Be Flexible: Anything Can Be a Weapon

My Aikido teacher flies a lot. He likes to joke -- when he's teaching a class, not when he's going through airport security -- that no one ever checks over his hands as possible weapons.

But, of course, his hands are very useful weapons indeed, as anyone he's ever sent flying across the mat can tell you.

The truth is, anything can be a weapon. And while that may strike fear into the heart of those conducting security theater at the airports, it is something the rest of us need to remember when we're in a tight spot.

For example, here's a report from the Corpus Christi Caller-Times about a woman who used spray perfume to get away from an attacker.

Now I'm not advising you to start carrying perfume around for self defense purposes or to automatically spray anyone who looks at you cross-eyed. What I am suggesting is that in a difficult situation, you can often find something that will work as a weapon so long as you stay calm and aware of what's going on around you.

One of my favorite stories about this -- and I heard it so long ago that I don't remember where it came from -- is one about a woman who found herself on the subway late at night, alone except for a man who frightened her (as I recall, she had good reason to be afraid). So she began to pick her nose and otherwise act in a rather gross manner.

He got off at the next stop.

Anything can be a weapon.

Website Review: Pepper Spray, Stun Guns and Other Tools

A gentleman named Chris responded to the earlier post about the girl who defended herself by suggesting that pepper spray would also work.

It turns out that Chris sells pepper spray and related products through a website called Defendthyself.com. He blogs on the subject of these weapons and related self defense issues here. I don't agree with him on many issues -- I don't think weapons are your most important line of defense, for example -- but he does have a perspective to offer if you're thinking about buying pepper spray or similar weapons.

I would not give pepper spray or any other weapon to a child for self defense. Some children might get silly and spray their friends. And it wouldn't be hard for a mugger to take the spray away from a child and use it against her or him.

However, for adults pepper spray and similar products can be useful self defense tools IF you know how to use them. These things are just like any other weapons -- useful tools in the right hands.

But just like guns, they can also do you more harm than good if you don't really know how to handle them. And if you're nervous, you might well use them in situations where they aren't required -- something that can get you arrested for assault.

So don't just run out and buy something. Read about the different products and see if they would make sense in your situation. Make sure they're legal in your jurisdiction -- some products aren't. Find out if the seller offers any training course on how to use it. And if you're the nervous type -- the kind of person who might spray an innocent bystander -- take a self defense class or do some other study to learn calmness before you buy any kind of weapon, whether it's pepper spray or a gun.

A weapon is only good for self defense if you know how to use it.

By the way, Chris, if you're reading this, please let me know if you offer any courses on how to use pepper spray and other products. I'll post the information on this blog.