Yahoo Sports runs a pretty good website with areas for all sorts of different sports. I rate it pretty highly. Each week or so the Mixed Martial Arts MMA section hosts a ‘Ask the Doc’ column where readers can write in and ask the Doc any questions and he responds to some of them. This weeks was comical to me…. Robert you moron.

Dear Dr. Johnny Benjamin:

In keeping with the theme of your last “Ask the Doc” feature, my question concerns the health impact of body conditioning for MMA competition. Specifically, I would like your opinion on the potential longterm health effects of one common body conditioning technique that I participate in at my gym. The technique involves one of the participants holding still while receiving several (15-20) light strikes (gloved) to the forehead and top of the head in rapid fashion from the other fighter. This is repeated several times. The suggested purpose of the technique is to condition the brain to absorb minor shocks to the head with greater ease. I am curious as to your opinion on the effectiveness of this technique and any longterm negative health effects that might arise from this practice (sub-concussive blows?). Furthermore, would you recommend any detective medical tests that could identify potential brain damage before it occurs (i.e. identifying potentially harmful brain scarring)?

Thanks for all your helpful and insightful health articles relating to MMA.

Sincerely,
Robert

*Thank goodness the Doc tries to bring some common sense to Robert.

Robert, before I attempt to address this interesting question, a bit of advice: Stop participating in this potentially dangerous technique immediately!

I never ceased to be amazed and inspired by the practice of medicine. I learn so much by listening to my patients, diligently reading journals and conducting research for articles that I write. The questions that I receive challenge my beliefs and make me a better doctor, if not a better person.

Some well-meaning individuals and some who are merely attempting to profit at your expense continue to represent certain techniques and potions as useful and beneficial with little to no credible basis for such claims. Some of these notions and potions merely waste your time and money, but some of them potentially jeopardize your health and well-being.

The “training” technique of repeated light blows to the head in an attempt to condition the brain against concussions is both a gross misunderstanding of brain physiology and potentially very dangerous. I must highly recommend that anyone participating in such a technique stop immediately.

I assume that this misconception came from incorrectly utilizing legitimate conditioning techniques (e.g. shin conditioning) for other applications. It’s a bit like saying, “Since Drano and Liquid-Plumr are effective in unclogging pipes, they should be fine for you to take for your constipation.”

Shin conditioning works by slowly inducing bone growth and strength by slowly and repetitively increasing stress applied to it (Wolfe’s Law). Martial artists and orthopedic surgeons have understood this principal and have applied it correctly in the arenas of sport and fracture healing for centuries.

Brain tissue and bones are not the same and do not respond to repeated stress in a similar fashion.

Brain tissue (gray and white matter) responds to repetitive blows in a potentially very negative fashion. Repeated blows to neural tissue do not impart some sort of increased resistance to trauma. In fact, it injures tissue, disrupts cell-to-cell connections and creates scarring that is potentially deleterious to overall function.

The brain has some (but a very limited) capacity for repair of traumatically induced damage. And no one, nor any diagnostic test/scan, can accurately predict how many blows are too many blows for any specific individual. Current diagnostic imaging (MRI and CT) may reveal damage once it has occurred, but by then, it may be too late. The damage may very well be permanent.

Your brain should be viewed and treated as a very expensive laptop computer. It doesn’t like to be jostled, dropped, punched or kicked. Contact is an integral part of MMA, but allowing someone to potentially beat you silly with a misguided, ineffective and potentially harmful training technique is something much different.

Here are some recommended tips to safely improve your ability to take a blow:

1. Strengthen neck musculature to better withstand and dissipate the energy of the blow.

2. Certain mouth guards show real promise for dampening the force transmitted through the TMJ and ultimately to the brain. Look into getting one of them.

3. Light-boxing sparring with head gear under the supervision of a true boxing coach will help you better anticipate and avoid punches. It also conditions you to keep your eyes open during contact. (Photos of world-class boxers often show their eyes wide open when they receive a blow.)

4. “Roll” with the blow to lessen its force.

5. Keep your chin tucked at all times.

6. As my good friend, two-time world champion and 2002 Boxing Trainer of the Year Buddy McGirt, would say: “Move your damn head!”

Unfortunately Doc I think you lost Robert after the word ‘potentially’.

I think the Darwin awards may well feature Robert anytime soon.

By Lance Endersbee
23 October 2008

In the western nations there is a strong popular belief that mankind is causing global warming, and that natural climate change has ceased. We are told that man-made climate change will determine our future, with warmer climates, increased droughts, and rising sea levels.

The media have become advocates in support of this view, and contrary debate is suppressed. Western governments now plan to “stop” climate change, an arrogant idea that has already caused enormous costs. In my view it is all a scientific scandal, a political farce, and a financial calamity. Meanwhile, certain other nations are profiting by the popular delusion in the west, notably Russia, and China.

The Russian Academy of Sciences rejects the UN/IPCC view that the
combustion of carbon fuels causes global climate change. The Russian
government is alert to the fact that carbon dioxide is not a pollutant, and regard emissions trading as financial game playing. Air pollution in cities, and global climate change, are scientifically separate matters.

The Kyoto Protocol is an international agreement to reduce carbon emissions. Russia was not an original signatory, for scientific reasons. Even though they regarded the IPCC conclusions as wrong, Russia finally signed the Protocol, for commercial purposes. It was evident to the Russians that western governments were being stampeded by false prophets, that the many of the actions proposed in western nations were scientific nonsense, and enormously harmful to their
economies.

The financial opportunities for Russia were truly enormous. Because of the decline in Russian industry with the end of the cold war, carbon emissions had declined. This was a credit under the Kyoto Protocol.

The total value of Russian carbon credits was estimated at $40 to $60 billion. But if future negotiations to extend the Kyoto Protocols were to collapse, the carbon credits would be worth nothing. The Russian energy giant Gazprom moved quickly to bundle carbon credits with contracts for sale of natural gas and oil to Europe. Russia became the world’s largest exporter of oil and natural gas.

Russia is now very active in energy supply to Europe, helped by carbon trading. It is all quite business like and pragmatic. Europe now buys over 40% of its oil and gas from Russia, Germany 80%. The demand is rising rapidly, and almost all the increase is from Russia. Because of environmental concerns, Europe is not building any new coal or nuclear electricity generation, and using gas for electricity generation. Plans for new electricity generation in Britain also depend
on Russian gas.

The future of the EU is now heavily dependent on Russia. Europe simply cannot cut itself off from Russian oil and gas. Europe is concerned about this, but helpless. It has all been a Russian geopolitical victory, made possible by the popular delusion in the west about climate change. The Russian incursion into Georgia, and their confident rejection of EU and US criticism, reveals the new geopolitical reality. Meanwhile, it seems that the Russian government has not
moved to pass legislation to implement the Kyoto Protocol domestically.

Emeritus Professor Lance Endersbee AO FTSE is a civil engineer of long experience in water resources development with the Snowy Mountains Hydro-Electric Authority, the Hydro-Electric Commission of Tasmania and the United Nations in South-East Asia as an expert on dam design
and hydro power development. In 1976 he was appointed Dean of the Faculty of Engineering at Monash University. In 1988-89 he was Pro-Vice Chancellor of the University. He is a former President of the Institution of Engineers, Australia.

Having weighed in for the heavyweight bout at 98.6kg, Gurr refused to answer questions about his preparation or motivation for the fight, saying: “I don’t want to talk to any of you c—, really”.

Asked if he was wanting to psyche out Williams and the Australian public who appear to have thrown their support behind the rugby union convert, Gurr said: “F— you guys speak a whole bunch of crap. All I’ve heard from you c— is talk, talk, talk. Lets just get it going.”

Sonny Bill Williams received a shove in the chest and his opponent, Gary “The Baboon” Gurr, turned the air blue with abusive language as the pair came face to face at the weigh-in for tomorrow night’s KO to Drugs fight in Brisbane.

Williams, who will fight the renowned Kiwi streetbrawler in the main bout on the undercard to Anthony Mundine’s IBO middleweight world title fight against fellow Australian Daniel Geale, vowed to shut Gurr up after his bizarre tirade towards the media.

After gatecrashing a press conference yesterday at Brisbane Entertainment Centre attended by Mundine, Geale and Williams, Gurr admitted he was angry at his snubbing.

He then told a reporter who asked whether he planned on the fight lasting more than one round: “Do you plan to get out of here”.

“That’s a f—ing joke. I’m the f—ing main event. That’s bulls—,” he said before giving Williams a push in the chest when the pair faced off in the ring afterwards.

Asked if he was concerned about fighting Gurr, who is renowned for knocking out bouncers at Auckland nightclubs and had previously declared he would knock out both Willams and Mundine, the 23-year-old former NRL superstar said: “He doesn’t know how to string words together, I’ll sort him out tomorrow night.”

Williams has been training with Mundine and his famous father Tony since arriving back in Australia last Thursday and he said he would still try to put on a show for fans.

“I and going out there and I’m going to box,” he said. “I’m not just going to be a slugger, I’m going to show this guy how it is done.

I’ve worked a lot with Tony and Choc over the past week and looking at this bloke he doesn’t look like he’s got too much to offer.”

Last week this much anticipated game was released and has been a resounding success. Game publisher THQ are apparently sailing a little close to the wind and this release was the last great hope and I think they may just have pulled it off.

Unlike many fighting games there is a lot more to it than throwing shinobies and hrrkjur’s. On top of the normal punching and kicking options there is a hole ground game that takes a bit of figuring out. Utilising of the funny looking sticks on the PS3 controller can make your character take his opponent down, attempt a submissions or get on top in the mount and pound the living snot out of him.

I have had a look around at some of the on line video reviews and the following is one of the better ones I saw.

*Movie deleted because it stuffed the page up. Go here to see it

If you have ever wanted to pound the living tar out of me get a copy for the PS3 and get yourself on line. I will submit you within two shakes of a lambs tale.

Seriously I want to dominate you in the ring!

You may have thought the New South Wales government has enough problems on their hands. Their public transport system is in tatters, the ruling party has been fighting amongst themselves (in office) for more than a term and their current leader Nathan Rees is lucky that Ronald McDonald hasn’t challenged him for the job already.

But no, no they are still intent on making stupid changes to laws because it may be perceived as popular. Yes gambling is a problem in society so are many, MANY other things but you don’t solve problems by bringing in blanket bans in the vain hope that the problems will go away.

The latest batch of dribble being suggested is that Automatic Teller Machines (ATM’s to the niffs) be banned from pubs and clubs in an effort to “combat problem gamblers”.

For goodness sakes get off your high freakin horses you bunch of dribbling morons!

So, as I understand it, there is such a huge gambling problem in Australia that you (dear reader) and I must be the only two people in this country that do not suffer from this terrible issue? What a crock! If the problem was that huge I am sure that we would all have family members and close personal friends that suffer from this terrible affliction but the truth is that most of you do not.

I have frequented pubs & clubs and been a punter for well over 10 years and have a number of friends who also enjoy a bet or gamble here or there. I have never even met someone who I would class as a problem gambler much less had a personal relationship with them. What is it I am saying here? Gambling is not a problem for 99.9% of the population and anyone, including your all knowing and seeing government who tries to tell you otherwise is a dirty rotten liar!

Again lets take everything away from the majority just to protect the few…. Seems to be the motto of Australian governments of this day.

Lets be clear. If gambling is such a huge problem why not just ban all gambling… oh wait hang on a minute …. No you seem to make a large amount of money in state taxes on gambling so we can’t do that …. Lets just inconvenience them.

It is the month of August, on the shores of the Black Sea. It is raining, and the little town looks totally deserted. It is tough times, everybody is in debt, and everybody lives on credit.

Suddenly, a rich tourist comes to town.

He enters the only hotel, lays a 100 Euro note on the reception counter, and goes to inspect the rooms upstairs in order to pick one.

The hotel proprietor takes the 100 Euro note and runs to pay his debt to the butcher.

The Butcher takes the 100 Euro note, and runs to pay his debt to the pig grower.

The pig grower takes the 100 Euro note, and runs to pay his debt to the supplier of his feed and fuel.

The supplier of feed and fuel takes the 100 Euro note and runs to pay his debt to the town’s prostitute that in these hard times, gave her “services” on credit.

The hooker runs to the hotel, and pays off her debt with the 100 Euro note to the hotel proprietor to pay for the rooms that she rented when she brought her clients there.

The hotel proprietor then lays the 100 Euro note back on the counter so that the rich tourist will not suspect anything.

At that moment, the rich tourist comes down after inspecting the rooms, and takes his 100 Euro note, after saying that he did not like any of the rooms, and leaves town.

No one earned anything. However, the whole town is now without debt, and looks to the future with a lot of optimism….

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how the United States Government and the State of California are doing business today and actually in California for a long time already.

At least the hooker and the hogs made out okay.

Apparently the below movie as reported on news.com.au is an “internet sensation”

Now I am no expert on what is classed as a sensation and what isn’t but the 5000 odd views this movie has received is a little shy on sensational levels. I have written a letter to news.com.au suggesting an internet sensation is occurring here also. I expect a full story about notasmartman.com will be published soon.

definately would though..