[Rammer]

There is good training, so that's what I'm doing. It just happens to be under the title of a traditional martial art. This shocks some people who have gotten into a mindset that if it doesn't have one of the new hot names then it's fluff or a McDojo. IMO it doesn't matter if you are wearing wrestling outfits, a gi or just plain clothes, or whether you call your instructor 'sensei,' 'sifu,' or 'Bob'; what matters is what you're doing. A punch is a punch, a kick is a kick, an armbar is an armbar. I think you're right. The difference that separates effective arts from ineffective ones is not what you wear or what you call it, but how you train it. If the training includes "live" training against a truly resisting opponent, with as few rules/restrictions as possible, then it'll be good. If you never engage in that kind of training though, then it's all theoretical.

[No.6]

Our school likes to spend (apart from warmups) 50% of the time doing drills (these are the formalized chambered type stuff, but done at an aerobic pace where my heart rate is 160+; I wear a Timex heart rate monitor for this part) or other technique things (weapons, disarms, joint locks, etc.), and 50% doing sparring.

Sparring is freeform with the only restrictions being a) don't kick the other person's knees or otherwise cripple them and b) fight to your opponents level, don't clobber the newbies. This is usually standup but on occasion a clinch has turned into a grapple. Usually to finish up we spar all vs. all. Apart from the opportunity to be double- or triple-teamed by several instructors this improves situational awareness so that someone doesn't clock you from behind while you're tunnel-visioned in on the guy in front of you.

I find this to be very useful; usually if somebody's going to give you trouble without a gun involved, it'll be several somebodies.