Don't hit a girl?

[EternallyBored]

So how long in till this turns in raging about feminist being hypocritical despite the fact that every time I see this come up most feminist agree with you being able to hit girls?

You shouldn't be hitting anyone without good reason. Gender doesn't matter. If someone attacks you, guy or girl you can damn well defend yourself. Unfortunately people tend to assume the guy is the aggressor. Hopefully that will change.

Actually the disturbingly common thing in the past, IIRC, was people's apparent enthusiasm for the concept of hitting women while mentioning women wanting equal rights. Generally in regards to hitting someone back I don't expect that sort of enthusiasm or phrases along the lines of "Well if they want equal rights!" I kiiiiiind of think it hints at more than a desire for defense when I see that. Thankfully haven't seen it yet in this thread.

Ehh it'll turn up soon enough probably, unfortunately. Some people love to jump on the faintest whiff of anything that even looks like hypocrisy, regardless of context, circumstances, or their own blatant hypocrisy.

As people love pointing out in all the women in the military threads, the average woman has about 50% less upper body strength than the average man. This is a bit misleading, but does hit on the main thrust of what, "don't hit girls" actually means when said today. Nobody with any sense says this and means that you can never hit a girl under any circumstances ever, the phrase is supposed to be used to make guys realize that hitting a woman is often not the same thing as hitting another man. We can come up with hypothetical scenarios all day long about getting attacked by female bodybuilders and women coming at you with a knife, but the core of it still holds true, your average woman isn't going to require the same level of force to stop as your average man.

The original intent of this phrase likely has nothing to do with self-defense scenarios anyway. It's a caution against using violence against physically weaker opponents from a period of time where domestic abuse was far more socially acceptable, and two guys clocking each other over verbal insults was also more acceptable.

It's all about context and escalation of force, you don't respond to every attack with an all-out assault, sometimes that is warranted, especially in situations where you believe your life is in danger, but the vast majority of physical fights are not to the death. If a woman slaps me I do not punch her in retaliation, if someone I know is significantly smaller or weaker than me, I don't immediately jump to full-force punches. It's the same issue with kids, the elderly, and people significantly smaller than you, it doesn't matter if they started it, going full force on someone weaker than you is generally looked down upon, they may not have any sympathy for the attacker either, but they will generally consider you to have poor self-control if you can't restrain yourself against a person with little chance of seriously hurting you.

 

[shootthebandit]

I dont think its ever right to hit anyone else whether they are a woman or a man except in self-defense

 

[ClockworkPenguin]

I don't hit people at all (beyond playful jabs to the arm to friends).

I have never been in a fight, although I was punched in the face once at school. The kid just walked away afterwards and then I reported the assault to a teacher. I can't see how retaliating would have helped except to escalate that situation.

Of course, if someone was just trying to beat the shit out of me then I would do what I could to end the fight as quickly as possible, but that would largely involve trying to escape rather than actually winning the fight. The gender of the assailant doesn't really come into it.

 

[Shadowstar38]

misinterpreted a blowjob.

I want to ask but I really don't.

She didn't warn me beforehand. Was more of a reflex than anything else.

 

[Lt._nefarious]

If someone does something that would make me want to punch them in the face then they've either harmed me or someone I care about, in which case I don't care about Race, Gender, Age or anything, I'll harm them right back... Unless they have a weapon, then, regardless of Race, Gender, Age or anything I will run the fuck away.

 

[Brutal Peanut]

Realistically, no one should be hitting anyone for any reason other than self-defense or perhaps in the defense of someone else in an extreme moment (situations to be assessed individually). Then again, I've never been in a fight or have even gotten into an argument heated enough to warrant hitting. I usually just leave and rant about stuff I'll never say to them ,...in my head.

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

I'll hit a woman if I have to. I'd prefer not to hit anybody though.

 

[frizzlebyte]

Half-joking comment aside, my opinion on the matter is that context is everything. If a person just swings a punch at you, that doesn't mean beating them up is acceptable. If you feel that person will not stop trying to harm you, then more force may be necessary, but as much restraint should be shown as possible. Judgement should be made at the time based upon circumstances, mainly if the person is actually capable of seriously harming you.

If you genuinely believe your life is in danger then you are within your rights to defend yourself regardless of who or what it is from. If you can defend yourself without harming your attacker then that is ideal, but if you do not believe that you can then you should do whatever you feel is necessary to protect yourself.

I say that none of this "appropriate force" rigmarole would be going through your head if someone took a swing at you. Your immediate concern would be along the lines of "must stop this threat," and when that threat was over, you'd stop fighting, regardless of whether that was after they had a black eye or a broken jaw. I seriously doubt you'd have time to academize the situation.

OP: If someone takes a swing at me, I don't care what gender they are. I'm gonna defend myself. Stupid gets as stupid gives.

 

[Imperioratorex Caprae]

Depends on if I reasonably feel I'm being threatened by said "girl". But probably not as my definition of "girl" equates to under the age of 18 and therefore a huge legal no-no for someone of my age. I still would probably try restraining the female in question, since I do know various holds that are "easy" for me and aren't permanently damaging but hurt like the dickens.
Still it depends on the situation, if I'm being attacked with a weapon or such... do what you can to stay alive. But generally no I wouldn't just go around hitting women/girls.

 

[Rendark]

If someone hits me i am going to hit them back don't care what they are.

 

[Heronblade]

Don't hit, period

Its a waste of energy. You can leave a far more lasting impression by waiting for them to swing, and using their momentum to fling him or her into a wall. Its kind of a negative reinforcement for retraining overly aggressive idiots.

 

[Something Amyss]

I swear we get one of these every few months. Do people on here spend a lot of time contemplating when they might be allowed to hit girls?

Joking aside, the Escapist seems to spend less time than average contemplating.

I don't hit people.

Why would I do that?

Is it common for people who aren't me to hit people?

I'm afraid to go outside now. ;____;

Probably a good idea. From what I hear, people are lining up around the block just to punch you.

Could be worse. I frequently see this line of discussion with guns. People (well, Americans) are looking for an excuse to shoot you. Well, not you specifically, but a general you.

OT: If you've got to defend yourself, you've got to defend yourself. The only objectionable thing is how rapidly this sort of mentality seems to escalate.

 

[DragonStorm247]

Self defense is self defense.

 

[Angelous Wang]

Don't hit women is out of date standard from pre women's rights days when women couldn't fight back.

These days most women can and know how to fight back.

So everyone is fair game. Especially if they start it.

That said as general rule you still shouldn't beat up anyone who cannot fight back, be they male or female. Well there are exceptions; punching someone who did something awful to you, a relation or in general is acceptable even if they cannot fight back (but I am talking a single face punch here, not beating them to death).

 

[FoolKiller]

I treat it like grade 8. If she's cute and she hits me, I'll kiss her. That will stop any assault because if nothing else, she would be confused as hell.

On a more serious note, I hit anyone that hits me first. And I hit to break bones. The minimal force required thing is nonsense. How do I know what is enough force to stop a given person from continuing the attack? What if after I hit back minimally, the other person pulls a knife?

Simple rule: Don't hit me if you aren't gonna knock me out.

 

[Waaghpowa]

Ideally you shouldn't be hitting or getting into fights with people. Realistically, if someone becomes physical, regardless of sex, you should be able to defend yourself.

 

[chadachada123]

If a weak little shit (male or female) hits me, there's a good chance that all the force that will be required to restrain them is grabbing their wrists and sternly telling them to stop being douchebags.

If a piece of shit with a similar or better physique than me hits me, with the intention of continuing to hit me, then I'm going to defend myself without restraint.

Most female aggressors are going to fall in the "little" category compared to me, but not necessarily other guys. And in the heat of the moment, I'm not going to blame someone for not knowing whether or not their aggressor is a weak punk-ass or not from the build alone.

The short of it is: I wouldn't punch someone with half my strength, male or female, unless I felt it was absolutely necessary. But if someone starts a fight, male or female, they better be ready to be smacked the fuck up.