Walking away.....better than dishing out a kicking?
Discussion
I'm no thug. If seriously proved I guess I could get violent. Mid 40s bloke, married etc. My friend who was with me the other night in our local bar is more or less the same.
We were having beers and struck up a conversation with a bloke. An apparently pretty intelligent guy, and the conservation turned from the normal chatter to some pretty deep stuff about war, nationalism, what makes a terrorist/freedom fighter. All good natured stuff. Actually very interesting.
The conversation turned to chemical weapons which all agreed were wrong.
Syria, Iraq Afghanistan also came up.
The conversation moved on and this guy in response to something said as calm as you like something along the lines that all British soldiers who go to war should be gassed.
We were standing at a bar. This bloke, me in the middle and my friend.
I just put my glass down, and walked out. My mate (I'm glad he did) did the same.
We went to another pub. My friend - who has been around the block several times - was amazed. What a great response he said. He'd expected it to escalate in seconds to a fight.
The story about that Guardian bloke slagging off Simon Weston reminded me of this incident.
Here's the link. http://order-order.com/2015/09/02/guardian-writers...
We could have kicked the s
t out of the guy in the bar. A local pub, CCTV, where we are known. Police, courts etc.
I have since found out that though the pub was crowded he was overheard. When we walked out people just stared at him and a big gap opened up around him. It was suggested that he left apparently.
I first witnessed the power of walking out when it was a kid. My Dad, who grew up in WW2 was with us at Sunday lunch where we were guests of my aunt and uncle. Also at the table my cousin's university friends who were Germans. I recall polite conversation about Europe when the German lad pipes up that his father served in the SS and that he as his son was proud of this and proud of what his father had done in the war. He went on a bit playing down the death camps saying it was all exaggerated and so on.
At that, my father closed his cutlery, thanked his hosts and left followed by the rest of us leaving my cousin and his uni friends.
I am by no means a pacifist but there times where a punch, or even a tirade of abuse just will not work like the power of silence.
We were having beers and struck up a conversation with a bloke. An apparently pretty intelligent guy, and the conservation turned from the normal chatter to some pretty deep stuff about war, nationalism, what makes a terrorist/freedom fighter. All good natured stuff. Actually very interesting.
The conversation turned to chemical weapons which all agreed were wrong.
Syria, Iraq Afghanistan also came up.
The conversation moved on and this guy in response to something said as calm as you like something along the lines that all British soldiers who go to war should be gassed.
We were standing at a bar. This bloke, me in the middle and my friend.
I just put my glass down, and walked out. My mate (I'm glad he did) did the same.
We went to another pub. My friend - who has been around the block several times - was amazed. What a great response he said. He'd expected it to escalate in seconds to a fight.
The story about that Guardian bloke slagging off Simon Weston reminded me of this incident.
Here's the link. http://order-order.com/2015/09/02/guardian-writers...
We could have kicked the s
t out of the guy in the bar. A local pub, CCTV, where we are known. Police, courts etc.I have since found out that though the pub was crowded he was overheard. When we walked out people just stared at him and a big gap opened up around him. It was suggested that he left apparently.
I first witnessed the power of walking out when it was a kid. My Dad, who grew up in WW2 was with us at Sunday lunch where we were guests of my aunt and uncle. Also at the table my cousin's university friends who were Germans. I recall polite conversation about Europe when the German lad pipes up that his father served in the SS and that he as his son was proud of this and proud of what his father had done in the war. He went on a bit playing down the death camps saying it was all exaggerated and so on.
At that, my father closed his cutlery, thanked his hosts and left followed by the rest of us leaving my cousin and his uni friends.
I am by no means a pacifist but there times where a punch, or even a tirade of abuse just will not work like the power of silence.
Edited by wildcat45 on Thursday 3rd September 15:19
Axionknight said:
No, go on, you bloody pussy, commit assault, all the cool kids are doing it.
Did you even have to come on here and ask?
It was a badly written post, but I explained that the Simon Weston thing reminded me of the incident. Did you even have to come on here and ask?
Just walking away, not even telling the guy to f
k off, calling him a or whatever. I was tring to make the point that walking away, silence isolation can have much more impact than the alternatives.I thought it might make an interesting conversation topic. That's all.
Impasse said:
Seems a waste of a pint.
I was out last night with my friend. We were in the same bar. I bought a pint each for us. A guest real ale which after one sip I decided wasn't for me. My mate said exactly this and took my beer off me while I ordered something else.
Looking back on the incident. I was furious but I'm not in the habit of pre-emptive random violence. Having read sine comments I too think it a bit odd that I contemplated it. Even for a second or two.
I think I was so angry because I'd been telling the guy about the Falklands. A place I love. I was describing the Argentine cemetery there and the names (Welsh) of some of the dead. Ordinary names like Gareth Williams or whatever. I was saying how despite the war you couldn't hate young guys with familiar names fighting a war as conscripts. I told him about my personal link with HMS Sheffield.
It was after that he said what he said.
Doesn't justify violence though.
227bhp said:
You do know you can get tasters for guest beers? Saves you getting a pint you don't like. That wouldn't have been 'random' btw.
Sometimes not saying anything can be quite powerful, silence can speak volumes. If the bloke had anything about him (common decency, intelligence etc) he will have noted what happened. If he didn't then perhaps he was beyond education and whose problem is that?
A friend of mine was talking about the time he went to one of these chavvy car events, MaxPower style - loud stereos and body kits. There was some kid with the bonnet up proclaiming '2 leeeter Redtop, chipped n cammed init m8'. Someone went up and closed the bonnet, nothing more. Apparently it's the ultimate insult.
Someone came into my office the other week absolutely raging, threatening me with violence, to come back and 'sort me out' if I didn't do what he wanted. I just sat there bemused, watched him and said nothing. He ran out of things to say in less than 30 seconds and walked off, I could hear him shouting, screaming and kicking things on his way out. He's never been back.
It happens online too, people can't argue with themselves. If you don't reply, or simply say that you disagree or that you know better as you were there and they weren't then it's game over. Life's too short to be spending hours trying to prove your point to some gobby oaf on the internet. It is them who will remain uneducated.
There are various sayings about walking away and getting to live another day.
And so endeth Friday mornings sermon
Sound words. I thought the pint I was ordering was something I'd had before and had liked. It tasted like grapefruit juice. Sometimes not saying anything can be quite powerful, silence can speak volumes. If the bloke had anything about him (common decency, intelligence etc) he will have noted what happened. If he didn't then perhaps he was beyond education and whose problem is that?
A friend of mine was talking about the time he went to one of these chavvy car events, MaxPower style - loud stereos and body kits. There was some kid with the bonnet up proclaiming '2 leeeter Redtop, chipped n cammed init m8'. Someone went up and closed the bonnet, nothing more. Apparently it's the ultimate insult.
Someone came into my office the other week absolutely raging, threatening me with violence, to come back and 'sort me out' if I didn't do what he wanted. I just sat there bemused, watched him and said nothing. He ran out of things to say in less than 30 seconds and walked off, I could hear him shouting, screaming and kicking things on his way out. He's never been back.
It happens online too, people can't argue with themselves. If you don't reply, or simply say that you disagree or that you know better as you were there and they weren't then it's game over. Life's too short to be spending hours trying to prove your point to some gobby oaf on the internet. It is them who will remain uneducated.
There are various sayings about walking away and getting to live another day.
And so endeth Friday mornings sermon
227bhp said:
I can't do with this blonde piss which is all the rage these days, give me something dark and strong anyday. 
Me too. This was the stuff in question.
http://www.perfectpint.co.uk/mobile/beer-details?i...
227bhp said:
I think one of the best pints I ever had was some fresh Old Peculier somewhere in Yorkshire whilst visiting friends, I have no idea how I got to my room that night let alone have a fight, it's very difficult to find a good one though.
I was in Masham a few weeks ago. Wife driving. Very fresh beer. I didn't drink the Old Peculiar. It was a long way home and to do it justice I would need a bed close to handGassing Station | The Lounge | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff