Getting pepper sprayed isn't THAT bad is it?

Here's a pretty cool chart showing just how hot that police grade pepper spray is compared to your average jalepeno pepper.

Everything You Need To Know About How Painful Pepper Spray Is In One Simple Graphic

A Scoville Heat Unit is used to measure the chemical “heat” produced by a pepper when it comes into contact with the human body, particularly the eyes, mouth or nose. Most people gag on jalapenos which only have a maximum rating of 8000. Habaneros cause people to break down and weep and they have a maximum of 350,000. The weak pepper spray available to the public starts at two million Scovilles while the heavy duty stuff used by the police tops out at 5.3 million Scovilles. Yeah, you read that correctly. 5,300,000. And they sprayed this stuff down peoples’ throats that were doing nothing more than sitting on the ground. Welcome to America, Home of the Free*

Addicting Info


Makes you wonder how this can't be a violation of the Chemical Weapons Convention?

But, since when has the US ever played by the rules anymore? At least not since 9-11 anyway, especially when it comes to abusing our own citizens.

reply to post by FortAnthem

I've never rubbed jalapeno slices on my eyeballs.
I imagine that it would hurt.
The whole "it's basically a food product" is bologna.
If it didn't do something to you, they wouldn't use it.

PS. Maybe if I rub small amounts on my eyes and gradually increase the amount. I would one day be invincible.

LOL....

Pepper spray has varying effects depending on the individual. My personal experience with being sprayed is that it FRICKIN' SUCKS, but I've pepper sprayed people and found it to have little effect on some of them.

reply to post by FortAnthem


Actually it isn't bad at all. I haven't had chemical mace or tear gas, but I have been pepper sprayed dozens of times, with direct hits to the eyes nose and mouth on a several occasions. It is very uncomfortable, there is an initial shock that takes your breath away, but as long as you don't panic and overreact it is not disabling in the slightest bit. A friend of mine that was a cop and is now an FBI agent used to buy every pepper spray we could find, and we would stand in the front yard and spray each other. I've also had it direct from a cop before during an arrest. In all honesty, it is just uncomfortable. It would NEVER stop a rapist or a murderer in my opinion. Even without the benefit of adrenalin, drugs, or pure rage, I am still able to ignore the pepper spray and focus on a task at hand.

The same goes for over the counter tasers. I've zapped myself with dozens of different kinds. If a person were able to hold it against you for some time, it would be effective, but a quick zap is really nothing. I demonstrated it 6 or 7 times at the last gun show here in town. It hurts, it makes your muscle twitch, it causes numbness, but it is by no means disabling.

Now, the cop tasers are a whole different story!! I know cops that have gone through the training and said they would quit before they would allow themelves to be tased again. Apparently it is excruciating!

My wife no longer carries mace. She now carries a .380. No doubt about its effectiveness.

reply to post by FortAnthem


Hey, pepper spraying protestors is a one sided food fight.... right?

In the mind of Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly, the pepper spray administered to University of California-Davis students last weekend really just a one-sided food fight.

Kelly gave her causal assessment of the increasingly common police weapon on Tuesday’s broadcast of The O’Reilly Factor, seemingly defending the cops.

“It’s a derivative of actual pepper, it’s a food product, essentially,” she told host Bill O’Reilly. “A lot of experts are looking at saying is that the real deal. Has it been diluted?”

www.rawstory.com...

Seriously, these people are clueless. The only reason I can see for people like her getting onto tv is that she's perhaps done a few "favours" for male execs. I mean, it's sure not for the intellect.

Originally posted by getreadyalready
reply to post by FortAnthem

 

Actually it isn't bad at all. I haven't had chemical mace or tear gas, but I have been pepper sprayed dozens of times, with direct hits to the eyes nose and mouth on a several occasions. It is very uncomfortable, there is an initial shock that takes your breath away, but as long as you don't panic and overreact it is not disabling in the slightest bit. A friend of mine that was a cop and is now an FBI agent used to buy every pepper spray we could find, and we would stand in the front yard and spray each other. I've also had it direct from a cop before during an arrest. In all honesty, it is just uncomfortable. It would NEVER stop a rapist or a murderer in my opinion. Even without the benefit of adrenalin, drugs, or pure rage, I am still able to ignore the pepper spray and focus on a task at hand.

The same goes for over the counter tasers. I've zapped myself with dozens of different kinds. If a person were able to hold it against you for some time, it would be effective, but a quick zap is really nothing. I demonstrated it 6 or 7 times at the last gun show here in town. It hurts, it makes your muscle twitch, it causes numbness, but it is by no means disabling.

Now, the cop tasers are a whole different story!! I know cops that have gone through the training and said they would quit before they would allow themelves to be tased again. Apparently it is excruciating!

My wife no longer carries mace. She now carries a .380. No doubt about its effectiveness.

Sweet Jesus H, bubba . . . I'm glad you stopped self testing before Mrs.Getreadyalready made her purchase!!!

reply to post by NightGypsy


OC has debilitating effects on about 85% of the population, you can build a tolerance to it rather fast. The first time I was sprayed with OC, I was out for almost 20 minutes and now it does little more than make my eyes water and cough a little.

Originally posted by NightGypsy
LOL....

Pepper spray has varying effects depending on the individual. My personal experience with being sprayed is that it FRICKIN' SUCKS, but I've pepper sprayed people and found it to have little effect on some of them.

Civilian pepper spray is nothing compared to what the cops use.

Getting pepper sprayed is bad if you didn't volunteer for it, and your actions didn't warrant it.

reply to post by GoalPoster

I'm glad you stopped self testing before Mrs.Getreadyalready made her purchase!!!

Yep!! Definitely NOT testing that one! I've had friends shot with buckshot while hunting, and it looked very painful. Picking all the little pellets out looked even more painful than the original shot. I'm not volunteering for that test. LOL!

Another poster mentioned building up a tolerance. Perhaps I have such a tolerance because I love all hot and spicy foods, and I have tested so many varieties of pepper spray? I dunno, but I would never trust my life on it. I'll stick with real bullets.

It is really not that bad

reply to post by getreadyalready


I agree.
I have been pepper sprayed before as well and I didn't find it that bad.
It was actually bear spray so i don't know if thats stronger than what the cops use or not so it is what it is.

Originally posted by FortAnthem
But, since when has the US ever played by the rules anymore?

Not sure any US citizen knows the number of all the rules in America anymore, let alone what they are.


I've been exposed to pepper spray before (training purposes). It's very unpleasant.

reply to post by FortAnthem


I didn't know pepper sprays could come in different flavors.

Why don't they serve pepper spray as a condiment at restaurants?

I opened a can of chipolte peppers once and it sprayed in my eyes. That burned like hell and I turned to the sink to flush my eyes. That paled in comparison to the first time I got pepper sprayed. The second time wasn't so bad, but I think it was more of a mind-set preparation, rather than building a tolerance.

Sort of like getting your nose broken or getting kicked in the stones....... the second time a person can push through it knowing that it isn't life-threatening, even though it hurts like hell.

yah, I got scars.

I'd like to add that I have also been sprayed, with a few different grades of mace/pepper spray, all the way to Military grade OC Spray

The degree of burning and pain depends largely on the person. Smokers tend to be much less affected by tear gas and pepper sprays. People with respiratory problems usually have a more severe reaction. You can build a tolerance for it, quite quickly.

To answer someone else from above, about the bear mace, usually animal mace is pretty weak, but I found this link showing that this type of bear mace is 3.3mil scovilles. www.udap.com...

Weak mace has very little effect on me. OC spray is terrible. Your face will burn for about 2 weeks...can't shave, can't even wash it without feeling the burn

EDIT: Someone also mentioned a .380 which replaced the mace. Good choice. Too many variables with mace, or tazers. My personal preference is an HK USP .45

It burns your soul when you get it in the face for standing up (or sitting for that matter) to the rights we all have from birth.

That said, it might not be worse than a punch in the gut from a baton, but its certinly no laughing matter.

reply to post by Xenrutcon

Weak mace has very little effect on me. OC spray is terrible. Your face will burn for about 2 weeks...can't shave, can't even wash it without feeling the burn

This part I totally agree with! It continues to burn on the skin for several days at least. It isn't debilitating, just painful and annoying. Water makes it worse. Cool milk seems to help. I usually rinse with cool milk, then wash with soap and water, and sometimes apply vaseline.

It is painful, it does burn, but it is no way debilitating to many people, so it would be a bad thing to rely on for self-defense.

On the other hand, I have seen people maced, and they freak out, drop to the ground and writhe about. I think it is possibly a conditioned response, it hurts because it is supposed to hurt, or perhaps it is just an over-reaction, or perhaps some people are very sensitive to it?

Originally posted by getreadyalready
On the other hand, I have seen people maced, and they freak out, drop to the ground and writhe about. I think it is possibly a conditioned response, it hurts because it is supposed to hurt, or perhaps it is just an over-reaction, or perhaps some people are very sensitive to it?

I think it was designed this way. It is a weapon of fear, because the first time you are hit with it, you have no idea what to expect

Originally posted by argentus
I opened a can of chipolte peppers once and it sprayed in my eyes.

So, is this a hobby? Or just something you thought sounded like a cool idea or what?

I live in the Southwest and LOVE hot peppers of all kinds. The hotter, the better. Many times, after cutting jalapenos, I have rubbed my eyes and made myself miserable! Yes, it's not so bad, and it goes away. But if another person purposely sprayed pepper spray into my eyes, I would absolutely consider it an assault.

I've bitten my tongue before too, but if someone else bit my tongue, there would be hell to pay.

To those of you who are saying, "It's not so bad"... I wonder, do you think the police were justified? Did they do anything wrong?