Lessons learned:

1) Don't go to house parties (this especially applies if you're an individual of high profile)

2) Don't be out after midnight as that's when the bad shit seems to happen. People have been drinking for hours and their night may not have gone how they planned.

3) Starting shit with someone may cost you your life. Don't be a dick and you may live.

People have the right to peacefully enjoy their lives w/o the fear of physical assault and these days people are (legally) exercising their rights to protect themselves. Has nothing to do with 'When I was a boy, we just fought and then had a beer afterward' mentality you hear. When you're 21 and you're out at a bar and some drunk asshole picks a fight with some dude you're with and hits him once, only once and the dude falls to the concrete hitting his head and died hours later you start to rethink how 'manly' fist fighting is. I think it's ignorant for people to fight and that's not to say I can't hold my own... I choose not to. I've chose a peaceful life and will defend that choice with deadly force if need be. I avoid all situations that are known to have a higher likelihood of these types of occurrences because I know that I've already made the choice to not fight. I used to get a LOT of people picking a fight with me when I would go out to clubs because of my size, my haircut, my attention from the ladies... I don't know what it was. Whatever the cause, I ALWAYS had dudes trying to pick fights with me when I was just out having a good time with my buddies. This is why I don't go to clubs anymore. Should I have to take this stance when I'm not looking for trouble? Hell no. That doesn't mean I'm going to change it and have realized there are FAR more important things in life. Sometimes you just have to accept situations or people for what they are, stop trying to change them and simply remove yourself from those situations in the name of self preservation.

BTW, when I played football we didn't go to house parties filled with randoms for the exact reasons mentioned in this thread.