There are two schools of thought when it comes to protecting your person and your property.
  One school devotes itself to disguise and hiding the fact that your person and possessions are warded against violence and theft.
  The other school believes that a "show of force" is a good idea, or not hiding the fact that you have tools at your disposal to defend yourself.
  Actually, there are three.
  The third school doesn't believe in any preparedness at all.
In most cases, the second school carries the most weight in my opinion.
  Why?  Because criminals are naturally lazy.
  Rather than do honest work, they'd rather take what you've worked for.
  Ironically, criminal behavior rarely leads to riches, plus you have to watch out for treachery.
  Treachery from criminal "allies" or informants of law enforcement.
  You can turn this to your advantage.
There are several tools that are useful when securing your person or property from crime.
  At the top of the list are alarms.
  Whether on your person or around the house, alarms lessen the amount of time a criminal has to perpetrate against you.
  They can alert others to you predicament and/or summon authorities.
  In many cases an alarm is all that's needed to foil a mugging or burglary.
  Remember that criminals are lazy and look for soft targets.
  The harder a target you can present, the less likely you are to have a criminal consider you a target.
Assaults and rape are a different matter.
  While alarms can be useful in summoning help, the fact that a person wishes to harm you changes the time needed to do so.
  A stabbing or shooting takes much less time than snatching a purse or ransacking a house.
  In cases like these, pepper spray and stun guns come into their own.
  Many people may feel hesitant at causing pain to another person.
  Don't.
  By their very actions, these people have forfeited their right to be safe in their person.
  Something else to consider is that by stopping this criminal at the time they assault you, you can keep them from hurting others in the future.
It is at the time of the attack that pepper sprays and stun guns come into their own.
  A sensible person should own both and know when to use them.
  You don't want to use a pepper spray when firing into the wind for example.
  Also outdoor conditions like rain can have an effect.
  Pepper spray is less effective in rain for example, whereas stun guns will work regardless of wind or rain conditions.
  A C2 Taser is probably your best bed as it has the standoff capability of pepper spray and in extremis can be used like a regular contact stun gun.
  Pepper spray really comes into its own against multiple attackers.
  Certain types of sprays, like fogger sprays, can also affect an area, making them useful in denying areas for attackers to approach.
  This shows an attacker that you're willing to defend yourself and won't be easy meat.
  Using a pepper spray for stand off value can protect you and your stun gun can protect you in close quarter situations.
  That's how a short man or a woman can equalize the situation between them and a 6'8" 300 lb man.
So these tools provide a circle of protection.
  The alarm cuts down on the time a criminal has to perpetrate against you, while the pepper spray can be used as a stand off weapon or and area denial weapon.
  The stun gun can be used as a last resort to incapacitate an attacker, while you run towards help.
  Do not under any circumstances wait around to see the person taken into custody.
  Most sprays come with a dye that shows up under UV light, so the police can make identify someone you've hit with pepper spray.
  Taser also will replace for free any of their stunning products you use.
  All you have to do is send in a copy of the police report.
  According to Taser, your life is worth more than attempting to recover your C2 Taser or other Taser model.
In reality you'll probably only need one or two of these tools.
  However you can't predict crazy, so it's best to be prepared to defend yourself and your home.
  These tools have a benefit above and beyond the physical protection they provide.
  In our litigious society you can be taken to court if you shoot and kill someone.
  By using less than lethal force, you strip your attacker or their next of kin from any pretext they have to try to destroy you through lawyers.
  Plus most people tend to hesitate when they shoot, even police officers hesitate.
  The use of non-lethal or less than lethal products reduces the chances that you might hesitate in a situation where hesitation might be fatal.