I was trawling through YouTube the other day, and as usual I ended up watching some Aikido clips.
Via the “related video’s” link I stumbled across this clip, featuring Steven Seagal. Now I realize that this is “only a movie” and therefore not real, and that Seagal is only acting a role, but how on earth can someone who is probably the most famous practitioner of Aikido in the world today (and therefore to the majority of people their only impression of what “Aikido is”) make a scene like this?
Seagal is a big enough star to be able to have some level of input into what kind of material he will or won’t do. Surely one of the fundamental aspects of aikido is that we have built into our system ethical options, not just “hit first, ask questions later”, so to make a scene with this level of unecessary violence is contrary to everything that Aikido stands for.
Have a look and please make comment. Am I being over-sensitive here or has Seagal forgotten that Aikido means The Way of Harmony?
Advanced warning – this scene contains a lot of bad language and violence.
www.aikido4beginners.co.uk