I was doing some light reading over the weekend of a few blogs that were flagged on my 'Google Alerts' results. By the way if you have never used Google Alerts before, do yourself a favour and check it out.

Where was I...?

So I was reading a blog by an author who will go nameless - for his sake

Let's call him Mr. X for something different...

Mr. X felt compelled to provide his readers a service by suggesting to them weapons that "every individual should carry" because apparently "the moment you step out of your house you are not safe"

Mr. X's heart is in the right place, but a wise man once said,

"The most costly advice, is free advice from a stupid person"

Perhaps a little bit harsh on Mr. X but I'll let you be the judge...
Mr. X decided that there is 1 key thing you should be carrying around with you once you step out of your house:

Pepper spray: "The burning sensation will stop them in their tracks giving you enough time to run for your life. The best part about pepper sprays is that they can be sprayed on the attacker from a distance. But the negative part is that you have to spray it on the facial area of the attacker or else it will not work."

The problem with people like Mr X, who are either trying to sell you something or just plain have zero idea about the real world, is that they fill innocent people like yourself with frankly - bullshit
Mr. X are you on drugs? Maybe it's time to invest in an '8-ball' and discover for yourself how insignificant pepper spray is against an attacker completely numbed on cocaine

In fact Mr. X, take your pepper spray and buy some 'salt spray' whilst you're at it, season, then eat your own words!

Granted, pepper spray is effective when used in the correct situation, but there are a few key things that must be considered before leveraging your life on a can of pepper,

"You can't bring a knife to a gunfight and expect to win"
Attackers generally rely on the element of surprise for their success, you simply won't have the reaction time or the presence of mind to instantaneously reach into your bag or pocket to use the "life saving" pepper spray
As we've already covered, a person who is on drugs will not be fazed by a squirt of pepper spray, this is a fact! How do you think this person will react once you unload a can of pepper in their face?
An attacker that has a knife has it to https://dorganicchems.com/ you, NOT to necessarily use it. By engaging the attacker with your own little arsenal (pepper spray) you are instigating the next sequence of events. In other words, you're provoking further escalation
Pepper Spray is NOT the knockout punch, perhaps just further incentive to cause harm in retribution. The attacker doesn't need to see clearly to rapidly wield a knife in your direction hoping to cut himself a slice
I'm still a little confused as to how a person is to manage pulling out their pepper spray when they are being held in a lock or they have a knife to their throat. Mr. X suggests you spray and run away - is this really feasible 100% of the time? Is it worth the gamble?
"The assault's not over until the attacker says it is"
This type of one dimensional advice is what gives people a false sense of security or worse, gets them hurt or killed

Typically pepper spray is used by police officers who are trained and are experienced in identifying the scenario when it's best utilised. Police Officers are rarely caught by surprise and therefore the pepper spray remains an effective tool in their arsenal

There's no denying pepper spray helps, but it's not the weapon that will prevent it all happening in the first place

Attack situations are 90% mental and only 10% physical

Don't fall into the sales traps, pepper spray like all forms of retaliation when acting in self defence is a LAST resort

Learn to protect yourself BEFORE the conflict escalates...