Self Defense and Violence

My wife sent me this link, and I think it's really well said. Bold emphasis is mine.

The primary goal of self-defense is to avoid becoming the victim of violence...

...This is the core principle of self-defense: Do whatever you can to avoid a physical confrontation, but the moment avoidance fails, attack explosively for the purposes of escape—not to mete out justice, or to teach a bully a lesson, or to apprehend a criminal. Your goal is to get away with minimum trauma (to you), while harming your attacker in any way that seems necessary to ensure your escape.

http://www.samharris.org/blog/item/the-truth-about-violence/