'The Sucker Punch'- Smart technique for self defense? I think so!

[Sifu Sin Bin]

I am going to go out on a limb here and stand up for the school teacher. I took the point school teacher was trying to make differently. I think what the scool teacher was trying to make was that in the schools both of the fighters get the same punishment regardless of who started it, therefore why not be the one who throws the first punch. It stands to reason that if a student knew they were going to get in trouble either way they might as well defend themselves correctly. I believe that was school teacher's pont when they said " A good offense is the best defense"  

[Gints Klimanis]

Pretty much every school I've attended had a policy of punishing both parties equally.  However, practice didn't follow policy.   I was definitely given the benefit of the doubt because I was an honor's student.   Although I believe I never started any incidents, I could also have just walked or run away instead of stood my ground.   That also means I was responsible for escalating the incident.  

[Gints Klimanis]

> why not be the one who throws the first punch

Without an escalation into a fight, neither will be caught fighting.  After the first punch is thrown, it's a fight.

My father lost his eye at age 10 (1950) joking around with a pocket knife with his brother.  In October 1991, my friend lost his eye from one punch at a Halloween party.  He now has a glass eye.  What's that saying about it's a party until someone loses an ...

[DACS]

It's really sad to see that things haven't changed in the past 15 years that I've been out of school. Back then if you got into a fight, BOTH parties were suspended also...whether you started it or not. It's a lose/lose situation. If you fight back, you get into trouble, if you don't, you get your butt kicked or maybe even worse. As a parent, I would encourage my child to fight back with any amount of force neccessary to stop whoever it is trying to physically hurt or harrass them. Then I know I'd have to talk to the principal and I'd say that it was self-defense. And I know that in school, witnesses mean nothing (unless teachers or reliable adults) because the more popular or prepared student will always have more witnesses vouching for them. I guess my kids will just have to take whatever punishment that they would have coming to them and maybe I'll take them out for some movies and pizza afterward...

[John Evans]

I have to agree with all of you that stand up for the kid who is being beat up.

Two years ago my daughter was being bullied by a couple of boys that live on my street.  She would get harrassed at the bus stop, on the bus and at school.

My wife has always taught her not to fight back.  But when these problems started I started teaching her a little differently.  I told her that if the boys just called her names, to try and stay away from them.  But if the boys touched her, to kick them square in the groin.  No one has the right to place their hands on someone without their permission.

I went and talked with the parents of these boys, twice, but it never really produced much resolve.  One day my daughter came running home from the morning bus stop with cuts and scrapes on her face.  She had been struck in the face with a big piece of ice. (I live in NH and it was winter time)  Come to find out she never faught back because she was afraid of getting in trouble with mom and the school.

So my wife called the police and met them in the principal's office, with the boy who hurt my daughter.  

We never pressed charges but it sent a clear message to the boys and the parents that this won't be tolerated.  My daughter has never been picked on like that again.

I believe that all parents and school officials should be teaching their children to stand up for themselves.  Whether it be to a kid a school or a stranger trying to get them into a car.  One thing for sure is that if the child doesn't fight back, they will be hurt.  Fighting back at least gives them a chance at safety.

Telling our children not to defend themselves is telling them to be a victim.  Schools that teach this need to truly understand the message they are sending our children.

Children should be able to go to a teacher and tell them that they had to defend themselves, knowing that they are not going to get into trouble.  Otherwise many fights will probably go unreported.  And an unreported problem is a problem that can't be fixed.


-John

[School teacher]

Thanks Sifu Rob,

You are correct.  

 But there are also circumstances where if the person were taking money from the other and being a bully that the kids would get kicked out of the school.  If one of the kids happens to be a good student and kept out of trouble and an incident happened with another kid thats has a record you know who would get in trouble and the good kid would just get a warning.  

I do have a law enforcement officer in my family and he said it's not right  a lot of the times.  As they say wrong place at the wrong time.  

The schools do protect the good students.. and yes the school rules may not always be right so petition and try to change some of these rules.  

If I'm correct it was the same way when we all went to school too.  Did it change?  No it did not.

[Karazenpo]

Here's a suggestion to remedy the problem. KBOWARRIOR and myself implied it in our previous posts. If you have a child who was assaulted at school and fought back to defend him/herself and was punished by the school administration. Go to the district court house and take assault and battery charges against the bully and summons in the principal and the teacher(s) who were either present at or handled the initial situation. Whether you win,  lose or draw in court is not the point. The point being school officials do not like the publicity nor the time involved along with legal representation to go to court everytime these sitautions occur. If more and more parents did this then perhaps they'd either change their policies or be much more stricter with the known trouble makers. What say you?

[John Evans]

Prof. Joe.

I think you're right.  The school took my complaints about these boys a lot more seriously after the police showed up.  I agree that they didn't want to end up on the front page of our local newspaper.


-John

[Karazenpo]

Sibak,  I don't believe any of us, as police officers, are coming down on the school teacher. We are coming down on the school administration! Just as we police officers have no problem coming down on the system when it fails to protect the innocent and caters to the rights and needs of the criminals. That's how I see it!