Common Sense For Ladies' Self-Defense

"Excuse me, Ma'am, your Kahr is showing."
(Photo copyright 2013 Kahr Arms)

Recently, Socialists in the Colorado State Legislature argued in favor of violating the Second and Fourth Amendments.

One went so far as to claim that women don't need guns to protect them if they are violently attacked, especially by somebody intending on raping them.

The proposed bill would revoke permission for women with concealed carry permits to carry their weapons on college campuses. The reasoning, according to Socialist Joseph Salazar, is that women don't think, they act impulsively from emotions. He states:

"And you don’t know if you feel like you’re gonna be raped, or if you feel like someone’s been following you around or if you feel like you’re in trouble when you may actually not be, that you pop out that gun and you pop … pop a round at somebody.”

Of course, he had no data or incident to cite as proof that women with concealed carry permits presented their weapons and shot at innocent people just because of a feeling.

Here is Rep. Salazar’s contact information in case you want to enlighten him a bit:

State Representative – District 31
Phone: 303-866-2918
joseph.salazar.house@state.co.us
Facebook

Joseph Salazar went so far as to claim that the University of Colorado -- Colorado Springs has suggested actions that would work better:

What To Do If You Are Attacked

These tips are designed to help you protect yourself on campus, in town, at your home, or while you travel.  These are preventative tips and are designed to instruct you in crime prevention tactics.

1. Be realistic about your ability to protect yourself.
2. Your instinct may be to scream, go ahead!  It may startle your attacker and give you an opportunity to run away.
3. Kick off your shoes if you have time and can't run in them.
4. Don't take time to look back; just get away.
5. If your life is in danger, passive resistance may be your best defense.
6. Tell your attacker that you have a disease or are menstruating.
7. Vomiting or urinating may also convince the attacker to leave you alone.
8. Yelling, hitting or biting may give you a chance to escape, do it!
9. Understand that some actions on your part might lead to more harm.
10. Remember, every emergency situation is different.  Only you can decide which action is most appropriate.

Shall we go over these one by one?

First of all, I do not advocate violence except as a last resort. When your life or the life of a loved one, a family member, or an innocent is on the line, it very well could be that last resort. Training and practice help you to better determine when those situations call for violence and what actions are most appropriate. The training and practice also keep you from "freezing up" should the unfortunate necessity arise. 

1. Yes, this is sound advice. However, people with little to no self-defense training seldom really know what they are and are not capable of doing and what will work. So, yes, be realistic. Go take Krav Maga, Juijitsu, Tang Su Do, or Keysi. Simply put, take a basic women's self-defense course. After that, look at taking both a percussive fighting style and a grappling style (or something that combines them).

2. Screaming can help. It may not startle the attacker, though. If anything, it may spur them to act faster and more violently to shut you up. If you are going to scream, then run into a well occupied building and scream "fire". Then again, a violent attacker most likely won't get you while you are in a crowded place.

3. Yes, if you are wearing heels, it may be hard to run. However, taking them off may also cost you time. Learn how to use those heels to crush a knee. But this can be sound advice.

4. If you are in a dead run, looking back may cost you a tenth of a second. It could cost you more if you run into something. However. looking back helps you identify your attacker. It also can help you to gauge how well tossing down an obstacle behind you may help. It will also tell you if you have enough distance to be able to pull your concealed piece out and shoot him without harming an innocent behind him.

5. "Passive resistance" when somebody is trying to rape or kill you is not going to be any sort of defense. It is an invitation. It just tells the attacker that you are willing to be a victim. You are being the soft target that they hoped you would be. This is probably the worst piece of advice in this list. Now, if it is just a mugger, take out your wallet and toss it away from both you and them then run. If they really wanted your wallet, they will go after that instead of you. If they continue after you, pull out a gun and prepare to shoot. Standing your ground with a drawn firearm will usually do the trick. If it doesn't, then shoot. Don't do warning shots. They can hit innocent bystanders. Shoot to kill, not disable. Two in the chest followed by one in the head then dial 911 and start your stopwatch. Notice that if you tried to call them first that they wouldn't have made it to you in time.

6. The disease or menstruation line doesn't work. In fact, it may actually excite the attacker. It may cause actions to take place other than where the rapist first intended (draw your painful conclusions). I have yet to meet a single intended victim who used this successfully. Maybe some cop out there has. I'd love to hear the tales.

7. Vomiting and urinating don't work either. What they do is aggravate the attacker and make them more violent. Ask a girl who was drunk, vomiting, and still got raped. Some rapists even brag about how the convulsions from vomiting enhance their experience. Urinating will probably result in a worse beating from the attacker. It will get you laughed at. It will not save your life. It will just get your clothes torn off and thrown away. A jab to the throat followed by the barrel of your concealed .45 in the face of the attacker will do a lot more to deter the violence.

8. Yelling won't do much except inspire the attacker to shut you up quickly, usually by gagging you or strangling you. Biting may work, or it may excite. However, it is foolish to let the attacker get that close in the first place unless you are a nidan in jujitsu, judo, or aikido. Nidans in those arts would also probably say doing so is foolhardy even for them. Hitting could work, if you know how to hit, hit hard, hit fast, hit accurately, hit properly, and put the attacker down and out for at least 30 seconds. In other words, you better have taken a few self-defense or martial arts lessons. Even then, I know many black belts who would still suggest that a concealed .45 is a better defense. You don't have to get close to your attacker. Just the sight of the drawn weapon usually will deter the attack. If it doesn't, you can shoot. Shooting an attacker dead usually stops the attack. 

9. This is sort of obvious, isn't it? Running can spur a rapist to be more violent when he catches you. Using "passive resistance" just lead to being a victim. It is not a form of defense. Urinating and vomiting usually lead to more violence and harm. Same with biting -- which can also give you diseases such as HIV. (Scratching, however, at least gives DNA when they do the rape kit on you. If you have a gun, however, there is less of a chance they'll have to do the rape kit in the first place). In fact, most of the things on UCCS's little list here will result in more violence and harm.

10. Agreed. Different situations require different actions. Training in a fighting style gives you options to choose from. The same goes with defensive handgun training. Only you can decide what you do, what you are capable of doing, and what actions are the least force necessary for you to stop that attacker. It's your decision. Tell your state (and the federal) legislature that you want that choice. You want the option available for you to carry your firearm. It is a right that the US Constitution mandates to never be infringed. Those who infringe upon it are telling your that your life doesn't matter. Carry or don't. Own a firearm or don't. Take martial arts or don't. Regardless, it is your decision to make. Don't let them make it for you.