The Power of Pepper Spray

I had a recent encounter with the power of capsaisin.  I was eating my dinner at a Szechuan restaurant that I love in my home town, with all the dishes on a large Lazy Susan in the center of the table (I am not sure why poor Susan got labeled as lazy, but the convenience of a rotating portion of the table for sharing a multitude of dishes does not strike me so much as lazy but efficient--as the dishes whirl past each diner, you can pick and choose what you will graze upon without much fuss).  While I was unsuspectingly plucking a piece of salt and pepper squid off a dish, one of my sons was cutting into a pepper.  One or two droplets of the pepper sprayed across the table, over the top of my glasses and into my right eye.  The pain was instantaneous and profound.  I was completely incapacitated on the spot.  I could not even remain seated after a minute, I was so agitated.  The pain did not subside for several minutes, and was not completely gone for hours.  My poor son kept checking on me throughout the evening, feeling guilty about his inadvertent attack on me.  I can see how a bear could be disarmed and dissuaded from pursuing one who wielded such a defense against it.  What I cannot see is why this technique was employed against Occupy crowds--coast to coast, more than once--and I can see why they sought and were granted compensation for the offense.