One of the things that Amdur Sensei likes to do is to stir things up. If the articles in the book merely entertain then you're not looking hard enough. Any one of his "taboo' subjects is a great topic for discussion which would probably be why he was asked to do the forum.
It is my perception that drugs aren't quite the issue thay were back in the seventies. Probably because the worst offenders decided to live longer. But alcohol is an issue that is with us every day in this culture. It is a multi billion dollar industry, kills more people than chemicals, and yet we have a very ambivilant attitude towards it. It continues to be an issue for Aikido practitioners as they are forced to pretend that they do not see in their seniors what they would say is completely unacceptable in their peers or juniors. We avoid open discussion of these issues because our relationships with those seniors make any kind of direct attention to the issues impossible.
There seem to be very few women who are participating in these discussions but if there were more I know that they would have a lot to say on the issue of sexual misbehavior on the part of martial arts teachers. I think that this is an area that many male practitioners would benfit from. If we in the martiala rts were in the medical or mental health professions we would have had specific training on the psychological and ethical issues involved as preparation for entering their chosen professions. Not only were these issues never addressed as this generation of martial arts instructors developed but in many cases the role models presented by the seniors in the arts were terrible.
Probably the least controversial of the taboo subjects is the issue of violence on the part of various teachers. But even here is an area that can't be openly addressed if you have one of the offenders above you in the organizational structure.
One of the great strengths that Amdur Sensei has is his independence from anyone who could give him a hard time about what he writes. Having long ago pissed off almost everyone in Aikido at one point or another he doesn't have to hold back. Not everyone wants to hear what he has to say because to acknowledge his message would be to require some change in yourself, some reevaluation of your relationships in your art, possibly even changing those relationships. But the first step towards any positive change is bringing the issues to consciousness and that is what normally isn't allowed to happen. Amdur Sensei's book will only have value beyond entertainment if it helps engender that open discussion of these various "taboo" subjects.
George S. Ledyard
Aikido Eastside
Defensive Tactics Options
Bellevue, WA