A light becoming a target for the bad guy to shoot at is pretty funny.
1-Going looking for bad guys in the dark is dangerous and there's a fair chance you're gonna get hurt. You better come to peace with that fact before you start. I see it all the time at work, people trying all sorts of stupid tricks to try and eliminate all the risk they can when what they need to be doing is getting to work and getting the job done. If you wanna be safe and not get hurt, don't go looking for bad guys in the dark.
2-Yes, a light in a bad guys face will hurt his eyes. But if you think that you can stop a determined aggressor with a flashlight you're wrong. Heck, half the arguments here are about pocket guns being too small.....A .380 won't stop a bad guy but a flashlight will? Gimme a break.
3-Unless you know what you're doing and practice it there are good odds that any light you use is going to illuminate YOU at some point. So holding it above or beside you is a good idea, but not one I'd rely on. The further the light is away from right in front of you, the more likely you're gonna catch splash from it and be lit up.
4-What are you gonna do when the bad guy gives up? You need to hold a light, gun and phone. Unless you've got a light on your gun.
5-The idea of holding a rifle with a light up and away from your body is stupid. As if Mr.Badguy isn't gonna figure out that someone is holding that gun that's mysteriously floating around in the air, assuming he hasn't already seen you from ambient light and died giggling.
6-All the theoretical situations people come up with usually ignore ambient light. No matter what flashlight you use, most people will be backlit the second they step outside their bedroom anyway.
