Von I think the proliferation of eastern MA over boxing has to do with mothers. I wanted to attend a boxing gym when I was young but my mom wasn't having it. It wasn't till I was in my teens that I went and did it on my own. Most mothers don't like the idea of their sons getting punched, and prefer a more "friendly" contact sport. I do agree though karate/kung fu/TKD is next to worthless. My sister is looking to put my nephew in to a MA and I've counseled her to look into Akido/judo/BJJ so he can get a good balance of respect/discipline as well as learn a MA with some real world application.