Carrying any weapon is too much trouble for me. The storage hassles and weight, the fact that I'd have to worry about it being stolen or possibly used against me, plus the whole legality and liability issue just makes it too impractical on the off chance I might need it.

Staying alert and looking confident will lessen the chance of you becoming a target. Thugs prefer to hit easy targets, or people they can catch off guard. Even so, that doesn't mean anyone can't still be jacked. Sure, run if you can, but everyone should take self defense classes to help put the odds in their favor if forced into a fight situation. Make sure you are learning "street" techniques, not just sport fighting, which is what many martial arts today mostly are.

If you decide you are going to fight, DO NOT GIVE ANY INDICATION OF THIS FACT BEFORE YOU STRIKE! No yelling, arguing or acting the tough guy. You want surprise to be on your side. The bad guys should be led to believe everything is going their way until they have already been kicked, hit, gouged or taken out however you can. If there is more than one, prevent yourself from being in between them. Continue to follow up with techniques until the threat has been eliminated, and then SCRAM. Don't stick around. Even if you want to report the incident to the police, you can do it afterwords on your own.