I carry pepper spray when on duty (as a force option), and sometimes off duty (especially when going somewhere with crowds). I would wonder when was the last time one of your friends had to "fight like a man"? My experience has taught me that pepper spray can be a good equalizer when the other person is bigger, stronger, younger, faster, crazy, and/or armed with a simple weapon (like a beer bottle, etc.). Usually just the appearance of the can takes the fight right out of them. Hand-to-hand combat is not usually my first choice. There is too much potential for both parties to become injured.