importantly, it is based on a faulty premise. In reality, Taijiquan is rarely taught in the West as a fighting art or as an internal art.


Yeah,
"O"