In another thread people kept saying "fighting is easy" and then went on to justify TCMA practice as different and somehow better. This bothers me.

If fighting were easy, and TCMA practitioners can discount it as such, then you'd expect to see amazing TCMA fighters. But you don't. They're alluded to in mysterious ways, but you never see them. You could say that the masters feel no reason to boast, so you won't see them, but if it were easy like they say, then you'd at least see some brash todai out there kicking arse and taking names... but you don't.

Fighting isn't easy - if it was, then you wouldn't have TCMA or MA. Fighting's not easy and you have to know, understand, and breathe this thought if you want to truly understand your art. Fighting is hard, fighting is difficult, mastery of fighting is nearly impossible, but it's what you should be striving for if you want to be a master.