If you are mental of purchasing a gun, or other "self-protection" device such as pepper spray or an alarm, then you are obviously concerned about your personal safety. You know it is essential to learn how to defend yourself, now more than ever! Today, not only do you have to worry about criminals, but now terrorists as well! What is this world arrival to? Would you know what to do?
You may be thinking, "Well, I'll just get a gun!" Unfortunately, real-world tests have shown that whole , weapons (or other "self-defense" products) are often ineffective when it comes to self-defense. Why?
Self Defense
There are many factors that contribute, but the main think weapons are ineffective is, if the weapon is not in your hand at the occasion of attack, you will never get the opportunity to use it! But, the law does not allow you to walk around with a gun in your hand, and most studies show that citizen soon forget to carry the various types of self-protection devices they purchase.
Even if you have a stun gun or pepper spray in your purse or pocket, if caught by surprise, you won't have a opportunity to get it out before you get decked! Mace does you no good if it is still in the purse that just got snatched out of your hand! Tests prove that 90% of the time, you will never get the opportunity to reach for your weapon before you are hurt too severely to use it.
Fbi statistics and Police reports from all over the country show that in more than half of all instances where the victim was able to get to a "weapon" (usually sprays are mentioned), the attacker knocked it out of their hand before they could use it. Police files are filled with tens of thousands of incidents of weapons taken away from the victim and used against them! It is estimated that almost one third of all gunshot victims are shot with their own gun! The figures are even higher when it comes to stun-guns and sprays.
This doesn't even include all of the incidences where the victim shoots themselves! Accidental discharge is the prominent cause of gunshot wounds in both crime and non-crime reports. You may think that wouldn't happen to you, but the reports prove that it happens to even experienced gun owners.
I know of a Police officer, even after whole training , the first time he tried to use Mace against an unruly suspect, ended up spraying himself.
Unfortunately, most citizen have little or no training as to the safe and allowable use of the weapons in their possession. Inadequate, or even improper training is the prominent cause of accidental discharge enthralling guns, stun-guns and sprays. What do you think will happen when they endeavor to use that weapon under the stress of a real attack?
There are categorically millions of incidents reported where the victim couldn't get the weapon to work at all, mainly because of inadequate training! Even the most basic theory of weapon usage are often overlooked by owners. The figures are stunning (pun intended) of the whole of incidents of stun guns that didn't work when needed because of dead batteries!
There are thousands upon thousands of reports of guns that wouldn't fire because the protection was on, and the user didn't know, forgot, or was too panicked to figure it out in time. In at least one incident I am aware of, the victim couldn't get his weapon to fire before the criminal took it away from him. Lucky for him, the criminal couldn't figure it out either.
Defective or Fraudulent Products
I'm sure you have purchased products that didn't quite work as advertised. How can you be sure that the pepper spray you buy will work as well as advertised, if at all? How will you test it? Spray yourself? Spray a friend? We're not talking about perfume! I doubt you will get any volunteers to help you.
When the criminal attacks, it is too late to find out that the pepper spray is categorically just vinegar, or that the 10 million volt stun-gun doesn't deliver much more of a shock than shuffling over the rug and touching a doorknob.
If you buy a police radar detector that is guaranteed to work, but doesn't, the consequent is a speeding ticket. If you buy "self-protection weapons" that don't work, the consequent can be severe injury or even death. Relying on man else's certify is only a false sense of protection that will only have bad results!
If you are serious about Self-Protection, your best self defense weapon is your mind . If you think about what has just been discussed, you will perceive that 'weapons' will only help you in ideal situations, and even then, you need to keep a clear head to be able to use them properly.
But, crime doesn't happen in ideal situations!
Being able to think clearly, and knowing what to do, is your best weapon when it comes to self-defense. Second best is being able to use your feet. Now, that doesn't mean to start kicking! It means that at the first sign of trouble, you need to Run! fly is always a much good self-defense tactic than getting into a struggle or a fight.
However, if you can't get away, your body is your best self-defense weapon! Since you cannot always have a weapon in your hand, it is considerable that you know how to defend yourself without weapons. But mindless flailing against an attacker does you no good at all. You need to learn the most vulnerable points on the human body. But even that isn't sufficient if you don't know the most effective ways to attack them. You need to learn how to kick, not just where to kick.
Everyone should at least take a basic self-defense procedure .
What about Martial Arts?
Traditional Martial Arts are great for disciple, self-confidence, and exercise. They can help to yield the spoton mindset needed when faced with a self-defense situation. But it usually takes several years to come to be proficient in the more complex techniques.
If you have the time to commit to a long-term training program, by all means, a martial art will provide the most whole training. However, just as in choosing a self-defense weapon, you must do your homework before choosing a martial arts program. Many don't deliver the whole training they promise, and most don't train you for realistic self-defense.
Far too many martial arts programs focus greatly on sports and competition. Sports and competition oriented martial arts are worthless as self-defense. They teach you to consequent rules, and for the most part, there are no rules in a road fight. If you are conditioned to consequent the rules, you can't do what is considerable in a perilous situation. In fact, you will probably do the wrong thing, and get yourself hurt or even killed.
Seek out a training program that focuses almost exclusively on realistic self-defense scenario training.
Knowing how to deal with yourself when confronted with violence is your only assurance against becoming a victim, or just someone else statistic in a police report. You have car insurance, home-owner's insurance, life insurance, health insurance...
What assurance do you have against being the victim of a violent crime? That type of assurance is only ready straight through allowable training. A long-term self-defense program offers the most whole training, and therefore, the best opportunity to learn to deal with almost any situation that may occur. However, if you don't have the time to commit to a long-term program, at least some form of weaponless self-defense training is good than none.
Summary
If you are serious about self-protection, your best bet is to first learn weaponless self-defense. Then, if you still want to purchase a weapon, do your homework before choosing the best weapon for you, and don't just read the instructions that come with it and think you are ready to use it.
- Take a class on how to use it effectively, how to deal with it safely, and how to enunciate it so it works when you need it.
- Take regular refresher courses so you don't forget anything about the weapon.
- Follow all maintenance procedures on a regular basis.
Your best bet is to learn weaponless self-defense and get the best weapon for you. Remember, you will never feel safe until you have all the tools considerable for self-protection. And the most prominent weapon of all is your own mind and body!
Resources:
Strong, Sanford - Strong on Defense ; Simon & Shuster, Inc.; 1996
Federal Bureau of Investigation - Uniform Crime record ; 2000
Self Defense Weapons - What Is The Best Weapon For Self Defense?
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