When we think about tough or scary situations, we like to think that we would make the best possible decision.
But sometimes when we’re caught off-guard, we simply cannot make the most level-headed decision until we look back on it later, reasoned the “Am I the A**hole?” (AITAH) subReddit.
Redditor WestHamWillWinMaybe was shocked when he was walking home at night and was suddenly hit with a bunch of raw eggs by a group of women.
When he caught one of the thrown eggs, the Original Poster (OP) threw it back at the group, which he later regretted.
He asked the sub:
“AITAH for throwing an egg back in the face of a woman who threw eggs at me first?”
The OP was shocked when he was attacked in a very weird way.
“I (22 Male) was walking home alone last night. Suddenly, a group of young women (around my age) appeared and started to throw eggs at me.”
“I didn’t know them and I never saw them before, and I have no idea why they did it.”
“Luckily for me, two of them weren’t even close to me, and I managed to move my body before the third egg hit me, and the fourth made a really bad throw.”
Then the OP saw an opportunity.
“I somehow caught the fourth egg, and out of instinct, confusion, and most of all, anger, I threw the egg as hard as I could back at her.”
“It was a clean shot right in the face. I used to play baseball, so my throw is pretty hard.”
“As soon as I hit her, they started to yell at me that I was a woman abuser and all sort of similar terrible sh*t. I ran as fast as I could and got home.”
The OP later felt conflicted about how he reacted.
“As soon as I calmed down, I felt really bad… I did act violently towards a woman. I wouldn’t even call it self-defense since they clearly didn’t have any eggs left, so it was mostly just revenge, I guess.”
“It all happened really fast and I had no time to think. I just did it. A part of me feels that she 100% deserved it, but a part of me feels sick…”
“Should I have acted differently since I am a man, and should NEVER act violently towards a woman (or anybody in general)? What do you think?”
“AITAH?”
Fellow Redditors weighed in:
- NTA: Not the A**hole
- YTA: You’re the A**hole
- ESH: Everybody Sucks Here
- NAH: No A**holes Here
Some reassured the OP that he wasn’t the first one to throw an egg.
“Anyone throwing eggs at strangers should expect at least an egg thrown back. If their victim doesn’t manage to catch an egg, then whatever comes to hand. Being women does not exempt them from the consequences of their behavior.”
“The behavior of these women has to do with them being obnoxious people and nothing to do with them being women. I don’t accept that women routinely behave poorly and then play the gender card to avoid consequences.” – Turmeric_Ping
“If they’re throwing eggs, they should expect a reaction. NO one, regardless of gender, should get a free pass for that kind of behavior, OP. NTA.” – xBlossomPrincess
“NTA. This is a perfect example of what goes around, comes around. You’re not a women abuser. I’d say you’re an egg abuser, but I’m not a vegan so I can swallow that pill…” – Pedrillhotroll
“You’re not the a**hole. They started it. You were just defending yourself. They were being jerks, and you gave them a taste of their own medicine. You’re not a woman abuser; you were just reacting to a situation.”
“They should have thought twice before throwing eggs at you. You’re not obligated to just stand there and take it. Next time, maybe just run away. But you’re not a bad guy for throwing the egg back.” – DearEmi30
“As a woman, in my opinion, they tried to use the woman card to make you feel bad for doing to them what they did to you. You didn’t know them, they didn’t know you. If someone starts something they can’t get mad that the person they forced into the interaction ends up finishing it.”
“Though you should never act violent towards anyone, and even if you threw the egg in anger, they deserved it. Don’t dish out what you can’t take if they didn’t want egg on their face they shouldn’t have thrown ’em.”
“You feel bad which shows you care about people/strangers. Don’t beat yourself up too much.” – Smooth_Fishing7109
Others “cracked” a few jokes and applauded the OP for how well he handled the situation.
“Lol (laughing out loud). They have no grounds to be mad. In fact, you should have three more free throws. Then it’ll be fair. Nice catch, by the way!” – GordoBlue
“NTA. Next time you catch an egg, look the egg tosser in the eye with a steely glare, and tell her, ‘Omelet you go this time, but don’t let it happen again.'” – Ornery-Platypus-1
“I’d lay pretty good money that this group tells the story of the time that dude hit one of them in the face with an egg and completely omits the part where they were the ones who threw eggs first.” – Smyley12345
“He could even say, ‘Let’s call the cops right now and find out who gets arrested? The girl gang throwing eggs or the guy who threw one back in self-defense.’ Put the fear of real consequences in them, they are clearly dumb.” – echkbet
“Sounds to me that they needed to learn not to throw sh*t at strangers. Nice job teaching them that lesson before they egged someone who took it to a fatal extreme.” – Physical_Ad6875
“What probably really p**sed them off is that you ruined their ‘prank’ TikTok by not yelling and running away so they could post it. And by the way, anyone throwing stuff at someone should be completely expecting to said stuff flung right back.” – TwoCentsWorth2021
“I wish you’d had more eggs.” – Putasonder
The subReddit continued to agree and reassure the OP that he was right to stand up for himself.
“Instincts kick in fast. You reacted naturally to a weird situation. Don’t beat yourself up.” – CelestHaze
“NTA. But I’d call the cops and report them assaulting passersby. They could hit the wrong person and the results could have been much worse than just getting hit back with an egg.” – Kittytigris
“There’s this strange thought that throwing an egg doesn’t hurt anyone. A random person threw an egg at my car, and it took the paint off.”
“Eggs are hard and carry bacteria. It hurts to get hit by an egg, and if it gets in an eye, the shells can scratch, and the bacteria can cause an infection.”
“Also, what if the random victim is allergic? People are dumb as f**k.” – InsufferableAutistic
“NTA. Being a woman does not provide immunity from self-defense. They must have considered this a nice gesture if they were flinging eggs at a stranger.”
“If anyone asks you thought it was a weird game, but wanted to be neighborly. After all, if it wasn’t a game, they committed a crime by physically assaulting a stranger.” – whatev6187
“As a woman, if I throw an egg at someone, I’m fully expecting to get hit back. That goes for any form of violence I choose to inflict on others, which is why I don’t. You are NTA. Being a woman is not a pass for violent behavior without consequences.” – mauvewaterbottle
“NTA. It’s understandable that you acted out of instinct and anger when attacked, but reflecting on the situation shows you’re thinking about how to handle things better next time.”
“It’s okay to feel conflicted, but moving forward, focusing on de-escalating situations, and staying calm can help avoid these feelings of guilt. What matters is learning from this and striving for more peaceful reactions in the future.” – Daringbabygirl
“You acted out of instinct in a stressful situation, not with intent to harm. It’s understandable. They shouldn’t have attacked you in the first place, but maybe next time, just focus on getting away safely.” – Angelina-xoxo
“What do I think?! That you are overthinking this too much. WAY too much.”
“They successfully, cynically played the woman card when things didn’t go their way, and you fell for it. Don’t be a sap.” – Cinemaphreak
“A quarter of a century ago when I was at university at your age, there was one specific day a year when students threw water balloons at each other in the streets. The hard-core students targeted professors, as well as people inside, and the truly unhinged ones, tried to soak just anyone they could reach.”
“I found that inane and annoying. There were no special provisions: classes, practical lessons, exams, and deadlines applied as usual (and we still had to hand in paper copies of our essays and papers, so getting soaked was upsetting if you were cutting it close to the deadline.”
“But these women decided to use EGGS? I get why you ran away, but what is wrong with them?” – Stormtomcat
“NTA. They took the risk of having eggs thrown back at them when they, for some reason, all decided to act like a group of young children and egg people. They all deserved eggs straight to the face, hard.”
“I would’ve probably reported them to the police right after because wtf they must be on drugs or they’re all batsh*t crazy?!” – DesperateLobster69
“NTA. I’m a feminist. I believe in smashing the patriarchy. But I also believe in self-defense. They just popped out of nowhere and attacked. You instinctively defended yourself. End of story.” – Properly-Purple485
While the subReddit agreed that it would be nice to handle the situation perfectly and just exit the scene, they completely understood why the OP responded the way he did.
Self-defense was the best explanation for this situation, and while throwing an egg may not have felt good, it was bound to happen.