# I lost a potential student today.... **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 5, 2007, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-lost-a-potential-student-today/414471 "2007-08-05T01:10:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2007, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-lost-a-potential-student-today/414471/1 "2007-08-05T01:10:33Z")
…because I’m not a bigoted Jesus Freak. As most of you know, I teach Taekwondo. I had a lady call and set up an appointment for this morning for her two kids to do an intro lesson. They show up, she does paperwork, I give the tour of the school and start on the intro. Mom asks if we start classes with a prayer. I reply that we don’t. Things go downhill from there Mom: “Might I ask why you don’t give thanks to God Almighty and his son Jesus for making it possible for you to practice?” Me: “Ma’am, people’s religious problems are their own. I try not to complicate matters. Besides, to the best of my knowledge, there is only one person in the school who is a Christian.” Mom: “Oh dear Lord. Come on, kids, we are in a place of evil.” Me: “Don’t let the door hit you in the ass on the way out.” Well, I didn’t say it out loud, but I sure thought it. I also wanted to say “Here’s your sign”, but I think it would have gone right over her head. ---
**Author:** ![dnooman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/839c29/32.png) [@dnooman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dnooman)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2007, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-lost-a-potential-student-today/414471/2 "2007-08-05T01:13:18Z")
You work in a place of evil? Cool. ---
**Author:** ![phouka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c5a1d2/32.png) [@phouka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phouka)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2007, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-lost-a-potential-student-today/414471/3 "2007-08-05T01:13:51Z")
You didn’t lose a student. You lost a problem. Sorry you had to deal with that special brand of idiocy. ---
**Author:** ![Snooooopy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@Snooooopy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snooooopy)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2007, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-lost-a-potential-student-today/414471/4 "2007-08-05T01:14:20Z")
Was it … EVIL paperwork? ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2007, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-lost-a-potential-student-today/414471/5 "2007-08-05T01:16:51Z")
Dude, **all** paperwork is Evil. ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2007, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-lost-a-potential-student-today/414471/6 "2007-08-05T01:27:14Z")
You missed your chance to really scare her off by bringing up Confucianism and/or Buddhism. It wouldn’t have mattered what you actually said, as I’m sure you could have BSed anything and gotten a reaction of complete fear. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2007, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-lost-a-potential-student-today/414471/7 "2007-08-05T01:32:36Z")
Wow…I wonder how much these people get done in a day if they ask this of all local institutions. “Excuse me, but do your cashiers say the Lord’s Prayer while they check me out?” “Yes, I would like to know how many of these used cars have been blessed with Holy water.” “Does this library carry any books written by Jews or Athiests?” “I do not understand why you do not put Chick Tracts in your Happy Meals. Come on children, we are leaving!” ---
**Author:** ![Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/50afbb/32.png) [@Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duck_Duck_Goose)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2007, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-lost-a-potential-student-today/414471/8 "2007-08-05T04:14:39Z")
Gahhh, people are baffling sometimes. :rolleyes: Why on earth would she have thought that you might say a prayer before practice? Is your academy called the First Baptist Taekwondo or something? ---
**Author:** ![August\_West](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/august_west/32/18069_2.png) [@August\_West](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/August_West)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2007, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-lost-a-potential-student-today/414471/9 "2007-08-05T04:40:11Z")
Wow. Just wow. ---
**Author:** ![Tamex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ccd318/32.png) [@Tamex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamex)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2007, 5:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-lost-a-potential-student-today/414471/10 "2007-08-05T05:14:07Z")
Why would she even expect that? You would think that she would have asked about it when setting up the appointment if it was so important. She wouldn’t have wasted her time or risked setting foot in a “place of evil”. I’m baffled. Perhaps she should have checked closer for a Jesus fish in your advertising. I don’t even think they pray before the Taekwondo lessons at our local YMCA, and that’s a nominally Christian organization. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2007, 6:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-lost-a-potential-student-today/414471/11 "2007-08-05T06:24:15Z")
You should do up a padded target dummy as Jesus. Then you can teach kids how to properly kick Jesus in the nads, or break Jesus’s neck in one blow. Do you use pointy sticks in Taekwondo? 'Cause you could explain how the executioners got it wrong piercing Jesus in the side, and show your kids just where to stick Jesus for a clean kill. ---
**Author:** ![Sophistry\_and\_Illusion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b3f665/32.png) [@Sophistry\_and\_Illusion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sophistry_and_Illusion)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2007, 6:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-lost-a-potential-student-today/414471/12 "2007-08-05T06:28:42Z")
I’m not sure I’ve ever run across a specifically Christian martial arts studio. You’d think they’d want to be churning out Christian warriors or something, but apparently not. (Or perhaps the Christian warriors prefer guns.) ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2007, 10:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-lost-a-potential-student-today/414471/13 "2007-08-05T10:10:13Z")
[QUOTE=ZipperJJ] “Yes, I would like to know how many of these used cars have been blessed with Holy water.” [/QUOTE] Madam, I’m Jewish. But if you like I could saw off the end of the exhaust pipe. ---
**Author:** ![kambuckta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/53a042/32.png) [@kambuckta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kambuckta)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2007, 10:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-lost-a-potential-student-today/414471/14 "2007-08-05T10:37:54Z")
[QUOTE=Peter Morris] Madam, I’m Jewish. But if you like I could saw off the end of the exhaust pipe. [/QUOTE] HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!! (Snerk) 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2007, 11:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-lost-a-potential-student-today/414471/15 "2007-08-05T11:15:13Z")
[QUOTE=dnooman] You work in a place of evil? Cool. [/QUOTE] OOOH! Evil Martial Artists! Are you a _Ninja_, **Clothahump**? Look, cheer up. It could have been worse. The kid could have walked in, & asked how long it would have taken to achieve Super Saiyen level. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2007, 11:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-lost-a-potential-student-today/414471/16 "2007-08-05T11:43:27Z")
Bow down before [your betters](http://www.christianmartialarts.com/index.htm) these guys do it by the book, God’s holy book. ---
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2007, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-lost-a-potential-student-today/414471/17 "2007-08-05T12:53:00Z")
[QUOTE=Clothahump] Mom: “Oh dear Lord. Come on, kids, we are in a place of evil.” [/QUOTE] She actually said that? Holy cow. It must be very difficult for her, as so many places must be evil. I wonder that she even has the courage to leave the house. Since when is not saying a prayer = evil? At the most it’s omission, not commission. Yeesh. ---
**Author:** ![Shirley\_Ujest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2007, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-lost-a-potential-student-today/414471/18 "2007-08-05T13:21:35Z")
Christian Marital Arts…Kickin’ Ass for Jesus. Jesus Kung Fu Action Grip sold Seperately. ---
**Author:** ![Carl\_Corey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Carl\_Corey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carl_Corey)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2007, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-lost-a-potential-student-today/414471/19 "2007-08-05T13:58:20Z")
[Bad Taste]“I KICK ASS FOR THE LORD!!”[/Bad Taste] ---
**Author:** ![Scuba\_Ben](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/278dde/32.png) [@Scuba\_Ben](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scuba_Ben)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2007, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-lost-a-potential-student-today/414471/20 "2007-08-05T14:03:39Z")
[worse taste]"I kick ass, belly, and head for the ancient Korean deities![/worse taste] [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-lost-a-potential-student-today/414471.md?page=2)