Simply put, you were wrong. I think that when you start chucking violence about, all it does is legitimize or justify the offensive words of the other guy. Honestly I think it takes a bigger man to shrug off the insults and verbal abuse than to take the mofo out.

On the other hand I absolutely support confronting this sort of behaviour, just not violently.

__________________
"Have you no decency, sir? At long last, have you left no sense of decency?"
-Joseph Welch