Cage Fighting in the USA: 'Vanguard' Trailer

He got a really nice body.

jesus became part of pop culture, like Mickey Mouse.

God here.
First, I do not exist. The concept of a 13,700,000,000 year old being, capable of creating the entire universe and its billions of galaxies, monitoring simultaneously the thoughts and actions of the 7 billion human beings on this planet is ludicrous. Grow a brain.
Second, if I did, I would have left you a book a little more consistent, timeless and independently verifiable than the collection of Iron Age Middle Eastern mythology you call the Bible. Hell, I bet you cannot tell me one thing about any of its authors, their credibility or their possible ulterior motives, yet you cite them for the most extraordinary of claims.
Thirdly, when I sent my “son” (whatever that means, given that I am god and do not mate) to Earth, he would have visited the Chinese, Japanese, Europeans, Russians, sub-Saharan Africans, Australian Aboriginals, Mongolians, Polynesians, Micronesians, Indonesians and native Americans, not just a few Jews. He would also have exhibited a knowledge of something outside of the Iron Age Middle East.
Fourthly, I would not spend my time hiding, refusing to give any tangible evidence of my existence, and then punish those who are smart enough to draw the natural conclusion that I do not exist by burning them forever. That would make no sense to me, given that I am the one who withheld evidence of my existence in the first place.
Fifth, I would not care who you do or how you “do it.” I really wouldn’t. If Bill wants to do Bob and Sally wants to do Mary it would be of no interest to me, given that I can create universes. Oh, the egos And when did Jesus punch some one out? Only in america sick fuckers!!!

I can' really imagine, why are they keepn fight?ay sense?

@john_mongrel just for the simple fact you speak with so much ignorance an folly! calling The biggest religion in the world retarded!!!! Im not responding to your "KNOW IT ALL MIND FRAME" nonsense! You wish you could get a rise out of me lol you're a WEIRDO in my opinion! IF YOU SLANDER GODS NAME, CHILDREN OR GOSPEL AN HAVE NO FAITH IN GOD I BELIEVE YOU WILL FRY IN HELL WITH THE REST OF THE NON BELIEVERS WHO HAVE PERSECUTED JESUS HIS APOSTLES AN FOLLOWERS... THE REASON I SHARE MY TESTIMONY IS TO LET THE PEOPLE WHO SHARE THE SAME STRUGGLE WITH ADDICTION, GANGS AND STREET LIFE RELATED ISSUES CAN SEE CLEARLY HOW FAITH GOD AN JESUS HELPED ME OFF DRUGS, THE STREETS AN BEING A THUG. SOME OF US AREN'T GIVEN A FAIR CHANCE! I REPRESENT MY GENERATION AN PEOPLE WHO HAVE HAD TO LIVE BOLDLY AN BRAVELY IN DRUG INDUCED AREA NIGHTMARES AN FAITH WAS THE ONLY THING WE HAD TO KEEP US MOVING FORWARD TO THE GOAL OF CONQUERING OURSELVES TO BE ABLE TO BECOME MEN AN GET OUT OF THE DRUG INDUCED CITIES, TOWNS AN SUBURBS BEFORE THEY INDULGE IN CRIMINAL ACTIVITIES TO SURVIVE... I SPEAK ENTIRELY FROM PERSONAL EXPERIENCES. IM SORRY FOR YOU FOR NOT BELIEVING IN ANYTHING HIGHER THAN YOURSELF.... GOD still acknowledges you even though you deny him!

REaders - I posted a long series of comments but due to the 8000 character limitation, I had to break up my posting. So please read them in order from the bottom up. Start reading my entire comment by going to the last comment and reading it backwards instead of reading them from the top to bottom. You can respond by emailing at christianmonk@gmail.com Thanks for your cooperation.

He says about the movie: Oscar nominations are a parade of propaganda, stereotypes and downright dishonesty. The dominant theme is as old as Hollywood: America's divine right to invade other societies, steal their history and occupy our memory. When will directors and writers behave like artists and not pimps for a world-view devoted to control and destruction?

I grew up on the movie myth of the Wild West, which was harmless enough unless you happened to be a Native American (which is what I am). The formula is unchanged. Self-regarding distortions present the nobility of the American colonial aggressor as a cover for massacre, from the Philippines to Iraq. John only fully understood the power of the con when he was sent to Vietnam as a war reporter. The Vietnamese were portrayed as "gooks" and "Indians", whose industrial murder was preordained in John Wayne movies and left to Hollywood to glamourise or redeem.

I use the word murder advisedly, because what Hollywood does brilliantly is suppress the truth about America's assaults. These are not wars, but the export of a gun-addicted, homicidal "culture". And when the notion of psychopaths as heroes wears thin, the bloodbath becomes an "American tragedy" with a soundtrack of pure angst." as illustrated in the movie THE DEER HUNTER and PLATOON. "The Deer Hunter lauded those who had caused the deaths of more than three million Vietnamese, while reducing those who resisted to barbaric commie stick figures. In 2001, Ridley Scott's Black Hawk Down provided a similar, if less subtle, catharsis for another "noble failure" by the US, this time in Somalia, airbrushing the heroes' massacre of up to 10,000 Somalis."

We believe in the violent hero, but as a First Nation and African American male, I have never believed in such a hero because my hero has always been Jesus. MMA is in this same venue, along with professional, or what calls itself pro wrestling where characters are projected with backstage stories to play on the audience's sensibilities. Refer to my Chris Hedges book above.

Conclusion: Would MMA be so popular if the spectators were forced to train like those athletes so that they could feel the impact of their actions not only on their opponents but also on their own bodies? Or if fighters were forced to wear heavy protective equipment? How about asking for prayer like they do before Mui Thai fights - would people still watch? Would Americans still glorify the winners like they do twenty years from now when they see them on the street like we do Muhammad Ali? Now that was a true fighter who fought racism, genocide and oppression. He represented the common people. What do MMA fighters represent?

I think that I made my point here and offer a response to my comments and can be reached at christianmonk@gmail.com I hope that I have changed a few minds here and pray that we as a people become aware of what we are promoting. In relation to Vanguard, I have seen a number of their episodes that were extremely biased and agree with the comments about the title. I hated the title MISSIONARIES OF HATE and the tone and bias of Mariana when she alluded to the fact that the Obama administration SHOULD force African countries to allow homosexuality in their countries. Like God, Christians do not HATE people but hate the SIN that is committed. Africans have enough problems without promoting homosexuality on their shores but that Vanguard broadcast spoke of EMPIRE through economic sanctions imposed on African countries that were not in agreement with American policies on gay rights. How dare she. So, yes, I do see Vanguards capacity for bias sometimes. How could Adam continue to eat the Blue Fish tuna knowing that it is endangered as a species?

However, I forgive them and love some of their other episodes and note that they are truly needed in this culture of trashy reality TV. Thanks Vanguard.

We are glorifying violence in video games, football, hockey and MMA and even in boxing. I love martial arts and always will and have even taught martial arts in churches for self defense and fitness but not for sport.

The last time I was a bouncer was my first night on the job for a Bachelor Party at a Bar in San Francisco in 1993. When a black person wanted to fight a white person, I had to force them to leave the bar when they started the fight but to my amazement, they not only took their fight to the street, but they were BOTH MARTIAL ARTISTS jumping into their fighting stances. Unbelievable. Is this what sports martial arts is all about? I quit that night and never asked for compensation.

In 2004 when I started formal MMA training with a pro, I pinched a nerve on my right shoulder and still experience pain from that experience. Yes, I can still throw down in the ring or on the mat today, but what am I proving? It is all about the ego. Chris Hedges spoke about this in his book WAR IS A FORCE THAT GIVES US MEANING. He also spoke about it in his other book Empire of Illusion: The End of Literacy and the Triumph of Spectacle. Just read the first chapter of that book when he discusses the phony world of wrestling and why humans gravitate to it.

Sports offers one the opportunity to live "vicariously" through another person. I love Michael JOrdan but hate how he uses Nike sweatshops, as evidenced in the documentary THE CORPORATION when Michal Moore attempts to get Nike CEO Phil Knight to visit one of his foreign factories, to manufacture his shoes. We have become dumbed down to what is important and what really matters and chose mindless distractions such as sports to fill our empty lives. Hmmmm. What would Jesus say or do about that.

We LIVE through these regular fighting Joes and applaud them for having the so called courage to battle, it elevates us from the day to day mediocrity of our lives. Another excellent documentary British series is HOW TV RUINED YOUR LIFE. This series is six episodes but watch the episode titled ASPIRATION to see what I mean. Our aspirations are aligned with the same U.S. ARMY commercials that emphasize "BE AN ARMY OF ONE" and we go for it. War gives us meaning, it defines our masculinity, or macho and affirms our identity in a violent world.

I call myself today a christianmonk, because like Shaolin monks, I am a pacifist today and am influenced by what Jesus preached to use the "weapons of spiritual warfare" that consist of Truth (the word of God), prayer and meditation on the words of the bible along with love, compassion and forgiveness. I avoid fighting today but train JUST IN CASE I have to protect my family or myself or others from physical violence. I see so much violence in movies today that I no longer go to the cinema. British journalist John Pilger has an excellent documentary titled THE WAR YOU DON'T SEE about the Iraqi War where in one part, he and another person comment on the the academy award winning movie THE HURT LOCKER where he comments:
This film offers a vicarious thrill through yet another standard-issue psychopath, high on violence in somebody else's country where the deaths of a million people are consigned to cinematic oblivion.

The body was not designed to tolerate continuous impact from punches and kicks and that no longitudinal study has ever been conducted over a 20, 30 or 40 year period of time to determine the health impact on the body of martial artists. At least I do not know of any study and I do conduct my own research. During the beginning of this millenium, I started teaching martial arts to fitness clubs like New York Sports Clubs and Ballys. When I returned to training, i COULD REALLY FEEL it in my bones, back and knees the kicks that I performed and knew that this was not good for my body. My point is that if I can feel what it does to my body in my fifties, imagine what I denied to myself all of these years?

If you want sports martial arts, athletes should wear more protective equipment. Kempo masters have always been at the forefront when it comes to new techniques and training methods. In 1953, Shigeru Nakamura, one of Okinawa’s leading masters, began his own Karate system of Okinawan Kempo, based on Chinese Chugo-yu Kempo. It is a hard sparring art where fighters wear heavy protective equipment. Nakamura introduced the Karate “Side Kick” as we know it today.

Just like boxers participating in the Golden Glove wear protective equipment, so should ANYONE participating in MMA. I can't stand seeing women punched in the face (like in the trailer of this Vanguard episode). I have lost teeth from brutal tournament fighting but I know if I had worn equipment, I would still have all of them. I am not some weakling either. I am currently a long distance cycle who participates in 100 mile bike tours at least 5-10 times per year and love playing full court one and one basketball. So I am speaking to protect the combatants.

When I train people today, I do not train them for sport fighting but for self defense unless they want sport fight training. Then I demand that they purchase at least $300 of protective equipment for their face, chest, shins, and groin and hands and feet. I never train fighters barefoot because the likelihood of fighting barefoot in the street if virtually non-existent. Therefore I train all of my fighters wearing Timberland boots.

3. Sport martial arts HAS become a blood sport that is glorified as spectacle. The martial arts was not designed or created to pummel your opponent for money. It was created for self defense and physical discipline. Martial arts is about life, not death. Although there have been very few deaths in MMA, the silent damage is internal and psychological. My wife cannot watch MMA because of its brutality - the last time she passed me watching Brock Lesner get beaten badly, she cried every time he was hit. This cannot express the spirit of martial arts. Lets focus on the the ART side. Lets be honest: most real street fights end in less than one minute, and not 5 five minute rounds. And I would never, ever grapple anyone on the street in a fight because my experience in the HOOD has been this: if someone attacks me in the street and I am using martial arts, you can be sure that the attacked was not ALONE. I used to be a bouncer for a number of clubs in NYC during the 1980s and witnessed and fought with attackers in confrontations that never lasted more than 90 seconds tops. If I was in a choke hold, you can rest assured that I turned it into a blood sport real quick by biting him (ala THE CHINESE CONNECTION when Bruce Lee fought the Russian fighter at the end of the of the movie) or going to the groin, eyes or throat. So what is MMA all about? The military teaches you to finish off your opponent quickly and deadly and move on to completing your mission or else another opponent will come to take you out. So what is the point of training a person for five minutes or twenty five minutes of fighting five times when a real fight wouldn't last more than 2 minutes? Believe me, when I saw that I was fighting a street fight with a formidable opponent, I broke free from them and ran to live another day because when I once fought someone and brutally beat them, as I did one time to a Jamaican drug dealer, they returned with their Jamaican posse and firearms to take me out.

OMG

When he had the chance in the desert, he did not lay a hand on him. He sent him him way in defeat. His other enemies he forgave. St. Paul speaks clearly of the weapons against the enemy. The fist was not one of them.
No, MMA speaks more of Caligula before the fall of the Roman empire.

UFC was banned from television in its early days because the sport was not regulated. There were no weight classes and only three rules limiting conduct inside the cage.

Since then, the sport has been regulated through the various state athletic commissions. It has divided the fighters into appropriate weight classes, developed a wider set of rules intended to ensure fighter safety and provides post-fight medical examinations that are part of the clearance process for future fights.

There have also been studies that have shown MMA to be a safer sport than boxing.

I love Vanguard, but this trailer seems to present a one-sided story that's a bit sensational, which is disappointing. For example, referring to it as cage-fighting instead of its proper name of mixed martial arts definitely leans to that sensationalized bias of brutality as well as ignoring the fact that some MMA takes place in a ring.

Granted, I know it's becoming fashionable for some people to dismiss mixed martial arts as a brutal blood-sport, but these people really need to learn more about the sport.

Boxing, Tae Kwon Do, Judo and Wrestling are all Olympic sports. MMA is merely a synthesis of these disciplines with the inclusion of similar styles such as Karate, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Muay Thai and Sambo. It boggles my mind that there's no outcry about these sports on an individual basis, but somehow when they're allowed to compete against each other in a multidisciplinary format that dialogue takes the leap from sports analysis to merciless bloodsport.

Finally, how the hell did the comment section devolve into a debate about Jesus?!

The more people learn about MMA, the more of the misconceptions about the sport will be dispelled.
Rollie
www.ChingasosMMA.com

Religion and MMA. MMA causes less brain damage.

WWJP- Who Would Jesus Punch?

I am not judging anything. I am giving an opinion. I have read the bible and I have studies many different religions. Was raised a Protestant. I am quite familiar with the teachings of Jesus Christ, kick boxing and beating another human for popularity of a group was not part of what he taught. Omg!
I don't need you or any other human to bless me. Thank you, but I don't accept your......

Sincerely
theprimtv1

I've been to every level of cage fighting from fights in a barn to the UFC. MMA is no worse than boxing ever was. More than half of the fights I've seen, both fighters walk out of the cage looking no worse for wear. Actually, the amateur fights are more fun as the events generally feature BJJ academies so each fighter has their own cheering section.

This these actions remind me of "Idiocracy" the movie. Wow, we people are going. "Jesus" was a fighter? Omg, what about "Turn the other cheek"?
Wow, people use jesus like a "Just Do It" by Nike!
It is so sad to see this ignorance growing in our society.

Can't wait to see this. Haven't seen Mariana for a bit.