Looking to buy a taser for my daughter - any suggestions?

[Gmountain]

Any kind of personal protection that is only effective if you are grappling with an attacker is worthless, unless you are a trained fighter, in my opinion.

Pepper spray, or a handgun, will provide protection. There, I said it. The elephant in the room.

[Neil K Walk]

As someone who once found himself beaten to the ground after being jumped from behind because I was dumb enough to be in the wrong part of town after dark, I have to agree with a lot of these sentiments. A weapon doesn't trump the element of surprise and predators are smarter than you think. The only thing that saved me was not being alone and a random element of surprise (in the form of a witness with a telephone who announced that they had called the police) that flustered my attackers and caused them to flee.

Take the words of Mike Tyson, for instance: "everybody has a plan until they get punched in the mouth."

My point is: tell her to find another job in a better part of town. If she refuses then arm her with facts that will educate her. The first rule of defense is to be aware.

[1neeto]

Originally Posted by Gmountain

Any kind of personal protection that is only effective if you are grappling with an attacker is worthless, unless you are a trained fighter, in my opinion.



Pepper spray, or a handgun, will provide protection. There, I said it. The elephant in the room.

I think every woman should learn a bit of jiu jitsu, because jiu jitsu trains you to not only how to defend yourself in case you’re thrown on your back, but also how to be very dangerous on your back. For a woman, that could be a very invaluable tool.

The problem with grappling is that bringing a fight to the ground in something as unpredictable as a street fight/attack can get you killed. While you’re in the ground, you’re very vulnerable for attacks if that person is not alone. If the attacker is armed with a knife, then you’ll get stabbed while you’re trying to set up that choke or joint lock. I would definitely not use my ground fighting skills unless I have absolutely no choice and I’m certain the attacker is not armed and alone.

As for that elephant in the room, I agree. The best way to keep an assailant(s) at bay is by showing them the business end of a gun.

[guitar george]

I agree with the idea of some type of spray. We didn't know it at the time, but, our daughter carried pepper spray starting when she was a teenager. Sprays are good up to about 12 feet, so, they can be a very effective deterrent.

[HHP]

Do the sprays work on someone wearing glasses?

[1neeto]

Originally Posted by HHP

Do the sprays work on someone wearing glasses?

Glasses don’t cover the nose. Pepper spray messes with your eyes and sinuses.

[Nymuso]

Many women carry self defense devices - in their purses! If it's not in your hand or at least on your person its not going to be much good. Of the many ideas put forth here, situational awareness is number one in importance. If a weapon is selected, it should be readily available.

[guitar george]

Originally Posted by HHP

Do the sprays work on someone wearing glasses?

Yes, it will be inhaled through the mouth and nose and get behind the glasses to bother the eyes. I don't think the objective is to blind someone, but, spraying towards the eyes is a good place to aim.

We discovered our daughters spray when my wife found it while cleaning her room. I wondered what it was like and sprayed one shot on a piece of newspaper. Just inhaling the vapor from doing that was so noxious that we had to leave the room quickly and get rid of the sprayed paper.

[FOG01]

Originally Posted by guitar george

Yes, it will be inhaled through the mouth and nose and get behind the glasses to bother the eyes. I don't think the objective is to blind someone, but, spraying towards the eyes is a good place to aim.

We discovered our daughters spray when my wife found it while cleaning her room. I wondered what it was like and sprayed one shot on a piece of newspaper. Just inhaling the vapor from doing that was so noxious that we had to leave the room quickly and get rid of the sprayed paper.

Truth be told, unless it is the bear spray variant, a spray is not likely to stop a determined person, especially someone who has been subjected to it previously a time or 2. Someone also mentioned how being ambushed can render such defenses useless.

I would add any defensive weapon that requires fine motor skills to deploy can often provide a false sense of security. It is highly common for people to lose dexterity under duress, due to blood diverting to your vital organs and robbing your extremities of it. Often such items are also carried in purses, further complicating things.

The cure to this problem is vigilance, along with having the determination and muscle memory (practice) to employ any defense. It is not unlike learning any skill, particularly guitar!

[SpiderTrap]

To me everywhere can be a Bad area of sorts . I always have my head on swivel when out . I have no android or the like to distract me , only 20 year old Nokia Phone that works fine . Im amazed how many people when out have no clue as to what is happening around them . Crime in Central FL area is getting much worse . I now barricade the front door at night to keep from getting kicked in , very common practice . It's REAL Hungry out there, many emotionally disturbed , another subject , another trend Im noticing is layoffs of people who have worked large companies for 15 + years being replaced by youngers at starting wages . Hmm That's a tough Hit for sure especially with small kids . Seen 4 Lately close by. Too many people, Not enough jobs , oh did I say tooooo many People many only skill is a paper pusher , nothing to fall back on . Sad for sure . Another thing is to LISTEN to what is going on around you , just a small change in a persons tone keys me to things ...I understand spanish but no one would know by looking at me .

[815C]

Thanks for all the great input everyone. I agree that an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure.