Sorry if I overstated the case against aikido as self-defense.

But consider: Judo typically has full resistance training and this attacker was foolish enough to attack with a technique that your friend had drilled hundreds or thousands of times. With the training I saw, I expect that the average person would just freak out. The first time I got my arms trapped and hit in the face a few times in kickboxing, I freaked out. After the next couple times, I was able to keep my head and defend myself more effectively. I didn't see that kind of exposure training at NY Akikai. I don't doubt that the techniques are effective, I just didn't see the kind of training that would make them work in a high-pressure situation.

Also, stories of people getting attacked are usally a little horrible, even if the good guy wins. However, the following takes this one straight to awesome: "My friend didn't even spill his slurpee."