“Won’t somebody think of the children!”
It’s not exactly nice being the victim of random acts of violence, the fact that it’s three or four teenagers rather than three or four middle aged men is not entirely insignificant. But let’s not be naive.
While the punches are landing on your skull, jaw, eyes...you can still be wondering what a proportionate response is - as I have - but carrying out that judgement while fighting them off is another thing. If you’ve not been in many street fights, perhaps it’s not obvious but is very much a case of taking the opportunities that present themselves rather than calmly selecting a series of actions.
I understand that police officers get better training in remaining objective during violence, but for your average man on the street it’s quite alarming.