I have the Burris Fastfire on two of my .22's. It's one of the best <$200 red dots out there. They make a number of different configurations including a protected mount and an AR mount.
http://www.burrisoptics.com/fastfire.htmlHere's the Protected, rough duty mount.

That said, if you're an "operator", part of HRT or your work commonly requires you to shoot people (think Army, Navy, Marines in the mid-east), by all means go for a red-dot or laser if it suits you. Competitors by all means, do red-dots. But for most of us "regular" types who may never ever fire our gun in anger (which includes most of the LEOs), I'm unconvinced of the use of red dot or laser sights. I think they're a highly probable point of failure and a distraction. Sure, if you practice quite a bit and do failure drills, you can be highly successful with and confident in a red-dot sight. But for the rank and file, I think that when the chips-are-down, a red-dot or laser represents a liability. When the body shuts down the fine motor skills in a fight-or-flight mode I believe that the simpler, the fewer controls, the more instinctive the weapon the more likely it will work for me.