I need advice

Probably biggest complaints would be:
TKD, often no head punches.
Aikido, compliant partners.

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"It is better to keep your mouth shut and be thought the fool, than to open it and prove it so." KungFuTze
"Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind." T. Geisel

So it would be a bad idea for me to practice Taekwondo or Aikido ?
What would you suggest I do then, given I have the opportunity, and why ?

If that's the only art available in your area and you can't move and are dead set on learning a martial art, then it seems like there are a couple of things you can do:

1) learn TKD
2) spar other people in your school with a modified ruleset (ie, headshots, kicking the back leg, low kicks, punches to the face, stop using the points system).

Or:

1) learn Aikido
2) spar other people with a .. etc as above.

It is not as good as hitting people under the supervision of a good teacher, but it will let you know what works and what doesn't work at a very low level. It suffers from not having a competent fighter around who can show you what happens when someone comes at you with good intent, from multiple angles, multiple levels and multiple ranges. That is not to say that TKD or Aikido practitioners can't do any of that, but it seems like some critical components are missing. This means that someone may just be aping/copying stuff they see an MT guy or boxer does without the appropriate intent or energy or heck, technique.

The other alternative is to go pick fights in bars.

Aikido tends to lack a sense of . . . . realism, IMHO.

TKD can be pretty good, but if you're going to a WTF school that does nothing but point sparring, then it's more or less of a joke.

Choose wisely my friend.

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“	Originally Posted By: KungFuMan I also learned a praying mantis fist style from watching the actual insect itself. This was before I actually learned some seven star mantis.	”

“	Originally Posted By: B4MB00 So it would be a bad idea for me to practice Taekwondo or Aikido ? What would you suggest I do then, given I have the opportunity, and why ?	”

Schools can vary widely even under the same system, talk to the teachers join a free class if possible and decide based on your goals...

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"It is better to keep your mouth shut and be thought the fool, than to open it and prove it so." KungFuTze
"Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind." T. Geisel

Of the two choices TKD > Aikido.

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Rock On!
Cam
"Raise up your mind....."

Very funny clip. I think that guy plays the stereotypical nerd/geek quite well.

Taekwondo will help your kicking ability, whereas Aikidou will "help your spiritual development" so your energy and his/her is one and the same.

It's not that there isn't stuff that works in Aikido. Some of the locks and throws do work. But, my problem is that the Aikido guys I have seen in action, don't have the correct intention for attacking. They learn to respond to unrealistic stimuli. In a fight, if you can get yourself into an advantageous position ( which requires training in full contact fighting which I have not seen in Aikido ), then there is stuff from Aikido that can/will work.

The thing is, at that point in a fight, if you have that much advantage, Almost any MA will do to finish him off. It is what I would call the easy part of combat, where you get to rattle off your combos and "be the man" with all the fancy stuff because your opponent has crumbled already. What many arts do not teach you, is that this will rarely be the case in a real fight where s*** goes wrong.

The hard part, is where you don't have the advantage ( you have to create it ), and everything you do is met with resistance and aggression. Where you have to work to your max for every hit/throw/submission you get. That is the stuff I like training.

To their credit though, all the Aikido people I have met, or seen on TV, have shown good manners and gentle, friendly personalities, and I do approve of that !

TKD will teach you how to kick well. If you land one of those kicks on somebody you can knock them out. But again, TKD suffers from the same unrealistic "energy" as Aikido. The second you Shoot a TKD guy ( I mean wrestling not a gun ), they have no more answers. For an art that specialises in kicks, how come they don't teach kicking from the ground ? They are also not used to certain kinds of counters to their kicks. For example meeting strikes with Angles and Edges. For example, If someone kicks to my head and I can get my guard up, I let his foot, instep, ankle taste the tip of my elbow. The harder he kicks the better. My training partner did that back to me about 4 weeks ago, totally dropped me like a sack, and my ankle is still sore to the touch.
There is a TKD school near my house. It's where I go to shop for some of my equipment, like Focus Pads and Thai Pads. Anyways, they seem like a standard TKD place. The guy there did tell me he teaches a TKD self defense class that doesn't adhere to the rules of TKD and includes headbutts and knifes and such. I don't think it would be that good, but at least they are trying.

“	2) spar other people in your school with a modified ruleset (ie, headshots, kicking the back leg, low kicks, punches to the face, stop using the points system).	”

Even better, spar people who aren't in your school as well. Great advice, though.

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"To alcohol ! The cause of, and solution to, all of life's problems" - Homer Simpson

Hey, just wanted to say thanks for your friendly advice. It's very helful and I will be sure to check up on other conversations. Theres some great insight here. I'll be sure to test myself in a realistic manner, keep a practical approach to what I practice and try to learn as much as I can. Thanks again!

Bamboo!