Need FReeper advice: Topic: Pros and Cons of Pepper Spray for self-defense

12 DEC 08 | dcbryan1

[DCBryan1]

Freepers: Need a little "thinking outside the box" from you on a little subject I am having trouble dealing with here in Little Rock, AR. I need some technical advice since I don't have time to research while and work, and just love hearing Freeper stories and advice.

After the burglary, rape, beating, and murder of Anne Pressley (KATV News Anchor) in a very nice part of Little Rock, the local neighborhood association is fed up with crime and has resorted to.....PEPPER SPRAY! Yes that's right, the neighborhood association, over 100 years old and full of liberals, is reluctant to bring up the "controversial" subject of firearms for self defense. Dozens of citizens have approached me for the AR CHL and I have given them instruction and certified their application for the CHL (...apparently there are some sane liberals there).

However, the problem I am having is that PEPPER SPRAY seems to be the magical item that most people want instead of a gun. I keep reminding people that pepper and OC spray is:
1) a deterrant, and
2) an irritant...neither is good at completely stopping and incapacitating a violent criminal (or criminals).

Before I post on the neighborhood website further opinions on pepper spray, I would like your professional and personal opinions and how to address concerned citizens on:

Shelf life of OC and Pepper spray
Reactivity in hot/cold weather
Use of chemicals in enclosed spaces
Quantity of spray needed to truely deter a criminal
Quantity of spray (and type) that will incapacitate an attacker
Any chemical or technical experience with the items
Any real-life stories of how pepper spray/OC actually stopped an attack
Anything you deem relevant IOT help my CHL business and demystify the belief in the liberal areas of Little Rock that "guns are bad".

Anyways, I just need tactful and thoughtful advice that maybe I might be overseeing in dealing with this little issue that is like a penny in a can for me...irrelevant, but damn annoying.

Thanks again!

DCB

[ErnBatavia]

....great for clearing out the sinus

You can say that again! When we got the dose in Boot Camp, I had snot coming from orifices that I didn't know could produce it.

[WayneS]

But at least he won’t get eaten... so it IS effective...

;^)

[theDentist]

Think about it. Tooth decay requires visits to the dentist. Those visits cost money. The worse the teeth, the higher the cost. Why the heck do you think we give kids lollipops when they leave?

[libertarian27]

I took a LTC course a couple of weeks ago and the instructor touted the use of Pepper spray.[We were there to cert for Pistol carry]

Some reasons to carry were interesting:
*Not harm/kill surrounding people
*Spray and run- if you see an out
*If your weapon was turned on you- you wouldn’t be shot

But in the long run he suggested we could/should carry pepper spray on the left side and a gun on the right.

In the long run every situation will be different, course training and practice is a must, with a gun or spray.
{Know what both of them can/will do]

[seekthetruth]

I am a lady who never though I would ever need to protect myself that way. However, years ago I was under a threat from someone and was advised by my local Police Chief to do exactly that. I did, took training, and felt so much safer. I have been blessed that I never had to use it! Now I have my sweetheart to protect me, but I am ready to do the same if it ever becomes necessary. :)

[Aliska]

There's a video on youtube showing how to make your own pepper spray and reuse something like a little spray bottle for lens cleaner you get at the drugstore. You could somehow check it and make up a new batch. I bought some years ago and don't know if it is still good.

Personally I'd rather have something with a lengthier dispersal trajectory. You have to be close for spray.

I wouldn't want to depend on pepper spray alone for some of the reasons given by previous posters.

[Blood of Tyrants]

First, a small spray can is unlikely to be a visual deterrent. A rapist probably would not see it as a threat.

A gun is ALWAYS a visual deterrent to everyone but the totally enraged and insane.

Second, you have to hit the attacker IN THE EYES to get full effect.

Hit them with a bullet most anywhere and they will most likely stop and flee or at least slow down enough for another shot. Even if you miss, the BANG! may bring an attacker to his senses and cause them to flee.

Third, it may not incapacitate the rapist, it may only enrage him, at which time the victim is much more likely to be serious harmed. If the attacker has already broken into your house, they may just gut it out and attack anyway, holding the victim down while they recover.

While a bullet shot may not be incapacitating, a second, third, fourth, and fifth will most likely put them down for the count.

Fourth, viable usage life while in your purse? Who knows? It may work, it may not after being carried for a year.

A good carry gun, like a hammerless S&W 38 Special loaded with hollow points will be ready to go for years. Just take it out, wipe it off, and clear the barrel and it is good for another year.

[devistate one four]

This is very good advice. I teach self defense (hand to hand) and am certified personal protection (firearms). Ther’s a time and place for all forms of self ‘d’.
Remember to test the safties on the oc and test the oc on yourself!
If you own ANY firearm or oc type sprays, Know how to use them in a SAFE manner!

[Blood of Tyrants]

Bears have more sense than a junkie jacked up on crystal meth.

[murron]

One day I was looking for something in my purse and emptied the contents on my coffee table. My son, who should have known better, picked up the little canister of pepper spray I had and decided to spray it in the air like air freshener. He only gave it one quick squirt. We had to clear the house of the humans and dogs because we couldn’t breathe from the stuff. It felt like it was choking us and cutting off our oxygen. We had to open the windows and turn on all the fans and the air conditioning.

I’m always afraid if you spray that stuff improperly, it will incapacitate the sprayer instead of the perpetrator.

[Mad Dawg]

We hit a guy with a facefull of OC. He continues to fight,. It took about 4 of us to contain him without hurting him. Maybe 10-15 minutes after he got sprayed, we have him cuffed and on his stomach in the back of the cruiser, and suddenly he says," OOOW!" and starts rubbing his face on the back of the car seat.

So If you can run faster than the bad guy for fifteen minutes, maybe you can rely on OC. I always have some, but I don't depend on it.

[yefragetuwrabrumuy]

Pepper spray is a good deterrent for stray dogs, but I would never depend on it against a person, because it is haphazard.

However, guns are for sensible minors and adults, not liberals. For them I would recommend Tasers, for several reasons.

First of all, they are legally “less than lethal”, so it is unlikely that anyone suing *everyone* because of their use will have much luck.

Second, because I would never expect a liberal to fire a gun when appropriate, or in the right direction, or with any care and attention to their downrange area.

Third, because in a Mexican standoff, a Taser will often win against a handgun or a knife.

And fourth, a Taser fills that great big gray area between doing nothing at all and lethal force. Any number of things can go wrong in a confrontation, and the worst you can get from a Taser is “sorry”.