# You're being executed: Fight or cooperate?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-being-executed-fight-or-cooperate/599324>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [October 11, 2011, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-being-executed-fight-or-cooperate/599324 "2011-10-11T17:28:04Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 4

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**Author:** ![Mr.Excellent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f19dbf/32.png) [@Mr.Excellent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Excellent)\
**Post date:** [October 13, 2011, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-being-executed-fight-or-cooperate/599324/61 "2011-10-13T18:26:40Z")

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> [@palacheck](#):
>
> A question for the OP: have we been worked over prior to our execution?

Assume not - or if you were, not enough to break you. You can still choose - to surrender, or fight, as you wish.

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**Author:** ![studmuffin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@studmuffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/studmuffin)\
**Post date:** [October 13, 2011, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-being-executed-fight-or-cooperate/599324/62 "2011-10-13T18:32:00Z")

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" Shoot straight you bastards, don’t make a mess of it"

That’s a quote from Breaker Morant, or my name’s not Edwardwood Woodwardwoodward ?

Cracking film .

Easily in my list of top 5 War Movies.

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**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\
**Post date:** [October 14, 2011, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-being-executed-fight-or-cooperate/599324/63 "2011-10-14T05:57:33Z")

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> [@Mr.Excellent](#):
>
> Ah, but what if that first punch _lands_? Even if the guards are the only living men to ever know it, they _will_ know the day didn’t go as they wished; one of their number was bloodied, and all of them had at least a moment of “oh, fuck.”

Do you think Germany won World War II because it killed a lot of people during the war? It’s not about who hit first. It’s about who hit most and who hit last.

> [@Mr.Excellent](#):
>
> And so what if you’re bound and gagged in the death chamber? That sends a message too: That I’m too dangerous to even be allowed speech. That I’ve _scared_ my executioners.

No, you pissed off your executioners. To use my WWII example again, when the world saw German soldiers being killed, German women being raped, and German cities being burned in 1945, I don’t think many people were thinking, _“Wow, I’m impressed by how powerful Germany is right now.”_ No, they were thinking _“Wow, Germany is really getting its ass handed to it right now.”_

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