Blog and Mace

Over on my blog I've posted a link to a clip from a US tv show called Court TV.

Check out the first clip as an example of

a) how someone who works amongst violent criminals never bothered learning rudimentary self defense

b) how tear gas/OC/Mace covers both good guy and bad

c) How long it takes him to access it while being beaten

d) and, imagine instead the guy had a knife on him instead of empty hands.

Mind boggling


http://charlotteselfdefense.blogspot.com/

Nick

It's a great clip for illustrative purposes. Can I add one more?

e) imagine the guy could actually generate any punching power

How many times did he hit him without putting him away? If he'd had any real torque going on, that guy would have been toast after the first few blows.

An old acquaintance once said to me one of the greatest allies we have on our side is that the goblins rarely know how to punch properly.

That guy was mighty lucky

D

I thought prison officers carried gel pepper spray to avoid cross-contamination.
A question if you don't mind Nick.
You wrote somewhere you carry an http://www.amazon.com/Palm-Defender-Pepper-Spray-Blue/dp/B000XQ8OIG on your keychain.
What's your opinion on mace/CS/Pepper spray?
I carry a can of Pepper spray so i'm interested.
Thanks.

Tear gas and mace were the original versions of incapacitating sprays and, while they worked on some, they didn't work on all.

The next thing down the pipeline was OC or oleoresin capsicum which is far more debilitating than it's predecessors but still not perfect.

There are various delivery methods from the hand held versions...there is a cone shaped mist, a thin stream, a gel, a gel with a dying agent and so on.

Yes, I have an ASP key chain/kubotan that comes with OC in it that sprays in stream. It's advantage as far as I'm concerned is the surprise element and I'm not counting on it to work like most who carry do. In fact, they're basing their entire defensive strategy on their gas (or other hand held self defense tool)

The big advantage to the key chain is that it's in my hand when I'm leaving somewhere rather than being stashed in it's carry pouch as it was with the officer in the clip.

Excellent questions by the way

Nick

PS: I think you'll find different prison guards have different policies concerning what they use and what they carry just as different police depts have different policies concerning sidearms (calibre, mag capacity, brand etc)

Even if they were legal in the UK I doubt I would carry an incapacitating spray. I just don't see enough benefit when compared with the use of empty hand.

You have to access the spray
You have to deliver the spray effectively
You have to NOT deliver the spray to your own system
The don't really do what they say on the tin. You're inconvenienced, you're in pain probably, you're physically impacted probably but you aren't necessarily incapacitated and that's not enough for me when I know that hitting someone repeatedly in the head is going to incapacitate them.

Compare all of the downsides listed above with the instant response of empty hands and I just don't see the upside as being significant enough.

I'd have one as a toy to play with though, would make for some interesting training sessions

Chris,

Yes and no...

Here's some other things to consider (playing devil's advocate)...

How long does it take to teach someone - slight female for eg. - to be able to go hands on effectively against a large brute armed with a brick?

Now, compare that with how long it takes to teach the same lass to use a spray!

Next, you say you have to deliver the spray effectively and they don't do what they say on the tin. The same can be said of most empty handed shots right? You've got to be able to deliver them effectively and kicks to the groin and throat punches for example are just two that spring to mind that are highly over rated.

The beauty of the spray - when it does work (and there are tons of examples of it doing just that) - is that it's easy to learn and you get to stand off at a distance and incapacitate someone temporarily with little risk of ending up charged with assault etc due to the fact there's no permanent injuries.

So no, I would never rule it out completely...just don't hinge your entire defensive system on it.

Nick

Thanks for the answer Nick.
Chris,the wise thing to do with them is to use them premptively (having it already deployed).
Many years ago my brothers were on a village's nightclub dance floor and were surrounded by 11 local guys with glasses and beer bottles who took exception of them being from the city.
My older brother got the CS Gas from his pocket (without them realizing) and sprayed them all.
While they were screaming in agony not knowing what had happened my brothers ran away.