Goddamn Drunk Pervert

[AKWalMartCartGuy]

I wouldn't. It leads to a false sense of security.

to elaborate, if the person is on crack or something they may not be affected by the pepper spray, or if they've been sprayed alot it won't take them down. it will mess up most people though, I have a friend who used to be an armed guard and he took a guy down pretty good with a can of pepper spray once for trying to follow his(EDIT:the guy who got sprayed) girlfriend(whose husband was in Iraq) onto the base then getting belligerent

[Rapscallion]

It's not just their rights. As far as I'm concerned, they give up some of their rights (polite interaction for one) as soon as they cross the boundaries of decent behaviour. However, retaliation can lead the offended party in trouble legally and physically, and we prefer to keep you all safe and posting.

Rapscallion

[marasbaras]

An ex-Marine friend of mine liked to show off at parties by having someone blast him right in the face with pepper spray. Didn't bother him much.

and we prefer to keep you all safe and posting

Most importantly safe.

If anyone here (not just the girls) feels uncomfortable going out to their car, get others to go with you. Security, police if you must, even big, burly, box-throwing freight people. Strength in numbers.

Use your legal options, restraining orders, call the police, etc. The authorities are none-too-kind these days about the pervos.

[aniwahya]

Some people are more resistant to being gassed, period. Now if your attacker is an asthmatic instead of resiting it you could kill them.

You defend your self more effectively by paying attention to things, having a basic plan of what to do in the event you are accosted, and keeping others informed about what is going on. Just because you feel someone is out to get you, doesn't mean there isn't someone out to get you.

The other thing is, in the event you do have to defend yourself against a physical attack it is wise to defend yourself with things that will not lead to your being arrested, For example, carrying a knife or other commercial weapon, you may be charged with a premeditated attack. So using something that would be classified as a "weapon of opportunity" is usually a good idea just to cover your ass. Things that would qualify are the aforementioned umbrella, or a belt.

Talk with other workers and see if you can leave with someone else. In the event you are attacked having another person with you gives you a ton more options. There is a reason wolf packs and lionesses hunt in groups.
As far as SCs having rights. Their rights do not supersede your rights, and the moment the moment it becomes a matter of self defense is when/if they lay hands on you. There is a window of opportunity when someone first lays hands on you, they are uncertain of your response and a sudden aggressive response (in self defense) can throw them off balance enough to either disable them or to run. It can also work to delay them from disabling you before help can arrive.
Again, I am not advocating violence, but don't be afraid to defend your self. There are some really crazy people out there, and even if there are legal repercussions for you defending yourself (which I truly think a lot of the supposed repercussions are propaganda) at least you'll be alive.

Maybe I come across as paranoid, though I prefer "hyper-vigilant", but I never allow my self to forget that human beings are predators who prey on each other.

[Andara Bledin]

Don't want to deal with SCs? Work in an office ... at least there you're limited to sucky co-workers.

That's a sucky suggestion right there. As if someone wanted to be in an office instead of retail, they could just go get themselves a new job. FYI, unemployment is still a major problem in the US, and all the creative number-tricks in the world won't change that fact.

And for all the people talking as if this guy was just some run-of-the-mill pervo, you might want to go back to the OP and re-read the part where the freak was "threatening to bash people." If that were me and I had mace, I'd have it at the ready.

^-.-^

[Samaliel]

I'm right with you on that one, Andara. That suggestion is nothing but bollocks and awfully reminds me of the whole "Dear Abby" uproar from a while back.

[marasbaras]

That's a sucky suggestion right there. As if someone wanted to be in an office instead of retail, they could just go get themselves a new job. FYI, unemployment is still a major problem in the US, and all the creative number-tricks in the world won't change that fact.

I plead guilty. What I meant and what came out were two separate things. What I meant was along the lines of:

Working in retail means that you are going to encounter SCs. Unfortunately, there's no escape.

[BaristaTrav]

And for all the people talking as if this guy was just some run-of-the-mill pervo, you might want to go back to the OP and re-read the part where the freak was "threatening to bash people." If that were me and I had mace, I'd have it at the ready.

Bingo. I think for some reason some of you either skipped that part or it failed to register.

Ok, I figured my implication might be obvious enough, but to clarify, I am not advocating the OP mace and/or pepper spray any nasty perv who says something inappropriate or leers at her. I was only talking about an instance where one of these losers might turn wanna-be stalker on her and confront her outside of work.

The practice of having someone walk her to her car is of course a good idea (if possible. sometimes it might not be)

The idea of getting management involved is unfortunately, laughable in many instances. (especially when management is involved in the sexual harrassment)

And finally, I am so sick and tired of the "just get another job" line. It boggles my mind how anyone on this board can't at least empathize with the fact that some people are not in a position to even potentially miss 1 day of work. And their life/family/personal situation makes an immediate employment change completely impossible.

[marasbaras]

And finally, I am so sick and tired of the "just get another job" line.

Please re-read my most recent post before you get even more outraged. My "get another job" post came out all wrong.

I absolutely empathize with people on this board. I've been in the position to wait for Top Ramen to be on sale before I could afford to buy it. I've had to stay on a job where the boss would say "Maras, you're an idiot" while also taking credit for my work.

What I meant was: people dealing with the public are going to encounter SCs. There's no escaping this fact unless you no longer work with the public.

[Leopardmadcat]

Work with the Public... and you risk exposure to SC's.

Work in an Office... and you're exposed to ScW's.

Work FOR anyone... and you get BM's.

So if you work for someone in an office setting and deal with the public you're at-risk for exposure to BM,ScW,&C?

BadManagers,SuckyCoWorkers,&Customers.

I feel the need for de-licing... anyone else?

[dispatch]

The part that gets me here is the suggestion of "big burly co-workers" instead of self-defense items...what if you ARE the big burly co-worker? bring popcorn?

no, seriously, not trying to fratch, I've just had those duties before and will again and I wanted to point out that co-workers, no matter how big, burly, or well trained (martial arts, ex-military, etc) have the same rights as you do in these situations.
I think everyone can calm down as far as the threats go, we've talked about throwing SCs into a wood chipper enough to have a smiley for it, but I don't think any of us are investing in forestry equiptment with malicious intent .

As far as my 2 cents on self-defense hardware; I like my stun gun for a few reasons; 1)In nebraska they're "more legal to carry than pocketknives" as a friend of mine put it. 2) The buzzing sound of the electric arc is enough to scare away most would-be attackers (it usually makes people I'm demonstrating it to jump when they know it's coming, small animals also vacate the area). 3) The one I have also has an LED flashlight behind the contact which can be used to momentarily blind your attacker, this could be all you need to create an avenue of escape so you don't need to justify giving him a 500,000 volt ride to the ground to the local authorities. And of course, 4) if they didn't get the message from verbal cues, the flash light, or the electrical arc and decide to further encroach on your personal safety, you can kindly and relatively effortlessly get them to take a nap until the police arrive. Granted, if the person recieving a shock has a heart condition it will likely kill them, but if they've put me in a position to use it I'm going to be much more worried about my safety than their heart condition.

[aniwahya]

Stun guns, like knives, are something you want to check local laws on. You may decide to carry one anyway, but at least you won't be surprised if you get in trouble for it.
They are quite effective though.

Bringing a hulking, burly person who is not a, um physical confrontation minded person, serves two purposes in my mind. One, they can be useful for intimidation purposes. Two, if intimidation fails, they can be useful for soaking up damage and/or projectiles while you run away. However, the hulking, burly people don't usually like to be thought of as useful, walking meat shields.
A good bribe can make them more amenable though.

Seriously though, someone going to your car with you doesn't have to be a large, physically intimidating person. Never underestimate a small, determined person ( especially if they are a wiry bastige). There is a reason for the saying "Never tease a weasel...".

*This post was not a shameless excuse to use my favorite weasel quote. Move along, no shameless weasel-quoting here.*

[dispatch]

Stun guns, like knives, are something you want to check local laws on. You may decide to carry one anyway, but at least you won't be surprised if you get in trouble for it.

Thank you, I forgot to reinforce that portion! If anyone wants a good online resource for checking US weapons laws let me know.

And ani-I'm not going to dock you for making a shameless weasel reference, and I don't think anyone else will mind much either.

[marasbaras]

If anyone wants a good online resource for checking US weapons laws let me know.

Please post it here. I'd be more than just the active posters want to see it ... some lurkers might find good use in it, too.

[Megg]

I would like to see that link, please.