Aren't .22s guns made to target shoot with rather than defense?
the vast majority of gun owners are good people i think; however, there are some boneheads who would carry a .22 for personal defense. There are a very few exceptions. i remember reading a story of some chick who carried a little .22 in her fanny pack while she was running. but even she admitted that it would probably just piss an aggressor off.
I would say the smallest gun for legit personal defense is a .32 and thats for up-close and personal
Note of Obvious-ness = a .22 bullet will kill you dead as hell if its put the in right place