Re: What is "combat"?
I've heard a lot of the training Secret Service agents go through is sort-of "spot the loony" in the crowd. So a lot of aggressor profile stuff.
Instincts are a key element of this conversation- As Aikidoka, it's great knowing we have soft options or we can seriously injure an opponent. But then you have a responsibility to correctly surmise which level your encounter is, and mount the appropriate response.
That's why it's so easy to make a mistake, and I bet the Monday morning quarterbacking is relentless if you survive a deadly enounter.
If you're doing a kote gaeshi on a gun weilding opponent, how close to kihon is it going to be? You don't need much discretion to know how far to take it. Against a drunk at a wedding reception, a little softer technique might be in order...