This is off topic but there is a dilemma when you have a guy from another art crossing over who has the skills to hang with our beat your black belts. But at the same time, black belts in most TMAs are about more than just fighting skill. Things like knowledge of the history of the art, understanding of the philosophy of the art (if applicable), how they represent martial arts or that art as a whole, and how much they contribute to the growing of the art.
I know on Sherdog, most of this stuff wouldn't matter since its all about fighting. But for some instructors that stuff is just as important as fighting ability. So you run into cases like Josh Barnett who has a black belt in BJJ officially speaking but came up through catch wrestling for a majority of his skillset.
That might be true, but if that's the case, for the majority of TMA's there is a problem with lies and hypocrisy when it comes to what people think the belt is for.
I've always had the impression that yes, the black belt should have something to do with character and knowledge of the philosophy of the art, along with the ability to perform the techniques, and less to do with fighting ability. The black belt should mean that you have become a stronger, better you than some objective fighting ability (50th, 60th, 90th percentile of fighting ability), being that many people come in to martial arts falling into the bottom 10% and have to work their ass off for years just to beat an average guy.
But you only hear about that when someone shows up wanting a belt and deserving one according to ability, or who memorizes all 10 forms in like 2 months. While the school is still insulated, belts mean fighting ability and you should be proud of how good you can fight. Instructors always let that sort of thinking go.
You see it on this forum when some dude gets his blue belt after two years and some new guy comes in off the street and gives him Abusive Head Trauma by smashing him up and down from closed guard and spaz passing him while he is hurt. To a worldly, uninitiated person, the situation is a no-brainer, "shouldn't have fucked with that guy." To an insulated martial artist, it is ego crushing.
"Oh, I guess my BJJ blue belt was because I learned rolling technique and learned history, rather than my certification as a trained killer."
Instructors run into trouble when they don't promote the competent guy who just came in when they have failed to promote some sweetheart, 120 pound girl who is too scared to spar, despite her mastery of all drills and history. That's when it becomes clear that the head instructor is too insecure to promote on those grounds because he doesn't want someone in the bottom 90% to get beat up and make him look bad.
In short, students don't know what belts mean because instructors don't know what belts mean.
