Do you carry anything for self-defense?

Being from the UK and us having very different opinions on firearms to the guys in the US not to mention very different laws, the only weapon I tend to carry is a rather heavy manfrotto tripod and a 7D.

If I had to, I'd swing the tripod head first at any would be attacker or thief. Failing that, if my life or well being was in danger, my weapon would be a gift of the camera and tripod. Then I'd leave quickly.

Ain't no point in losing my life or brain function over a camera.

kozal01 wrote in post #15976673
Bad people exist in every country, evil doesnt stop at the border between the US and Canada. Unfortunately Ive seen the evil this world has to offer face to face during my time in the service and its changed my view of the world and how I go about my day to day life now. Living in a good neighborhood/ town/city/ state/ country or whatever is no guarantee of personal safety. Stateside Ive never had a violent encounter and chances are I never will but if it ever does happen at least I will have that choice to protect myself and my family, thats what its all about.

Same here -- I live in one of the safest states in the country (New Hampshire,) but I do carry pepper spray. My DH even has a taser if I want, LOL. We do have a very liberal gun policy here in NH, but never thought to carry one -- but good point about the expensive equipment! I'd be very nervous carrying mine in a big city.

FreeSoul1987 wrote in post #15976468
While out on excursions or any type of shoot really, normally by yourself do you carry a weapon of some kind (for self-defense purposes), like a gun, pepper spray, taser, knife, etc? I guess my question would go mainly for women, as men can normally defend themselves or don't look so much like enticing targets like a lone woman would, but men can answer as well.

Since I am a Cannon fan, I carry a Colt Officers ACP .45 ACP holstered in a custom made Del Fatti ISP-SS inside the waist band holster, now the Officers ACP is limited to only 7 rounds, but when utilized with a 185 grain JHP .45 ACP round, who needs more than a few rounds anyhow.

I will also wear soft body armor if the situation calls for it such as covering protests in conjunction with counter protests.

Now I don’t carry to protect my property though in this state it is semi-legal to do so, I carry to protect myself and possibly someone with me, truth of the matter is if I need to rabbit I’ll ditch gear if I have to as that’s what I have insurance for, but if my exit is blocked and I am faced with a clear and present threat, I am going to protect myself with every tool I have in my possession.

Firepower aside though, the best weapon anyone can carry when in the field is situational awareness, who, what, when and why. Who is around you, what are they doing, when did they begin that activity and why are they doing it, is something to be continuously monitored anytime you are out in the field.

Good people get in trouble all the time because they assume a particular area or part of town is a safe place, while there are obviously un-safe places to be and we all know what and where they are, however assuming a location is safe is begging for a problem.

Wayne

Channel One wrote in post #15982775
Firepower aside though, the best weapon anyone can carry when in the field is situational awareness, who, what, when and why. Who is around you, what are they doing, when did they begin that activity and why are they doing it, is something to be continuously monitored anytime you are out in the field.

Wayne

I couldn't agree more and this is especially important considering we, as photographers, are often times very inwardly focused on our cameras and subject matter.

Tom Mix pocket knife

Hyper-alloy combat chassis, microprocessor-controlled. Fully armored. Very tough.

Erik S. Klein wrote in post #15980176
And 1%, like this one, are from world renowned criminologists who have done their homework. (And the real stat is "as many as..." from 1992.

Gary Kleck criminologist USF did a number of studies in the 90’s most of which demonstrated that guns in the hands of law abiding citizens are a criminals worst enemy and often deadly for the criminal. Another truism but considerably harder to prove truism is the number of crimes halted or prevented by armed citizens where no shots where fired nor a report filed.

Back in the 90’s I walked out of a store with a soda in hand and as I went to unlock the door of my truck I was approached by young man who I noticed as I went into the store was standing at a nearby payphone, this clearly got my attention and I went into combat mode, as he got closer and just as I got the door unlocked, he began screaming at me demanding I give him money and then produced a small but un-opened pocket knife, with my strong side (right) away from him I un-holstered my firearm and quickly got into the truck as best as I could, he grabbed the door pulled out of my left hand and wide open and at that point I was ready to fire but he saw the gun and ran off.


No shots where fired and I wasn’t going to file a report but was pulled over a few blocks away by the police wanting to know what had happened. It seemed the store owner had called them to report a robbery in progress, they listened to my side of the incident checked my ID and sent me on my way with a business card with a report number on it.

Never heard anything about it after that.

The number is probably much smaller now. The question is why... )

Here in Florida while we where trying to get the Jack Hagler Self Defense act passed there where dire predictions by media of fender benders turning into wild west shootouts and domestic arguments becoming bloodbaths, the reality is in the years after the act was passed violent crime dropped, at least against the locals.

The street thugs did however begin targeting tourists to the point the Florida Legislature passed laws requiring rental car companies to remove all advertising from their rented vehicles and the vehicles they rented had to have door locks interlocked with the ignition, they also changed the lettering of the license tags that rentals bore further disguising them as tourist operated vehicles.

Wayne

On Friday, May 3rd someone attempted to forcefully enter my neighbor's house. The attacker knocked on the door and tried to push over the person who opened it once it was unlocked from the inside. My neighbor is confined to an electric wheelchair and the door struck the front of his chair before it opened far enough for the intruder to slip through. The attacker then stuck his arm through the partially opened doorway holding a gun. This demonstrates clear intent to commit violence once he had gained entry into the house, by the way. My neighbor struggled with the attacker for his gun while trying to keep it pointed at the ceiling to shield his children and grandchildren in the living room behind him from possible harm. After a brief struggle the attacker fled into a waiting car and drove away.

This happened at approximately 9:45PM on a summer night. It wasn't even fully dark yet. Others in the neighborhood were awake, with their outside and inside lights on in their houses. Some were even sitting outside and briefly saw the attacker(s) as they fled. This is a nice neighborhood. The neighbors are friendly, the lawns are well trimmed, most residents are retirees who spend the majority of their time around the house. The retired Chief of Police lives across the street from where this happened.

Ask my neighbor whether the odds of a violent home invasion like this matter to him. The odds are very low anything like this happens to anyone. However, once it happens to you, the odds cease to make any difference.

It's not the odds, it's the stakes. The stakes in self protection are literally life-or-death. The odds don't matter one bit to me. I carry the most important tool with me everywhere, that's my brain. I carry the second-most important tool, that is some sort of force multiplier, everywhere it is legal for me to do so. It is not because I believe something might happen that would require me to defend myself, but because I may be killed if I do not prepare myself for the possibility.

GoWolfpack wrote in post #15983030
It's not the odds, it's the stakes. The stakes in self protection are literally life-or-death. The odds don't matter one bit to me. I carry the most important tool with me everywhere, that's my brain. I carry the second-most important tool, that is some sort of force multiplier, everywhere it is legal for me to do so. It is not because I believe something might happen that would require me to defend myself, but because I may be killed if I do not prepare myself for the possibility.

Perfect

GoWolfpack wrote in post #15983030
On Friday, May 3rd someone attempted to forcefully enter my neighbor's house. The attacker knocked on the door and tried to push over the person who opened it once it was unlocked from the inside. My neighbor is confined to an electric wheelchair and the door struck the front of his chair before it opened far enough for the intruder to slip through. The attacker then stuck his arm through the partially opened doorway holding a gun. This demonstrates clear intent to commit violence once he had gained entry into the house, by the way. My neighbor struggled with the attacker for his gun while trying to keep it pointed at the ceiling to shield his children and grandchildren in the living room behind him from possible harm. After a brief struggle the attacker fled into a waiting car and drove away.

This happened at approximately 9:45PM on a summer night. It wasn't even fully dark yet. Others in the neighborhood were awake, with their outside and inside lights on in their houses. Some were even sitting outside and briefly saw the attacker(s) as they fled. This is a nice neighborhood. The neighbors are friendly, the lawns are well trimmed, most residents are reitrees who spend the majority of their time around the house. The retired Chief of Police lives across the street from where this happened.

Ask my neighbor whether the odds of a violent home invasion like this matter to him. The odds are very low anything like this happens to anyone. However, once it happens to you, the odds cease to make any difference.

It's not the odds, it's the stakes. The stakes in self protection are literally life-or-death. The odds don't matter one bit to me. I carry the most important tool with me everywhere, that's my brain. I carry the second-most important tool, that is some sort of force multiplier, everywhere it is legal for me to do so. It is not because I believe something might happen that would require me to defend myself, but because I may be killed if I do not prepare myself for the possibility.

Excellent post

Another thing a lot of people don't think about, you can turn just about anything you have with you into a weapon if necessary, such as your camera gear (you won't mind if it's insured, might be hesitant if not ). A coke can, your keys, your shoes.... a stick nearby, if you are near your car the ice window brush thingy (can't think of what it is actually called). And if you are attacked or threatened at home, anything there can be used to defend yourself: chair, broom, shovel, appliances, remote control, hair dryer, liquor bottles, wasp spray, any kind of spray, etc.... Although I do carry actual weapons with me, it helps to realize anything around me can be used if I have to. And if it is the only thing that will save you, drop your gear and run like the bloody wind, your life is the most important thing at that moment.

GoWolfpack wrote in post #15983030
It's not the odds, it's the stakes. The stakes in self protection are literally life-or-death. The odds don't matter one bit to me. I carry the most important tool with me everywhere, that's my brain. I carry the second-most important tool, that is some sort of force multiplier, everywhere it is legal for me to do so. It is not because I believe something might happen that would require me to defend myself, but because I may be killed if I do not prepare myself for the possibility.

I put the quote in bold because it's stone cold truth. I believe and act the same way.

If you're interested, and willing to have your beliefs challenged (and have several hours to spare), the following website* is a literal fund of information on the mindset aspect of self-protection.

http://nononsenseselfd​efense.com/


*no affiliation

CyberDyneSystems wrote in post #15982912
Hyper-alloy combat chassis, microprocessor-controlled. Fully armored. Very tough.

LOL! I would expect no less from CyberDyne.

Just stay away from smelters and super conductors.

No.