Research and Discussion Forums

So I'll concede to refrain from using the term xenophobic, in favor for stating he was very bold in his dislike for rapiers and foreign methods- which completley agrees with his own words. Plus, this topic isnt nearly as exciting to discuss as the martial art he teaches. :) Well... I can't disagree...

Actually, I don't believe xenophobia is an official psychiatric term, as it is not listed in the DSM-IV. Also, it doesn't just necessarily imply fear, but can also imply contempt, of which Silver had a great deal of. I don't think anyone was arguing that Silver had a social anxiety that centered aro...

You make my case. The modern tendency to equate any criticism on the merits with race baiting is offensive and intended to stifle free speech. No, I don't make your case, since I'm explicitly arguing that Silver was xenophobic. And, unless I'm mistaken, you're arguing that Silver can't be xenophobi...

Xenophobia? Shame on you for using this word. He criticizes the Italian methods of combat for their ineffectiveness. That is not xenophobia. That's a word that only someone steeped in PC uses. Not to nit-pick, but according to the American Heritage Dictionary, a Xenophobe is "A person unduly f...

Brian- good point! What might contribute to this is an assumption that modern english is identical to Silver's, which could be greatly misleading. I wonder if German scholars of the sword have similar issues with the german masters, or Italian scholars with the italian masters. Anyone have friends i...

Allen, now I actually haven't read Wagner's book either, but I have read both of Silver's works, and Silver's Paradoxes of Defence is, in effect, one giant diatribe against Italian rapier play in England (along with mentioning bits and pieces of the "true" way to fight). So I'm highly susp...

Now, I'm new to both ARMA and historical swordplay, so please take what I say with a grain of salt. But, if you liked Wagner's book, you might also be interested in the book by Stephen Hand, who subsequently wrote one of the chapters, and co-authored another, in Wagner's Master of Defence . Hand's b...

Hi, I was wondering if there were any ARMA people out on Long Island. I'm more towards the mid-eastern part of the island, and the Brooklyn branch of ARMA is an hour and a half away, making it a bit of a trek to get over to Brooklyn, or any of the NYC ARMA groups. Also, it doesn't look like there ar...

Follow up question. Is there enough interest to get a group started on Long Island? (NY) I understand that there is one on Staten Island and on in Brooklyn, but those are just too far for me. Hey, I'd be interested in joining a Long Island group. I've been looking around for a while, and it seems l...