Poll: Do you believe in the "below the belt" rule?

[Scorched_Cascade]

All of you saying that you would had better be prepared for the consequences of one upping the fight.

In the guy's eyes rather than taking your punishment for whatever upset him you have broken etiquette and tried to injure him by an underhanded tactic (this is still true even if he wasn't playing by the rules; people are ego-centric). Don't expect a groin blow to be an "I win" button. I've rarely seen fights were this is the case in real life. If he was pissed before he is going to rage now so be prepared for a hospital trip.

Most fights like this scenario I've seen have been someone mouthing off, getting into a fight and then expecting a groin kick to end the fight. What actually happens is: that fist that you couldn't dodge still hits you with the force of a train wreck and you fall down and bleed.
The guy either shakes off the groin blow or gets hurt for a bit meanwhile you are unconscious on the floor; good luck defending yourself from a retaliation.

OT: I reject the notion that there is no way for me to dodge it particularly if I have time to spot an opening and aim a groin kick. In that time I can be backpedaling diagonally away from the punch and then running like hell.

 

[DeleteThisPlease]

Hell. Yes.

I'll put it this way.
If you're in a fight to defend your health and being, as in, not a spar or a boxing match or some other type of competitive fighting in which there are actual rules, you have a singular objective- Beat the other guy and keep him from hurting you back.

If that means hitting him with a groin shot and then bashing his head in with my beer-bottle or grabbin' a pool cue and going to town (after it's made clear that he tried to hit me first, there for I acted in self-defense) then hell yes.

Just make sure you put that guy -out-, ok?

 

[GeorgW]

Thing is, once you've been hit there you don't do it to others.
I'd rather chicken out, that's just not cool.

 

[SckizoBoy]

Of course.

This is not a boxing ring, and no-one is officiating, so the rule is: no rules. Granted, anyone who leaves their groin open in a no-holds barred fight (whether or not it's against me) is a total idiot.

Of course, if it was me, I'd be frantically searching for a fire extinguisher. Best head-bashing piece of equipment invented by man.

 

[fix-the-spade]

Hell no.

If you get in a fight, load bearing joints. Knees, Elbows, Wrists, Shoulders, Neck, do as much damage to these areas as you are humanly able as fast as you can. Applying leverage to those areas is immensely painful, plus if you do it hard enough you'll break something and that's the end of the fight.
In my experience trying to hit someone in the balls is hard, it's a small target, so make things go crunch.

 

[AvsJoe]

It's better than the alternative. I have no honor in a street fight because my opponents rarely do either.

 

[zehydra]

of course. You fight to survive. No rules applied.

 

[lettucethesallad]

If I don't want to fight and someone's trying to fight me - hell yeah I'll kick them in the balls. That's no way to treat a lady.

 

[kickyourass]

Yes, if I have to choose between taking a cheap shot and taking an ass beating, I'm taking the cheap shot every time (Unless you know, we've arranged it before hand to be a 'fair' fight).

 

[mjc0961]

Probably not. Believe it or not, a kick in the nuts isn't an instant "I win the fight" button. You ever hear those stories of how people on an adrenaline rush can do amazing things like get badly injured but it doesn't even slow them down until later when they finally feel the pain and realize "oh shit, my leg is busted" or whatever? Somehow I doubt a kick in the nuts is going to mean much in the middle of a fight. It's more likely to just piss the other guy off even more, and if he's already trying to beat me silly, I shouldn't risk that unless I know I'd be able to get away.

If that means hitting him with a groin shot and then bashing his head in with my beer-bottle or grabbin' a pool cue and going to town (after it's made clear that he tried to hit me first, there for I acted in self-defense) then hell yes.

Self defense stops being self defense if you "go to town" on the other guy and he can't do anything to stop you. You become the aggressor and get charged with assault or something similar. The point of self defense is to stop yourself from being harmed, not to beat the shit out of the other guy. Use appropriate force and then get to safety.

 

[Adam28]

As a last resort or against unfair odds then yes I would.

 

[dex-dex]

I go for it. also I am short compared to most guys so I take it.
also the below the belt rule does not really apply as much to girls then to guys.
so it is more like don't punch me in the boob.

 

[Riobux]

Of course, unless someone does it to me first. Then I'll rub it in how they're unable to fight.

 

[phantasmalWordsmith]

I personally wouldn't want to. I've been hit there before and it hurts, a lot. I don't think anyone should have to suffer pain like that or worse. If he was drunk off his arse to the point where he probably wouldn't feel it, I would

 

[joebthegreat]

All's fair in love and war. Do whatever it takes. If they're not defending their groin then they're no good at fighting.

EDIT:

All of you saying that you would had better be prepared for the consequences of one upping the fight.

In the guy's eyes rather than taking your punishment for whatever upset him you have broken etiquette and tried to injure him by an underhanded tactic (this is still true even if he wasn't playing by the rules; people are ego-centric). Don't expect a groin blow to be an "I win" button. I've rarely seen fights were this is the case in real life. If he was pissed before he is going to rage now so be prepared for a hospital trip.

Most fights like this scenario I've seen have been someone mouthing off, getting into a fight and then expecting a groin kick to end the fight. What actually happens is: that fist that you couldn't dodge still hits you with the force of a train wreck and you fall down and bleed.
The guy either shakes off the groin blow or gets hurt for a bit meanwhile you are unconscious on the floor; good luck defending yourself from a retaliation.

OT: I reject the notion that there is no way for me to dodge it particularly if I have time to spot an opening and aim a groin kick. In that time I can be backpedaling diagonally away from the punch and then running like hell.

This needs to be repeated. You should use whatever option is open to you, but don't expect it to be instant victory. You need to follow it up with running (your best option if the person is that much stronger and better at fighting than you) or else continuing to deal damage.

 

[The Funslinger]

Doesn't the rule only apply to properly sanctioned fights(boxing and the like).In a street fight anything is fair game and if kicking some dude in the balls stops me getting my ass kicked then I'll have no problem doing it(more than once if necessary)

Please read my post above. If someone engages you in a street fight assume they are armed and just run. I've been "accidentally" hit in the balls in tons of sanctioned fights and it normally only pisses me off. There was one time when someone got a clean hit on me (he was 150 pounds 5% body fat and actually had proper kneeing form so probably harder than you would ever kick) and I only had to kneel down for 15 seconds before I could fight again.

It's a very well protected part of the body so even if you get a clean hit and not a glancing blow. They are gonna beat the holy fuck out of you after you try.

If your in a serious situation where for some reason you couldn't run or find a weapon I would try to gouge their eyes out. If the groin was seriously a weak point than we would've evolved a way to protect it.

The last time it happened to me, I wasn't expecting it, wasn't even fighting. Just walking past someone who then punched me in the balls. Due to the shock, I went down like a ton of bricks.

The time before that, I was having a not very serious fight with a friend, who "accidentally" kneed me there. Went with the pain, jumped at him when he took the opportunity to run and punched him in the face, in space of about three seconds. FRIENDSHIP XD

 

[Floominoo]

GOD NO! If you believe that you can 'hit below the belt'... then tit for tat states that you also believe other people can hit YOU below the belt. Impotence does not sound like how I want to live my life