This thread is somewhat related to my research of internal martial arts.
As a disclaimer, I don't believe in chi as a magical force, and I acknowledge that a lot of demonstrations are trickery. I just watched the national geographic special on "testing qigong" and it was an obvious fraud. A Shaolin monk's assistant struck his abdomen using a physics sensor bat, while the monk employed iron shirt qigong. The assistant not only struck the monk at far less than the force he did a crash test dummy, but in slow motion he very obviously "pulled" his strike.
On to the meridian, pressure point, and "dim mak" striking. I have experienced meridian striking against myself firsthand, as a skeptic. I would swear that a strike on the right side of my body cause pain inside my body on the left. Magic aside, we might try to explain this with nerves that carry an electric pulse from point A to point B.
OK, so let's say there is something to this. And let's say that a practicioner looks at one of the many availbe meridian diagrams, and decides to pressure point strike his buddy to see what happens. According to kung fu folklore, these could cause disruptions in the internal organs. Further according to the same stories, a properly trained master could massage certain pressure points to prevent long term damage and help the person recover.
I would love to hear from someone who practices such techniques. At one time I thought I would buy Erle Montaigue's book "Encyclopedia of Dim Mak" so that I might get a good study of the meridians. Then I watched his tai chi videos, and I hate to talk bad about someone who as passed, but he did not instill in me a sense of confidence.
So do you believe that a properly aligned and placed strike will be more effective for hitting a dim mak point? If so, what has your practical experience been? What do you say of the supposed TCM medical oversight required to recover from such strikes?