Protection While Out and About

[Vallari]

Does anybody who goes out and about dressed have any suggestions for good things to have in case there is a confrontation with one or more people? I was thinking maybe a knife or screwdriver or something but Im unsure :confused: . Im not looking for trouble or anything but want something just in case I wander into redneck territory on accident or something. :o

[DonnaT]

Pepper spray or a stun gun, depending on the laws of your area. Other weapons could be considered "unreasonable force" even if you are protecting yourself.

[Chandra Marie]

I have both pepper spray and a stun gun. they have different usages and you always have back-up.

[Natasha Anne]

Keys make great weapons. Just put the bunch in your hand with the keys sticking out between your fingers and you can cause serious damage.

Stilletos too.

Fortuntely I've never had to resort to violence, because I'm just not that way inclined, but a girls got to maintain her awareness. The worst harrasment I've had is in the UK when some lout keep putting his hand a little to high up my skirt.

[Wendy me]

i know here we go again ("i don't see the obession with cders and guns") in the car colt 45 under the seat ,in the truck pistol grip 12 guage shotgun in the purse berasa high cap 22 cal. cci stingers in the clip.................

jenny not all rednecks are bad people..........we do cd you know

[Tonia]

i know here we go again ("i don't see the obession with cders and guns") in the car colt 45 under the seat ,in the truck pistol grip 12 guage shotgun in the purse berasa high cap 22 cal. cci stingers in the clip.................

jenny not all rednecks are bad people..........we do cd you know

Wendy

You’re after my own heart. I carry a 40 glock Yippee fits nice in the purse, and in the car under the passenger seat a GP100 357 I never leave home without at least one of them..

Tonia

[Wendy me]

Wendy

You’re after my own heart. I carry a 40 glock Yippee fits nice in the purse, and in the car under the passenger seat a GP100 357 I never leave home without at least one of them..

Tonia




tonia the antys will be just that and thats ok let them .when wendy or him go out were comming home ..............no low life going to change that........ ;)

[Tonia]

tonia the antys will be just that and thats ok let them .when wendy or him go out were comming home ..............no low life going to change that........ ;)
I totally agree and I love your Avatar NICE!!!!

Tonia:)

[Wendy me]

I totally agree and I love your Avatar NICE!!!!

Tonia:)



tonia thank you them boots are realy handdy, inner right thy jenings 22 cal.
inner left small clutch bag cash cards and id just so snugg my 3rd pair ;)

[Sara Kat]

.50 Desert Eagle :D

[JennyCD]

While I agree that a good firearm is best, sometimes it isn't an option for some. Depending on where you live or, as in my case your occupation, you simplay may not have that choice.

Good secondary options are, as mentioned, pepper spray and/or a stun gun. A good knife is also a fair option.

Personally, while I'd prefer a good handgun, (I own several) I now carry both pepper spray and a knife.

Regardless of which option(s) you decide to go with, please please please, make sure that you receive proper training on how to use them. I know they may seem easy enough to use, but even a knife can be used improperly or even taken away from you and used against you. Proper training can make
any of these much more effective and reduce the odds of them being turned against you.

Having received extensive weapons training in the military, I can tell you that there are techniques you can use with almost any object to make them work in your favor. Seek out a self-defense course in your area. Had I not been trained, my own recent experience could have, and probably would have turned out far worse than it did. While I was badly injured, I am still alive.

[Wendy me]

[QUOTE=JennyCD]While I agree that a good firearm is best,

Personally, while I'd prefer a good handgun, (I own several) I now carry both pepper spray and a knife.


Having received extensive weapons training in the military,

me too E.S.I. in colorado ;)

[Wendy me]

sara veary nice.............do you roll your own or shoot off the shelfe????????????

[Darby]

I have to agree with the keys and stillettos... and honey, if I hit you with my purse, your going down! A handgun can be turned around on you. I don't care how big or strong you are, doing combat in your best heels and a tight skirt is a little different than combat boots!

[Sandra H]

This type of thread is alien to us girls on this side of the pond. It seems more like a trip through Iraq rather than going out in a town/city in the USA. Is life in the US so tough that you feel you need to be so armed just to have a ride in your car? It does not sound like the land of the free.

If so then I pity you all, if we ever get that bad here in the UK then I for one would leave on the first flight out. What does any other girl who is not in the USA think?

[JennyCD]

Sandra, your viewpoint may be different, but the nature of people here and there isn't. I have read on this forum of one girl being killed right in her own neighborhood because whe dared to step out dressed. That happened in the nice, civilized UK.

There are violent people anywhere you go. Human predators. To pretend there aren't is setting yourself up for a fall.

[Georgette]

A Black belt in martial arts doesen't hurt either, I know a 3" spike stelleto heel can do one hell of a lot of damage. Of course a 32 cal. derringer doesen't hurt too:

[LauraB]

[COLOR=Plum]

Here in good old blighty (UK for all of us too young to remember Errol Flyn movies) One is absolutly not alowed to carry any firearms (or own one) or even to use stunners or pepper sprays. So a girl has to resort to our own natural ability to improvise (some men would say devious ways) I carry a small can of hair spry in my coat pocket or in my handbag in summer. I was once almost raped while on the Bakerloo line (a underground line in london) by a heavy thick built thickco. A short sharp spry to his face stopped him in his tracks leaving him on his knees his hands clutched to his considerably painful eyes. However he was simply trying to rape me rather than beat the crap out of a TV/CD. He thought i was a girl, the arresting policeman said to me in Charing Cross police station over a cup of Tea
"good trick the hair spray and legal as well."
Then he said Just as well it did work for if he had gone any further he might have found out about you. I looked at him and said what do you mean
He replied
" you used to be at school with my son.
Oh i said

sadly my tall ruggedly handsome Knight did not ask me to dinner or a film Which was a great shame he was hot and sexy in a reto sort of way. (i do not remember his son so no guilt there at all)

My attacker pled guilty and got 18 months (he had other convictions for rape and sex attacks)

With time off for good behaviour (i.e. he does not bugger any of the other inmates or beat up a prision officer) He will be out in around 6 months. So i have decided not to use the underground again and maybe get out of london into the country.

The conclusion is that almost any good spray will be eefective against attacks, however do make sure there are plenty of toxic chemicals in teh can for the best effect.

Love

Laura

[Sharon]

A lot of options are stated here, but if you're not prepared for the aftermath, weapons may not be the first choice. The first thing to do in any instance should be to scream as loudly as you can. Then kick off your heels and run as fast as you've ever run before.
If these tactics don't work, use your knee, your nails, or whatever you have at your disposal. It is a personal choice of mine not to own a handgun, I would rather depend on my wits.
Sharon -- I may be girly, but I'm still fast.

[Wendy me]

what if thay are your fav.pair????

[Sharon]

My life or a pair of shoes? Hmm....

[Sharon]

As Jack Benny would say: :I'm thinking. I'm thinking!"

[SherryAnn]

skipping threw to the reply part of this thread I may have missed something & when I heard about Jenny's expeirance & sending her a note what she might want to carry I'll say it again. A straight razer, ya know the kind with a fancy handle that folds up?? The kind the barbers used in the 1900's. Most of them have a thumb flip piece or can be just flicked with a motion of the wrist. Maybe some have never been razer cut before, simply put they cut deep--long--& silent. A well exicuted razer slash can bleed a person into submission before they even know there cut, & sometimes bleed them out before they can get help. Here in the USA its not illeagle to carry one & even if it was a questionable "weapon" by the coppers, if I were to go clubbing or something dressed out I'd carry a razer in my garter. All they can do is take it away at the door or worst any sane judge would realize our going out is taking our life in our own hands with all the hate crime going on today. If you have any doubts get a straight razer & swing it at a pinapple a couple times-lol,lol. You'll think you missed it till ya pick it up & it comes apart in your hands from the gashes. I'd just as soon get into a fight with someone with a gun than a razer. Plus there's alot of them around in antique shops most with pearl handles. Sorry, didn't mean to start off this Sunday AM with something like this but think about it

[Bonnie-OR]

Girls, it is still a violent world, and if you don't believe it, here is a little proof. Last week here in Oregon a Sargent home on leave from Iraq, just wanted to take his wife out for dinner and a quiet evening out, before returning to Iraq in a couple days. While having a nice dinner, another patron, a young black man, started harrassing them. Seems this guy didn't like the fact that the Sgt is a white man, and his lovely wife is a black lady. The Sgt tried to ignore the situation, and when it didn't go away, paid the bill, and he and his wife got up and left. Once outside, he was jumped and badly beaten by, I think 5 young black men. The Sgt is okay, and returned to Iraq a couple days later, the attackers are prominent football players at the local university, and the last I heard, several days ago, hadn't been charged with a serious crime, or even suspended from the team. I hope that has changed. All in all, if there is still this kind of racial tension, how will we be welcomed in many areas of the world. Thus, Bonnie still exists in a closet only. Just something to think about. Huggs, Bonnie

[SherryAnn]

your right about who we hang out with & the world in general but look at hat happened to JennyCD!!! She was just having fun doing her own thing & damn near got killed in an open public parking lot for Christ sake. Everybody talks about "that would never happen to me" or "not in this neighbor hood" but the fact of life is we as cd'rs have to take into account that some sort of self protection is needed, or at best realized. The world in general is getting more & more confusing all the time & people are taking there frustrations out on the closest thing to them, & its not going to get any better unless you move to a deserted island. I'm not saying be on the defencive everytime ya go out, that takes all the fun of going out to begin with so why bother. Just realize there's a ponentual for getting into trouble no matter where ya go dressed or not, thats life. so I see no reason for not taking the steps to protect yourself especialy if your dressed. Personally I have no problem with living with the fact I caused the death of someone who attacked me the way they did JennyCD. God she got so brain twisted over that (& I might have to) she was thinking of quitting dressing forever & saying goodby to us & perhaps the world, for what??? a couple of a-- holes with no life of there own??? Forget that jazz, I'm still in the closet but not because I'm scared to go out. Its a self confidence thing after seeing all the really pretty cd's out there & me uneducated in the make-up dept. but the day will come & I will have the extra protection in my garter

[Vallari]

This type of thread is alien to us girls on this side of the pond. It seems more like a trip through Iraq rather than going out in a town/city in the USA. Is life in the US so tough that you feel you need to be so armed just to have a ride in your car? It does not sound like the land of the free.

If so then I pity you all, if we ever get that bad here in the UK then I for one would leave on the first flight out. What does any other girl who is not in the USA think?

Unfortunately you do have to arm yourself for protection here it the USA.
Believe me, Im bi, a CD, and im NOT religious, so here in the US right now it isnt really the land of the free for everybody. Im not going to loose my life over this just because of some accident from WasteOfSpace, TX has a problem with a guy in a skirt.

A few months ago in Austin (TX) some gay people were attacked in their own car downtown! Some guys pulled them out of their car and beat the s**t out of them. So even your own car isn't even adiquite protection anymore. So weapons it is as far as I can see. I'll even use my car as one if need be.

Hopefully times will be better someday but until then, ready-aim-fire. :)

[Julie]

This type of thread is alien to us girls on this side of the pond. It seems more like a trip through Iraq rather than going out in a town/city in the USA. Is life in the US so tough that you feel you need to be so armed just to have a ride in your car? It does not sound like the land of the free.

If so then I pity you all, if we ever get that bad here in the UK then I for one would leave on the first flight out. What does any other girl who is not in the USA think?

I've said it before somewhere in in this forum but I'll repeat myself here. Guns might be illegal over here except off course there are exceptions such as farmers, that said if things here got so bad that my day to day life and freedoms that are a right began to be impeded by bigots etc I would get myself a weapon (not too hard to get) and if needed use it.

JJ

[Marianne]

I guess I'll put my two cents worth in here in addition to the advice of others.

The best way to avoid confrontations is to be aware of your surroundings at all times. The 'professional' phrase is 'Situational Awareness'. Most of these are the same regardless of whether your dressed up or not, and most are regardless of your gender etc.

Some things you can do to minimize the risks include (but are not limited to) the following:-

1. Scout the area in 'drab' mode first.

Learn where the exits are, learn where your 'escape' routes are. Learn where the lighted places are and where the darker places are. If you drive, park in well lighted areas with plenty of other people around. Be aware that some places that are perfectly fine in the middle of the afternoon are perhaps not fine late at night.

This also means the *obvious* things, like not walking into your local biker bar in a miniskirt...

2. Know your own limitations.

No matter how well you are armed, no matter how well you are trained, you can only handle so much. A 5' 4", 120 pound karate black-belt 'girl' shouldn't even attempt to 'mix it up' with a half-dozen 200+ pound 6'+ tall longshoremen, construction workers or leather-clad bikers. (They only have to hit you *once* and it's all over for you)

If you are wearing a long and/or tight skirt and 5" heels, you won't be able to run away as fast as you could when wearing sneakers and loose pants.

3. Walk away.

It's not worth it. If someone gets 'in your face', walk away. Verbally 'defuse' the situation, if you can, by apologizing, but walk away.

Learn to recognize when someone is drunk or 'hopped up', and realize that they are *not* going to behave rationally. Avoid eye-contact, avoid making sudden moves and threatening moves, but learn to recognize their 'body language' so that you can tell when things are about to 'escalate' from someone just being an asshole to someone being a threat.

4. Stay fit and maintain 'self-control'.

Yep, that means exercise. At a miminum be able to RUN away. It also means knowing yourself. Know yourself well enough to recognize that when a 'situation' starts, that your reactions can either escalate or 'defuse' the situation.

5. If things do get 'physical'...

If things do get physical, be prepared to instantly get into a pure survival frame of mind. Drop all pretentions of being a 'nice' person, they will only get you hurt or killed.

You are *not* in a boxing match, nor are you in an Olympic wrestling match. There are *no* rules.

'Go for the vulnerables'. That means testicles usually, grab damn hard, yank forward then push backwards as hard as you can. (See #4, build hand-strength by squeezing a tennis ball while reading a book or watching TV).

If they're just out of hands reach, a straight snap-kick to the knee, or a swivel and side-kick to the knee will put them out of your immediate 'threat' range.

Forget the fancy Hollywood crap you see in movies, most 'tournament' martial-arts moves are nothing more than an exhibition of pure athletics. Most of us are *not* that nimble, graceful or fast.

6. A weapon is only what you make of it.

You can easily maim or kill someone with a tightly rolled-up newspaper. Unless you have one in your hand at the moment don't bother looking for one *after* trouble starts.

Don't even *attempt* to 'intimidate' someone with a weapon. If you have to pull a weapon, use it instantly to defend yourself. Most drunks/hopheads/'high on adrenaline yahoos' aren't going to pause just because you pulled out a knife/gun/stick/rolled-up newspaper.

Be aware that someone who is drunk/high etc. won't even notice that they've been shot with a small caliber weapon (unless you hit the brain or heart) for long enough for them to HURT you.

7. Martial-arts training.

It takes years. Most 'High street' places teach 'tournament' style arts. Those are mostly worthless outside of tournaments. Military/Police style classes are good tho.

Try 'self-defence' classes, as long as they're taught by professionals (as in ex-military/police type folks). Traditional japanese styles that end in '-jutsu' are also good. Some forms that end in '-do' are acceptable, especially aikido. Forget judo, kendo or any variation of karate-do as a 'real' self-defence art tho.

Forget 'kung-fu', unless you study in China.

Forget tai-kwon-do unless you study in Thailand (See #4 also).

However, *any* style will help with 'situational awareness' and 'self-confidence' as long as you have a good teacher. The *most* important lessons you learn from these is in #2 through #6 above.

----------------

and for your viewing pleasure...

a page from the book I helped write...

I'm the tall guy (pics from a decade ago before I went clean shaven...)

http://elawyn.homestead.com/files/gimmedat.jpg

[Georgette]

You said a mouth full the one basic thing I learned in Martial arts is walk away when you can , or if you can't make the odds in your favor by knowing the exits and escape routes. Granted if you still practice the MAs you may be agile enough to defend yourself ,but 6 of 10 times you will not be in that position. The one thing these freaks prey on are loners or when they have the upper hand, being more of them than you. Yes Marrianne you did some it up quite well I didn't quite know how to explain that .
Thanks
HUGS

[Anita]

i only go out dressed in my ex army fully operational Tank
never had a problem lol xx

[Jen_TGCD]

CDs are like Vampires!

We tend to only come out when the sun goes down... but that's also when we are most vulnerable.

Think like a woman!!! She would never be out walking alone at night unless there were other people around. They usually have someone else with them. They are usually wearing "sensible" shoes.

Parking lots are not safe... even during the day. (Just ask Jenny!) Like Marianne said, be aware of your surroundings. A large van parked next to your vehicle is a red flag. Do not talk to people in a parking lot... just ignore them and keep on walking no matter how "nice" they seem. Linger at the entrance to a large mall or shopping center to see if you are being followed. If you think you are, go back in and stay there or get someone to walk you to your vehicle. There are usually security guards around. Go stand by one or, better, start talking to them.

Run!!! If you are being threatened... run! First, a moving target in hard to hit! (True!) Secondly, most of those who want to harass you are looking for an easy target. They'll often go find someone else to torment.

TG and Gay/Lesbian supported activities are fun! Really!!! And you will be with like minded people and basically in a safe environment. Gay/Lesbian bars are okay but getting from your vehicle to the entrance is not always safe. Be aware and go with someone if possible. The bouncer will often walk you to your vehicle when you want to leave... just ask!

It's fun and exciting to be out and about but don't leave your good sense at home!

[Bernadina]

This type of thread is alien to us girls on this side of the pond. It seems more like a trip through Iraq rather than going out in a town/city in the USA. Is life in the US so tough that you feel you need to be so armed just to have a ride in your car? It does not sound like the land of the free.

If so then I pity you all, if we ever get that bad here in the UK then I for one would leave on the first flight out. What does any other girl who is not in the USA think?
I'm kind of hard pressed to even think of anyone I know who owns a handgun here in Canada.

I had a friend who was border customs officer. He said that biggest problem that they have is the cars from the US carrying enough armament to start a small war. The problem is that it is legal in the US to carry arms, its not legal in Canada. While the American's are welcome, their guns and mace etc., are not.

A number of the border towns on the US side of the border provide lockups for the Americans to deposit their guns before crossing the border. If they try to bring them into Canada, they will get them confiscated.

As for a girls safety. In Vancouver its about the same as it is for anyone else. Use common sense and be aware of the surroundings as mentioned previously in this thread. We can get pepperspray (bearspray), but I doubt that I could get it out of my purse fast enough to do any good.

[JennyCD]

That's why my pepperspray is on my keychain now.

[MistyCD]

This type of thread is alien to us girls on this side of the pond. It seems more like a trip through Iraq rather than going out in a town/city in the USA. Is life in the US so tough that you feel you need to be so armed just to have a ride in your car? It does not sound like the land of the free.

If so then I pity you all, if we ever get that bad here in the UK then I for one would leave on the first flight out. What does any other girl who is not in the USA think?

Hi, I guess you have forgotten the phrase "give me your poor, your tired huddled masses". well a few nuts came with them! enuff said!!!

[DonnaT]

See http://www.rememberingourdead.org/

There are quite a few "unknowns" listed and not all from the US.

[Krissi]

The stun guns, pepper spray, and etc are great ideas. I also second the idea of keys. I'm a pretty big guy 6'2 225, in my college days, I worked as an Assistant Coach, I've traveled into some pretty bad towns, and been in bad situations on school grounds where different "weapons" aren't allowed. Funny how those rules only apply to us honest folks. Anyway back to the keys. Most keys today are big and you can hold your car key in your fist where the key sticks out between your 2nd & 3rd fingers, the rest of your keys fill your hand to make it more solid, less likely to break (another good idea is to hold a role of coins when you punch). And always remember to go the 3 n's, Nose, Nuts, and kNees! Stay safe girls!

JJ :)