The Firing Line Forums - View Single Post - proper response for fight in crowded area

gryphon · January 11, 2001, 10:59 PM

Sorry for the long post....

The altercation was really none of your business. In a situation like that you must keep in mind that if you involve yourself, you also involve those people with you. What if you had your girlfriend or wife or children with you are something erupted and you interviened(sp?)? You risk their lives as well as your own. While I have no problem risking my life, it is selfish to play with others lives. Also, even though you may be proficient in Kendo, most people who have trained in martial arts cannot fight because they never complete their training. Just because you have a black belt or some similar ranking in your art of choice should not give you the mindset that you could handle a situation like that. The only way that you become a good/great fighter is by getting into fights(sad but true fact). Given a choice of a black belt that has never been in a street fight and a street fighter, my money would go to the street fighter almost every time. Some may not a gree with this, but this comes from my own experience on the streets.

But, given a slightly different scenario, if the two people get into a physical altercation and one of them unjustly intends to take the life of the other, then by all means something should be done. I'm not one who is fond of gang-up fights either and have done my share or "even the odds" for people that I did not even know.

Basically it's a judgement call, one that will most likely have to be made in a split second, but with life experience the decisions will become more automatic.

January 11, 2001, 10:59 PM	#7
gryphon Senior Member Join Date: November 21, 2000 Location: Ohio Posts: 1,069	I think we are forgetting the most important thing.... Sorry for the long post.... The altercation was really none of your business. In a situation like that you must keep in mind that if you involve yourself, you also involve those people with you. What if you had your girlfriend or wife or children with you are something erupted and you interviened(sp?)? You risk their lives as well as your own. While I have no problem risking my life, it is selfish to play with others lives. Also, even though you may be proficient in Kendo, most people who have trained in martial arts cannot fight because they never complete their training. Just because you have a black belt or some similar ranking in your art of choice should not give you the mindset that you could handle a situation like that. The only way that you become a good/great fighter is by getting into fights(sad but true fact). Given a choice of a black belt that has never been in a street fight and a street fighter, my money would go to the street fighter almost every time. Some may not a gree with this, but this comes from my own experience on the streets. But, given a slightly different scenario, if the two people get into a physical altercation and one of them unjustly intends to take the life of the other, then by all means something should be done. I'm not one who is fond of gang-up fights either and have done my share or "even the odds" for people that I did not even know. Basically it's a judgement call, one that will most likely have to be made in a split second, but with life experience the decisions will become more automatic.