What good will it do to become our enemies in order to defeat them?
If the only way to defeat brutality is to become brutes, then we lose either way: our lives or our soul. Some choice.
I vote for the third way. We don't lay down and die. We don't act like the people we oppose. We adhere to the principles which underlie our civilization.
We revere life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. They all go together.
When I hear people talk about throwing away ethics because ethics endanger life, I understand that the primary reason for this talk is to throw away the ethics because they're in the way. Victors' primary focus is winning. Heroes' primary focus is staying true regardless of the danger. Sometimes victors are also heroes, but not always; it takes a lot of effort to do that. Which would you rather be?