1664

Why?

If it was two dudes most people wouldn’t be expected to step in and break it up. Have you ever been around a bar fight? Most people don’t want to get involved because it’s a great way to get your ass arrested and then sued. It’s the job of whoever owns the place to step up, they’re the ones with the insurance to cover them and the legal authority to act.

If someone wants to step in and be a hero, more power to them, but generally speaking it’s a stupid thing to do most of the time. Realistically, recording the incident is more helpful anyway, it’s hard evidence that the police would like a lot more than another story they can’t trust.

1665

Yeah, after posting I remembered that it’s often the case that in these settings, the dudes on hand are specifically instructed to contact and then wait for the police and then to not get directly involved and always defer to the police. They could lose their job any time so long as they continue to feel brave.

1666

Man it must be an American thing. Because down here, breaking up a fight is dangerous as usual but you don’t get arrested. You get a pat on the back from the police.

1667

Depends on what you need to do to break the fight up, no? America is very litigious, a person could easily claim that while breaking up the fight you injured them, and then what happens?

Also, yeah, sure, normal rando should stop fights, what’s the worst that could happen, nobody ever gets shot for stupid shit in the US, women surely won’t carry guns…

1668

getting involved in a violent altercation in Gun-Crazy Murderland

Think about it folks. I’d even be reluctant in London, fearful of being stabbed or a faceful of acid.

1669

I mean it can happen here too, but just as easily you can end up getting sued for “injuring” someone or they tell the cops you assaulted them and they arrest you. Barring a lot of people backing you up, you could easily end up screwed. You know, unless someone is nearby recording the whole thing…

1670

Just as easily? There’s plenty of examples of stupid lawsuits being filed by assholes trying to retaliate against well meaning people trying to do sane things, but I’d contend that they are only so noticeable and memorable due to the sheer an outlandish assholery on display in such a suit, not because they are common.

Without facts proving otherwise, I’d have a hard time believing the chances of a reasonable peace loving person losing a lawsuit over breaking up a fight to be more than .1%.

1671

TBH this doesn’t seem like a particularly edifying outcome. I’m not super pumped this is being perceived as the Way Things Should Be.

1672

Thanks for that timeline. So it looks like most of the monuments went up between 1898 and 1918, right in between those being the peak period around 1908/1909/1910.

1673

Why? Do you think there is some affirmative duty to stop a fistfight?

It’s a fistfight between two adults. There’s a 99.99% chance that nobody will be seriously hurt, just angry. It’s still illegal to start one, but nobody has a duty to step in and stop it. If anything, stepping in to grab one of the participants risks you becoming part of the altercation.

1674

Sometimes people just need a serious ass-whoopin’. I think this woman falls into that category.

1675

Seriously, it’s not anyone’s responsibility to defend you if you fucking start a fight and then start losing.

1676

Yup. As I said before. I’m not punching a Nazi, but I don’t mind seeing it happen.

That works for regular old racists, too.

1677

Just to be clear, this woman wasn’t actually pregnant?

Because that would override all other considerations IMO.

1678

How? She looks like an ordinary fat person, and she doesn’t claim she’s pregant until after she starts and loses the fight. How would anyone know to stop it?

1679

Let’s get back to this idiot:

The pepper-sprayed protesters swore to a local magistrate they were attacked by Cantwell, and the magistrate issued three felony warrants based on their accusations. Kristopher Cheney Goad and Emily Gorcenski accused Cantwell of illegal use of gasses and injury by caustic agent or explosive. The warrants did not originate through an investigation by Charlottesville, the University of Virginia, or state police.

1680

I’m just saying if there’s a chance she’s pregnant, maybe you don’t wanna punch her.

1681

She initiated the beatdown when she got in the other woman’s face and grabbed her hair. I don’t think anyone would really stop and think “oh, I wonder if this cunt attacking me is pregnant” before hitting her back.

If you’re pregnant and worried about it? Uh, don’t start fights.

1682

Also, unless folks might be thinking, “Hey, you can tell she’s pregnant just by looking at her!”

She’s only 3 months pregnant. At that stage the embryo is like, what, the size of a lima bean? Average weight gain in the first timester is like 5 lbs.

She’s just fat.

1683

Ok, forget I said anything.