A president and a martial arts champion! How can a kid go wrong with two heroes like that?

Martial arts expert Chuck Norris has teamed up with former President H. W. Bush to promote Norris's KICKSTART program, designed to introduce the martial arts to "at risk" middle school children to raise their self-esteem. To date, KICKSTART is in 30 schools, has over 4,200 active young people, and has graduated more than 30,000 students.[i]

And Norris is not alone. Dozens of similar programs are promoting martial arts training for our youth, claiming everything from fitness, security, and family values to perfection of character, or, as one school advertises, "to improve without end." Another boasts, "The power of mind and body will become one." Chuck himself believes that "After a certain point in training, it becomes apparent that . . . Anything is possible."[ii]

But are these claims true?

There's no doubt America's youth problems are enormous. Family structure is disintegrating, moral values are in decline, drug and gang-related peer pressure is skyrocketing, negative media influence is staggering, drug use is rampant, and positive role models are scarce. In fact, some say youth violence is our most important issue. Juveniles are victimized more than any other age group. Although only one-tenth of the population, they are victims in one out of every four violent crimes.[iii]

"Among young people fifteen to twenty-four years old, murder is the second leading cause of death. For African-American youths murder is number one . . . Since 1960 teen suicide has tripled . . . . At least 160,000 children miss school every day because they fear an attack or intimidation by other students . . . One out of three girls and one out of seven boys are sexually abused by the time they reach the age of eighteen."[iv]

In addition, the culture surrounding them is saturated with violence. "[B]y the time the typical American child reaches the age of eighteen, he or she has seen 200,000 dramatized acts of violence, and 40,000 dramatized murders."[v]

Is promoting the martial arts—a disciplined form of violence—really the answer?

Chuck says: 

"There are many people in our country who would resist a KICKSTART program in their children's schools, for fear that teaching already-troubled kids how to fight with their bare hands and feet would only exacerbate the problem. Not so.

"As a black belt myself, I have firsthand experience on the positive effects that martial arts has on one's self-esteem and self-confidence. After a certain point in training, it becomes apparent that a) Anything is possible and b) There's nothing to prove to anybody but one's self.

"Grrr! to the naysayers and Self-Righteous who always seem to know better what's good for our children—without so much as giving something a shot."[vi]

A "shot"

But what about those who have given the martial arts "a shot" and still believe it's the wrong approach?

Tonie Harris Gatlin gave it much more than a "shot." She won 58 trophies in six years of competition, was a national black belt karate champion and trainer with her own school, and taught the martial arts for years to her own children and countless others. As she came to realize the destructive effects karate was having on her students though, she completely renounced it. Today she speaks openly against the martial arts and is, in fact, the subject of a book exposing its extensive problems.[vii]

Another long-time martial arts veteran, Rev. Ed Hird, the rector at St. Simon's Anglican Church in Vancouver, B.C., practiced karate for twenty years and even recruited other Christians. But Hird eventually renounced his involvement in the martial arts, too, and now warns against them. Why? Because he realized the martial arts are really Zen Buddhist meditation techniques designed to draw its participants into the Buddhist experience of  "enlightenment."[viii]

Not all inner city kids agree either that the martial arts are the way to increase self-esteem. Tonie's four children were extensively trained in karate. Two were feared gang leaders, and all faced as tough an inner city environment as any Chuck Norris might encounter. Tonie says:

"My kids remember that although nobody ever messed with our family, and they showed us a certain kind of respect, the karate also made us mean. Octavia says it kept her from being feminine and encouraged lesbian traits. Frank remembers that he and Joe were the most dangerous kids in their school and, through karate, got into situations that were bad for them. He's convinced that kids and adults both should think twice before taking any of the martial arts. Tony LaMont's shifted his focus to God. He says, "Deep down inside I really know who fights my battles daily. The Champion."[ix]

Gatlin, now a committed Christian and Bible teacher, says, “I've had my karate armor off for eight years now. I'm more confident, more powerful, have more assurance and less fears than I've ever had in my life. My sense of well being is increasing. People I know in the martial arts DO NOT have REST in their souls, nor the peace and power of God.”[x]

The wisdom and experience of these two experts is certainly enough to make one pause. Yet, if personal experience were the only basis for deciding on the value of martial arts for children, it might not be enough. Therefore, let's look at some of the major factors in today's culture that make training children in killing techniques especially dangerous. These include the powerful shaping influence of violence in the media and video games, disintegrating family structure, peer pressure, and the explosion of drug use and the occult. Such pressures can derail the best intentions of parent and child.

A Killing Culture

“Not only are (our) children hurting each other in ways that young children never did before, but they are learning every day that violence is the preferred method of settling disputes.”[xi]

“You shall not murder.” Exodus 20:13 (NIV)

Our culture has become a dangerous place for children. The martial arts aside, from early childhood up they are swamped with countless powerful, disciplined methods of learning to kill—and kill effectively—as well as forces pressuring them toward violence as a solution to problems.

Behind this growth in violence lies the compelling influence of the media.

Media violence

"Ours is a media culture careening out of control, with violence everywhere we turn,” states Lieutenant Colonel David Grossman, a West Point psychology professor and professor of military science who trains medical and health professionals how to deal with and prevent killing. He insists that the media are training our children to kill with the same techniques used by the U. S. military. His book, Teaching Our Kids to Kill, points out that the resulting culture of violence not only is brutalizing and desensitizing our children, but greatly increasing their capacity for and addiction to violence as well."[xii]

Consider these facts:

"Since 1950 there has been a total of more than 3,500 research studies conducted in America on the effects of media violence on the population. One random analysis of almost 1,000 studies found that all save only 18 (12 of those were funded by the television industry) demonstrate there is a tangible correlation between violent entertainment and violent behavior."[xiii]

"From 1960 through 1991 the U.S. population increased by 40 percent, yet violent crime increased by 500 percent; murders increased by 170 percent, rapes 520 percent, and aggravated assaults 600 percent.[xiv]

Furthermore, “Since 1982, television violence has increased 780 percent and in that same time period teachers have reported a nearly 800 percent increase of aggressive acts on the playground.”[xv]

If there was any lingering doubt, in 1998 UNESCO released “Children and Media Violence: A Yearbook from the International Clearinghouse on Children and Violence on the Screen.” This study confirmed the conclusions of all previous studies that the direct effect of such media violence is to desensitize children to violence and to brutalize them.

This is a four-hundred-page book describing worldwide studies of media violence, including the largest study ever conducted, which surveyed five thousand twelve-year-olds in twenty-three countries, and it thoroughly and irrevocably supported what studies for the last four decades have been literally screaming at the world and the entertainment industry. How much clearer can it possibly get?[xvi] [Italics by author.]

Three basic negative effects from exposure to screen violence were found: (1) increased aggression, (2) fear, and (3) insensitivity to real life and screen violence, with increased aggression being the most direct effect. Furthermore, violence is addictive, with the need for it increasing at each step. Children "undergo a systematic conditioning process that alters their cognitive, emotional, and social development in such ways as to embed in them a desire and/or conditioned reflex to act out violently without remorse."[xvii]

Let’s face it—despite all the screams of protest, media violence continues to escalate. And a large part of the billion-dollar industry directed at children involves the martial arts.

"In American culture, toddlers as young as eighteen months begin with TV programs, especially designed for them, that contain twice as much violence as adult prime-time viewing. By preschool age, the child is inundated with tangible reinforcers of screen violence . . . action-figure toys, clothing, coloring books..."[xviii]

Within twenty years of the release of Bruce Lee's first film, Enter the Dragon, it grossed $150 million and spearheaded a worldwide martial arts wave that is still gaining momentum. Other blockbuster hits quickly followed, along with TV shows and DVDs, comic books, Web sites, kids' martial arts clubs, games, action figures, jewelry, charms, uniforms, and other paraphernalia designed to attract children to the martial arts. Toys include the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and the Mighty Morphin Power Ranger dolls.[xix] Karate Angels dolls set a sales record in 2002.

Media violence in itself is alarming enough. But the entertainment industry also supplies hands-on training in violence through video games. And approximately 49 percent of young teens prefer violent games.[xx]

Video Games

"Children's long-term exposure to violent television and movies makes them easy bait for the conditioning effects of violent video games, the next stage of the process."[xxi]

Video games offer a whole new level of involvement—hands-on training using computerized killing simulators often indistinguishable from those used by the police and military. And these are growing continually more realistic and horrible. For instance, gamers can now scan pictures of fellow students and teachers from a high school yearbook and "morph" them onto the faces of the people they kill. Another game, Postal, "gives points for killing as many innocent victims as possible while they beg for mercy."[xxii],[xxiii] A recent trip to Costco revealed such military killing games mixed together with gentle cartoon games for tots.

And this is no small industry. Annual global video game revenues are now approximately $18 billion, with $10 billion of that spent in the United States.[xxiv]

Grossman contends that such continuous violent imagery breaks down the "violence immune system" and that a “fixation with violent on-screen images can alter the brain’s alert system, causing more hyperactivity and impulsive behaviors.”[xxv] Recent studies have shown that the prefrontal cortex in violent or aggressive people has decreased activity, which can lead to a short fuse.[xxvi],[xxvii],[xxviii] 

The child who spends hours repetitively shooting, maiming, and killing becomes conditioned to react the same way whether danger is real or perceived. Would it be so surprising then for such children to rely instinctively upon martial arts techniques when dealing with problems?

This is one of the real dangers of martial arts training in our culture: The conditioned reflexes to kill may already be forming long before the martial arts training is received.

Just how big is the martial arts market? It’s huge.

"According to data from New York City-based research firm Simmons Market Research, an estimated 18.1 million Americans participated in karate or some other form of martial art at least once in the past year. Included in that estimate are 9.4 million adults, 5.5 million teenagers and 3.2 million kids."[xxix]

By 1993, almost half the martial arts market (40 percent) consisted of children between the ages of seven and fourteen.[xxx] By 2002, "a quarter of all teenage boys—and almost as many (22 percent) teen girls—say they have participated in martial arts in the past year," while "an estimated 13 percent of children ages 6 to 11 have participated in some kind of martial arts activity in the past year" [i.e., 2002].[xxxi]

Other social factors

In addition to the powerful conditioning effects of the media and video games, there are other factors that contribute to conditioning violence. These include physical and sexual abuse, domestic and community violence, peer pressure,[xxxii] and traumatic events. The widespread breakdown of stable family life adds to children’s vulnerability.

Research shows that "abused children watch more television than other children do, prefer violent programs, and appear to admire violent heroes. Children who are both abused and watchers of a great deal of television are most likely to commit violent crimes later in life."[xxxiii]

How helpful would it be for such children to "raise their self-esteem" through training in the deadly killing techniques of the martial arts?

Some would say that, in a culture with such powerful, escalating, and out-of-control violence, the only solution is to learn a martial art for self-defense. But the obvious lesson is that children lack the necessary self-control and wisdom to handle their own violent impulses. When given such a powerful tool of destruction, many use it. That’s what Tonie discovered teaching karate in a Christian high school, and why she quit.

“Some of the kids were bullies, and their parents thought that karate was teaching them discipline. Instead even more violence was being sown in their children’s souls. Many of them were getting into trouble in the halls, using the things I was teaching them on each other. I saw their attitudes changing for the worse. I saw them bowing down to me when they should have been bowing down to the Lord alone.”[xxxiv]

Drugs and alcohol

Another major influence on youth that decreases self-control and can escalate violent behavior is substance abuse. Mixed with the martial arts, the combination can be deadly.

Illegal drugs and alcohol are widely available in many communities and schools, and many youth regularly experiment with or use them. In fact, nearly two-thirds of all youth in America try an illegal drug before they finish high school, and a recent study reports a trend toward more acceptance of drugs among them.[xxxv],[xxxvi]

Teens who report using violence are also very likely to report drug use. However, studies are not conclusive that using drugs causes violence; rather, they are part of an overall antisocial lifestyle.[xxxvii] In any case, the influence of substance abuse on youthful self-control is very strong.

One mental health worker who has worked in a psychiatric crisis unit for over 12 years shared how dangerous it is trying to handle patients who know the martial arts. Their severe psychiatric and substance abuse problems and lack of control create extraordinary dangers.

The meth craze.

Another ominous development is the growing methamphetamine craze.

Attorney General Alberto Gonzales recently called meth the greatest drug danger for America's youth.[xxxviii] And many of America’s lawmen agree.

Almost 300 county sheriffs and 200 county child welfare officials in 45 states said in a recent survey that meth abuse is their counties’ biggest drug problem. Many also call it the country's leading drug-related local law enforcement problem, for violence often goes hand in hand with meth, as well as child abuse and neglect.[xxxix]

Widespread substance abuse and lack of self-control make youth especially vulnerable to the desensitizing and brutalizing effects of violence

But there’s yet another factor that makes training in the martial arts dangerous.

"Martial Yoga"

"In the United States and in Great Britain, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince sold 9 million copies in the first 24 hours after going on sale July 16. That makes the sixth book in the series the fastest-selling book of any kind ever..."[xl]

"Let no one be found among you who sacrifices his son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead. Anyone who does these things is detestable to the Lord . . . You must be blameless before the Lord your God." (Deuteronomy 19:10-13, NIV).

Ed Hird and Tonie Gatlin found that just studying the physical techniques of the martial arts can open the door to the occult whether it is promoted openly or not.[xli] 

Hird points out that the martial arts are essentially martial yoga and that few Westerners have enough experience with Zen Buddhism to notice their hidden religious nature. One of the goals of Taekwondo and other martial arts, he says, is to enter a zazen meditational state so that “the everyday experience of the dualism of subject and object vanishes.”[xlii]

Martial arts expert Chuck Norris, famous for his role as Walker on the TV show Walker, Texas Ranger, confirms this in his book, The Secret Power Within, where he states, "The ancient system of Zen (is) the core philosophy behind the martial arts." In fact, Norris's book reveals that his "secret power" is Zen Buddhism. In it, "Chuck Norris explains how the ancient system of Zen—the core philosophy behind the martial arts—can help each of us achieve spiritual tranquility and real self-confidence."[xliii]

Occult influences are historically part of the martial arts and continue today.

As they have evolved over approximately three thousand years in numerous cultures, these warfare arts were based on Eastern religious meditation techniques intimately interwoven with the religious systems of each culture: Buddhism and Zen Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, Hinduism, animism, and so on.[xliv] Their sole purpose is to release a power such religions view as inner god power and known more popularly as the Chi or Ki force. This is the reality behind the many tales of superhuman feats, such as karate masters hurling their opponents across the room without touching them. Such a force, although real, is not of God. Yet, as countless martial arts masters attest, these techniques are the "spiritual" core of the discipline and must be embraced to master the art. Why? Because all of the major disciplines of the over 50 varieties of martial arts are designed to bring the body into harmony with supposedly impersonal universal energy forces in order to achieve religious enlightenment.[xlv]

Our culture's fascination with the occult combined with media violence makes a volatile mix—one seen everywhere today, from children's toys to such occult/martial arts blockbusters as Star Wars, Karate Kid, and Kung Fu. One popular California karate teacher has three successful schools with eight hundred students ages four to eight, and a growing waiting list. She openly teaches her young charges yoga and Native American and Eastern philosophies.[xlvi]

Whether the occult is taught openly or not in the martial arts though, Tonie believes it’s impossible to avoid it.

"The real question is, whose spirituality are you going to get? And who’s smart enough to pick their instructor wisely when it comes to such subtle spiritual matters? Most Christians just aren’t that aware of Eastern religious influences to know what questions to ask a potential instructor or what influences to notice. Besides, kids are especially open to anything. It’s entirely natural for a child learning karate to move right on to the Ninja Turtles or some Eastern guru who happens to practice the martial arts. In other words, just because you think you’re avoiding the mental and spiritual aspects of karate, or any of the other martial arts, doesn’t mean you won’t absorb and be subtly affected by some of those influences anyway. Bowing, specific methods of concentration, meditation, and breath control, emptying the mind, visualizing yourself doing the kata or prescribed forms, calling your teacher ‘master’, centering in the ki, and trying to ‘flow’ with the ‘oneness’ of nature and your inner self are all part of Buddhist and Taoist philosophy. Doing the arts without absorbing at least some of those influences is like trying to swim in a river and not get wet."[xlvii]

"Even when occult methods aren’t taught directly, enormous changes can take place training under the dragon’s symbol. Just the sheer hours and hours of repetitious, concentrated kicking, striking, blocking, and focusing upon becoming a powerful killing machine can deceive you into thinking you’re superior—and even godlike—and quench new life in Christ."[xlviii]

Children today are being primed early in life to adopt a pagan universalistic worldview and to gain mastery in their lives through both physical and occult force.

 Conclusion

 Are well-meaning attempts to "raise self-esteem" through a pagan killing system with deep roots in the occult really the answer to the problems our youth face?

 Tonie says:

“God helped me see that following the karate world hinders making a commitment to Christ, and karate greatly interferes with a Christian’s walk with the Lord. . . Depending on Jesus is almost impossible, because you’re trained to trust in no one but yourself, your karate skills, and your armor."[xlix]

 And Ed Hird concludes,

"My research and personal experience has led me to the conviction that Taekwondo and the Martial Arts are not merely physical exercise, but in fact are Zen Buddhist meditational practices, both in their sitting and moving forms. Taekwondo and MA are a Trojan Horse in the House of the Lord, eroding the spiritual barriers between Zen Buddhism and the Christian Gospel, and potentially leading vulnerable children and teens into the early stages of eastern occultism. As a result of this research, our Christian School Board decided to no longer offer Taekwondo or other Martial Arts. The good news about religious syncretism is that it is never too late to repent and start afresh, serving one Master and one Master alone, Jesus Christ our Lord (Matthew 6:24)."[l]

 What can a parent do?

"Sure, our children just might come out of their younger years unscathed, well-adjusted, and nonviolent—but it's getting harder and harder for them to do so."[li]

 “I’ll never forget the destructive impact I saw karate have on Christian children when I taught it,” Tonie says.  

"Christian parents, why place your children in a pagan system that teaches them to kill? Why put dirty rags on your kids? All the things advocated by the martial arts schools can only be found in Christ: discipline, family togetherness, peace, self-control, all the fruits of the Spirit. Why be attracted to paganism? Why return to the world to get what's in Christ? Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."[lii]

Rather than immersing their children in a worldly killing system, Tonie advises parents to lead their children to the Lord, teach them His Word and to avoid dangerous situations (Proverbs 16:32; 29:8; 12:13; 15:1; 15:18). Pray Psalm 91 over your children and Isaiah 49:25: “I will contend with those who contend with you, and your children I will save.” Lead your children to the Lord, and teach them to depend upon Him and His Word for their answers. Pray daily for your children, for God's protection, wisdom, shepherding, for He's the only One who can shepherd them when they are away from you

Remember, our true enemies are not flesh and blood but spiritual forces of evil (Ephesians 6:12). While it is true that individuals can be controlled by dark powers, and Satan may try to use someone like that to attack us, our victory begins at the cross with Jesus’ triumph over these forces (Colossians 2:15). This means developing a solid and powerful walk with the Lord Jesus Christ before we ever have such an encounter. It also means walking in wisdom and avoiding dangerous situations unless we are called to them by the Lord.[liii]

 Author Berit Kjos writes:

"God tells us to 'Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.' (Proverbs 22:6) This means helping your child build a biblical world view, a mental framework based on God's Word not the world's distortions. Viewing the world through the filter of truth, your child will accept what God loves, discern what He hates, and enjoy the safety He offers those who follow Him."[liv]

In addition, Grossman points out that the younger the child, the more vulnerable to media violence because of undeveloped reasoning and self control, so these faculties need to be developed. This involves teaching children to understand what they are seeing. Of course, a child's biggest influence is his or her parents. What kind of role model do we provide? How well do we budget our childen's time with media and video games? 

Grossman and other experts recommend making language activities a priority because current studies are showing that a well-developed language system can build up the prefrontal cortex, which is an "important component in dampening impulsive, aggressive behavior..." "Some researchers even believe that literacy skills actually prevent violent behavior."[lv] 

In conclusion, well-meaning attempts to "raise self-esteem" through a pagan killing system with deep roots in the occult not do not provide the answer to the problems our youth face; they only exacerbate them. Instead, our children must be strengthened in God's Word and the Holy Spirit to recognize and resist our culture's powerful conditioning forces of violence and floods of fascination with magic.

"Though you probe my heart and examine me at night,

though you test me, you will find nothing;

I have resolved that my mouth will not sin.

As for the deeds of men—by the word of your lips

I have kept myself from the ways of the violent.

My steps have held to your paths; my feet have not slipped."

(Psalm 17:3-5)

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END NOTES

[i] Statistics are from http://www.chucknorris.com/html/biog.html. The KICKSTART Web site is at http://www.kick-start.org/ "The program generally begins on the elementary and/or sixth grade level."

[ii] Mike Straka, "Grrr-Ly Men and Women. Grrr!" Sept. 17 2004. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,132280,00.html

[iii] Grossman, Lt. Col. Dave, & DeGaetano,  Gloria. Stop Teaching Our Kids to Kill: A Call to Action against TV, Movie & Video Game Violence (New York: Crown Publishers, 1999). See the Introduction by President Bill Clinton, June 1, 1999.

[iv] Ibid., pp. 17-18.

[v] Ibid., p. 1.

[vi] Straka, "Grrr-Ly Men and Women. Grrr!"

[vii] Nathan, Linda, & Gatlin, Tonie. The Dark Side of Karate (AuthorHouse, 2004).

[viii] Hird, E. (2000). Taekwondo & the martial arts: Mere exercise or Trojan horse? Anglicans for Renewal, February 2000, http://www3.telus.net/st_simons/arm07.htm

[ix] The Dark Side of Karate, p. 70.

[x] Ibid., pp. 70-71.

[xi] Dr. Diane Levin, a professor at Wheelock College in Boston. Grossman, pp. 18-19.

[xii] Grossman, p. 26.

[xiii] Ibid, p. 24.

[xiv] Hird, Taekwondo & the Martial Arts, p. 11.

[xv] Grossman, p. 26.

[xvi] Grossman, p. 45.

[xvii] Grossman, p. 48.

[xviii] Grossman, p. 51.

[xix] See Berit Kjos’s excellent article (1996) on The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers at

http://www.crossroad.to/text/articles/power-rangers.html. Kjos says: “Obsession with power, violence and martial arts can prove fatal. Last fall, Norway, Sweden and Denmark banned the show for a season after a five-year-old Norwegian girl was kicked unconscious by classmates and died in the snow. Some blamed the Ninja Turtles, which had been broadcasting the skills and thrills of the martial arts longer.”

[xx] Grossman, p. 67.

[xxi] Grossman, p. 48.

[xxii] Grossman, pps. 78-79.

[xxiii] ___. (June 22, 2005). Video game addiction comparable now to alcohol and drug abuse: Companies continue to market violence aimed at children and teens. Intercessors for America On Watch in Washington email newsletter, http://www.ifapray.org.

[xxiv] Grossman, p. 66.

[xxv] Grossman, p. 59.

[xxvi] Grossman, pp. 58-62.

[xxvii] Size of brain linked to violence. (2000-03). http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2000/02/000203075358.htm

[xxviii] ___. (June 22, 2005). Video game addiction comparable now to alcohol and drug abuse: Companies continue to market violence aimed at children and teens. Intercessors for America On Watch in Washington email newsletter, http://www.ifapray.org.

[xxix] Fetto, J. (2003). Your questions answered - estimated 18.1 mil Americans took part in karate or some other form of martial art at least once in the past year. Information from American Demographics. http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m4021/is_4_25/ai_100751497. Retrieved August 2005

[xxx] De Castro, E., Oropeza, B. J., & Rhodes, Ron. (1993). Enter the dragon. Christian Research Journal, Fall, 27.

[xxxi] Fetto, J.

[xxxii] ___. (1999). Study finds predictors for youth violence and drugs. Adapted from a news release issued by the University of Southern California. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/1999/06/990614075139.htm. Retrieved 8-4-05, 2005

[xxxiii] Grossman, p. 57.

[xxxiv] The Dark Side of Karate, p. 66.

[xxxv] ___. (2002). Feeling groovy - statistics on drug use among teenagers: http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m4021/is_2002_Jan_1/ai_82264529/print

[xxxvi] See http://www.nida.nih.gov/DrugPages/mtf.html. The Monitoring the Future Survey, conducted by the

University of Michigan's Institute for Social Research and funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), at the National Institutes of Health, has tracked 12th graders' illicit drug use and attitudes towards drugs since 1975. Although a large surge of teen drug use in the mid-1990s has mostly stabilized, a recent survey of 50,000 junior high and high school students shows their attitudes shifting in favor of legalizing marijuana and giving fewer criminal penalties for illegal drug use.

[xxxvii] One national survey found that 85 percent of violent teens reported using marijuana, and 55 percent

reported using several illegal drugs. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (2001). Youth Violence: A Report of the Surgeon General. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 69 and Parker, R.N. and Auerhahn, K. (1998). Also: Alcohol, drugs, and violence. Annual Review of Sociology, 24, 291-311, both quoted at http://www.safeyouth.org/scripts/teens/drugs.asp.

[xxxviii] 'Combat meth' bill introduced in Senate Judiciary Committee. (2005). CitizenLink Daily Email Newsletter. Retrieved July 29, For more information, visit http://www.citizenlink.org.

[xxxix] Berkes, F. (2005). Study: Meth epidemic fueling family break ups: National Public Radio.

[xl] Dawson, J., Sandvig, Zoe, Watson, Laura, & Putnam, Whitney. (2005). Powerful spell. WORLD Magazine, 20, http://www.worldmag.com/subscriber/displayarticle.cfm?id=10863.

[xli] The use of the word occult refers to the study and use of supernatural power that the Bible forbids,

such as witchcraft, divination, clairvoyance, spiritualism, and so forth.

[xlii] 15 Hird, “Taekwondo & the Martial Arts”

[xliii] ___. (2004). Book review: “The secret power within: Zen solutions to real problems (secret power within).” http://www.campusi.com/isbn_0316583502.htm

[xliv] For more information, see Table 3.1: Religious and Historical Elements in the Development of the

Martial Arts, The Dark Side of Karate, pp. 15-20.

[xlv] Eisele, R. E. A Christian response? Martial arts - religion analysis service. http://www.pastornet.net.au/response/articles/23.htm.

[xlvi] Bishop, John. Karate School Queenpin: L.A.’s New Business Star Raises the Bar!

http://www.masuccess.com/features/barnes.htm. Website of the Martial Arts Industry Association. December, 2002.

[xlvii] Dark Side of Karate, pp. 26-27.

[xlviii] Dark Side of Karate, p. 69.

[xlix] Dark Side of Karate, p. 68.

[l] Hird, “Taekwondo & the Martial Arts.”

[li] Grossman, p. 64.

[lii] Dark Side of Karate, p. 70.

[liii] Dark Side of Karate, p. 94.

[liv] Kjos, “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers,” last paragraph.

[lv] Grossman, p. 89. 

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© 2005 Linda L. Nathan,  First North American Rights

Linda Nathan is the president of Logos Word Designs, Inc. (http://www.logosword.com), a Christian writing, editing, and publicity service. She is the author of the book, The Dark Side of Karate (AuthorHouse 2004), and the booklet, The Martial Arts: Should I Be Involved? She and her husband Richard have been involved in apologetics ministry since 1987. To order the book, go to http://www.logosword.com/karate

P. O. Box 735, Maple Falls, WA 98266

Phone: (360) 599-3429   Fax: (360) 392-0216

Email: linda@logosword.com  Website: http://www.logosword.com