March 29, 2024

Self-Defense: Pepper Spray

I know there are some people who prefer less than lethal force, or are not able to conceal and carry. I believe pepper spray is something that everyone (especially women) who is legally permitted should carry, especially if you conceal and carry.

Before I get in to the why, let me briefly explain what pepper spray is and why it is effective. There are three different types of chemical components used in pepper spray:

CS (Orthochlorobenzalmalonitrile),
CN (alphachloroacetaphenone)
OC (Oleoresin Capsicum).

CS and CN are considered irritants and will cause stinging and tearing. They can take from five to thirty seconds to be effective and may have little to no effect on someone who is chemically altered or in a psychotic state.

OC on the other hand is an inflammatory agent. When sprayed with it, your eyes immediately slam shut. People most often become temporarily blind due to the capillaries in the eyes dilating. From breathing in the agent, there is also coughing and possibly some choking.

Pepper spray is considered less than lethal but there have been cases where people with breathing issues, such as asthma, have died.
 
 
Blowback

Blowback is when some of the pepper spray blows back at you. It is more of a danger outdoors and of course is more likely to happen if you spray it into the wind.
 
 

Types of Sprayers

There are four types of sprayers. They are:
 
 
Stream

Think water gun. This gets a lot of spray on the target quickly and as a result empties faster. There is a mild risk of blowback. That risk increases proportional to the range it is sprayed.
 
 
Forced Cone

The spray pattern is circular and sprays a fine mist of droplets. There is a larger risk of blowback than with stream or foam.
 
 
Fogger

A fogger sprays a wider pattern and finer mist than the forced cone. Foggers are the most effective to use against a crowd, as they put out a large amount of spray. Aim is also less critical. A fogger could be used nicely to defend a home as well. The risk of blowback is higher than with spray or foam.
 
 
Foam

Foam shoots out like silly string and accumulates on the target. Attempts to wipe it off often just rub it in, making it more effective. Foam is the least subject to blowback.
 
 

Why Carry Pepper Spray?

I have a permit to carry, and often do. I am also trained in Haganah, an Israeli-based martial art. Why do I carry pepper spray? Because there are some situations where I believe it is the best choice. If the only tool you have in your toolbox is a hammer, you treat everything like it’s a nail.

One such scenario could be that there are two unarmed men walking toward you, making threats. If I’m armed I could draw. They may or may not back down. If they do, problem solved. If they don’t, I’ve put myself in the position to have to shoot. If I choose to go hand-to-hand, I might be able to take them both using what I have learned in Haganah. Then again, I have no idea of their skill level and could be entirely out-matched. With pepper spray, since it is most often non-lethal, I can draw it earlier than my gun. If they don’t back down I can also use it earlier than I would my gun. I’ll discuss the people that are unaffected by pepper spray next. For now, I’ll just say that if they are unaffected, I can still draw my gun, or go hand-to-hand.
 
 
What About Those Unaffected?

I heard a story once about a Navy Seal who sprayed pepper spray on his sandwich and ate it. I’ve also heard a story about a guy that used pepper spray like breath spray and just swallowed it. There are many more stories like this. Whether or not they are true, I have no idea. If they are, my guess is that they used CS or CN and not OS. I have read reports that claim a tolerance can be built up to CS and CN but not to OS.

I heard once that 30% of people sprayed with pepper spray will be unaffected. I believe this was related to CS and CN types. People use this as a reason not to carry pepper spray. They are focusing on the wrong number. So what? 30% are unaffected. There are 70% that ARE affected. If there was a 70% chance that you would win the lottery, reservations about gambling aside, the vast majority of us would buy a ticket. That 30% who are unaffected, aren’t completely un-phased. They are just not completely shut down like the rest. They will still have some tearing, blurred vision and other difficulties.

Because I believe in having many tools in my self-defense toolbox, if I were to spray someone and they were unaffected I would still have options. I could either make a tactical retreat, giving me a chance to escape or giving me time to go to a more lethal form of self-defense or I could go right to them. I wouldn’t want to go hand-to-hand, as I’m not one of the unaffected.

That brings up another good point. Your job is not to subdue the attacker like a policeman. Your job is to survive the attack and make it back to your family. Whether that means spraying with pepper spray and making an escape or using your firearm as a last result, so be it.
 
 
What I Carry

I personally carry Cold Steel Inferno .38 oz. Keyring Hardcase Unit Pepper Spray,as does my wife. I even bought a can for my son’s ex-girlfriend when they were together. If I had a daughter, she would carry a can with her.

Inferno is an OC agent and comes out in foam. They have small pen type units, the keychain model I carry and they also have a 10.5 oz.can, perfect for home defense..
 
 
Bee and Wasp Spray

There are people who say they’ll use bee or wasp spray for self-defense. It is a crime to use it in a means that it was not intended for. If you used it because it was close when you were attacked, I can understand. But setting it aside for the intended use of self-defense, I don’t understand. There are products better suited for the job that are legal in most states to use. While the big can of Inferno might be more expensive than a can of wasp spray, it’s not cheaper than a lawsuit or a fine. Since you have time now to purchase it, I can’t see why wasp spray would be an option.
 
 
How to Carry Pepper Spray

It’s not effective if you can’t get to it quickly, I have my can on my key chain and I carry my keys in my hand or in my jacket pocket with my hand on it. If you need in an emergency, you will not have time to fish it out of your pocket or purse and put it to use.

 
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What Would You Do? Civil Unrest Near Your Neighborhood

Due to high unemployment, a rising inflation rate and resentment of governmental officials, there are outbreaks of social unrest and riots that looks similar to the “Arab Spring” of 2011.

So, what would you do?

(Check the comments section to see my thoughts and anyone else’s thoughts as well as to add your own.)

 
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Home Defense: Defensible Positions and Safe Rooms

Home Defense Defensible Positions and Safe Rooms

Home is the place where we lower our alert level and let our guard down. Being at home doesn’t mean you’re completely safe, just safer then when you’re out. Home invasions are on the rise and if the economy continues to struggle or gets worse, they will rise even faster. It’s impossible to give you a simple list of things you can do to make your home secure. I am going to cover some home defense principles over the course of a few different articles.

In this article I’ll cover safe rooms and defensible positions; some simple things you can either incorporate or just be aware of.
 
 
Defensible Position

A defensible position is simply a place in your home that is more easily defended then others. Many homes have choke-points that could be used to force Mr. Dirtbag and friends to slow down and group.

The most defensible position in my house in the main bedroom because it’s at the end of a 20 foot hallway. If Mr. Dirtbag wants to do us harm, he has to come up one flight of stairs, make a hard right and cross that 20 feet, all while dodging rounds.

When planning your position, consider lines of fire; if you shoot through your doorway, where is that round going to travel? Will it enter another room or possibly go through your external wall and into your neighbor’s house? If you live in an apartment or town home, this is something you’ll want to think through completely. (I’ll get into home defense guns soon and that will address this more.)

There may be situations in which the most defensible position is not an option. If the most defensible position is the main bedroom but your children’s rooms are on another level, for instance, you might choose one of their rooms to turn into a safe room.
 
 
Safe room

This is not the type of safe room that is an impenetrable steel room with its own electric and oxygen and water supply. I mean a room in your house that can offer you more protection because of the layout and/or some things you have done to harden it.
 
 
Hardening Your Safe Room

Here are a few things you can do to make it harder for your safe room to be breached:

  • Solid core door; doors with multiple panels have areas on them that will be easier to kick or punch through, but even that is better than a hollow core door.
  • Use three inch screws to secure the hinges to the stud; most hinges are only secured to the frame. This alone will make it harder to kick in.
  • Use a reinforced strike plate and use 3 inch screws to attach it as well.
  • Use three hinges if possible.
  • Use a dead bolt lock, most internal door locks are flimsy and are easily bypassed.

If you have read the article I wrote called Duct Tape and Plastic?,it might make sense to use the same room you seal off in a chemical event as your safe room.
 
 
Items to Keep in Your Safe Room

Phone lines are easy to bypass, either by cutting the line outside or taking the phone off the hook once inside. Because of this, you should have a cell phone inside your safe room, it does not have to have a contract, but have it plugged in to make sure it will turn on. FCC Tips for 911 Calling.

“If your wireless phone is not “initialized” (meaning you do not have a contract for service with a wireless service provider), and your emergency call gets disconnected, you must call the emergency operator back because the operator does not have your telephone number and cannot contact you.”

A flashlight. Here are some flashlight non-standard flashlight uses.

Nonperishable food and water bottles might be a good idea.

Joe Dirtbag hates noise. To make some, keep an extra key fob for your vehicle in your safe room and set off the alarm. You could also keep an air horn for the same purpose.

I recommend keeping your home defense gun and extra ammo in this room as well. If your safe room is your child room, a quick release safe is an excellent way to make it, well, safe.

If you have any other ideas or suggestions please add them in the comment section.

 
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