Busted Martial Artists

[Wildwoo]

Just because someone is accused of something it does not make them guilty.
Now if this man is acquitted you all have helped further damage his reputation for a crime he may or may not have commited.

[mickey]

Hi Wildwoo,

Who are you referring to in "you"?

mickey

[Wildwoo]

You started smoking early today

[mickey]

Okay Wildwoo,

You got me.

By the way, if you checked out that second paragraph in the link I posted, you'll find it contradictory.

mickey

[cerebus]

Just because someone is accused of something it does not make them guilty.
Now if this man is acquitted you all have helped further damage his reputation for a crime he may or may not have commited.

How so? Not saying he's guilty. In fact, I'm surprised that he was even accused of such a thing. Many people certainly are accused of things they didn't do. I for one hope he's innocent, and if he is I hope he's proven to be so.

[mickey]

Greetings,

More on Frank DeMaria: Unofficial

http://curiositycat.wordpress.com/2011/01/20/sad-news/



mickey

[GeneChing]

Double Wushu-sanda world and European champion, former head coach of Azerbaijani national team wanted

[ 14 Jan 2011 13:49 ]

Baku – APA. Double Wushu-sanda world and European champion, former head coach of Azerbaijani national team Janpolad Budagov is wanted, Nasimi District Police Department told APA.

According to the information, Budagov is charged under the article #221.1 (hooliganism). He is accused in committing hooliganism last year, and the criminal case was launched on him. As Budagov is not in Azerbaijan, the court issued warrant. He is reported to be in Russia.

Canpolad Veli Budagov was born in Georgia in 1971. He was double world and European champion of wushu-sanda and head coach of Azerbaijan national team. Budagov was charged in drug preparation and use sentenced for two years in 2007. He was released from the prison in 2009.

wushuhooligan. I love the sound of that.

[David Jamieson]

wushuhooligan. I love the sound of that.

I think it's wushuligan isn't it?

[GeneChing]

Indeed, you must be right, DJ.

Enter the Wushooligans!

[curiositycat]

Greetings,

More on Frank DeMaria: Unofficial

http://curiositycat.wordpress.com/2011/01/20/sad-news/



mickey

Hi--I'm new here, and the author of the blog posted above. This is a great forum, by the way--my sons & family study at The Peaceful Dragon in Charlotte, NC, under Eric Sbarge who studied under Frank DeMaria. My oldest son has studied there for five years, and the rest of us began studying during the past year.

I just wanted to chime in and say that I'm moved that so many people care so much about the situation with DeMaria. The martial arts community is such a thoughtful, committed group of people and the dialog on this situation has been deep, moving, and civil at all points.

I also want to say that I appreciate all the traffic the above link created to my blog, but that I am not an expert and don't have any sort of insider information on the subject. I have only met DeMaria twice and I doubt he would even know my name. I know only what's in the news and what we've been told by the Sbarge family who are, needless to say, quite torn up about everything (but handling it with admirable poise, sensitivity, and wisdom). My blog was never intended to be a forum or distributor of information for this type of topic and as such, I will probably eventually remove the post linked to above (I have already posted an update explaining essentially the same things I am explaining here).

But I wanted to take the time first to introduce myself to this amazing community and reiterate that I also am shocked and saddened by this turn of events. Whatever the truth is, no matter how you look at it, it is a tragedy. I admire the ability of this community to hold the events in your hearts and minds without immediate judgment, your willingness to wait and see what the outcome, what the truth is. I don't know the truth, and I will await new information and the revelations that time will bring right along with you all.

[TenTigers]

hmmm, looks to me like you are weilding a double-edged sword.
On one hand you seem to defend him, yet in the same breath, you bring up allegations. I'm sorry, but it looks like a veiled attack on him-especially when you just "show up" with your first post.

[ShaolinDan]

Welcome to our wonderful community.

[curiositycat]

Hi, thanks for the welcome!

No new allegations, and certainly no attack. I hope that DeMaria is innocent, and like others I am at a loss to understand the situation. It is confusing and tragic no matter how you look at it. Either some people have seriously misunderstood (or maliciously attacked) and ruined a good man's reputation, or worse, the allegations are true. I am choosing, on a personal level, to believe he is innocent. But I have no insider information.

Without getting into too much depth, it is hard to explain my angle on this and why I have a particular interest. But in short, it has to do with an overarching sense that our country has come to a point where we are so afraid of everything--of getting hurt, of losing things, of anything bad ever happening to us or our children--that we've taken the zest out of life. Our children aren't allowed to climb trees or play alone in the back yard, our martial arts centers have to have lengthy waiver forms, and our coffee cups have to carry warnings about the hot liquid contained inside them. Children can't learn to use knives, and working with fire begins at the age of 18 with "safety" lighters. Men can't afford to be alone in a room with a child under the age of 18 any more, because a single accusation of impropriety from an angry child can completely ruin a person's life. Fear drives both sides--fear from parents about their children being hurt, and fear from adults lest they be accused of hurting someone. It's paralyzing.

I don't KNOW anything about the specifics of the DeMaria case, but it does not seem a far stretch to me, based on the society we live in, that someone could see a groin strike being taught and conclude that a child was being molested. I do know that as a result of the allegations, at least one martial arts school has instituted new policies regarding personal contact between instructors and young students. Many students will lose access to valuable instruction as a result, but one can hardly blame the schools for taking measures to protect themselves and, indeed, the young students.

I hope and believe that DeMaria is innocent. But I am also aware of the very real possibility that he may not be--unfortunately, true sexual predators sometimes appear for many years to be among the most upstanding citizens. So if it sounds like I'm wielding a double-edged sword, it is not because I wish to cut anyone. It's because I don't know the truth here and for now I have to be content with the knowledge that I can't and won't know the truth and until I do, I'm simply going to believe that the man whose image I and my children have bowed to regularly for five years, and whose student is our kung fu master, is an innocent man.

The reason I decided to post here is that I do not want my blog to be a central forum for this discussion. These boards are a much better place for that. All the allegations I mentioned in my post are already covered in news stories mentioned in this thread, so there is absolutely NO new information in my blog. Just the outpourings of my own heartbroken confusion.

I hope that helps to clarify things. I am genuinely glad to have found this community--too many people in the world are quick to jump on news and leap to unfair conclusions, and it seems that together this community has maintained a fair and reasonable discussion regarding all of this. That is impressive, and I will continue to frequent from time to time in hope that as news occurs--whether it's new evidence or, what I'm hoping for, steps toward DeMaria's exoneration--that I will hear about it here. Thanks for the welcome, and for letting me join you.

[mickey]

Hi curiositycat and welcome to the forum,

It was not my intention to set you up as an authority to the DeMaria situation. Your writings offered more as to the dynamics of one of the events. Though I did set up the link to your site, I felt it important to use the word "unofficial". My concern was/is the witchhunt mentality that the media has with this situation.

Regardless of the outcome, I know it has to be a very tough time for all parties involved.

mickey

[Syn7]

Indeed, you must be right, DJ.

Enter the Wushooligans!

i cant imagine being charged with hooliganism... that would p1ss me off so much... just as much as when i was charged with mischief? mischief??? wtf... thats so petty... and all because i won a fight in dramatic fashion, with extreme prejudice... so what, i didnt start it, but as soon as property got involved, that was that... michief, what a joke... i plead out on a bunch of other charges and ultimately they dropped it, but still... such a broad term, anyone can go down for mischief, guilty or not... which i was not... well, maybe a little... but i mean these guys attacked me in public, what was i gonna do? not throw them down the stairs thru a window and into the store? i remember the cop saying i shouldve just covered up and waited for help... i couldnt believe it... like thats gonna happen...