It was apparently a gang trick to use modified shoe taps on the toes of shoes so that the edge of the metal tap would protrude slightly. While this couldn't possibly create a deep enough wound to be fatal, a solid slash to bare skin might still necessitate stitches - and if the person thus injured were to be I Ded by police at the hospital, the wound would still accomplish getting the person out of the other side's hair for awhile. I have doubts about any 'traditions' involving bare feet, as traditionally it was practiced in shoes; Bimba had his school train in bare feet in order to try to keep his students inside of the training hall and off of the street, to help sanitize his interpretation of the art to get it legalized.
Edited by JusticeZero
Three-Puppet Saluter
Mr Barton-Wright's 1898 English system of kickboxing and walking-stick-fighting with very little wrestling involved doesn't quite cut the muster. And I don't think it was possible to program a Mac widget that syncs with a cell phone across the world in 2004. So until someone convinces me otherwise, I'm going to have to call capoeira my favorite martial art.
Hail Martin Septim!
Okay, sigh... two things:
1. The earliest known use of the word "capoeira" referring to a combative game played by slaves is from around 1789. So while capoeira in its current form may be less than a century old, on the whole it has a pretty respectable mileage.
2. Whoever came up with that "razors tied to the feet" nonsense should be used for kicking practice. Personal pet peeve here.
Can't really be bothered to edit the page, just felt like venting. Getting off the soapbox now.
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