Bohdi Sanders Addresses the Lies being Spread about his Character!

Apparently, there is a new uproar in the soap opera world of the martial arts community because of a bogus article written by Dana Stamos. I am here to set things right and put the actual TRUTH out there. In this article, I will take her lies apart one-by-one. But first, let me give you some background into how this whole thing started.

Dana Stamos contacted me out of the blue a few weeks ago, asking for evidence about the guy who has been stalking me, Alain Burrese. She called me close to 30 times that week, and emailed over and over again as well. My wife was ready to rip her head off by the weekend, as she was being such a pain and disrupting our family time. I guess some people have nothing better to do with their lives, but I digress.

Two of the days when Stamos called, I was spending time with my two-year-old grandson. I told her that I was babysitting my two-year-old grandson and did not have time to deal with her demands at that time. In response, she became irate, demanding that she “needed this NOW!” and that “this is important!” I again told her that my grandson comes first, and she continued to demand that I give her all this information, etc. NOW! Apparently, her ego is so huge that she thinks her needs should come before taking care of a two-year-old.

It became obvious that she was not digging for proof about Alain Burrese, but had already taken the side of a stalker, a liar, and a fraud. She then proceeded to call me a liar, questioned my honor, and questioned whether or not I lived by what I teach on Facebook. Those of you that know me, know that I do not put up with that kind of behavior, nor do I put with people who call me a liar or question my honor. I simply block them and distance myself from them. Life is too short for middle school level drama or to spend time dealing with fools who have nothing better to do with their lives than to harass others. Here are the screen shot from those messages:

I gave her a ton of information on the phone, on Facebook, and through email. I even gave her a list of other names, grandmasters who have dealt with Burrese and who know the truth. If you notice on the right hand side of the screenshots, there is some of the information I sent her. I also sent her several emails filled with information that she requested. As you can see, I was not rude to her or anything; I simply blocked her.

After I blocked her, her fragile ego was bruised and she was then out for vengeance. She began calling her connections and spreading lies and slander. I know this because I got several phone calls from people who are connected to her wanting to know what was going on between Stamos and me.

Her buddy, Andrew Fanelli, called me and told me that, “Dana is infamous about doing this kind of thing. You should know that when Dana doesn’t get her way, she calls everyone she can and gossips about that person. She will not let anything go when she gets upset with someone. She has already gotten Alan Goldberg and others turned against you.” I do record my phone calls, so I do have this proof, just in case Andrew tries to deny this. The funny thing about this is that Andrew Fanelli, after calling to warn me about Stamos, fell in line and starting attacking me, along with several others in that little California martial arts community.

Then, right on cue, she wrote her article trashing me, repeating the same lies that my stalker has been writing for years. She and her friends also started contact people who commented on my articles, people they know in the martial arts world, etc. and spreading her slanderous lies and half-truths. She also wrote an article about my stalker, proclaiming him to be a real master, advertising his stuff, etc. As you will see, she ignored all the firsthand evidence that she was given, not only by me, but by grandmasters such as GM Terrence Shea, Sifu Al Dacascos, and others.

Now, let’s get to the facts and expose the lies for exactly what they are. I will go down the list and take them one at a time. Stamos wrote,

“Sanders’ books are all self-published through his Kaizen Quest imprint.”

The truth is that my books were originally published by a publisher in Nevada. I was not happy with the way the publisher was marketing my books or the way the publisher was behaving in public, so I bought the rights to all of my books back, all but one. I then turned down several publishing companies and decided to start my own publishing company, which is now where I publish my books. So this was not an outright lie, but rather meant to be misleading and demeaning to my writing by insinuating that I could not get an actual publisher to publish my books. This is how Stamos like to play fast and loose with the truth, or more accurately, with her twisted lies and half-truthes.

Next, Stamos makes the claim that,

“It was established that Sanders’ only degree from Clayton was a “Doctor of Philosophy in Natural Health” and that his claim of additionally having a “Doctor of Naturopathy” degree was, at minimum, an embellishment. For a time, Sanders stopped claiming to hold two doctorates (while maintaining his claim to be a Ph.D. via Clayton College of Natural Health), as of his current bio, however, he has gone back to claiming a “Doctorate in Natural Health and Naturopathy” in addition to the “Ph.D.”

Here, Dana Stamos outright lies. I actually have THREE degrees from Clayton College, along with a degree from Fort Lewis College and a Masters from Grand Canyon University. And, in addition, I have never, NOT ONCE, claimed that I didn’t have both of these degrees. Why would anyone earn a degree and then claim that he doesn’t have it? That is absolutely LUDICROUS! Here is one of my Masters degrees and my doctorate diplomas:

Stamos goes on to put even more words in my mouth, and claims that I said,

“In defense of the Clayton Ph.D, Sanders claims on his website that the degree is recognized by the Colorado Department of Education for purposes of teacher licensing. This is not true. According to the Colorado Department of Education website: “…per Colorado state statute, to be considered toward licensure requirements, degrees and course credits must be earned through institutions of higher education that are accredited by one of the regional associations listed below. Degrees and course credits earned through a college or university not accredited by one of these associations cannot be accepted as fulfilling licensure requirements in accordance with CRS 22-60.5-103. Clayton College was never accredited by any accreditation association or organization recognized by the state of Colorado or anywhere else, therefore Sanders’ assertion cannot be true. Further, a call to “Teresa” at the Colorado Department of Education licensing department confirmed that the degree from Clayton College of Natural Health cannot be used for licensing purposes in the state of Colorado.”

Oh, Dana Stamos is slick, I will give her that. She does appear to be an expert at spinning the truth and making lies seem acceptable. The problem with this is that I NEVER CLAIMED that my degrees from Clayton College were acceptable by the Department of Education for teacher licensing. That was her spinning the truth yet again.

What I actually said, and what is still on my website is that, “Doctorate degrees from Clayton College are also recognized by state and federal organizations, such as public schools and government organizations. My degree has been recognized and accepted by the State of Colorado as a legitimate degree and the coursework has been accepted for MY PAY SCALE and for my teaching endorsement.” Please notice that I never said anything about it being used for teacher licensing or by the Department of Education. She completely made that up to fit her agenda. I was paid for my Ph.D. at three different public schools in Colorado and it is stated as such right in my school contract for each school, as well as on my pay stubs. This is another lie; and a lie in which there is abundant evidence that shows she lied about this, as well as many other things which she claims are true.

If you are interested in knowing the truth about Clayton College, here are a couple of links:

A Great Education from Clayton College

True Information about Clayton College

Are you starting to see that Dana Stamos has an agenda now? Yes, to get your teacher’s license, your credit must be earned through a teacher’s college which is regionally accredited, which I did. And, each individual school district decides independently what credits they will and will not accept for their pay scale. And yes, my doctorate WAS ACCEPTED from three different school districts in Colorado, which by the way, is every school that I have taught in since earning my doctorate degree. No school has refused to accept it as of yet. For such a self-proclaimed investigation expert, Dana Stamos sure does twist the truth to fit her own personal agenda…A LOT!

She goes on and on about my education and how I am a fraud. Well, I have five degrees. Some are from regionally accredited colleges and universities and some are from Clayton College, which was independently accredited (see the links above for details on this.) The bottom line about this is that it is MY education and nobody else’s business to start with. I did not go to any of my schools to impress Dana Stamos or anyone else on the face of this planet. I went to get the education that I wanted, period. If anyone has a problem with my education, frankly, I don’t give a damn. She continued stating:

“Despite Sanders’ later claim that he was a 5th degree Black Belt by 2005, there is no mention of being a Black Belt until he added a “press kit” link later in 2008 and there was no mention of being a 5th degree Black Belt (on his website) until 2015 when he posted a long response (his “credentials page”) in an attempt to defend himself from scrutiny and answer questions about his claims.”

No mention of me being a black belt? Really? I earned my first Dan in 1996 (which I told her and gave her evidence of). I gave her evidence of my dojo, in which I had 65 students back in 1997. She downplayed that as some after school program or something of the sort. That is very strange since many of the martial artists that she pals around with teaches less than 10 students in their garages or in the park. But I had a dojo with 65 students and she claims that it was some after school program or something. I would hate to hear what she truly thinks of her “friends” martial arts expertise since they teach in their garages or have no students at all!

She also claims that there was “no mention of being a black until I added a “press kit” in 2008.” Well, consider this…I didn’t even have a website until 2008! My first book was not even published until sometime 2008! I wasn’t on the internet at all until sometime that year; nor was I in the public eye. But, yes, everyone who knew me then knew what rank I was and knew that I was a martial artist. This is yet another bogus claim to spin her malicious agenda. Not everyone goes around bragging about their martial arts rank all the time, Dana. Believe it or not, there is still such a things as being an unpretentious and humble martial artist. Not everyone in the martial arts world is a braggart.

The claim that there was no mention of me being a 5th Dan until 2015 is ridiculous! She claims that I kept my rank hidden for 10 years? That is laughable! I am sure that if you ask, hundreds of my readers from that time could tell you exactly what my rank was, and still is. She also claims that,

“The credentials page was thereafter removed and then modified – multiple times – and re-posted by Sanders).”

Again, this is not true. The page has never been removed. When I found that Alain Burrese was stalking me and harassing me on a trashy martial arts forum, I decided to have a little fun with him. I published and unpublished the page over and over (with the click of a button), and each time he would go into a little rant on that forum. This was part of my proving that he was stalking my website. Sifu Al Dacascos can verify this, as we were both laughing about this as I was doing it and Sifu Al knew what I was doing. I have to say, it was very funny watching my stalker being maneuvered like a puppet on a string, but that is a story for another time.

It is obvious where she got this information. Her new friend, Alain Burrese gave her all the lies which he has been posting for years; and which, I might add, have already been disproven time and time again. Dana Stamos basically took this whole article from Burrese’s lies, from a fraudulent federation named, the Extreme Budo Federation, and from videos made by Alain Burrese, Thomas Harless, and Joseph Slonski. She goes on to write…

“Bohdi Sanders has claimed at various times on his website, Amazon author page, LinkedIn page, and social media sites ranks from 5th degree Black Belt to 6th and then 10th degree Black Belt and training in a wide range of martial arts (ninjutsu, krav maga, jujitsu, etc.).”

I never claimed to be a 10th Dan; I stated that I was given an honorary certificate for 10th Dan. I was given an honorary 10th Dan certificate from the Extreme Budo Federation when I served on the board there with Sifu Al Dacascos, GM Eddie Mapula, Col. Phil Torres, Master Bill Holman, Master Howard Upton, and GM Bill Willard. They gave us ALL the same certificate. And any of these masters can verify that.

I told Slonski that I was not comfortable with the 10th Dan and did not consider it a real rank. And Slonski asked me what my highest rank was. I told him I was a 5th Dan and he then sent me a 6th Dan rank certificate. When I found out that the two founders of the federation, Thomas Harless and Joseph Slonksi were not on the up and up, I resigned, declined the ranks and the title, and took that certificates off of my website. They were only posted there to start with at the request of Harless and Slonski to help promote their federation. This also can be verified with everyone listed in the last paragraph, as they all know the truth and they ALL resigned after I did. Harless and Slonski both blamed me for their little federation falling apart and began to attack me soon after. In fact, Thomas Harless began to attack me the day after I resigned. 

I refused to have a certificate from a fake organization on my wall, I was honored to have the signatures of all those great martial artists honoring me with the honorary title of Hanshi. After thinking about it, I discussed replacing that honorary certificate with the board members, who all stated that they thought there was nothing wrong with that idea and would happily sign a new certificate for me. So I had that certificate replaced using the same language, but without having anything to do with the Extreme Budo Federation on it. Sifu Al Dacascos, whose opinion I value over anyone else’s in the martial arts world, told me that he saw no problem with doing that at all, and that is good enough for me. I later thought it would be nice to have the signatures of a few of my other valued friends in the martial arts world on that same certificate. I approached 4 or 5 of them and they were more than happy to sign it as well, stating that I deserved it for my contributions to the martial arts.

But now people like Burrese, Harless, Slonski, and Stamos all use those Extreme Budo certificates, along with my replace certificate to attack me. They are now claiming that it was written to look like a “rank certificate.” This is ridiculous for two reasons. First, it clearly states exactly what it is and clearly states it is HONORARY. It says nothing about conferring rank. Secondly, If I was going to have people sign a rank certificate for me, don’t you think I would have made it a rank PROMOTION, and not for the same rank that I had already earned and for which I already have a certificate for? This claim is simply asinine! Burrese, Harless, Slonski, and now Dana Stamos all attack me for this. I guess birds of a feather do flock together…and sing the same song. Stamos goes on to write:

“The fraudulent 5th degree Black Belt certificates were replaced by a 6th degree Black Belt certificate from Joseph Slonski that was later stripped and disavowed, and an “honorary” 10th degree Black Belt from the Extreme Budo Federation that was also later stripped and disavowed after Sanders was removed from the federation’s board.”

Again, Dana Stamos does not know what she is talking about. First, I have never had any “fraudulent” rank, period. And, I never “replaced” my 5th Dan and I was NOT “stripped” of anything. Master Howard Upton and I resigned (one day apart) from this fraudulent organization and it wasn’t until weeks later than these two clowns decided to try to save face and put out a video and lies on their website that they had “stripped me of all rank and title.”

First, I turned down ALL rank from this organization when I resigned. Secondly, how can anyone strip anyone of any rank and title when that person has never trained with them or even ever met them in person? A real organization does not offer people rank when they have never met them before. The fact that Harless and Slonski both offer me rank, without ever meeting me or training with me, simply shows how fraudulent their organization was/is to start with; and it just one of the reasons that I, and ALL the other board members resigned and left this organization once we found out the truth about them. Thirdly, even if those ranks were real, how do you strip someone of a rank or title in which they have already refused and politely declined? If you turn a rank down, you cannot later be stripped of that rank. Any rational thinking martial artist knows that this is true, but that doesn’t stop people like Dana Stamos from trying to spin this to fit her agenda.

All of this can be verified by any of the board members – Sifu Al Dacascos, GM Eddie Mapula, Col. Phil Torres, Master Bill Holman, Master Howard Upton, and GM Bill Willard – all who also resigned after finding out about the character of these two frauds. The only people who actually state differently are the two frauds who were running this organization and were highly offended when I, and everyone else, resigned. Apparently, they blame me for their own shortcomings. Stamos then goes on to state:

“Sanders has been unable or unwilling to provide proof of his training or progression through the ranks in Shotokan Karate.”

Again, this is not true. I gave her a specific progression of my training including years and locations, which she chose to leave out of her irate little internet rant because they did not further her own little twisted agenda. In addition to leaving out that information, she also chose to leave out the firsthand conversations with Sifu Al Dacascos, GM Terrence Shea, GM Richard Hackworth, and others. I guess what they had to tell her did not fit into her vendetta against me. What an ego one must have to get this irate over being blocked on a silly social media!

She continues to attack my instructor, claiming he doesn’t exist because she could not find any mention of him, etc. She attacks me for being “unable or unwilling” to give her more information about my background, etc. I actually gave her a lot before I stopped sending her stuff after she got rude, called me a liar, and questioned my honor. But it didn’t matter, as she did not use what I gave her and ignored the firsthand accounts from several grandmasters who know the truth. I was in the process of sending her more information when she called me a liar and questioned my honor, at which time I told her I wanted nothing else to do with her and blocked her (see the screenshot on the second page.) Of course I did not give her anymore information after that! Who would? I don’t play that game!

She shared personal information with the guy who is stalking me and my family. She legitimized the guy who is stalking me on her website and is currently advertising for him. Why would I give her anything else? She has never seen my black belt certificates, as I don’t publish them for the public. They mean something to me. They are not for proving a point to my haters or even to someone who obviously feels entitled, like Dana Stamos appears to feel! I feel no need to prove anything to anyone anymore, and I damn sure don’t feel the need to do so to people such as Dana Stamos who are enabling a man who has stalked me and my family, threatened my wife and my sons, and has done everything in his power to destroy my reputation and my business.

Sifu Al Dacascos has seen my certificates. Soke Richard Hallman has seen my real certificate. Master Howard Upton has seen it. Anyone who visits me has seen them; but no, I don’t make use them to impress people like Dana Stamos. I have nothing to prove to anyone; I know what training I received and I don’t really care whether Dana Stamos likes it or not, or anyone else for that matter. I will not post anymore of my certificates, as people like Alain Burrese and Dana Stamos are notorious for Photoshopping things. Here is a perfect example from my hall of fame certificate. Notice how Stamos intentionally Photoshopped my certificate.

She goes on to attack my Shihan title, given to me by Soke Richard Hallman…

“Thogh it gives the impression of being one, this certificate is not a rank certificate. This certificate itself is odd in that it doesn’t explicitly state an issuing authority, though it can be assumed that it is the “United States Soke Council” (a tiny group based in Indiana and established sometime around 2015 to sell memberships and issue “sokeships” and licenses21) since all the signatories are from that organization.”

Wow, how many lies can you fit into one short paragraph? First, the certificate and letter awarded to me does not give any impression of conferring rank to anyone. If she assumes that, that is on her, although anyone who can read would not assume that. Secondly, that council was established in 2010. Thirdly, this council has turned down over 200 applications. They are extremely strict about their membership. They absolutely DO NOT sell memberships. In addition, my title does not have anything to do with the United States Soke Council, which she consistently lies about, stating that they “sell memberships,” which they absolutely do not. It is another blatant lie to state that. Also, all the people who signed my Shihan certificate ARE NOT members of the Soke Council. She states that “it can be assumed…” Really? It doesn’t state any of that, but she “assumes” what she wants, as people with an agenda often do. Also, as anyone who can read can plainly see, it say absolutely nothing about rank!

She goes on to whine that…

“Contrary to what the inclusion of the Shotokan logo might suggest, Sanders is not formally affiliated with the Japan Karate Association or any recognized Shotokan group. The certificate is not issued by a martial arts governing body, association, or federation. While its design and wording might suggest otherwise, it is not a rank certificate.”

Okay, let me get this right. According to Dana Stamos, no one should use a Shotokan logo unless they are formally affiliated with the JKA? That is ridiculous! And, just to be clear, I used to be a member of the Japan Karate Association but I got tired of the politics and the ridiculously expensive belt tests. I used the Shotokan logo because that is my style, plain and simple. Once again, she has no clue what she is talking about! I never claimed that my Hanshi certificate was anything other than honorary. It clearly states this.

Also, I never claimed it was from any “governing body, association, or federation.” It is issued by the original people who signed it. Only someone with a malicious agenda would make such a statement. And I damn sure did not suggest that it was any rank certificate. I have my rank certificate for my 5th Dan, as I stated above. Why would I need and second one? It simply and plainly states that it is an HONORARY title, period, nothing more, and nothing less. Her attempt to make it seem like something else is juvenile and is simply another example of her spinning the truth to fit her malicious agenda.

In addition, she has been telling people that it was backdated after the fact. The certificate date was printed on the certificate when the certificate was made. The date was on the certificate when it was signed by each of the martial artists who originally signed it. Nothing was changed, added, or deleted. And for anyone to say any different is nothing but a blatant lie, but that doesn’t stop her or her little friends from stating that it was backdated in their gossip sessions. She also claims that it was written in a confusing manner to read as if it conferred rank. Really? The only people who would be confused by this would be in elementary school! Unfortunately for Dana Stamos or those she has misled into believing her lies, this is another truth, which she lied about, that is easily proved. Here us that untouched certificate which clearly states, “is hereby awared the honorary title of Hanshi on September 1, 2014, which was the date when the original masters awarded me the title, and it is the ONLY date that has ever been on this certificate, contrary to what Dana Stamos has been telling people! Again, she flat out lies about this honorary title.

Then her agenda becomes clear and she states:

“To date, Sanders has failed to produce credible evidence backing his claim and Burrese has consistently maintained that he did not author the articles any related forum posts. In retaliation, Sanders (with the help of others) has written numerous long articles attacking Alain Burrese, making many unsubstantiated and defamatory claims about Burrese’s military service and his career as an attorney, as well as attempting to discredit his martial arts credentials and accomplishments. These claims against Alain Burrese have all been proven to be false.”

I will give Dana Stamos one thing – she does like to economize and fits lots of lies into a small paragraph! The truth is that I have produced an abundance of credible evidence about Alain Burrese including screenshots, transcripts from Alain Burrese messaging many of my readers, firsthand accounts from Grandmasters who Burrese contacted personally, and much more. Also, in over seven years that Burrese and his buddies have been attacking me, I have written three articles about him, exposing his lies, just as I am doing in this article. In addition, I have also offered an abundance of evidence, including firsthand, primary accounts from Burrese’s own mouth and from his own accounts. And none of them have been disproven by Burrese, although, if they were not true, he could have easily disproven them, which he has not. One has to ask oneself why would Dana Stamos lie to cover for Alain Burrse? I will not share all the evidence concerning Alain Burrese here, as I have shared it all already, although I will share some later in this article. She continues her defense of my stalker, stating:

“In late January of 2019, Bohdi Sanders posted a fraudulent forensic handwriting analysis report in an article about Alain Burrse.”

It was not a “fraudulent handwriting analysis report” as she claims. Apparently, she thinks that since it came from India, where one of my readers had it analyzed, that is must be fraudulent. Are you racist against Indians as well, Dana? I have news for you, Americans do not have a monopoly on forensic science. The analysis was done by a very respected doctor of forensic science who works for the Indian government and who specializes in handwriting analysis and bank fraud. But that doesn’t fit into her agenda, so she immediately called it fraudulent when it came out. Just because you would like it to be fraudulent, Dana, that does not make it so. She goes on to say:

“The highest level he achieved with Bob Allen was a yellow belt – which in most schools represents a mere six months or less of training, which in Sanders’ case occurred 35 years ago in 1984 – but Sanders’ seems to try to give the impression that the two men share a much deeper connection than one might realistically think possible given the circumstances described.”

How do I try to give the impression that we share a “much deeper connection?” Simply because I stopped in to honor Shihan Allen with a couple of my books and to ask him to be a part of my new book project? I guess according to Dana Stamos, that is inappropriate or something. Yes, I only trained with Shihan Allen for a short period. I moved from Louisiana to Wyoming. I know it may shock Dana Stamos to no end, but it is kind of hard to train with someone in Louisiana when you live in Wyoming. But way to grasp at straws, Dana! Hey, I also haven’t seen some of my friends in 40 years. Maybe that signifies that we were never friends to start with? If we go by the logic of Dana Stamos, I guess it does!

She goes on to criticize my training with Sifu Al Dacascos, the fact that I did not talk about my instructor enough in a recent interview, blah, blah, blah…on and on. If you want to know about Sifu Al Dacascos and my training together or our relationship, feel free to contact Sifu Al. I have news for you, Dana, not everyone in the martial arts cares about being in the limelight. In fact, the vast majority of martial artists in this world are not well-known and do not try to use their martial arts training to make a name for themselves. And not everybody’s relationship with their instructor, or anyone else for that matter, is your business.

And, of course, she could not resist the temptation of attacking me for the recent article on me in Martial Science Magazine, saying:

“In the same interview Bohdi Sanders in Martial Science Magazine in August 2018, Sanders allows himself to be called Grandmaster over and over again.”

This is another blatant lie and I am pretty sure that she knows it (just like she knows that all this other stuff is filled with lies and twisted half-truths). I even mentioned this too her before I blocked her. When I did the interview, there was no title on the article. I never claimed to be a grandmaster, and I never have…and I never will. I have no desire to be called a grandmaster and never have. I had nothing to do with them calling me a grandmaster. In the actual article, I stated that I am a 5th Dan. Now, I know that in the circle that Dana Stamos runs in, people give each other the title of grandmaster like they share photo ops or give each other a pat on the back, but not everyone lives like that, Dana.

In fact, when I saw it, I immediately contacted the author and asked him to fix the mistake. I had him contact the magazine to take it off, but they said they couldn’t change it, as it already went to print. This is just another example of how she tries to spin the truth to fit her agenda. This can be verified by Master Guy Edward Larke, who actually wrote the article and did the interview. In fact, here is what the he stated about it. (And yes, I do have the original email from Master Larke stating this fact.)

“To whom it may concern:

In regards to the article I prepared on Bohdi Sanders I mistakenly used the title of Grandmaster.
That was my mistake alone. I assumed the title due to his experience and credentials. 

Sincerely,

Guy Edward Larke”

But that doesn’t stop Dana and her little friends from sending the following photo to everyone she knows in some misguided attempt to damage my reputation. I received this from one of the people that she sent it to in her ridiculous attempt to spin the truth and make me look like a liar. I guess it is up to you to take the word of Dana Stamos, who I have proven to be a liar over and over again in this response, or the word of the man who actually wrote the article.

In fact, although Master Larke was an honorable man and took the blame for the mistake, I actually think that it was the magazine which made the mistake, as Master Larke also sent the original article to another magazine, SENI BELADIRI, which it was also printed in. And in the other magazine, the title on the photo did not have the title “grandmaster” in the article. See the photos below:

Dana Stamos concludes the written part of her little hissy fit with the statement:

“The journey of “Grandmaster” Bohdi Sanders ends here.”

This is a perfect look into Dana Stamos’ delusions of grandeur. She thinks that she is so important that she gets to decide when my martial arts journey ends? Wow, talk about delusional and self-important! This arrogance is absolutely not what you would expect of a black belt, which she claims to be.

She was actively calling people and begging them to give her “dirt” on me, according to those who contacted me and told me about their phone conversations with her. I was told that she even threatened one grandmaster, telling him that if he didn’t give her dirt on me, she would go after him too. As she was calling people in an attempt to “dig up dirt” on me, one of the grandmasters asked Dana Stamos, “Who was your instructor?” Her response was both ironical and very telling. She stated in a very offended tone, “That is none of your business!”

Really Dana? Do you really think that every part of everyone else’s life is your business, but no one should even ask you who your instructor was? I don’t know about you guys, but I have never asked anyone who their instructor is, or was, and had them tell me that it is none of my business. That is very telling indeed!

Another fact that is very telling is that she actually used the Extreme Budo Federation, a couple of videos from Thomas Harless and Joseph Slonski, and articles from my stalker, Alain Burrese, as references to back up her claims. Consider this…she uses information from the three people who hate me more than anyone else in the martial arts world to write her “investigation” about me; and she knew this beforehand and used them as her references anyway. All three of these people have been discredited time and time again, but I will give you a very quick overview of each one.

Joseph Slonski has multiple arrests for domestic abuse and drugs. His mugshots are easily found on the internet. Last time I spoke to his family, before his stepfather who raised him pass away, he was still heavily using drugs and on a drug binge. The last thing that his stepfather said to me was that he wished that he could see Joe before he died, but Joe was strung out on drugs and in CO. I offered to try to find him and get him back to Florida and I even contacted Slonski’s old instructor to get his advice on the matter. His instructor told me that, “Joe is a 50 year old man. He should take care of his own business.” I left it at that. According to his old instructor, he receives disability checks for mental issues.

His stepfather then told me that, “This is a horrible thing to say, Bohdi, but I wish that you…” I decided not to finish that quote, as it would be too hurtful, even for one of my haters who has constantly threatened me and trashed my name. He also told me that they were allowing Joe to stay in their rental home in FL, but he disappeared leaving him holding the bag for thousands of dollars for another so-called martial arts federation that Joe had talking him into financing, the rental home was so trashed with empty meth bags, syringes, and blood on the walls, that they had to have the hazardous waste team come in a clean the whole house before they could rent it out again. They told me much more than that, and backed it up with photos, but that is plenty for you to understand who and what this man is.

Thomas Harless tried unsuccessfully to run a McDojo after he and Joseph Slonski crossed-promoted each other to the rank of 10th Dan and the title of Hanshi. They gave each board member the same rank, although I think, like me, everyone turned them down in the end. Harless also has an arrest record for drugs and those who know him will freely tell you that he has a drinking problem. And that is just the tip of the iceberg where Harless is concerned.

Harless has bragged, in writing, that he beat up 20 cops when he was 17 years old, all at the same time, nonetheless, and then lifted the cop car and turn it over. He was then taken to court where Marine recruiters showed up and asked the judge not to send him to prison because “the Marines need him  because he was a one man army.” He has made many other claims, but you get the point. Oh, and here is a message that Harless left on my voicemail. Listen to this man’s foul mouth and empty threats. Is this a man you would want teaching your children or to use as a reference for any investigation? And, at least when I knew him, Harless claimed to be some kind of preacher. Listen to the “preacher!” Thomas “Trash Mouth” Harless

Alain Burrese is a well-known internet troll who is also guilty of stolen valor claims. He has been stalking me and my family for almost eight years now and has dozens of fake accounts according to an NSA agent who was investigating him and gave me that information. I will withhold the agent’s name at the request of his uncle who is a close friend of mine and also a grandmaster in the martial arts. Please check out the article about this piece of work on my website. He claims to be an army sniper and a sniper instructor, but the facts show something very different, and this comes from credible people who have seen his real DD-214 in person, which is apparently different from the so-called DD-214 that he shared with Dana Stamos.

Here is a message that, according to the police officer, he had a guy named Gottfried Roser leave on my voicemail at 1:15 in the morning on a work day. The police report on harassment named Alain Burrese as an additional person involved. Here is another empty threat these clowns left on my voicemail: Gottfried “Jeff Allen” Roser

Dana Stamos is actively promoting him on her website as a great martial arts master, a sniper and a sniper instructor. Although the Army requirements for being a sniper state that there must be NO disciplinary actions in order to be a sniper and Burrese has admitted to be demoted by an Article 15 for threatening a superior officer. Apparently, once again, truth doesn’t matter to Dana Stamos. Here is a video where Burrese, after being called on his lies. He thought some of his enemies had his military records, so he made this video trying to do damage control. Notice how irritated he is as he goes on his rant. Also notice that he doesn’t let anyone see the certificates close enough to read them. He also states, after outing himself, that it is “not something he is proud of, but he is not going to hide from it either.” Funny how he hid from it for his whole adult life, until he was forced to admit it! I could give you much more on this guy, include screenshots where he wishes he could “piss on my head and video tape it,” and much more, but you get the point. Listen to Burrese admit that he was NOT eligable to be a sniper: Alain Burrese Article 15

The Extreme Budo Federation, as I have already addressed, is a scam federation that was run by Thomas Harless and Joseph Slonski. All of the original board members have since resigned as they found out that these two guys were not on the up and up. I have already discussed everything that you need to know about this organization and the guys behind it above.

Also note that my lawyer had to send ALL THREE of these people a cease and desist letter, as their harassment would not stop, and has not stopped to this day. Yet these are the people and the federation which Dana Stamos chose to use as so-called references in her so-called “investigation.” It is obvious that she has an agenda and the only way to achieve her agenda was to use the lies of criminals, internet stalkers and trolls to try to discredit me. Like I said, birds of a feather…

Although I have nothing to prove to anyone, I also have nothing to hide.
I will provide an overview of my training.

I started in Shotokan Karate in 1984 with Bob and Nikki Allen in Louisiana.

I moved to Laramie, WY 1985 – trained in the University of WY Shotokan Club with Lane Kopishka until I moved to MS in the fall of 1986 for my wife to finish college at Ole Miss. I trained at the Karate Club at Ole Miss until she graduated and we moved in 1990. We moved to a place where there was no place for me to train, so I trained solo until 1992.

In 1992, we moved to Colorado and I started training at a Shotokan Club in Durango, CO. The drive back and forth to Durango got old with two small boys, so I found a closer club and 1993 I started training in the Shotokan Club in Cortez, CO.

In 1994 I met Shihan Bill Jackson at a 3-D archery shoot outside of Delores, CO and we became friends. I started training with him and got my 1st Dan in 1996. Here are some photos from 1997. I was training towards my 2nd Dan at the time.

Sparring at a local club tournament in Cortez, CO 1997 (That is me on the left.)

Judging a tournament. I was working on my 2nd Dan at this time.

My boys that I trained with their trophies from a tournament in New Mexico

We ended up moving to MO in 1998. I was working on my 2nd Dan at the time. I started a club there and had 65 students. Here is an article and photos from the local newspaper about the club.

I moved back to CO in 1999 and continued to train with Bill Jackson as much as I could through my 5th Dan in 2005. This is also when I changed my name to Bohdi. Bill passed away in 2007. Not everyone is famous, nor do the care to be, a fact that Dana Stamos doesn’t seem to comprehend.

Since then I have taught individual lessons and have trained as much as I could around my health issues. Sifu Al Dacascos has personally trained with me and wrote the following about me when these Dana Stamos’ “references” started attacking me the first time and accused Sifu Al and I of lying about training and staging photos.

“I want to set the record straight about a photo of Bodhi Sanders and me staging the shots. I went to visit Bohdi Sanders in Loveland, Colorado to discuss and finish my book called “Legacy” in September of 2015. I had many reasons in doing so.

First, he has several books on martial art philosophy that are best sellers and even a couple that hit #1 on Amazon. I wanted to meet the man that was going to publish my book one-on-one and make sure that he was a credible and legitimate martial artist, capable of understanding and keeping up with my presentation of martial arts. And he was exactly that.

We talked philosophy, about life and trained a lot. Talking the talk is not like walking the walk. After going through the mechanical and technical aspects of Escrima and some new techniques that we worked on, done by the numbers, which is normal when learning something new, he was able to be creative and fluid which precision, power, speed, and accuracy, which are the primary goals. In the last phases of creativity and fluidity, nothing is staged; it is where you want to be.

Traditionally, a hard stylist, Sanders was able to transition from one to the other and his flow was as good as any of the hundreds of top black belts that I’ve had the privilege to train and work out with. There are no delusions when it comes to his martial arts skills. There was no staging when it came to the tagging (sparring or fighting) and training we did. There is also no staging when your life is on the line and Sanders is a man that understands this.

During my time training with Sanders, his previous training was obvious to me. After training with him, I had no doubts about his rank or previous training. He has precision, power, speed, and accuracy. I could plainly see the muscle memory in his blocks, counters, and movements. I saw his 5th Dan certificate and it is legitimate. I saw the way he lives and he lives exactly what he teaches in his books. We trained every day we were together and his wife took both photos and videos of our training, and none of it was staged. Sifu Al Dacascos”

As far as my education goes, Stamos selectively left out the fact that I have 3 ½ years at the University of Mississippi, 1 ½ years at the University of WY, 1 year at Mississippi State University, along with degrees from Fort Lewis College and a Masters degree from Grand Canyon University. In addition, I also have college credits from other schools such as the University of Colorado and several Junior Colleges and was accepted for admission to Chiropractic school after having met all the prerequisites, which are high level course work in physics, science, biology, and organic chemistry. All she wanted to focus on was my degree from Clayton College, as the rest did not fit in with her little agenda.

She also put my name in quotes to raise doubts about my name being real. I have been going by Bohdi Sanders for over 20 years, and legally changed my name a few years back. Changing my name legally was not something I took lightly, but since my books had become popular, I thought it was something that I wanted to do to avoid any confusion and because I am Bohdi Sanders, period. Here is proof that I have been going by the name of Bohdi Sanders for over 20 years (notice the date on the bottom of the article).

Dana Stamos was told most of this on the phone, but chose to ignore it and write her libelous story from Burrese’s point of view. I guess that is what happens when you don’t bow down to someone with such a large ego, like she appears to have! She also spoke to several people who confirmed what I told her, but chose not to include any of their statements in her hatchet job.

By her own admission, Dana Stamos spends 17-20 hours a day in her small office staring at the computer. Apparently, anyone who crosses her or bruises her overblown ego becomes a target of her questionable investigations on one of her many websites and social media pages.

In fact, on 2/12/19 she made a fake Facebook account to get around the fact that I blocked her from my pages. Then she spammed 15 (yes 15!) of my posts with the link to her fake article, in some vain attempt to get people to read her lies. Facebook and other page owners have removed several of her articles about me for being inappropriate. Facebook wrote me and stated that they considered what she wrote and my photo, which she Photoshopped, to be harassment.

She also has a hard time getting anyone to read any of her 13 or so pages on social media. As such, in a dishonest attempt to make it look like people actually like her posts, she signs in to each page and likes her own posts 12-13 times using her various page names to desperately try to make herself look important. Not only is that dishonest, but it is really sad, but I guess that if you don’t write anything worth reading, people don’t keep reading your stuff.

I am 99% sure that this response won’t satisfy Dana Stamos or my other haters, but I am 100% sure that I don’t give damn. I did not train to be famous or to take pictures with attention whores. I did not go to school for years and years to impress internet trolls or anyone else for that matter. My training was for me and my education was for me, not for anyone else! If you don’t like it, frankly, I don’t give a rat’s ass.

It is only the people in the martial arts community who live for fake hall of fame awards and photos with martial arts celebrities, who calculate everything they do in some vain attempt to make themselves look more important than they are. Normal people, like me, go to school to improve themselves, not to impress other people. They train for their own personal goals, not to impress martial arts trolls.

This is my background and I am good with it. Would it have been nice to train with some of the martial arts pioneers like my friend, Sifu Al Dacascos, earlier in my life when I could do more? Absolutely. But not everyone is in a position to do that. Believe it or not, some people actually put their family first, ahead of martial arts or the next opportunity to play dress up, take photos, and try to prove how important they are. That maybe the martial arts world that Dana Stamos lives in, but it is not mine!

You questioned my honor in one of your little rants, Dana. Well, my honor is 100% intact; although I can’t say the same for yours.

Bohdi Sanders Shihan