Archive for September, 2009

Ford Focus Fuel Cell Vehicle With Ford Automotive Replacement Parts At Parts Train

The Focus FCV is one of the industry’s first hybridized fuel cell vehicles combining the improved range and performance of hybrid technology with the overall benefits of a fuel cell.

Using a fuel cell powertrain supplied by Ballard Power Systems, the world leader in proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell technology, the FCV is hybridized with the addition of a nickel metal-hydride battery pack and a brake-by-wire electro-hydraulic series regenerative braking system. The fuel cell engine converts chemical energy into electric energy using hydrogen fuel and oxygen from air. The electric energy then powers the vehicle’s electric drive motor, producing only water vapor and heat as by-products.

Just like Honda’s Insight and Civic hybrids, the new battery ’assists’ the main powerplant by adding extra power when accelerating or climbing hills, and is charged by regenerative braking system when braking or decelerating. Of course, the Civic and Insight use a small gasoline internal combustion engine instead of a fuel cell, but the principle is the same.

“This Focus FCV is the most sophisticated environmental vehicle Ford has developed,” said Dr. Gerhard Schmidt, Ford Motor Company vice president, Research and Advanced Engineering. “As such, is a critical success in our long-term strategy to move toward high volume production of hydrogen powered cars and trucks.”

The Focus FCV has onboard sensors, which constantly monitor the fuel cell stack, trunk and the passenger compartment. If trace amounts of hydrogen are detected, the system will warn the driver. If a slightly higher level is detected, the system will transition to a limited operating strategy and then begin shutting down vehicle operations.

Its new battery pack, regenerative braking system and improved hydrogen gas storage tank help increase the driving range of the four-passenger Focus FCV to between 250 km (160 miles) and 320 km (200 miles) – about 30% better than the previous version,

The new Hydrogen Storage Tank Technology in the Focus FCV stores four kilograms of hydrogen, which is equivalent to four gallons of gasoline. It also features an in-tank pressure regulator, which lowers the pressure so the gas leaves the tank at approximately 150 psi to work its way through the fuel cell.

Ford is working closely within the industry and with fuel providers to help develop government codes and standards for a hydrogen-fuelling infrastructure and to help improve the commercial viability of fuel cell technology by bringing all stakeholders together in an effort to eliminate barriers to mass production and implementation.

“The launch of this Ford fuel cell demonstration fleet, together with the previously announced DaimlerChrysler deployments of cars, vans, and buses powered with Ballard® fuel cells clearly demonstrates the strength and leadership of our fuel cell alliance,” said Dennis Campbell, president and Chief Executive Officer, Ballard. “This unique collaboration between Ford, DaimlerChrysler and Ballard Power Systems is fielding the most extensive fuel cell vehicle demonstration ever undertaken.

With years of combined experience in selling premium quality auto parts, Partstrain has been the trusted and most reliable source of superb quality engine parts, electrical body parts and other auto parts. Shopping for excellent quality automotive parts here in Partstrain is easy and hassle-free. You can browse our accessible user-friendly online parts list at http://www.partstrain.com/ShopByVehicle/FORD either by make or part type. Ordering is a breeze, simply select the premium car parts you want and fill in your particulars at its secure checkout page.

Jenny McLane is a 36 year old native of Iowa and has a knack for research on cars and anything and everything about it. She works full time as a Market Analyst for one of the leading car parts suppliers in the country today.

Preparing a Business Plan

A business plan is a formal statement of a set of business goals. It contains the reasons why the goals are believed to be attainable, as well as the intended plan for reaching those goals. It may also contain background information about the organization or the team attempting to reach those goals.

EDL Consulting Services can help you to draw up a formal business plan. This can be one so effective that you will be able to base your business principals and daily regimens on it; and you will be able to present it to any potential funding provider as a reference for financing requirements.

In preparing a business plan you will need to ascertain whether there is a niche market for the product or service that you intend to offer. If the market exists, you will need to know how much of a demand there will be and whether you can command the price that you would need in order to make the necessary profits to sustain and grow your business. A good business plan will show how your product fits into its industry and what its growth potential would be. You would need to provide a plan on dealing with the competition in order to show how you intend marketing your product differently, making it superior to the rest. Additional factors such as financing requirements must be shown in a business plan. Costs such as launching the new company; training staff; and initial advertising schemes need to be taken into account.

A comprehensive and well-prepared business plan will essentially provide a detailed outline of your product; its marketing scheme; the expected costs in getting that product / service to market; and then, obviously, the expected returns that must be viable enough to ensure profitability, sustainability and growth.

Your business plan should describe briefly if your business is a new business venture, expansion of an existing business or the purchase of an existing business; the type of business activity in which you are engaged (manufacturing, wholesale, retail, food processing, service, high technology, etc.); your product or service and its uniqueness; the market to be served; your advantage over the competition; the main objectives of your organization; your management background; the project time frames involved. It should also explain whether it is a sole proprietorship; partnership or corporation.

It should describe the products to be produced or the services to be provided. What makes your productor service unique, or, how is your business different from others in the industry? What are the features or advantages that will entice customers to buy from you (i.e., convenience, service, performance)? Will you offer any product or service guarantees or warranties?

EDL Consulting Services can help you in making the necessary assessments and in undertaking due diligence. These discoveries will create a business plan that will prove to be effective and insightful. We are equipped to identify your needs and to advise of the correct steps to take in order for your business to start off on the right footing. We are a business consulting firm that can take you to a new level of growth; creating greater expectation of success; all starting with the effective and comprehensive preparation of a business plan that can be relied on.

My name is K. Enis Davis-Lewars and I have been in the legal field for over 30 years. In particular, I have been a litigation law clerk for over 21 years. I have been in business for over 20 years as a business consultant.At EDL Consulting Services we help start, build and grow your business.

Murder Capital Realty

In a schizophrenic manner perhaps indicative of the nation as a whole, Washington, D.C., the Capital of the United States of America, has been a city of lofty ideals and basest crime. Isaac Toussie knows. Putting aside for the time being the popular sentiment of criminality that equates politicians with thieves, this article will quickly review the relationship between the District of Columbia’s criminal statistics and those of its realty markets.

No sooner had the violent crime wave of the early 1990s begin to subside with tougher laws and policing tactics than the housing bubble and resultant foreclosure crisis unleash upon the capital city a new onslaught of social turmoil. And it continues to be brutal for the D.C. housing market even as those gains posted during the boom-times just keep on disappearing.

For the past two to three years, the District of Columbia has suffered along with the rest of the country the mother of all market corrections where real estate, particularly housing, is concerned. Credit has totally dried up for all practical intents and purposes while short sales and foreclosures have suddenly skyrocketed, with District of Columbia suburbs even posting price drops of as much as one hundred thousand dollars. And the trend is not that much better in the region, with shortfalls of around eight to ten percent as compared with previous years.

To be sure it isn’t all bad, and there are those who still manage to profit, such as Isaac Toussie. The flood of foreclosed properties has resulted in a buying spree in some locations, especially among the many first-time buyers of Prince William County that were able to afford homes of their own at last.

Of course, you can bet that there are economists and other market observers who believe that the situation is still extremely grave, given the record numbers of homeowners in financial distress still out there. However, scattered data here and there seems to suggest that something of a mild market turnaround is just around the proverbial corner. For example, it’s interesting to see how so-called vulture investors have swooped in to snap up distressed properties. This is generally taken to be a positive sign, in a bigger-picture sort of way, reflecting as it does a certain sense of confidence in market fundamentals in just those individuals who matter the most in any economy – the ones with money! So, all things considered, under the circumstances, our nation’s capital has fared relatively well, and is best of all in the region, with median prices rising some eight percent.

Crime and real estate prices bear a definite linear inverse relationship, but gentrification is modifying this old calculus – somewhat. Really bad neighborhoods (and by extension, cities) are still avoided entirely, but the level of tolerance for urban blight has risen such that those neighborhoods on the borderline (and, often, literally on the border proper) can now be considered for development, whereas two decades ago sentiments would have been diametrically different.

Bottleless Water Coolers Are The Solution

Bottleless water coolers are becoming much more and more popular as people grow to be much more and much more concerned with the environmental impact of bottled drinking water delivery.

According to non-profit environmental research and advocacy organizations, the production, packaging, and transportation of just a liter of bottled drinking water demands anywhere from 1 thousand 1 hundred to two thousand times a lot more energy on typical when compared to tap h2o.

This is of excellent concern when you take into account that bottled drinking water has now turn out to be a veritable staple of the American and European diet, with sales in Asia and also the rest from the world growing at breakneck paces. For instance, in 2007 alone well over two hundred billion liters of bottled water were sold around the world, while using United States producing up for thirty-three billion of those liters – that’s roughly an annual common of a hundred and ten liters, or almost thirty gallons, per American!

No wonder bottlelesss water coolers are fast catching on as an environmentally responsible alternative towards the trouble of clean drinking fresh water. Bottled h2o is so well-liked now that it outsells even milk and bear within the United States, but much of this drinking water is nothing much more than repackaged tap water straight out with the local municipal supply! Unlike tap h2o, bottled water is very expensive for the consumer and grossly negative for that environment. Moreover, bottled h2o isn’t necessarily tested, or tested as rigorously, as tap h2o must be. And though lots of bottled drinking water is just tap drinking water, who knows what contaminants may possibly have been worked in on account of the repackaging?

Bottleless water coolers are the solution. They’re a point-of-use system that uses your existing water supply in combination with a machine that looks just like an ordinary office water cooler. This machine, however, is full of filtration blocks and other purification mechanisms to make sure h2o which is clean and fresh proper just before consumption. This way, there’s practically no chance of contamination – no dirty dusty bottles to change and no dirty tanks to clean. There’s nearly no exposure for the outside; certainly no chance of fingers touching anything but the dispensing nozzle, and needless to say a little care on the part of end-users can take care of that concern.

Installation is straightforward, and comparable to that occasioned by cable television service. Initial expenses are about the same as with traditional methods, but over the long haul savings of all kinds add up substantially.

Article Marketing Versus Banner Advertising: Which Will Perform Better?

Banner advertising, what’s that? and is it truly better that Internet Article Marketing? You could ask.

Banner advertising is when you create an advert in the shape of an image, this image ad is generally about 468 pixels wide by sixty pixels tall ( but sizes do change ), the image ad or banner is then placed on a related site in the shape of an advertisement for your product or service. When this banner is clicked it’ll link that interested person back to your web site. While this can appear good, this technique of advertising is gradually on the decline. The click thru rate has fallen and is now at the point at which gaining a trivial half % click through rate would be looked on in a positive light.

The explanation behind this decline is easy.Users of the web are learning to overlook and ignore banners. The average web user is trying to find information and does not want the distraction of an image advert. Users need to get direct to the good stuff, that being the content. And while you have heard it one thousand times before, “content is king”.

So how do you effectively advertise? Since “content is king”, you simply need to provide more content through an Article Marketing Service Now hang on a sec, do not think any old content will do, you wish to provide something valuable, something of quality and something worth a readers time. Many entrepreneurs will outsource this kind of work, as they find it to be too long, and they’d be right. Writing a quality article can take hours and submitting that article to various article directories can take days. So again, we identify outsourcing is a reasonable idea.

It’s critical to find the right company to handle this side of your firms Article Marketing. These are some of the major factors you need to consider when making your outsourcing call. You may wish to have a company that can produce high value content. It’s also preferable to get a company which has SEO experience. SEO experience can play a major role in how they will write your articles. You’re also going to need a company to distribute your articles, using your key phrases as backlinks. And finaly you’ll want an organization that can do this all, on auto-pilot.

Why Autopilot? Many people order articles with the objective to submit them across the web, but alas they just sit on our hard drives due to time restrictions. Having an association that handles it all on auto-pilot surely makes sense.

To sum it all up, banner advertising, while not as good as it once was, should not be utterly overlooked. With the right ad graphics and ad placement, banners could have some positive result on your business. As for article promotion, this is the way to go, but only if you have the time to do it properly, or you will find a company to do it properly for you.

How To Negotiate Your Business Debt

No businessperson ever wants to be forced to admit defeat and have to declare bankruptcy. Yet in the current economic climate, more and more business owners are having to do just that. If your business is currently facing mounting debt problems that seem inescapable, it may seem like there’s no hope. Your profit margins keep shrinking while your bills keep piling up and creditors are calling nonstop. What can you do in this situation? One option is to try and negotiate your business debts.

There are two ways to go about this. You can either try to perform your own business debt negotiation, or you can hire a corporate debt negotiation service that will negotiate with creditors on your behalf. The first option may sound more appealing – and cheaper – but it may not be as easy as it sounds. Creditors can be pretty tough to deal with. After all, they don’t want to lose out on the money they’ve lent to your business.

If you want to try and go the do-it-yourself route, then here is how you get started. The first thing to know is that you should strive to be honest with your creditors. Trying to get a business debt reduction after you’ve continually lied to your creditors about your financials is probably not going to end well for you. You want to be up front and honest, even though it can be embarrassing to admit that you’ve bit off more than you can chew. Ultimately, most of the time they will appreciate your candor and be more willing to work with you, at least for a time.

Next, you want to try and suggest a business debt negotiation agreement that is amicable to both parties. That means that your creditors get their money, and you keep your business on its feet long enough to start being profitable again. You may be able to convince them to lower your payments or settle your debt for a smaller amount if you can present compelling evidence that you can turn your profitability around. Basically, the logic is that if they keep hounding you, your business will continue to fail and they’ll never get paid. Try and convince them that by helping you out, they increase their chances of getting paid in the long run.

That may sound simple, but it’s really recommended that you work with debt consulting services when dealing with creditors. While they do charge a fee, they are often able to get you much better deals than you could get on your own, since they are skilled in negotiation and understand the needs of both your business and your creditors. They can also help you work out a cash-flow plan that can keep your business growing even as you work your way out of debt. Contracting a business debt negotiation firm is often your best chance at getting out of debt without declaring bankruptcy or losing the business you’ve worked so hard to build.

Eric Kaplan has been involved in the business debt reduction industry for over 25 years and has helped thousands with their business debt negotiation. His first recommendation is to find a reputable, debt consulting firm with references and proven results.

How To Gain The Most From You Article Marketing Campaign

So you have finished the content for your article. You are now a go to start your niche article marketing campaign. So now you’ll be needing an article outline also known as the article summary.

But what must you ideally put in your article summary to obtain-bring it the best results out of your article submission? Should it be an abstract or a teaser to the article? Keep in mind that the puprose of your article outline is to lure a reader or your article to read the remainder of it. It’s similar to a sales page but for your article. It will in numerous cases, make the difference to whether your article gets read or not read.

Here is what you would ideally wish to be in your article outline. Straight off you will need the article outline to be about two to 7 sentences in length. Second, you will need there to be a mention of the emotional benefits this article brings to your reader, talk directly to your target reader’s interests. Third, you may need to include at least 4 to 7 keywords that are related to your article subject. It might be a brilliant idea to use keyword research tools to determine the best keywords to use, you’ll want keywords which will help those looking, find your article. By using the right keywords you can easily increase the quantity of times your article is located, and the number of times it is read.

Now let us go on to talk about what should not be in your article outline.

One, you don’t want to repeat the title of your article in your article outline. 2, there is no need to use your author name in the outline of your article. Three, there’s no need and you need to not put your website name in the outline ( it will appear too promotional ). Four, you’ll need to leave out any self-promotion. Remember when we discussed above about making your outline like a sales page, this did not mean to sell your service in the outline, but rather to sell the reader on reading the article.So keep the article promotion in but the self promotion out. Four, never use more than two paragraphs or fourteen sentences in your article outline, or it will simply bee too big and no one will trouble to read.

Nokia Unveils Nokia Money

In the midst of a crazy battle for customers, the smartphone and cell phone businesses are doing anything and everything necessary to claim their place and retain their buyers. Nokia cell phones, as well as Nokia Cell Phones No Contract, have just announced that they will probably be starting a financial payment service known as Nokia Money. This feature does not, however, appear in other no contract cell phones.

Nokia Money will be the use of money exclusively by means of the users handheld device. These devices will enable users to send cash to one an additional, spend their Nokia cell cellular phone bill, pay a variety of other bills and invest in products for instance museum tickets and concert tickets on the web, among other items. This will allow clients to save money and time on traveling to pay out certain bills and buy certain products. It can be particularly helpful for those in rural areas who merely aren’t close towards the amenities us in the city are accustomed to. With Nokia Money these loyal customers won’t must travel just to pay a bill or purchase one thing for that future, instead they is going to be able to do it from the convenience of their home or wherever they might be and can avoid all the hassle they otherwise may possibly have incurred.

The funds is straightforward and secure to use and is there solely for that benefit of buyers, not to incur charges or make items tough for buyers. It’s innovative, creative and consumer friendly suggestions like this which will truly help cell telephone organizations in this kind of a competitive era of their industry. No longer is merely providing a handset adequate. If the mobile devices aren’t rich in multimedia or business features then the companies should make up with other ideas. Or ideally, come up with innovative new phones and new methods to aid clients. That is exactly what Nokia Cell Phones has done. They are helping clients, which will insure loyalty within the long term but have also provided a support that many aren’t obtaining, something that some folks might be willing to switch assistance providers for.

This is a competitive marketplace and those who don’t treat it as this kind of will suffer. Nokia cell phones with their Nokia Money have likely made a wise and creative decision that will retain them on the inside track to success in the long term. What will their subsequent innovative phone idea be? Which will must wait till next time but judging from this it must be a some thing inside the way of efficiency, often a strong suite for Nokia.

A Look at Today’s New Jersey Realty

The major urban centres of New Jersey were in the midst of being revitalized when the economic downturn just sucked all of the hackneyed oxygen out of the time-honoured room. But the missed opportunities, and bucks, are completely real and literal.

Till the great mishap, the most important example of new construction in New Jersey today was discovered in Jersey town, particularly by the journal Square neighborhood that serves as kind of a regional transit heart. In fact, real estate development has been continuing for years , continuously picking up pace until the financial crisis.

Still, market fundamentals are robust, and it may only be a slightly short time before the real estate boom continues for Jersey town. In fact, the current economic downturn could be helping the local economy cope, as more and more new yorkers leave that city’s notoriously high leases for the comparatively lower ones that might be found in Jersey City!

So even in this economy, there is enough ongoing commercial development to keep New Jersey a little busy, as funding had been secured way back. While not as strong as previously, commercial real estate in the Garden State remains a crucial actor on the economic stage.

The mortgage indiscretions which brought low many a real estate market in Nevada, Pennsylvania, and New York hasn’t been as abundant in New Jersey – perhaps thanks to the state’s’s famously high property taxes! For in possibly daunting ownership, the nation’s’s highest property taxes may have also deterred the so-called predatory lending practices that have led to such far-reaching repos elsewhere.

naturally, with the highest property taxes in the country, only a few of New Jersey’s housing is so difficult. The status of commercial real estate is better. The landscape is often formed by office parks – where not interrupted by miles upon miles of heavy business plants! The government’s impulse package seems to have created upward pressure that has stabilized some New jersey property markets.

We have to keep waiting and see just when stabilization will morph into appreciation. New Jersey is a state renowned for its many heavy industries, which bear critical implications for the regional commercial and residential real estate markets.

lots of the nation’s’s most dynamic towns and cities aside such business centers, with the result that much New Jersey real estate can be among the least fascinating in the broader metropolitan nexus it forms with NY and Connecticut. Industry in New Jersey is varied and multi dimensional. Office parks malls business parks and a strong retail base abound, these are good fundamentals.

And that concludes our transient survey of the New Jersey property market. There is so much more to be debated, and not only about New Jersey. Visit RealEstateProsNow.com for great info about real estate by real estate pros like Isaac Toussie and many others.

Arthritis: Many Kinds of Pain

Arthritis is a frequently debilitating condition caused by damage to the joints of the body, which often results in joint pain There are over 100 different sorts of arthritis known to medical science, with any quantity of conditions involved. The most typical form is called osteoarthritis, a degenerative joint illness that comes about through trauma or infection to the joint. It also seems to be due to old age.

Other sorts of arthritis include rheumatoid arthritis, which can involve organs such as the lungs; psoriatic arthritis, which often occurs in conjunction with the skin condition called psoriasis ; and autoimmune illnesses, causing the body to attack itself. But no matter the type, the common denominator is pain. As can be imagined, many purported treatments for arthritis pain solutions (and some are quite effective such as rheumatoid arthritis pain relief gel), exist, though as of yet no universal cure seems to exist.

Treatments vary depending on the kind of arthritis concerned, and can change from physical therapy and gentle exercising to orthopedic braces and outright surgery. Medicines and dietary supplements are also popular remedies that work for a few of the people. Many dietary supplements sold to treat arthritis are in the shape of herbal remedies, which though sometimes referred to as phytomedicines by industry marketeers shouldn’t be confused with precise medication. As with anything you consume to treat a condition, be sure to inform your GP or other health care provider!

Indeed, before taking any dietary supplement for any cause, do a little analysis to see whether the product is absolutely safe for you to take, given your medical history. But dietary supplements are not your only options; you can also use an arthritis pain relief gel. Though it’s necessary to relay on professional medical advice, it never hurts to be an informed consumer. For example, glucosamine, a popular dietary supplement used to treat arthritis, may raise blood sugar levels, a potentially dangerous outcome for many diabetics. So show patience and exercise your due diligence when perusing all of the options available on the market today!

At Last, A Breitling Designer Watch Now Available For Divers

When choosing luxury designer watches, many fine brand names spring to mind. As many know, Breitling has been associated with quality for well over a century, and are most noted for making mechanical aviation watches with big faces. What’s news , however , is that lately they latterly introduced a quartz model – and one allegedly targeted more at pro deep sea divers!The Aeromarine Avenger Seawolf Chronograph was Breitling’s newest offering at last year’s Basel watchmakers’ convention. This famous annual watchmakers’ trade fair saw the company take an aggressive approach towards what could be called “the diving demographic,” maybe hoping to penetrate it the way they have the market of fliers ( and, let’s face it, of aviator-wannabes and posers ). This review will take a fast look at this latest model’s key selling points and resolve whether it’s worth the nearly three grand American!

As far as durability goes the Aeromarine Avenger Seawolf Chronograph is built to last. It is a very rugged phonephone that will take some punishment and still be functional.First of all the Aeromarine Avenger Seawolf Chronograph by Breitling is water resistant. Many designer watches in truth are water protected but the Aeromarine Avenger Seawolf Chronograph will still run even if it is submerged three hundred feet ( one thousand meters ) underwater. Most watches will simply cease to function due to the extraordinary pressure. Breitling allegedly has discovered a way to guarantee the Aeromarine Avenger Seawolf Chronograph is functional under such cruel conditions. The watch housing comprises curved sapphire crystals and brushed titanium. These materials allow the Aeromarine Avenger Seawolf Chronograph to have an anti-reflective surface. For extreme saturation diving the Aeromarine Avenger Seawolf Chronograph has a helium release valve built in as well . For optimal viewing in low light scenarios the bezel is engraved and has a luminescent marker. The Breitling logo is chicly placed on the back of the case.

Aeromarine Avenger Seawolf Chronograph watch dials are available in blue, gray, and yellow. The date is handily displayed next to 3 o’clock. To round off the customization of this designer watch one can get the Aeromarine Avenger Seawolf Chronograph with the professional divers leather strap or the titanium bracelet.

Of particular interest is the Super Quartz movement, which is 10 times more accurate than the standard found in common quartz watches. Such accuracy is said to be attained by making the movement delicate to the changes in temperature that cause most quartz modules to lose or gain time. Being thus thermo compensated means the Aeromarine Avenger Seawolf Chronograph is, in effect, self-correcting. There’s a regatta timer, in addition to the standard chronograph feature-set, for yacht races which need measurement in ten minute scales.

One of the more notable things about the Aeromarine Avenger Seawolf Chronograph is the magnetically activated push pieces. These push pieces allow the Aeromarine Avenger Seawolf Chronograph to be completely sealed against the elements and foreign damage. Anybody ( deep sea divers generally ) who are wanting a durable and sturdy watch will surely benefit from buying the Aeromarine Avenger Seawolf Chronograph.

Legal Self Protection Weapons: What About A Stun Gun, Tasers and Mace Pepper Spray?

Mention “self-defense” and pictures of martial arts experts may spring to mind right away, but the reality is a ton more prosaic. Indeed, for the majority of human history, self-defense was yet another truism, another chore in life, and something of a common affair, too. Speaking of movies, one of the most renowned transitions in all cinematic history was in 2001 : A Space Odyssey, near the start of the film when an ape-man throws up into the air a bone he’d just used as a weapon, said bone then cutting sway to a cylindrical spaceship afloat in space – thus linking war and technology, a connection that’s been observed by many thinkers through the ages. For far from being a relic of uncivilized times, war and struggle is what has made civilization possible! As the ancient Greek historian Heraclitus wrote, war is the daddy of all things. Or as Vegetius’ Roman military manual suggested, si vis pacem para bellum – if you seek peace, make preparations for war.

Self-defense should be presumed as a selected, then, or a duty – to yourself, for one’s family and friends. It is too frequently either something frightening or something fun, therefore delaying the right crowd and bringing along the wrong one. But taken as just another task in life, it can be seen in the correct light and then pursued correctly, which is to claim seriously, with respect and with focus.

In today’s modern environment, self-defense is a lot more complicated and also a lot simpler. More easy as it needn’t involve eliminating one’s enemy, as in olden times, with blood feuds that will run several generations, but more difficult because it takes real skill not to fatally harm someone. Indeed, the true martial artist is one so masterful as to be in a position to finely tune his or her lethality. Such an ability is a complete skill-set in itself, and requires years of training at the least, not to mention innate talent and who can say what else!

A faster way would be to use weapons, particularly those which only disables one’s assailant ( s ), and only temporarily so, with no long-term damage incurred. After all, it’d be daft to win on the streets but lose in the courts! So this rules out firearms immediately, and even knives, which have great potential for inflicting fatal injury. Stun Guns and Tasers, then, appear to be the best choice, everything considered. They are basically non-lethal but definitely effective, capable of knocking someone out for as much as a whole half hour at a time, even the drug-fueled. That’s lots of time to run to safety or run for help. A pepper spray is a much less expensive alternative that’s’s almost as good. Both options are great where authorized by law.