If you have to flee suddenly, what is the single most practical long
or short range weapon you can carry, and why?

Hello luanda,

The answer to this is some type of gun.  Unless the gun owner does not
know what he or she is doing, a gun can, even without being fired,
swiftly and effectively take care of any type of compromised security
situation.  Unless the threatening individual is extremely stupid,
that individual will back off when a gun comes into play.

Specifically for this purpose, I recommend a Glock 19.  Glock 19s are
light to carry, well-made, and of good quality.  They do not have a
safety and don't need to because the trigger must be pressed
completely before firing.  They are carried by the NYPD and by
Israel's police force.  Someone once told me that if she was
kidnapped, she would want Israeli commandos coming after her, not the
US military.  The Israelis are much quicker and more efficient.  From
what I have seen since then, I tend to agree.  Security is taken very
seriously in Israel.  Long ago, I realized that as the Israeli
military and police forces go, so should the person who wants to
protect herself.

You can see the Glock 19 here:

Remtek
http://www.remtek.com/arms/glock/model/9/19/

Wikipedia--
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GLOCK_19

However, there may be many reasons which people cannot carry a gun--
their jurisdictions do not allow it, or they don't have gun licenses
or concealed weapons permits, or they have to go in and out of a place
that disallows concealed weapons often for work or some other reason
and can't carry a gun on their person.  For these people, the single
most effective weapon would be an extendable night stick. It can be
shrunk for ease of carriage and in one fell flick it becomes full
size!

If you need any additional clarification, let me know and I'll be glad
to assist you.

--keystroke-ga

sword cane if you know how to handle a sword, they never jam.

Bare sword if that isn't a problem.

Of course a high I.Q. is even better but you can't buy one.

And, yes, I have a black belt in sword but I also have high ratings
from the U.S.A. in pistol and rifle so I have some experience.

A valid (or at least apparently valid) passport from another country.
Along with a credit card that cannot be traced to you.

And a can of pepper spray (hmm, how to smuggle on the 'plane?).

pole... tools (i.e. hammer )...

phaser

An AK-47. Worldwide availability of parts and ammo make it THE weapon of choice.



Barneca, it was nearly a minute before I could collect myself after
reading your suggestion. I'm lucky I had already swallowed the milk
or...

A cell phone

Tutuzdad, I believe you are channeling Naomi Campbell.

http://cgi.ebay.com/James-Bond-MOONRAKER-WRIST-DART-GUN-METAL_W0QQitemZ120059436451QQihZ002QQcategoryZ60232QQcmdZViewItem