Targets and Weapons:

 No one can predict with unerring accuracy how an assailant will conduct an attack. The assailant may use a weapon or may not. You be may threatened verbally, you may be threatened physically, or possibly both. There are probably as many modes of operation as there are assailants and at best, we can only talk in terms of general methods. We can play the guessing game of “what if he does this?” or “what if he does that?” and probably never arrive at the exact method which will be used by the person who may now be planning an attack upon you or a member of your family. There are however, certain things which we know about the potential assailants and many things which we know about how to keep them from being successful. It is these known quantities to which we must direct our attention and ability. We know that it is impossible for a rapist to commit rape from a distance. The very nature of the crime dictates that the criminal must touch the victim, and if the rapist is close enough to touch you, the important thought to fix firmly in your mind is that you will be close enough to touch him. Unlike murder, robbery, blackmail or a host of other crimes which may be committed from a safe distance, the rapist must abandon the security of separation and come into intimate contact with his chosen victim. Furthermore, there is no practical way for him to render all of your available weapons useless at the same time. You have a number of distinct advantages when an attacker is within reach and this too must be kept firmly in mind.

Confidence is every bit as important as training. A rapist has the psychological advantage of surprise, the ability to instill fear, usually the superiority of size and strength, and often a weapon. He expects these advantages to turn his victim into a mass of whimpering, pleading, helpless flesh with which he can do as he pleases. If the intended victim fails to react in a predictable fashion, these advantages can quickly turn into disadvantages. When coupled with the surrender of physical distance the rapist may find that he becomes the victim. No one likes to deal with a maniac, and that includes the rapist, he does not want to deal with a maniac either. The rapist is a monstrous terrorist but that doesn’t mean he is stupid. It’s necessary to realize when faced by a rapist, that he was smart enough to get you alone and in a very bad spot. He has probably raped before and gotten away with his brutal act with impunity. He doesn’t worry too much about getting caught because the odds are all in his favor. Authorities believe that less than ten percent of rape victims report the crime to the police and for those rapes reported few arrests are made. Of those charged with rape, less than thirty-five percent are convicted. The rapist knows before he ever commits the crime that there is a very small chance of being convicted. The modern woman understands that the total responsibility for providing the means to effectively deal with an attempted rape lies with her, the intended victim. There is no protector in the sky who is going to come down and whack the hell out of your attacker and save your life. There is only you and you must be the instrument of your own salvation.