Aikido has a handful of moves that are really useful in real life - but its true that most of them are too artsy to work in practice, especially on an opponent bigger than you.
True. As someone who just started aikido last year there are some moves that I would not attempt in a dangerous situation do to lack of mastery. However I have done ikkyo so many times from various starts that it could be used very effectively in a tense situation. Hopefully I never have to find out :)
Yeah, my dad is a black belt in Aikido, and actually used it to make the training program that all New York State court officers go through. Definitely some good techniques in there for fast control.
