This is really gross: I think I'm sweating out booze. I wasn't even drunk last night, although I did drink a great deal of beer. I think I smell sweet. Weird.

There comes a point where how hard you hit someone stops mattering. Because you're hitting him plenty hard. Does the hit land?

IIRC, the only issue where strike force really matters is the ability to kill your opponent accidentally. I bet people are killed in competitive karate almost never, whereas the history of boxing, even rule-bound, giant-gloves, legitimate-contention boxing, is littered with skull fractures, brain damage, and death. Of course, in boxing, you can win if you induce unconsciousness in your opponent; whereas competitive karate and tae kwon doe ar strictly points and knockdowns, right? So there's no incentive to cause serious injury.

Have you hit them somewhere effective? What did you do before the strike? After? Did they get a chance to hit you?

My only knowledge of not-rule-bound fighting systems comes from Bruce Lee movies, but I figure that, given intent to kill, karate and tae kwon do can do the job about on par with floating like a butterfly and throwing haymakers. Probably more efficiently, because boxing is such a stand-up game, and other fighting systems endorse things like flipping your opponent on his head, and dipping your toes in his intestines.

What with all the unpacking I did from the weekend, somehow my comb has left my pocketbook. I'm going to have Hermione Hair all day.

the only issue where strike force really matters is the ability to kill your opponent accidentally

I don't get this. You're talking competition, right?

Of course, in boxing, you can win if you induce unconsciousness in your opponent; whereas competitive karate and tae kwon doe ar strictly points and knockdowns, right? So there's no incentive to cause serious injury.

There's a lot of competitive fighting beyond those three categories. Take MMA, for instance. Not that there's anything inherent in TKD and karate that means competitions have to be point-fighting, but if you follow the money, you're talking boxing and mixed martial arts, where the ability to hit hard is certainly important.

However, that post wasn't about competition, so I'm not sure how much that matters.

My only knowledge of not-rule-bound fighting systems comes from Bruce Lee movies

TKD and karate are not rule-bound fighting systems. Boxing is.

I figure that, given intent to kill, karate and tae kwon do can do the job about on par with floating like a butterfly and throwing haymakers

Why? Also, throwing haymakers is a terrible way to try and kill people--I'm not sure if that was your point, though.

Probably more efficiently, because boxing is such a stand-up game, and other fighting systems endorse things like flipping your opponent on his head, and dipping your toes in his intestines.

Not really TKD or karate, though, for the record. Many martial arts have no significant grappling or throwing component, not just boxing.

This morning so far:

My cat ran off with my alarm clock (you know how batteried stuff often has a bit of ribbon sticking out to aid in battery removal? It was sticking out. She picked it up and ran across the room.)

The server is dead like a dead thing. Alarmingly dead. Going to be a long day.

There was this incredibly hip guy out running. Like, full on stylish to the point of impractical running gear. He was pushing a denim blue pram. Not a stroller. Not a jogging cart. And honest-to-goodness, white-tired, olf fashioned pram. Nothing wrong with that, it just was an unusual sight.

I hope at least there was a baby in the pram.

I'd hope so too!

I had a friend who had a couple of pugs. One of them got too old to go on long walks, so my friend got an old pram and put the pug in there for them. People in the neighborhood would be all, "Awwww, whose a cutiewiddleGAH!"

Fun.

Ha! That's really funny.

Oh, that's great.

Help. I have a brainstorming session in half an hour. I have no brain.