Hold it right there, Chief!!!
Concerning ASPs:
Bad idea! Bad idea!!! In most places, carrying an ASP is a felony, and it's NOT covered by a typical conceal-carry permit! Even if you ARE licensed, you still cannot carry one legally. (Check state laws; consult a lawyer; and then check state laws AGAIN!!!)
That said, we rely on the basic principle that a weapon in the hand of an untrained user is, at best, a paperweight; and at worst, a SERIOUS physical liability. Without proper training in (most would say stick-fighting, I say Iaido), the ONLY thing you are doing carrying a stick is (a) slowing down your own fist, and (b) offering your attacker a nice, shiny new ASP!
"But, Samurai," you say, "An untrained person with a gun would SURELY know how to pull the trigger!" This is quite true. BUT, believe it or not (and I know most of you won't), a club is MUCH harder to use properly and efficiently than a gun. In the order of easiest to hardest to use properly, the order is: gun, blade, club. An untrained person with a club is just asking to get beaten up!
To use a weapon properly, you need to be able to strike ONCE with the weapon with a force sufficient to instantly (or nearly instantly) stop an attack. Now, anyone who's seen TV knows that if you squeeze a trigger, cool stuff happens. An untrained gun-toting TV-watcher
could (and I stress
could) figure out how to shoot someone in a moment of crisis. A sharp blade will sever flesh and nerve without much force. But, training with a club involves coordinating muscle groups in your WHOLE body to gain enough power in a single swing to break bones, crush nerve clusters, in a word, DEBILITATE! This is NOT something that you can learn in a weekend!
Now, don't get me wrong. I LOVE my ASP. It's 28" (Freud was right!). It travels quite well, and I take it with me on trips to practice Iaido katas while I'm away from home. ASPs are GREAT, if, and ONLY IF you know how to use them, know where to strike, and can hit your mark with a FULL and uninterrupted swing EVERY SINGLE TIME.
Pepper Spray:
Love it! A can of Pepper Spray works like a GUN! It's reasonably easy to use: Just push the button, and try not to get in the way of the little hole! When I travel on campus, I like a good 15% Military grade OC spray, a side of ribs, and a cold beer. When an attacker approaches, spray the ribs, eat the ribs, kiss the attacker full on the mouth, and refuse to share your beer. Attacker's mouth will begin to burn, and he'll run away screaming. It's good stuff!
(Ok kids at home, don't really try that. OC spray is not really good on ribs. But it seems like it would be, doesn't it?)
No Cop will EVER give you grief about carrying non-lethal spray. Carrying an ASP on a College campus can get you into A BUNCH of trouble. Don't go off half-cocked!
S.