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I agree. Somebody posted something about a program for school kids that taught them and their teachers to simply start screaming, biting, and throwing things if their classroom was invaded. Everybody here laughed, but personally, I think any aggressive defense (even by a small kid) is going to really unnerve the attacker. He may kill one or two people; but as we have seen, he probably planned to kill them all. I think fighting back (any way you can) is probably the key to survival. Or a quick death, which is sometimes the better option.

Awareness and attitude are very important but a realistic understanding of just how violent violence can be is even more important. Car keys border on useless. Cell phones border on useless. Dogs are iffy but perps usually look for soft targets so they might cause them to pick out a different victim. Depends on the perp. Knives can be effective, if you have had some training. However, in most states the penalty for unlawful carry of concealed knives with sufficient blade length to be reasonably effective is the same as for firearm carry. I do not recommend dagger type knives - they limit you to one type of attack.

If you are not trained carry pepper spray. If you are carry a pistol. Get licensed if at all possible. Glocks are still the best thing on the market. Extreme reliability, excellent accuracy, relatively low cost, and excellent for neophytes in a high stress situation. That is why they are the choice of so many police forces.

Bottom line - too many people watch too much television. Violence is too often unexpected, happens faster than you can think, is vicious, intense, and makes your body turn into an adrenaline filled noodle. So, take your good intentions one step further and carry a real weapon and get some real training - firearms training along with mixed martial arts training.

I think it was near Manassas that just last week, 2 little girls were victims of attempted abductions.
Both of them screamed bloody murder and/or fought back and the perv fled.
Thanks to their cajones, they both were able to go home and tell their tales.

If you get a chance to watch the shows about criminals giving "tips" on how to *not* be victim, do so.
They unanimously agree that stealth and silence are their greatest allies.

If all else fails, scream "FIRE!".

Even those who won't get involved with a rape or kidnapping in progress *will* react if they think it's something necessary to save their own hides.