Aramis Night said:
I really want to address some of the rationalizations for what is an appropriate response for a women physically assaulting a man. People seem to like to bring up weight differences and cry foul based on that. We'll if that is the criteria for why its unacceptable for men to hit women, but perfectly acceptable for women to hit men, then by your own standards a 120 lb man should be allowed to smack 200 lb women with no expectation of physical retaliation. In order for your argument to have any sense of logical consistency, this is in fact what your advocating. It's either that or you simply have to acknowledge that your sexist. If you are that's fine(well not really), but at least be honest about it.
I have a feeling you might have been referring, at least partly, to me there, so I'll just clarify my own opinion (no idea about anyone else's). A woman hitting a man out of anger is absolutely in the wrong as well. And a 200lb woman hitting a much smaller man would be almost (because a 200lb woman is still unlikely to be as strong as a 200 lb man) as reprehensible as if the genders were reversed. And that woman should be punished by the law. And the man would, probably, be justified in responding with force, as being attacked by a larger individual is going to reasonably make you fear for your safety.
However, it's still wrong for the person to hit back out of anger. I wrote this on the first page of the thread, but moral outrage increases the greater the disparity with regards to strength and fighting ability. If a 120 lb woman slaps a man, she's in the wrong (unless she did it out of self-defence). Her actions might have been understandable*, or even relatable (which is currently being discussed in the other thread on hitting people), but she's wrong. There is no right to hit people if they piss you off. There is a right to self defence, but not a right to punish people physically. Furthermore, her wrong action doesn't then justify a punch in return. And this is the same if the genders are reversed.
*This is important, and relevant to the discussion going on in the other thread. If you've been bullied constantly for months, I absolutely understand lashing out in frustration. My best friend in high school had Asperger's. I know how bullying feels. You still don't have a right to hit people, unfortunately.