I looked long and hard for a "combat style" .22 before I decided to get an AA conversion for my Glock. The P22 is an alright gun a for a good price, but does have many drawbacks, IMO. Other than the already mentioned safety problems, the P22 has been plaugued by reliability problems. My friend has one, and his has the problem with the not-so-safe safety, and it also randomly ejects the magazine every few shots or so. Also, the slide is made of a magnesium alloy, meaning that the slide rails will wear the slide to the point where it will not cock the hammer after 10 - 20 thousand rounds (although I have heard of P22s lasting longer, these seem the exception and not the rule). To me a .22 that may only last through 10K rounds is unacceptable (after all, I may fire 1000 rounds in a long day of shooting).
So, if you are looking for a plinker / hunter .22, I would go with either the Sig Trailside or the Buckmark. If you are looking to get a "combat-style" .22 to practice pistol techniques without spending mucho $$$ on ammo, I would either wait until June for the Sig Mosquito, or get a CZ-75 Kadet (a standard CZ75 frame with a .22 upper).
IMHO, YMMV, IANAL, etc.
James