If you were walking through a public place, an airport, a shopping mall, a park, and saw a man striking a woman (permissible in many religions, e.g. Sharia law), what would you do?
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My parents always taught me to get in the middle in such cases, but honestly? It really depends on the place. If I saw it in London or Paris or somewhere in Europe, I'd get in the middle and protect the woman. Iran? Well, perhaps I could report it to the authorities. I could ascertain whether or not this is feasible by watching to see if the event causes a shock among the audience: if it doesn't shock people you know it's commonplace, and if that's the case then it's logical to assume that I'd probably be the one who ends up in prison for intervening. It's not rational to put my life and liberty in jeopardy to stop one instance of domestic abuse when the only consequence would be that I end up in prison and that woman continues to be beaten up by her husband regardless, along with many others I would imagine.
If it were a place like Somalia, I doubt there's much I could do if I want to keep my head.
It's sad and it's frustrating, but it's true. I'd be interested to know: what do you think we can do to change that?
I would choke the bastard to death. I honestly don't give a fuck
Depends on the situation. There is a difference between a slap and a haymaker. Also, if I am just coming onto the situation and have no idea what is going on, I won't know what the situation is. For all I know, he may have just found out she had been banging his brother, or something even worse. Without knowing the situation, I may not know some piece of important information concerning why it is happening, and may accidentally take the side of a truly horrible person because of my ignorance.
I would probably observe the situation a little longer to see if I can figure out what is going on before I rush in, as acting without knowledge can often do more harm than good.
Sharia law apart, hitting anyone is illegal so it wouldn't matter what the woman had done, it's breaking the law and the police should be called. If that's not possible then an intervention would be necessary, depending on how safe that would be.
Sadly, it is not illegal everywhere. Location and consequences for intercession should be taken into consideration when weighing one's options.
Hitting someone would be legal in self-defense, or in some backward countries with sharia law, or in the ring with gloves on, but I'm struggling to see where else. In sports like rugby there is implied consent so if you punch someone you won't go to jail, just get sent off. Technically SM practices are illegal because you can't consent to assault....not that I get involved with such things.
Taking the law with your own hands is in most cases not the right thing to do.
But as Travis said, ignorance of the situation may make the situation worse.
If there is no way for back up or the proper authorities to help:
The best course of action is to ask for assistance of someone else to hold the woman too.
Don't try to be the hero alone.
It could easily be a trick to rob you or kill you.
If the woman just murdered my son and i woke up on the wrong side of the bed, I would be the one beating her to death bare handed.
I could care less if it was a woman/man or a puppy.
Best course is to separate both, not alone.(preferably not even you, if there are police nearby)
It appears much less offensive when both are being separated then you grabing just the man/woman/child, It helps calm the man/woman/child down and bring him/her to his/her senses if he/she is in a rage.
Hope that helps.
EDIT: I said something I maybe should of not said...
I will not put my opinions on this subject, as I am not sure. Cheers!