I'm just going to toss in that simply walking away can be braver than fighting. Bravery breaks down when you're not under self-control. Getting egged into a fight isn't brave so much as just stupid, because you're not thinking clearly, just lashing out like an animal.

Running maybe is cowardly, but, really, cowardice is defined by the aggressor, which isn't exactly fair when assessing the situation.

I'll also say it's more cowardly to beat a person into a pulp who's weaker than you than running away ever will be. Doing that kind of thing just means you're small.

Hopefully noone shall say HUR HUR MMA IS NOT AN ART
 

I'm an assistant Ju-Jitsu instructor after practising it for quite a number of years and done a couple of years of MMA to mostly to improve my striking->clinch->ground transitions.

I practised Muay Thai for a number of years because I am a glutton for pain, I still contemplate why because even after all these years I still dislike getting hit in the face.

Nowadays I've kinda stopped caring about competition and find much more joy in teaching. I find teaching age groups between 12-20 probably to be the most fun as this is a time where they have a good balance of energy and willingless to learn new things.

If you want to ask why I personally learnt these things is mostly because I find it a lot of fun in a safe and controlled environment. Also as I find learning and teaching things to be very gratifying.

We once ran a 3 month course for teeangers from troubled backgrounds and we saw visible differences in how they presented themselves by the end of it. Nearly all of them by some degree had been transformed in such way that it makes any amount of effort in teaching worthwhile ;Less aggressive, less of an ego (mostly from after the first week we deliberately broke them), more attentive and probably the best one is that they were much better behaved towards one another and really cared about learning something.

I would also like to quickly throw in here let's please not make this a thread about my kungfu>your kungfu or a "I'm Bruce Lee, bitches" mentality going on as that's never fun.

I'm pretty sure usually self-defense instructors will specifically stress to fight until you can get away and not a moment longer.

Kind of a silly thing to get worked up about anyway, I mean it's a fun little theoretical discussion but if I get attacked and manage to get in one good kick to the nuts, and I can pick between a) running like hell and never seeing the guy again and b) following it up with more attacks and risking the guy's recovery and subsequent having to fight a guy I just kicked in the nuts, I'm pretty much gonna pick a) without thinking twice where that stands in someone else's outlook on morality and bravery.

See some people are having an issue with the fact that I see cowardice as removing one's self from a conflict unresolved. Shameful is apparently cowardice in most books. Kicking someone in the nuts is plenty brave since it is a bit of a risky gambit, and smart since it preys on the very center of a man. Ditching afterward is fine because most of the time after kicking someone in the balls you've already won, it is a shameful victory, but hey it is a victory.

Shame is the word that applies in your retreat most of the time, if walking away is what someone says is brave then it lacks shame. Though it is still cowardice since there isn't much hardship in removing yourself.

So yes this is mostly a theoretical thing, not really an issue of fighting itself.

On fighting itself, learning to fight really is quite an amusing thing. No matter if you are learning things like wrestling, Jui-jitsu, mui-thai, boxing, jeet kun do, or anything at all it requires a diligence and discipline that borders on the self destructive. This kind of training can build a comradeship between the people who train together and the act tends to build healthy competition that serves as inspiration to keep working toward something better. In a safe environment the combination of physical power and martial skill can be a helpful release of both physical and mental stress. And no matter how rusty you get you can always expect the skills will stay with you, as I can easily remember my father doing said high elevation throw into our porch when my uncle tried to punch him.

As I said I would really enjoy doing it these days but as I'm not allowed to I end up stuck.

See, alright, this is how I approach fighting: people shouldn't fight until they have to. So, first, words. Sometimes you can't resolve something by words because the person you're talking to is a Neo Nazi from Utah with a tattoo on his forehead of a bald eagle getting stabbed in the back by a samurai with a swastika-crested helmet and that's when you pretty much have one option, which is to wait until he tries to hit you, manage some sort of counterattack using his momentum to get him laying on the ground, and then run like hell.

The guy didn't bother listening to reason, because he's not reasonable. That's why he started the fight. Even if by some miracle I win the fight he's going to try to avenge himself and target me because in his mind the fight is not over until I am in the hospital eating Thanksgiving dinner through a straw. Because he's not reasonable when it comes to conflict resolution or anything ever.

I mean if you're asking about 'style' then it's a basic no-style "pay attention to what the other dude is doing and then make him fall on the ground" style fighting. I don't know man. All I know is that the only time I lose fights is when I'm not paying attention to the other dude.

I don't understand how not fighting at all doesn't constitute a resolution. It constitutes one where you are safe and whatever person was looking for a reason to collect teeth needs to find another target.

For further reference, please see #8.

I don't fight. In situations where most people would have found themselves involved in one, I have a knack for resolving the situation with words before it reaches that point.

The only type of fighting I'm somewhat proficient in is submission style wrestling in which I have no formal training whatsoever.

I don't consider myself a pacifist. I'll fight if I have to and enjoy seeing it happen when I have no stake in the outcome. However, fighting is a stupid way to resolve a conflict as it proves nothing of worth (unless of course the argument revolved around who can kick who's ass).

I'd like to tell you a story. Once a long time ago a famous swordsman was on a ferry crossing a rather large body of water. Also, on this boat was another swordsman who boasted very loudly about his unbeatable style. The first swordsman simply fell asleep. This enraged the boastful swordsman who woke the first swordsman and asked him his style. The first swordsman replied "I am of the style of winning without contest." Wanting to see this style the boastful swordsman challenged the first swordsman until he agreed to a dual. The first swordsman had the ferryman pull over to an island so they could have more room to fight. As the boat came to a stop the boastful swordsman quickly jumped out and the first swordsman picked up an oar and pushed the ferry back out into the water. As the boastful swordsman stood there dumbstruck the first swordsman called back "That is how you win without contest."

In short, removing yourself from a situation before a fight breaks out is a form of conflict resolution. It certainly isn't cowardice by any generally accepted definition of the word. You can continue with the "well it means to me stuff" but expect a lot of disagreement because most people stick with what the dictionary says instead of arbitrarily assigning definitions to words. Especially words loaded with negative connotation.

I largely try to avoid fighting. If I do have to fight, my attacks usually involve flailing wildly and screaming incoherently with whatever heavy object was closest at hand.

This is more effective than it sounds, since I'm a pretty big guy and a fair amount of my size is muscle built up from my job.

I poison the wine of my enemies before they've even considered betraying me.

Works every time.