As to the better part of valor - Yes, I agree. More then once I have had a vehicle stop at a green light with their right hand turn signal on while I was riding on the shoulder edge far behind them waiting in ambush for me to hold my line and speed and pass them on the right on the shoulder edge at which point they clearly intended to deliberately turn into me. Looking at me in their right mirror with a smirk on their face that told me exactly what they were up to. I slow down and stop just behind them waiting for them to turn, I don't pass them on the right or the left and I don't try to smash up their rig with a U-lock. Once I had one try to back up into me frustrated that I hadn't fallen for the little trap he had tried to set up for me. Another driver realized what he was up to and pulled in right behind him blocking him and gave him a long horn blast and then stuck his head out the window and screamed that he had his license number and he was about to call the cops and the guy took off like a bat out of h#ll (going straight and not even making his right turn).
Long story short, yes, be smart don't fall for traps. Realize that there are haters who will knowingly, willfully, and with pre-mediation commit hate crimes using their vehicle as a weapon against cyclists. But don't blame innocent victims, not entirely innocent victims (as in they actually do something to piss off a driver like run a red in front of them on a cross street when they have the green forcing them to instinctually slam on their brakes and the cyclist smerks and gives them the finger for thanks, or the cyclist chooses to escalate) - yes a minority of the blame does go on the victim.
But when the p*ssed off hater attacks a different innocent cyclist just because the last one did something to p*ss him off legitimate or not. That is zero percent the fault of the victim. As I understand the story as posted by the OP that is what happened in this case.