Friday, April 30, 2010
Real Life Vs Movies/ TV
Wifey and I are watching a movie and something just jumped out at me. Some guy was being a jerk so the main character up and popped him one. He then stood there and did nothing then the jerk mollywhopped him pretty good in return. While it can certainly be debated when physical violence should be used if you are going to hit someone at least follow up until they are unable to retaliate. Hitting them and then letting them get set for a fight is stupid. Follow up until they are in a bloody pile on the ground and then get the heck out of there.
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5 comments:
I read about the Irish shillelagh a while back. It turns out to be a cultural tradition - two guys with an anger between them face off. One takes a swing - often costing broken bones, damaged teeth or vision, perhaps cracked skull with the stick with a gnarl or knot at the end. Then the other guy (if able) takes a swing.
This gave America the stupid stunt of "I'll let you take the first swing/punch".
Much of the cowboy fist fights were an homage to the legacy of that Irish tradition, albeit mostly unknowing and usually not intended to laud the Irish, in particular. Thus the tradition of duking it out until only one stands, when everyone relinquishes their anger and goes about their day.
Those that decry such fisticuffs as stupid, are quite correct in a survival or disciplined sense. Culturally and socially, there is a long history of the dishonorable that refuse to leave their anger on the floor after such an exchange, of "cheating" - and you cannot cheat, if the point is to vanquish an enemy, or to survive.
Hitting the opponent while he is on the ground, or from behind, make sense if you are battling an enemy with lethal intentions. Whether in a sanctioned, entertaining "fight" or friendly brawl, though, the point is social and not lethal or even to incapacitate the opponent.
You don't battle someone you can't talk to - a weapon is what you use to change your enemy's mind, and if you cannot communicate then you cannot "win", even if the enemy fails to survive.
And you have to have respect for an opponent, to trust that the (unwritten) rules will be obeyed. Thus, the risks of brawling for entertainment or lack of discipline/anger mis-management are that you misgauge your opponent's character (or perhaps your own).
The movies also take on the theme of a pacifist facing a lethally determined opponent. In real life, more often than not, the crude man forces others to be direct with him.
I imagine the movie scene was more about social points than survival. The hero did get the girl, right? I mean, in real life winning the dream marriage partner isn't part of most endeavors.
Don't you know that the good guy (the one wearing a white hat) always waits for the bad guy to reach for his gun and then draws quicker and shoots him. If the good guy is really tough he just shoots the bad guy's gun out of his hand and lets him ride away so the bad guy has a chance to ambush him later.
On tv and in the movies the "good" guy usually fights "fair" and yet somehow still wins.
Jackie Chan movies take that to an extreme. I know they are comedies but even in a comedy would you really risk your life to save a guy that was trying to kill you 2 seconds ago?
Unfortunately, many in our society watch tv and think that teaches them about the real world.
For a great treatment of this subject, please read Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card. It's a great sci-fi novel about a young boy who deals with that situation.
Dave
Just like "don't aim at someone unless you intend to shoot them". And what the hell, this goes along nicely: "If you find yourself in a fair fight, your tactics suck!"
Dave is correct. The entire book of Enders Game revolves around the concept of violent and implacable aggression against those who threaten you or mean you harm being the only true self-defense. Not to mention a few specific (and thus more obvious) encounters the young hero has with bigger, meaner kids.
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