CLEARING THE AIR ON DILLMAN & THOMAS

Char-la-tan (n.) a person who pretends to be an expert in something or to have more skill that is really the case; quack; fake.

That’s how Websters defines the word charlatan, but many martial artists on websites and forums like Bullshido.com or FightingArts.com would like to define it as ‘George Dillman,’ or as my instructor, ‘Chris Thomas.’

The people on these sites liken Dillman and Thomas to greedy, snake-oil salesmen who prey upon gullible students by pretending to have impossible skills. They accuse them of misleading the public with fantastic demonstrations of ‘chi’ power that are really nothing more than a pretentious charade; a hoax elegantly designed to fool a naïve public.

What annoys these critics is the fact that Dillman and Thomas both maintain that it is possible to train yourself to use a mystical, life-force energy, commonly known as chi to injure, knock-out, or even kill an opponent.

Neither Dillman nor Thomas invented the concept of chi; the idea that the body is somehow nourished by channels of invisible energy, which has been with us, in one way or another, for thousands of years.

Chi energy is the basis for acupuncture and shiatsu massage treatments. Energetic pathways flowing through the body is also a common concept in Yoga. An understanding of health that does not solely rely upon physical phenomena has always been common throughout much of the world. Only in the modern West is such medicine called “Alternative.”

Furthermore, the notion of chi energy is nothing new to the martial arts. Systems like tai chi, kung fu, and aikido, as well as many others, are heavily based on energetic understanding. Many famous Okinawan karate instructors were known to have studied from a pressure point text known as the Bubishi.

So if this knowledge of chi energy is so common, why are the critics so wound up against Dillman’s pressure point method?

Well, when Dillman first learned how pressure points could be used to disrupt an opponent’s internal energy system, he had to hit those points rather hard. There really wasn’t any surprise there… you hit someone hard, and they fall down; big deal.

However as he began to practice and teach ways that pressure points could be used in fighting, he slowly found that he didn’t need to hit as hard anymore. Dillman, and his students, learned that they could actually send their own chi into another person with an even stronger effect than if they had actually hit them.

Eventually, some people where able to perform knock-outs while hardly even touching their training partners. They were able to knock people out by striking areas such as the arms, legs, or body, that wouldn’t normally be thought to have anything to do with loosing consciousness. Still, the knock-outs were often successful.

By then, a fair number of critics already began to wail that such demonstrations were impossible. There was no way that a man could be knocked out by simply being struck on the arm. It was ridiculous to think that someone would slowly go unconscious while being lightly touched on the forehead and at the back of the neck. It had to be fake.

But the final straw came when Dillman eventually claimed that it was possible to perform knock-outs without even touching a person. By properly focusing your chi energy, he held, you could cause a person standing at the other side of a large room, to pass out. Both he and his students demonstrated these types of no-touch knockouts many times.

Recently, Dillman’s extravagant claims caught the attention of National Geographic, which wanted to do a documentary on his method. During the interview, one of Dillman’s top instructors, Leon Jay (Son of the famous ju jitsu expert, Wally Jay) agreed to attempt a no-touch knockout with a skeptical and disinclined chemist as a subject.

The knock-out, as you will see in the following video clip, was not successful.



Dillman’s critics went wild. What a hustler, a fake, a phony. How could ANYONE believe that swindler?
What terrible men Dillman and Thomas must be to deceive all those poor martial artists? How could they be so greedy… so arrogant? Such charlatans.

All of which brings me to the topic of today’s myth. I’m not going to cover whether or not no-touch knockouts are possible, nor am I going to talk about whether or not ‘chi energy’ exists. (Although I promise to get to those topics in good time.)

Instead, where I need to begin is with the myth that George Dillman, with the help of Chris Thomas, have somehow schemed to trick others into believing in the concept of ‘chi energy’ either as a way to make enormous amounts of money or to somehow artificially inflate their reputations as martial artists.

It doesn’t really bother me, one way or another, whether people accept pressure point fighting, also known as kyoshu jitsu, as an art. (It seems to work well for me and that’s enough.) However, before I can have an honest conversation about pressure point theory, I need to clear the air of some of the accusations floating around against its sponsors.

First, is the charge that people like Dillman or Thomas only promote pressure point theory as some sort of scheme to get rich.

In addition to seminars which take place across the country and all over the world, there is also a successful series of books and dozens of instructional videos. George Dillman has also owned the former training camp of boxing legend Muhammad Ali, where he instructed at special weekend getaways. Certainly, the critics argue, Dillman and his crew are making tons of money off of their illusion.

While it’s true that Dillman holds more seminars than any other instructor on the martial arts circuit; selling books and videos along the way, he isn’t exactly a multimillionaire.

Teaching on the road isn’t easy. There’s transportation, food, and lodging costs; not to mention book publishing, video production, and advertising expenses. Often people see the turnout at a seminar and assume that lots of money is being made, when really the net profit can be quite meager.

Although he might make a couple thousand dollars at a really good seminar, (which is pretty good money for 4-8 hours of work) you also have to factor in all the organization, planning, and travel time. Suddenly, it all doesn’t seem quite so profitable.

And while I can only guess at Dillman’s profits, I can tell you for certain that his co-author, Chris Thomas, lives a very middle class lifestyle. During the day, he works as the pastor of a small church in Wisconsin, occasionally teaching seminars when he can.

There are no BMWs or Mercedes Benz in his driveway and contrary to the fantasies of his critics, he doesn’t live in a sprawling mansion either. His home is small, cozy, and fairly unremarkable among the other houses in his blue-collar neighborhood.

Occasionally, Chris Thomas will meet a martial artist at a seminar or somewhere and invite them to train with a group at his home, or in the dojo of a friend. I was one of the lucky ones who have been invited to train with him.

In regards to his concern for money, I can tell you that Thomas has never charged any of us for the classes that he taught at his home. (However, we do occasionally ‘pay’ him with gifts of doughnuts and Mountain Dew.)

So while they have been successful at building a large following of students, neither Dillman, nor Thomas seem unduly motivated by the pursuit of financial gain. (And even if they were; Why mess up their growing enterprise with fantastic claims of touchless knockouts?)

So maybe it isn’t the money. Maybe they made up a far-fetched scam as a way to boost their on egos. Perhaps what they really want is the admiration and devotion from thousands of martial arts students. Some people do rather crazy things just to feel important.

Now, while we can’t actually see into the minds of Dillman or Thomas, nor can we be certain of their motivations; We can observe their actions and the way they behave around their students.

We have to ask:

- Do they shamelessly attempt to pass themselves off as all-knowing authorities?

- Are they arrogantly flattered by all the attention they receive?

- Do they become secretive and aloof when asked questions?

If so, that would indicate that they may have concocted a hoax simply to attract the amazement of others. It could be that Dillman and Thomas so longed for the admiration of others, that they would create an elaborate scheme in order to fool the public into believing that they were the keepers of miraculous abilities.

My own observations as a student show, however, that this is not the case.

While many martial art instructors try to establish themselves as somehow superior to their students, maintaining an arrogant manner, dwelling exclusively on their so-called accomplishments, and smugly proclaiming their method is best; I have noticed that Dillman and Thomas take another approach.

While Thomas is careful to argue the validity of his methods, he does so without insulting or attacking the opinions of others. He has always pointed out that his techniques might not work the same for everyone. If, as a student, one of his techniques does not work for me, I am free to change it.

Before training with Thomas, I had been heavily indoctrinated into the traditional martial way of subordinating yourself to your instructors. I only referred to my instructors as Sir, Sensi, or Master. I NEVER interrupted, questioned, or criticized my instructors, and always followed their directions.

In college, I even belonged to a tae kwon do club that actually engaged in the hazing of it’s kyu ranked members, yet I never thought to question the abusive activities because I thought I was following a ‘tradition.’

Training with Chris Thomas, on the other hand, is very informal. In class, all students refer to him by his first name. (Something that took me a long time to get used to.)

Questions are not only welcome, but expected. In fact, instruction is often interrupted by someone who becomes so excited by a new idea or technique that they can’t wait to share.

Our class regularly splits off into small groups of students discussing different concepts or techniques. At times, it can become rather chaotic, but Chris doesn’t seem to mind. What’s important is that we are all learning.

This isn’t the kind of place an overbearing, or controlling instructor would feel comfortable teaching. It certainly isn’t for someone who hopes to gain a bunch of followers with tricky deceptions.

When asked, Thomas told me that he learned much of his teaching style from Dillman. “George is the first person I ever saw bring people up to help teach a seminar,” he told me. “Where else have you ever seen ‘the master’ give other people the opportunity to demonstrate a technique - and not just the high-ranking Black belts, but anybody?”

If Dillman and Thomas have somehow made up the whole no-touch knockout thing only to impress others with their incredible abilities, then they really should stop sharing all of their notoriety with everyone. It ruins the effect.

Also, most phony martial art teachers refuse to teach others any of their ‘secret techniques.’ They always claim that “it’s too dangerous for other people to know” or that it “takes years of study to learn… I’ll teach you when you ready.”

Dillman and Thomas, however do not conceal any of their knowledge. As soon as they learn or figure out something, they can’t wait to share it with the rest of the martial arts community.

This in fact, may be why the National Geographic documentary was such a failure - the no-touch techniques were simply unrefined and not ready for demonstration. In his zeal to show what he was working on, Dillman was caught unprepared.

So, if Dillman and Thomas have not invented the concept of no-touch knockouts to swindle enormous amounts of money, nor to artificially inflate their own sense of self-worth; then why would they try to establish such a bizarre notion like no-touch knockouts?

The reason, like it or not, is because they believe in what they are doing.

They may be wrong, they may be misguided, they could even be delusional; but they honestly believe in what they are teaching.

It’s very easy to be skeptical about pressure point theory; especially when someone claims that they can knock others unconscious without even touching them. In fact, we should be skeptical about those kinds of claims.

However, when we don’t understand or doubt something, we have a tendency to become suspicious of the people making the claims and assume some hidden motive behind their actions.

It’s too easy to dismiss pressure point theory simply by attacking the intentions of Dillman and Thomas. Whatever their reasons for pursuing this method of martial arts, we owe it to ourselves to accept or reject the theory based on our own observations rather than the supposed motivations of it’s promoters.

Only then can we honestly discuss and try to understand these strange ideas. Only then can we be certain that the things we choose to believe truly have merit.

In closing, I hope that I’ve demonstrated on this blog that I’m a pretty ‘normal’ person. I get up every morning, go to work, and try to take care of my family. I pay bills, watch television, and worry about things like the economy, terrorism, or lead paint in toys - just like most everyone else.

I also practice the martial art of Kyushu jitsu.

I do so because I believe that it’s an effective method of self-defense and because I like the way pressure point theory enhances my understanding of the techniques that I’ve been taught. The theory helps to explain many of the movements found in my forms, while also providing options that can be used to face larger or stronger opponents. It improves my ability to perform joint locks and increases the effectiveness of my strikes.

As I study this art, I have created many of my own opinions. (Expressing them is probably one of the primary reasons for writing this blog.)

I do not necessarily agree with everything Dillman or Thomas teach; nor do I have to. My instructor has given me permission to think for myself.

I can understand why so many people are cynical regarding this art, (Hell, I’m not even sure how much of this stuff I believe!) and always welcome respectful skepticism.

Through open discussion, trial, and error, I believe that we can discover the methods of self-protection that work best for each of us. Our movements become more efficient, our techniques more effective, and our reactions effortless, as we progress from the backdrop of mere punches and kicks into the realm of martial art.

I hope you’ll join me again soon as we continue to explore some of the concepts of not only Kyushu jitsu, but also the martial arts in general.

Thank you for your time and keep training,

Respectfully,

Rick