As I mentioned, I was trained on how to handle bullies in a non violent way, and it worked!!! I simply stood up to them verbally, showed no fear and would slightly insult them in the process. I had one bully who said "I'm gonna get you after school in the yard today." I said "Oh, I can't do that... I've got a computer club meeting at that time, but I can do Thursday at 3:00pm in the Cafeteria." I then wrote it down in my datebook and asked him to confirm it in his. He looked stunned at me. This guy became a fairly good acquaintance about three months after that.
Another instance... a bully was jealous of the fact that I developed a friendship with a long-term buddy of his. He used to do very unflattering imitations of me all throughout school. This guy also was a body builder who also had an earring at the age of 16, and used to sit there puffing out his muscles. One day, as we were sitting at lunch, I took-out a gaudy clip-on earring from my mother's 80's earring collection, put it on my ear, and started feeling-up my pecs and biceps, imitating him. The entire table I was at cleared-out, expecting this guy to rip into me. I just held my ground and looked him square in the face and said "You look upset... what am I doing that makes you angry?" I got a lot of respect from the people around me, and he never bugged me again. I also got a reputation as someone who would not be intimidated by a bully.
As I said, I was trained by some very wise people in my life on how to handle these situations - not everyone gets it. But your view that there is "no other option" is false. Developing a sense of dignity, holding your ground, and knowing that bullies have their flaws is all it takes to avoid a violent confrontation - but it takes a lot of effort and courage to learn. Too bad no one taught you the same lesson that I learned.
