self defense for teens

[kengr]

Ok, in my Morgan story, I'm thinking Morgan needs something to help defend himself. But being a teenager, I'm not sure what's legal.

Anybody know what sort of things are legal for an under 16 to carry? Pepper spray? one of those collapsible batons? Something else?

I'm especially interested if you have any idea about the laws in Oregon or Washington.

Comments

[polydad.livejournal.com]

Anybody can walk with a cane. And a 3' piece of one-inch diameter solid oak is a superb weapon.

[kengr]

Have to post a pick of my walking stick someday. It's solid purpleheart and a minimum of an inch thick (closer to two inches at the top.

But I expect schools would object... :-)

[polydad.livejournal.com]

Depends. A note from a doctor saying you've got a trick ankle, and the bureaucrat's buttocks are sufficiently concealed.

[kengr]

Oh yeah, years back a friend had a staff that looked fairly harmless. It was almost 6 feet of 1.5"(?) *ironwood*.

[polydad.livejournal.com]

Back when I had a fully-functioning heart I did some staff work with a five-and-a-half foot piece of #14 rebar. You block? That's nice.

[kengr]

Hell, with something like that just raise it about 18" during the "getting in your face" stage and "accidentally" let it drop on the guy's foot. That's one guy out of the fight...

[polydad.livejournal.com]

I never learned "getting in your face." Part of why I was in so few fights, I suppose. ("One" counts as "few," I think.) It's a form of training I got in martial arts classes that I subsequently disagree with; "never hit unless you're ready to go all the way." I can probably think of five or six times when being willing to *be* more confrontational would have gotten me a better result, but it's all long ago and far away at this point.

The rebar staff was about 45% exercise tool, 45% fantasy toy, and 10% actual *weapon*; the idea of someone hurting *themselves* by hitting it was highly entertaining. "All I did was block. Really." But given how strongly I present socially, the only time anyone was ever willing to push a confrontation with me was that one incident back in 1978. Just as well, I suppose.

[kengr]

I was referring to the stage where the *other* guy is getting in your face. Crowding you, etc.

[polydad.livejournal.com]

Aspie here. He gets closer than I'd like him, move back or ask him to -- without contemplating offense, either intentional or not. Trying to dominate someone who refuses to play dominance games just doesn't work; if one is doing this as a "fight prelude" the answer is "either hit me or don't." But, possibly because of said strong presentation, it generally just doesn't *happen*.

In retrospect, there have been several times where other people were trying to pick fights with *me*, and I just didn't perceive it.

I don't look for fights with other people because I *know* I can injure them -- do I really want to go to all that bother? Almost never, and those times I *do* are the ones in which my internal defenses engage, because this is so rarely the "right time."

Am I beating the conversation to death? My apologies if so.

[brockulfsen.livejournal.com]

You almost answered your own question. Look up self defense classes aimed at teens. Keys can be near-lethal in close quarters combat.

Deodorant sprays are nearly as good as pepper spray.

[kengr]

Well,, the first attack already shows that self-defense has its limits. Fortunately for Morgan & Chris, it wasn't "3 tough guys on a wimp and a girl" but "three poorly trained bullies against a pair of folks with moderate amounts of martial arts training"