I was walking down 7th Avenue in NY the other day, minding my own business. All of a sudden a guy walks right into me sorta pushes me a little when he knocks into me. I was able to bounce off of him, and my immediate reaction was to knock him back. Luckily I got my wits quickly and realized this guy was crazier than a loon.I said 'Sorry my man' and kept walking, but took a look back to see what the guy was up to. I realized he was picking bigger men on the street and knocking into them for fun. I do think the guy was literally crazy and was probably at the end of his rope and looking for a way to take out his agressions.
Well, about a block down, as I was watching him walk down the street, mostly to make sure he wasn't trying to pick-pocket people or grab purses or something, he knocked into a bigger business guy walking. The business guy immediatly did what I thought about doing for a nano second, he wirrled around and stood up to the guy and said listen you blankedy blank blank. The crazy dude spun around and with all his force decked the business guy in the face and knocked him cold. It was clear this guy was looking for a way to get into the thick of things, but it was also clear the guy was really not on the same planet as most others.
Because the business guy was layed out on the ground, and since he had called the guy a bunch of swear words, most people walking the streets just kept walking and ignored the situation. The crazy guy said (yelled) a few things to the business guy, who was sitting up on the ground at this point, and started jogging across the street.
The business guy finally got up and tried to clean himself off. He looked like he was a little loopy himself, and probably was now wishing he had just said 'sorry my man' rather than trying to play tough guy.
It does highlight the importance of keeping your cool at all times. If someone is acting crazy or looks like they want to fight, that is probably true. There is no reason if someone cuts you off in traffic, calls you a dickhead, or knocks you down, to try and keep your pride. Just keep moving on and say your sorry, there is no shame in not getting knocked out, or even killed.
