[jyl]

I looked up the muzzle energy of a 7.62 x 51 bullet, about 3600 J. 3600 / 216 = 16 J. That's about the muzzle energy of an airgun pellet. Hmm. I think aigel is right. GI Joe with a GI Joe issue M60 could probably defend himself against a squirrel. But nothing much bigger, unless that thing stands still and lets GI Joe hose him down with airgun pellets.

I have a weird tradition of having toy soldiers secreted in the bushes of the backyard, as symbolic defenders. This started when I was a little kid and probably speaks to some childhood stress or simply to never fully exiting childhood. The current guardian is a 12" GI Joe that I unearthed from a box of my childhood stuff and put out there to do whatever he is supposed to do. Now I know that while he might be an effective intelligence agent, his actual defensive capabilities barely even extend to self defense.

(Edited to correct math)