[Nocturnal]

Okay you're right, I wouldn't really pull steel, that's overreacting. But they teach us in Ninjitsu that someone who is shoving or taunting like that is asking to get hit, and also to give people what they want. So if he's asking so much, hit him - give him what he wants, kick the snot out of him.

I have two options if someone shoves me - most often I just step back a bit (unless there's a wall in which case I stand where I am) and stare 'em in the eye. Sometimes I'll even take a few shoves in the protected area of the chest without moving, when I see it isn't serious, just to show I'm untouchable. That usually confuses them and they leave and don't come back.

But we're supposed to recognize a real situation, which rarely begins in shoving and never in posturing. Since it's so common in streetfighting though, we learn very many techniques that begin from a shove. So if someone shoves me in the street without warning and I'm not sure how "real" it is, I'm trained to break his arm and bring him to the ground immediately. And I'd rather always err on the side of "caution" - that being the side which leaves me in best health - the other guy's big-shot lawyer be damned. I wouldn't really KILL someone over a shove or punch, but I'd be more than willing to wound his arms for him, feed him some asphalt, and maybe prevent him from breeding for a while. All in all, it's probably better for them, teaches them to be more careful.

I don't have a criminal record.

Since I started making this a practice in high school, no bullies picked on me or anyone I knew. They even looked up to me, mixed blessing as that is.