Greetings Sheepdogs,
***** Mindset *****
Practice is the small deposits you make over time,
so that in an emergency, you can make that big withdrawal.
-- Chesley Burnett Sullenberger, III
A Study in Situational Awareness and Preparation Failures
https://www.activeresponsetraining.net/a-study-in-situational-awareness-and-preparation-failures
". . . personal defense is a lifestyle, not a hobby."
-- Sheriff Jim Wilson
More thoughts about the Duel at the Dumbster
https://tacticalprofessor.wordpress.com/2019/01/29/the-tactical-professors-shot-show-odyssey-part-iii-site-visit-to-the-duel-at-the-dumbster-continued/
Excerpt:
Guns are special purpose defensive tools that are useful
only in a minuscule (very small) spectrum of our lives.
Thinking of them as general purpose defensive tools is a
Serious Mistake and sets oneself up for a Negative Outcome.
"A good solution applied with vigor now is
better than a perfect solution ten minutes later."
-- Patton Jr., George S., "War As I Knew It",
New York, Bantam, 1983. Page 408.
THE SECRETS: SIX MYTHS OF THE GUN WORLD
https://blog.suarezinternational.com/2019/01/the-secrets-six-myths-of-the-gun-world.html
I am the kit fox,
I live in uncertainty.
If there is anything difficult,
If there is anything dangerous to do,
That is mine.
-- Sioux warrior's song
***** Safety *****
Jeff Cooper's Rules of Gun Safety
RULE I: ALL GUNS ARE ALWAYS LOADED
[Hundreds of persons are shot every year in America by persons
cleaning their unloaded guns and persons showing their unloaded
guns to others. -- Jon Low]
RULE II: NEVER LET THE MUZZLE COVER ANYTHING YOU ARE NOT WILLING TO DESTROY
[Pointing your gun at someone is a very threatening behavior
(legally considered aggravated assault everywhere in America)
and could easily result in you getting shot. -- Jon Low]
RULE III: KEEP YOUR FINGER OFF THE TRIGGER UNTIL YOUR SIGHTS ARE ON THE TARGET
[Keep your trigger finger in the register position until your sights
are on the target and you have decided to fire. When your sights
come off the target, immediately place your trigger finger in the
register position. -- Jon Low]
RULE IV: BE SURE OF YOUR TARGET
[Be certain of who you are shooting at. Use a flashlight if necessary.
Know what is behind your target. What's going to get hit if your miss,
or your bullet passes through your intended target? Know what may move
between you and your target. Untrained persons panic in high stress
situations and run around randomly while screaming and shouting. No,
as a matter of fact they do not freeze and drop to the ground. That's
why we have to teach children to drop and roll when on fire. It's
not natural. Nothing about shooting is natural or instinctive.]
“The fast and/or emphatic reholster
is an awesome way to shoot yourself.”
-- Chuck Haggard
***** Training *****
"You train for the people who love you."
-- Tatiana Whitlock
Losing A Legend Mourning Mike Voigt
https://americanhandgunner.com/our-experts/losing-a-legend-mourning-mike-voigt
Top instructors don't live forever. Get your training
while they are still alive.
Why do I need to train?
"To each there comes in their lifetime a special moment
when they are figuratively tapped on the shoulder and
offered the chance to do a very special thing, unique
to them and fitted to their talents. What a tragedy if
that moment finds them unprepared or unqualified for
that which could have been their finest hour."
-- Winston Churchill
Gabe White Pistol Shooting Solutions
https://gunsmagazine.com/handguns/gabe-white-pistol-shooting-solutions
"We are what we repeatedly do.
Excellence is not an act.
It is a habit."
-- Aristotle
***** Tactics *****
Audacity wins.
-- Carl von Clausewitz
Your Tactical Training Scenario - Shot Through the Door
https://www.activeresponsetraining.net/your-tactical-training-scenario-shot-through-the-door
Hard Lessons: Fights
https://www.integratedskillsgroup.com/blog/hard-lessons-fights
Excerpt:
"Get out of there before [the police] show up (in which
case it's [the other party's] word against yours), or call
first - which is petty and stupid."
[I don't think calling first is petty or stupid. I think
it is essential. Because as Massad Ayoob says, there are only
two blanks on the police report: Complainant and Respondent.
You want to be the Complainant. You want to be the one who
called first and complained about the other guy. Because whoever
calls first is assumed to be the victim. Good guys call the
police. Bad guys don't. Unless they are petty vindictive
little shits, who are trying to get the police to do their
dirty work for them. So, be the first to call 911. -- Jon Low]
3 Gun Helped Me Survive
https://www.agirlandagun.org/3-gun-helped-me-survive/
Excerpt:
“My comfort with my weapons, knowing their capabilities
and mine, kept me calm and focused.”
Who Dares Wins.
-- motto of the Special Air Service
***** Technique *****
"I would like to see every
woman know how to handle
guns as naturally as they
know how to handle babies."
-- Annie Oakley
Why We Focus On The Front Sight
https://www.nrafamily.org/articles/2019/1/25/why-we-focus-on-the-front-sight/
Defending Yourself Against Dog Attacks
https://www.recoilweb.com/man-bites-dog-143323.html
STREET SMARTS: Countersurveillance Techniques
https://www.swatmag.com/article/street-smarts-countersurveillance-techniques/
Shooting With Your Eyes Closed?
https://www.usconcealedcarry.com/shooting-with-your-eyes-closed/
May I invite your attention to the top right photograph?
The burning (glowing) powder is caught in a soleton (solitary wave form).
Most waves are dispersive (expand in space) and dissipative (lose energy
with time and distance). Soletons are neither. Theoretically,
they are tori shaped wave forms that are symmetric about the direction
of propagation. The example pictured is a little distorted.
The particle motion (as in the sense of retrograde or prograde) is
that the inside of the doughnut moves forward (in the direction of
propagation) and the outside moves backward, circulating around the
small diameter of the torus.
I worked with soletons in fluids of many different viscosities in
grad school in attempts to model geologic things under Prof. Dave
Bercovici. He was at the University of Hawaii back then.
He's at Yale now.
Craig Douglas of Shivworks Fights from the Deadly Triangle on Trigger Time TV
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S84NK6hXJLA&fbclid=IwAR1IDcs_ZF22U9gfoYZvJaDXqgOws3HL40EFJMCfmqnvF1BrTE5mV_RynTk
"The shorter the fight, the less hurt you get."
-- John Holschen
***** Gear *****
Avoidance, Deterrence, and De-escalation
-- John Farnam
I Made A Huge Mistake While Carrying My Gun. Learn From My Experience.
http://concealednation.org/2019/01/i-made-a-huge-mistake-while-carrying-my-gun-learn-from-my-experience/
Rule Four in Self-Defense: Bullets On and Beyond Your Target
https://www.shootingillustrated.com/articles/2019/2/1/rule-four-in-self-defense-bullets-on-and-beyond-your-target/
This is truth. In police shootings (because the government collects
data in these incidents) where the bullet was a hollow point (as just about
all of them are), of the bullets that hit some human, 41% expanded. Because
all kinds of things can prevent the bullet from expanding (clothing plugging
the bullet cavity, the curtains that you shot through, the glass that you
shot through, etc.). Depending on which data set you're analyzing, the
bullet average penetration is around 2 inches. Not sufficient to reach a
vital organ to cause incapacitation. Because many things can block or
impede a bullet (leather jacket, heavy layered winter clothing, body armor,
other body parts, etc.).
I asked for suggestions for a pistol for persons with
small hands on the Rangemaster Instructors Facebook page and
got the following responses:
Glock 48
Smith & Wesson M&P Shield with small insert
Smith & Wesson M&P Shield EZ in 380 auto
Sig Sauer P365
Kahr K9
Walther PPS M2
CZ P-10c
A lot of instructors are saying that the Smith & Wesson
M&P Shield EZ in 380 auto is the way to go for small hands
and/or weak hands (arthritis, etc.).
We have also had success with a small grip on a Sig P320,
and a Ruger American with the grip (back strap) removed.
You might want to go to a gun store and see how these
pistols fit your hand. Or, go to a gun range and rent these
pistols to see if they work for you. Can you get your finger
tips to point back toward you? Can you get your trigger finger
on the trigger such that when you take the slack out of the
trigger, the last bone in your trigger finger is perpendicular
to the bore axis (when the bore is in line with the bones of
your forearm and the trigger is in the middle of your finger
print)? The trigger can be moved by your gunsmith, or the
trigger can be replaced to allow you to get your trigger finger
in the correct position.
Folding Knife Selection, Carry & Access
https://www.mdtstraining.com/folding-knife-selection-carry-access/
Lucky you live in Tennessee. There is no such thing as an
illegal knife in the Volunteer State.
The problem with carrying a folding knife with tip pointing
up, is that it may open while still in your pocket.
"Hey, Staff, why would it do that? How could it do that?"
Because Murphy's Law says that anything that can go wrong,
will go wrong, at the worst possible time. So, it is essential
that you eliminate anything that can go wrong.
A visible pocket clip draws attention. Don't draw attention
to yourself. Put your knife inside your pocket. Don't let the
clip show outside your pocket.
I was getting malfunctions with my Ruger American in .45 ACP.
I bought it new and had fired about 500 rounds through it.
When the slide went forward, the cartridges would dive down into
the magazine, rather than jumping up into the chamber. I checked
several web sites and found the problem reported on a couple of
instructor forums. So, the problem was not unique to me.
I contacted Ruger on their web site. They asked me to shoot
the pistol with several different ammunition types to be sure it
was a pistol/magazine problem and not an ammunition problem.
I did, and still got the malfunctions (2 or 3 within a box of
50 rounds for each type of ammo that I tried). So, Ruger sent me
a Fed Ex shipping label (2nd day express). I packed the pistol
and my three magazines and shipped them off to Ruger. They
notified me to say they received the package and asked me to
give them 5 to 7 days to work on it. They actually took 2 days
(assuming they don't work on weekends), and then shipped it back
to me.
This is what they said they did:
Replaced all 3 magazine followers.
Replaced all 3 magazine springs. (The new springs are much stronger.
I speculate that these stiffer springs are not standard because they
make charging the magazines difficult.)
Repaired the barrel. (They chamfered the mouth of the chamber,
and polished all contact areas between the chamber and cartridge.)
After repair, pistol was function fired 35 rounds of Black Hills
230 grain full metal jacket, without malfunction.
So, I took it to the range to see how it worked for me.
After firing a few rounds of factory new 230 grain FMJ loaded
to the standard speed of 850 feet per second at the muzzle.
(I don't like the term "muzzle velocity", because velocity is a vector.
850 fps is a speed, which is a scalar.) It works fine now.
Shooter’s Tips: Learning the Red Dot
https://www.americanrifleman.org/articles/2019/1/27/shooter-s-tips-learning-the-red-dot/
Things people say: “Don’t carry a nice gun.”
http://www.grantcunningham.com/2018/01/things-people-say-dont-carry-nice-gun/
Excerpt:
"Once in evidence, your gun will not be returned to you until
after all legal proceedings are settled. Even then, it may be
months or even years after the case has been closed before you
get your firearm back. Many people have had to file legal
proceedings to persuade the authorities to return their rightful
property.
What happens to your gun?
Life in an evidence locker isn’t pleasant. Items are tagged
and simply thrown in, without regard for maintaining their
appearance or function. Some evidence rooms are in unheated
basements where the humidity is high and rust is common. If your
handgun or rifle goes into evidence, don’t expect to get it back
in the same condition it was when the police took it from you.
This is just one of those little realities of life.
It’s something you have to accept as part of the cost of self
defense."
***** Instructors *****
Adaptive Shooting Techniques
Developing a New Grip
Reduced Hand Strength or Lack of Support Hand Can Be Overcome
https://www.idpa.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/TJ_Winter2018_HIGH.pdf
IDPA Tactical Journal, Volume 22, Issue 4, 4th Quarter 2018, page 15.
If you're going to be an instructor, learn how to help
your students develop a proper grip.
"Every time I teach a class,
I discover I don't know something."
-- Clint Smith, Director of Thunder Ranch
I've never gotten through the first day of a class without
having compiled a list of things that I have to find out for my
students. That's why I am presently using the format of a 12 day
course taught on 12 consecutive Saturdays. It gives me time to
answer the students questions and fix equipment problems (e.g.
The pistol does not work for you. You can use one of my pistols
and gear for today. But, you have to get a pistol that works
for you.)
We either bring in experts or go to experts for:
Law of Self Defense, Andrew Branca, online course.
Force-on-force using Simunitions, Bob Allen of Royal Range.
Judgment (no-shoot / shoot) exercises on video simulators,
Bill Hayes of Axiom Training.
First Aid, Kevin Hunt of Prepared Medical Response.
Tactical scenarios, one of the local IDPA or IPSC clubs.
Colonel Robert Lindsey to his fellow trainers:
"We are not God’s gift to our students.
Our students are God’s gift to us."
As such, you have a duty and responsibility to teach
competently. You have to have a deep understanding of the
material that you are teaching. You have to avoid teaching
anything of which you lack a deep understanding.
If you are going to use another instructor's lecture
and give due credit to that instructor, then you have to
read it to your students verbatim. Otherwise, you have to
tell your students that you are paraphrasing. Otherwise,
you have to tell the students that this is your lecture,
some of the ideas of which you have stolen from so and so.
As my fencing coaches told me, there is nothing new
under the sun. There are no secrets. There are just
things that the novice hasn't learned yet. In self defense,
the rules for establishing innocence or regaining innocence
are amazingly analogous to the rules for establishing or
regaining the right of way in foil fencing. Most foil
fencers do not understand the subtleties. So, under
competent judging, they lose. Most carriers of weapons
don't understand the laws of self defense. So, as Claude
Werner says, they have negative outcomes.
Plagiarism is bad. But, using the information and
ideas of others is flattery. And they should graciously
accept your flattery. Citing sources is good. But,
eventually best practices pass into common knowledge.
At which point, citation is a courtesy more than a
scholarly ethic.
"I invented that."
Well, no, you didn't. You may have independently
discovered it. Which is good. But, if you do a literature
search, you'll find it (probably before your birth).
So, stay humble. It avoids embarrassment.
***** Pedagogy *****
Qui docet, discit. (He who teaches learns.)
-- motto of the American Society of Law Enforcement Trainers
"Train, Practice, Compete are the key
elements in the development of humans."
-- John M. Buol, Jr.
***** Education *****
"Cogito, ergo armatum sum." (I think, therefore armed am I.)
– John Farnam
You can get a free download from USCCA by going to
www.FreeReportGalco.com/
and typing in your email address. They will then email the documents to you.
Ya, it's an advertisement for USCCA, but it's got some useful information
for the neophyte. You might want to forward it to friends of yours who are
new to our lifestyle.
“Destiny doesn’t make appointments,
nor does she waste her time with the naive and unready!”
-- John Farnam
***** News, Legal, Philosophical, and Political stuff *****
How do you win a gunfight? Don’t be there.
-–John Farnam
Martin Luther King Jr. Was Denied Concealed Carry Permit for Self-Defense
https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2019/01/21/martin-luther-king-jr-was-denied-concealed-carry-permit-for-self-defense/
9 Cases That Prove Why We Need AR-15-Style Carbines and Pistols
https://www.personaldefenseworld.com/2019/01/9-ar-15-cases/
Excepts:
The AR-15 is an assault prevention rifle.
The AR-15 is a lifesaving emergency rescue tool, by design.
All kinds of good stuff at
Crime Prevention Research Center
http://crimeresearch.org
Case Of The Week: Regaining Innocence: Real-World Example
https://lawofselfdefense.com/cotw-regaining-innocence-real-world-example/
Enter the Night!
http://defense-training.com/2018/enter-the-night/
If you think this could never happen in America,
you are naive.
If Gun Control Fascists Didn’t Have Lies . . .
https://lawofselfdefense.com/potd-if-gun-control-fascists-didnt-have-lies-2/
Amazing that the State of Arkansas has a duty to retreat.
Louis Awerbuck: The Exception to the Rule
https://www.usconcealedcarry.com/louis-awerbuck-the-exception-to-the-rule/
If Louis said the Springfield Armory XD is the pistol to use,
that's good enough for me.
School Hires Combat Vets With Rifles To ‘Put Down’ Active Shooters
https://miami.cbslocal.com/2019/02/13/school-hires-combat-vets-with-rifles-to-put-down-active-shooters/
Yet another Mass Public Shooting in another Gun-free zone:
at the Henry Pratt Company in Aurora, Illinois
https://crimeresearch.org/2019/02/yet-another-attempted-mass-public-shooting-in-another-gun-free-zone-at-the-henry-pratt-company-in-aurora-illinois/
All mass murders occur in gun-free-zones, because those are
the only places that have unarmed victims for armed criminals to
prey upon.
In gun friendly zones, the prospective victims shoot back.
Only the communist would see a problem with that.
The murderer was a convicted felon, prohibited from
possessing a gun. So, every gun control law failed to prevent
this crime.
The murderer was a repeat offender. In Turkey and Saudi Arabia,
they have no concept of a "repeat offender", because they have no
repeat offenders. When I was in Ankara, I saw a little girl
walking to the grocery store in the middle of the night, by
herself. I asked her where her parents were. She told me they
were at home and had sent her to buy groceries (so she was alone,
carrying a large amount of cash, in a big city). She laughed at
my concern. I approached a policeman (armed with a submachinegun
slung over his shoulder) and told him. He assured me that she
was perfectly safe. And she was.
Stop appointing liberal judges, and you don't have repeat
offenders prowling the streets. Of course, that would require
not electing liberal politicians who appoint the liberal judges,
or not electing liberal judges. Now whose fault is that?
Are you aware of what's going on with West Virginia's
Supreme Court? Judges aren't above the law, they just think
they are.
UPDATED: Why we shouldn’t depend on mental health professionals
to detect mass killers:
Elliot Rodger’s slipping “under the radar” is hardly rare
https://crimeresearch.org/2019/02/why-we-shouldnt-depend-on-mental-health-professionals-to-detect-mass-killers-elliot-rodgers-slipping-under-the-radar-is-hardly-rare/
Expecting mental health professionals to detect and report
people who are in fact a threat to themselves or others is
nonsense, and always has been (as the above examples show).
The false positives would do horrendous damage to the
reputation of the falsely accused persons, and might permanently
prevent the falsely accused person from possessing a gun. After
a psychiatrist labels you crazy, how do you prove to a anti-gun
liberal judge that you are sane? If you think that is easy,
you are naive. Liberal judges think that wanting to possess a
gun is prima facia evidence of paranoia, a mental illness.
South Dakota becomes 15th state to allow concealed carry without a permit
https://crimeresearch.org/2019/02/south-dakota-become-15th-state-that-allows-concealed-carry-without-a-permit-in-all-or-virtually-all-the-state/
Yeah! Governor Kristi Noem, pro-gun, and smoking hot
(you have to see her in person). Rush Limbaugh says politics
is akin to movie star celebrity for ugly people. Noem has an
IMDb web page.
Defensive gun uses by people legally carrying guns over the past two months
https://crimeresearch.org/2019/02/defensive-gun-uses-by-people-legally-carrying-guns-over-the-past-two-months/
Why is Dr. Lott able to do a much better job of reporting
these incidents than the NRA official journal, American Rifleman?
Because his agenda is entirely different from that of the NRA.
At Townhall: Background Checks Bill Would Turn Many
Well-intentioned Americans Into Criminals
https://crimeresearch.org/2019/02/at-townhall-background-checks-bill-would-turn-many-well-intentioned-americans-into-criminals/
Excerpt:
. . . "Virtually every time the government stops someone
from buying a gun, it is a mistake." . . .
If you think getting your name off of the prohibitted list
is not a nightmare, you are naive. Even the late U.S. Senator
Ted Kennedy had a hard time getting his name off the "no fly" list.
Some nameless faceless bureaucrat can put you on the list
without due process, without oversight. The government does not
have to prove that you committed a crime (of which there is a
public record). You have to prove that you do not pose a threat
to yourself or others. How would you prove that?
“Hard times create strong men
Strong men create good times
Good times create weak men
Weak men create hard times”
-- T.J. Weber
***** Survival Tips *****
"If you prepare for the emergency,
the emergency ceases to exist!"
-- Dr. Sherman House
Why Hearing Protection is Important
https://www.americas1stfreedom.org/articles/2019/1/29/why-hearing-protection-is-important/
"Hearing loss is permanent and cummulative."
-- Medical experts at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, CO
at a lecture during a level 3 coaches course.
Failed Kidnapping Leads To Lessons Learned | Active Self Protection
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pj0e_fhQOgg
Don't go to stupid places.
Don't do stupid things.
Don't hang out with stupid people.
-- John Farnam
***** Basics *****
"Panic is simply the lack of preprogrammed responses."
-- Tom Givens
Women's Self-defense Technique -
Man Pinning Both Wrists in Mount Position
https://youtu.be/jAh0cU1J5zk
You have to have unarmed techniques,
because you may not be able to access your
weapon initially.
"Fear is an instinct. Courage is a choice."
-- Rear Admiral Joseph Kernan, USN
***** Miscellany *****
A Warrior, Defined
https://havokjournal.com/culture/a-warrior-defined/
War Just Might Be The Answer - Iliza Shlesinger
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8DV4JIxEk4s
This is one of the inventions from my company,
Military Systems Group.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GcZtkKtqgBc
Maybe you need one in the back of your pickup truck?
In a previous blog posting, I listed credentials
that would allow the carry of weapons: courier card
(Armed Forces), armed guard license (state), written
contracts with the U.S. State Department (federal),
written orders from the king of the country (foreign),
SOFA treaty (international), and being born into a
royal family (but we can't choose our parents).
My friend, Joe, who is deploying under the
auspices of a United Nations Peace Keeping Force,
has the best yet, a light blue passport. Yes, diplomatic
immunity. The worst one could legally suffer would
be expulsion from the country as a persona non grata.
But, in a contested area, who is going to expel him?
Who would have the authority or inclination to expel
a field grade officer and U.N. Peace Keeper?
When I was at Columbia University in New York,
I had classmates who were the children of diplomats.
They all carried.
And then there are written orders based on
executive orders (such as the early President Bush's
order concerning the Global War On Terrorism).
And then there are letters, such as those issued
by Congress under authority of the
U.S. Constitution, Article I, Section 8, Clause 11.
Unfortunately, the modern ones are not public record.
But then again, much of our government's budget is
not public record. But, if you follow current
events and notice things that don't make sense or
don't logically follow, you can detect them.
That's what intel analysts do.
For the latest version (it changes almost daily)
of my lesson plans for my NRA Defensive Pistol course,
send me an email. Jon_Low@yahoo.com
The McDonalds restaurant by the Long Meadows
rifle range in in Greenbrier, TN sells "Senior Coffees".
I ask the young lady at the counter, what's a Senior Coffee?
She tells me it's a coffee for anyone over 40 years old.
I give her a quizzical look, because 40 is not a senior
anything in my life experience. She responds to my
look by saying, 40 is really old. I imagine she was
16 or 17. I didn't have the heart to tell her I was 60.
I had forgotten how hard it is to tell a person's
age when you are very young. I remember as a child,
understanding that people grew up and got big, but
I didn't understand that people actually grew old
and died. So, there was always time to do important
things later.
Get your training while you can. Because good
instructors have experience, so they are old. They
aren't going to be teaching forever. People like to
retire. Some people can't retire, because the teaching
is a calling, not a job. But, God has put an expiration
date on all of us.
You can't take a course from
Col. Jeff Cooper, USMC
or
Louis Awerbuck, South African Defense Force 1 Spesiale Diens Bataljon
or
CWO2 Pat Rogers, USMC
or . . .
Cheers,
Jon
Jonathan D. Low
Jon_Low@yahoo.com
Monday, February 18, 2019
Tuesday, January 22, 2019
CWP, 22 January 2019 Anno Domini
Greetings Sheepdogs,
***** Mindset *****
I am the kit fox,
I live in uncertainty.
If there is anything difficult,
If there is anything dangerous to do,
That is mine.
-- Sioux warrior's song
Please read "The Farnam Method of Defensive Handgunning"
by John S. Farnam. To order the book, send a check for $30
made out to Defensive Training International to
Mrs. Vicki Farnam
1281 E Magnolia Street
Suite D/340
Fort Collins, CO 80524
Make sure to include your address.
Mr. Farnam teaches to shoot from a stationary position.
Don't move and shoot at the same time. (The games such as IDPA
and IPSC love to force the competitor to shoot while moving.)
But, shooting while moving drastically increases your
probability of missing, and every miss is damaging property
and injuring innocent people, maybe killing them.
"Only those who risk going too far can
possibly find out how far one can go."
-- T.S. Elliot
Voluntary Victims
http://defense-training.com/2018/voluntary-victims/
Excerpt:
“Stay alert and keep your head up.
Out here, not all ‘organ donations’ are voluntarily!”
Complacency kills.
“Success is not final, failure is not fatal,
it is the courage to continue that counts.”
“Never, Never, Never Give Up.”
-- Winston Churchill
***** Safety *****
“The fast and/or emphatic reholster
is an awesome way to shoot yourself.”
-- Chuck Haggard
". . . personal defense is a lifestyle, not a hobby."
-- Sheriff Jim Wilson
***** Training *****
Why do I need to train?
"To each there comes in their lifetime a special moment
when they are figuratively tapped on the shoulder and
offered the chance to do a very special thing, unique
to them and fitted to their talents. What a tragedy if
that moment finds them unprepared or unqualified for
that which could have been their finest hour."
-- Winston Churchill
Stop practicing shooting!
https://thestreetstandards.wordpress.com/2018/12/12/stop-practicing-shooting/
Please read the comments by Marcus Wynne at the end of the blog post.
5 quick and easy spec-ops trigger control tips for defensive pistol precision
http://exclusive.multibriefs.com/content/5-quick-and-easy-spec-ops-trigger-control-tips-for-defensive-pistol-precisi/law-enforcement-defense-security
“When you aren’t skilled and confident,
you get scared and you over react.”
-- Greg Ellifritz
Practice smarter: Information is key to improving shooting
http://exclusive.multibriefs.com/content/practice-smarter-information-is-key-to-improving-shooting/law-enforcement-defense-security
Practice smarter: The physiology behind learning
http://exclusive.multibriefs.com/content/practice-smarter-the-physiology-behind-learning/law-enforcement-defense-security
Practice smarter: Putting it all together
http://exclusive.multibriefs.com/content/practice-smarter-putting-it-all-together/law-enforcement-defense-security
Your Tactical Training Scenario- Castle Doctrine
https://www.activeresponsetraining.net/your-tactical-training-scenario-castle-doctrine
Over the Christmas and New Year vacation, I practiced on the simulators
with Axiom Training in Summerville, SC. Email: fma.axiomtraining@yahoo.com
We had students from 11 years of age (female) to 60 (male). We consistently
found that the students shoot over the bad guy, when the bad guy ducks or
falls due to being shot.
John Farnam says you should fire your first shot to the bad guy's
navel (because it is difficult for him to move in such a way so as to
avoid getting hit there) and then the subsequent 3 rounds up the midline to
his neck (and then move).
We had a very ambiguous scenario in which a young man and a young
woman were lying on a couch in a college dormitory setting. He was
holding a knife and trying to convince her to do things. It was not
clear that she was in distress or not enjoying the situation.
The 11 year old girl presented her pistol from concealment and
fired 3 times into the guy (all good solid hits that would have
incapacitated him immediately). In the debriefing, she said that she
thought he was attacking her with the knife (and couldn't understand
how such behavior could be play). When questioned about any concerns
she might have had about missing and hitting the young lady (who was
lying next to the guy), she said it never entered her mind. When
asked if she had used her sight to aim, she said no. She said she
just pointed and shot.
In another scenario, a middle age woman (wife and mother of two)
watched a guest in her house get beaten to death and then allowed the
attacker to turn on her and kill her without presenting her pistol
from her holster. She put her hands on her face and turned to look
at us.
Yes, you can learn a lot in simulator practice. The simulator
is sometimes the crowbar that pries your eyes open to see reality.
Training scars
Are you doing something in training classes that you should not be
doing in combat? Are you doing something during your practice sessions
that you should not be doing in combat?
At Front Sight we learned Administrative Actions. We would do a
chamber check and a magazine check after every exercise before
holstering. The idea was that it ensured you were prepared for the
next exercise. We were repeatedly told that these were administrative
actions and that we were not to do them in a combat situation. But,
as Sara Ahrens says,
“Be careful what you teach. Because your students will do in combat
whatever you have trained them to do, no matter how ridiculous.
Be careful what you practice. Because you will do in combat whatever you
have practiced, no matter how ridiculous.”
(These are not direct quotes. I have paraphrased Ms. Ahrens.)
So, perhaps the correct thing to do is to dispense with the
administrative actions and simply holster after the After Action Drills.
Then you can practice reloading and clearing malfunctions when needed
in real time.
At Front Sight we never picked up spent casings. The casings
were considered part of the gravel surface on the ground. But, on
some ranges, students are required to police up their brass after
every exercise. Better to pick up brass at the end of the day.
Or, leave the brass on the ground for the brass hounds. There are
people who reload and would love to pick up your brass for you.
Training & Practice: You Need Both to Build Self-Defense Skills
https://www.shootingillustrated.com/articles/2019/1/4/training-practice-you-need-both-to-build-self-defense-skills/
Excerpt:
We train to learn new and proper techniques.
We practice those techniques often enough so
that they become a habit. And it is also the
reason for continuing our education by
taking more classes. Those classes reinforce
what we have learned and give us a chance to
make sure that we are practicing it properly.
There are actually many bad instructors in the
training industry. So, you have to be careful.
If you see them violating any of the 4 basic safety
rules:
RULE I: ALL GUNS ARE ALWAYS LOADED.
RULE II: NEVER LET THE MUZZLE COVER ANYTHING
YOU ARE NOT WILLING TO DESTROY.
RULE III: KEEP YOUR FINGER OFF THE TRIGGER
UNTIL YOUR SIGHTS ARE ON THE TARGET.
RULE IV: BE SURE OF YOUR TARGET.
in their YouTube.com or Photobucket videos or
advertising material, avoid them.
If you see them violating the safety rules in
class or allowing others to violate the safety rules,
leave the class. Don't worry about losing your tuition.
This is a life and death situation.
I have to mention this because very dangerous
practices have appeared in classes on YouTube.com
videos and after action reports from classes as
reported on several instructor forums.
Live fire while persons are down range is wrong.
Dry fire with real pistols while persons are down
range is wrong. Dry fire while aimed at persons is wrong.
"But, Staff, we did that sort of training in
the Marine Corps."
Yes, that is true. We fired artillery over the
heads of other guns in our battery. We crawled under
live machinegun fire and live explosive detonations.
But, I do not believe that that sort of training is
appropriate for civilian self defense operations.
The Armed Forces accept training casualties,
including fatalities. We, as civilian instructors,
should strive for zero training casualties.
Our insurance carriers won't tolerate casualties.
"I would like to see every
woman know how to handle
guns as naturally as they
know how to handle babies."
-- Annie Oakley
Rangemaster newsletter, January 2019 A.D.
http://rangemaster.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/2019-01_RFTS-Newsletter.pdf
Excerpt:
Remember that recency trumps everything in retention of motor skills, . . .
"You train for the people who love you."
-- Tatiana Whitlock
***** Tactics *****
Audacity wins.
-- Carl von Clausewitz
"FBI Miami Firefight" by Edmundo and Elizabeth Mireles,
2017. (No publisher listed.) ISBN 978099510308
Excerpts:
". . . In the military, if you run into an ambush,
you assault through the ambush. In law enforcement,
if you run into an ambush, you seek cover, return fire
if possible and call for back up. Two diametrically
opposed philosophies came into direct conflict on that
day." Page 82.
[I teach my students that an immediate explosive
counter attack (or preemptive attack, without telegraphing
your intention) is effective because surprise is a force
multiplier. Col. Cooper espouses similar advise in his book,
"Principles of Personal Defense", ISBN-10: 1581604955
ISBN-13: 978-1581604955
-- Jon Low]
IN EXTREMIS COMMUNICATION, PART 3
https://pointdriventraining.com/2015/12/24/in-extremis-communication-part-3/
Who Dares Wins
-- motto of the Special Air Service
***** Techniques *****
"The shorter the fight, the less hurt you get."
-- John Holschen
10 Common Handgun Draw Mistakes, and How to Fix Them
https://www.personaldefenseworld.com/2018/12/10-handgun-draw-mistakes/
My comments:
-
Snatch, Don’t Pull
[I had to think about this for a while.
I'm pretty sure what the author is talking about
is jerking the pistol out of the holster, as
opposed to smoothly pulling the pistol out of
the holster. In order to get the inertia
effect that the author is talking about, you
have to have a non-zero third derivative of
displacement with respect to time. [Zeroth
derivative is displacement. 1st derivative is
velocity. 2nd derivative is acceleration.
The automotive industry calls the 3rd derivative
"jerk", because that's what the passengers
in the car feel.] So, you have to jerk the
pistol out of the holster. (Always a good
idea, because in combat, easy things become
difficult and difficult things become impossible.
So, make sure you can do everything easily in
training and practicing.) -- Jon Low]
-
Support Hand
[For us, civilian concealed carriers, the
support hand would not normally be free to slap
the chest. Rather, it would be holding the
concealment garment out of the way. Or, it would
be occupied, forcing a one handed presentation
from the holster. So, slapping the the chest
with the support hand may be forming a training scar.
-- Jon Low]
-
Trigger Control
[All bad autonomic nervous system responses are
defeated by the surprise break. That's why Col.
Jeff Cooper taught it. Anticipating recoil, and
pushing the muzzle low left (for a right handed
shooter), and breathing incorrectly (such as not
breathing) are autonomic nervous system responses.
-- Jon Low]
-
Slow Down Strings
[This is essential, because you can do all
these things only as fast as you can think.
Letting your pre-programmed responses outrun
your rational thought is wrong.
You may have had the experience of outrunning
your GPS unit while driving because you were
driving too fast. Bad results, you missed your
exit, you got into the wrong lane, etc. Worst
case, the cop does not stop you for speeding in
time, and you collide with another vehicle or
pedestrian, killing many. (You may not understand
what I am saying. When I was young, I hated the
cops for giving me speeding tickets. But, I am now
more mature and thoughtful. So, I realize that
the cops pulling me over for speeding, prevented
me from killing many people.) -- Jon Low]
-
Lack of Economy of Motion
“. . . speed is the economy of motion, . . .”
[You must not push yourself to go faster.
Rushing is one of the three causes of mishaps.
The Marine Corps calls self imposed rushing,
time compression. Distraction, breaking habits,
and time compression cause mishaps (in particular
crashing aircraft).
If you want to go faster, practice.
With deliberate practice, you will automatically
get faster.
It takes about 2000 repetitions to engrain
muscle memory, so you can execute the action without
conscious thought. How many times have you pissed
into the toilet bowl? Way more than 2000, right?
Why do you still miss? Because, your are not doing
it deliberately. You are not concentrating on what
you are doing. Repetition of an action is not the
same as deliberate practice. -- Jon Low]
-
Re-holstering
“If you don’t practice that and you’re in a
high-stress situation it’s going to be very difficult.”
[If you don't re-holster, the cops might shoot you,
because you are the person with the pistol in hand
at an active crime scene. -- Jon Low]
*** The following are related and should be read in the order presented. ***
Front sight focus or point shooting: Which is better?
http://exclusive.multibriefs.com/content/front-sight-focus-or-point-shooting-which-is-better/law-enforcement-defense-security
Sighted vs. point shooting: Myths and realities
http://exclusive.multibriefs.com/content/sighted-vs.-point-shooting-myths-and-realities/recreation-leisure
Excerpts:
This is something that shooters can eventually do
subconsciously . . . in a few thousandths of a second
instead of 0.4 seconds, or more.
. . .
Everything was being driven by the subconscious.
. . .
But I do agree with point shooting as a step in the sighted shooting process.
Why the quickest thing you can do to shoot better is something you shouldn’t do
http://exclusive.multibriefs.com/content/why-the-quickest-thing-you-can-do-to-shoot-better-is-something-you-shouldnt/law-enforcement-defense-security
Speed vs. accuracy in training and self-defense
http://exclusive.multibriefs.com/content/speed-vs.-accuracy-in-training-and-self-defense/law-enforcement-defense-security
Excerpt:
So, it’s really important that you do the shooting fundamentals
on autopilot so that your cortex can make smart choices about
whether or not to shoot and what to shoot.
*** End of related articles. ***
Craig Douglas teaches How to draw a firearm while standing in a crowd
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZwYmNwlVi8&fbclid=IwAR0ihslCuwjd-UGzvEXuDwBA9beNJr2RvLDfozErA7RvJZzBWO6Ib4DQCjw
After Drawing, When Should You See Your Sights?
https://gundigest.com/handguns/concealed-carry/after-drawing-when-should-you-see-your-sights
HOW TO ESCAPE A STANDING REAR CHOKE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMESzGWGV7M
This technique is similar to the technique taught
in the Marine Corps Martial Arts Program. As with all
self-defense techniques, the goal is to escape.
The Marine Corps technique's (taught in 1981) goal was
to incapacitate or kill. The Judo we learned in boot
camp was not the sport Judo taught in civilian schools
for progression into Olympic competition. Sport Judo
is sanitized. They do not teach techniques that would
injure or kill the opponent. Parents wouldn't send
their children to such classes.
How do you win a gunfight? Don’t be there.
-–John Farnam
***** Gear *****
Avoidance, Deterrence, and De-escalation
-- John Farnam
"FBI Miami Firefight" by Edmundo and Elizabeth Mireles,
2017. (No publisher listed.) ISBN 978099510308
Excerpt:
"Keeping in mind that the Wound Ballistics Workshop
concluded that size does matter, . . . " (the author
italicized the word "does"). Page 138.
[That is why you should shoot the biggest bullet
that you can shoot accurately. -- Jon Low]
I got a holster from
Craft Holsters
https://www.craftholsters.com/
Ivana Krasku 980/9
96901 Banska Stiavnica
Slovakia
(They had initiated the contact because apparently someone in Slovakia is reading this blog.)
Model: Open-Muzzle IWB Holster
Color: Black
Handed: Right
Gun: manufacturer Ruger, model American, .45 ACP
As described and pictured on the web page,
https://www.craftholsters.com/open-muzzle-iwb-holster-p79
$59.95
Shipping $17.95 UPS
The material quality is high. The quality of workmanship
is high. The areas that need to be reinforced are (so the
mouth of the holster stays open and it appears that the holster
will not wear out in normal usage before the pistol does).
Double stitching throughout. Molding is well done.
Tension screw is effective at controlling the friction on
the trigger guard that holds the pistol in the holster.
(I like my holsters tight, so my pistol won't fall out
when I break dance. Don't want to be like that FBI special
agent who dropped his pistol at the night club and then
negligently shot a guy when the agent picked up the pistol.
Ya, I have to jerk hard to get the pistol out of the holster,
but that's the trade off I'm willing to make.)
As with all high quality leather holsters, it is tight at
first and needs a break in period, but then it holds the pistol
firmly and consistently. I had forgotten the smell of high
quality leather. I haven't bought a leather holster since
my Kramer decades ago. (I've been using hybrid holsters
of leather and Kydex.) The snaps that hold the holster to
my belt are secure. Wearing the holster in the 3 o'clock
position is comfortable. No sharp edges digging into me
or anything like that. I can bend my leg at the hip without
the holster impeding movement. There is no adjustment
(as in most hybrid holsters) for cant or position of
carry up and down relative to your belt. But, it is
designed correctly, so that's not a problem.
I recommend this holster without reservation.
Finding a pistol grip that fits your hand is essential
for weapon retention and accuracy. Your glove size
(circumference measured around your knuckles) is not relevant.
The length of your fingers (not your thumb) is really what matters.
When you have established a correct high tight grip, and
the barrel is in line with the bones of your forearm
(in the same line, not just parallel to) your fingers
should wrap around the grip so that your finger tips point
back toward you.
Try grabbing a hammer. Got a solid strong grip?
Try grabbing a pencil in the same way. Too small, right?
Try grabbing a basketball in the same way. Too big, right?
There is an optimal size of an object that allows you to
get your strongest hand grip on that object. On your pistol grip,
it is the largest grip that allows your finger tips to
point back toward you.
Why do you need a strong grip? So, the pistol doesn't
come out of your hand. Well, someone may be trying to rip
it out of your hand or you may have bumped into something
that would knock the pistol out of your hand.
Ordering some full size self-defense pistols in .45 ACP
from fattest grip to thinnest grip (in my opinion)
we have (magazine capacity + 1 in the chamber):
Glock G21, 13+1
Para Ordnance, 14+1
Springfield Armory XD, 13+1
Heckler & Kock USP, 12+1
Heckler & Kock HK45, 10+1
Smith & Wesson M&P, 10+1
Ruger American, 10+1
CZ 97 B, 10+1
Model 1911 type single stack pistols, 8+1
(Of course, you can change the stocks, back strap,
etc. to change the size of the grip.) Grip size is more
important than magazine capacity. Don't be silly with
life and death decisions.
Once, you find a pistol with correct grip size for
your hand, you have to adjust the trigger so that when
you place the center of your fingerprint on the center
of the trigger, and you have taken the slack out of the
trigger, the last bone of your trigger finger is
perpendicular to the barrel. That is to say, your
trigger finger is pressing the trigger straight to the
rear, without any vector component of force in any other
direction. So, your gunsmith may have to move your
trigger, or you may have to change your trigger. Just
do it. Don't compromise your grip to get proper trigger
placement.
I met a Customs and Border Patrol Officer at an
instructor's class whose hand was too small for his
pistol's grip (a Glock). So, he rotated his hand around
the grip, so he could get his finger on the trigger.
(So, his thumb did not lay flat against the side of
his pistol, but rather pointed out to the side.)
He had to do this because his agency would not allow
him to use some other pistol and would not allow him
to modify the trigger on his issued pistol. (He put in
a lot of practice and shot quite well. But, WHY?
This is akin to forcing all of your agents to wear
the same size shoes. Can you imagine trying to work
in shoes that don't fit your feet?) As a civilian,
you don't have such ridiculous restrictions. So,
get a proper fitting pistol grip and move your trigger
to accommodate the length of your trigger finger.
Your pistol should be ambidextrous. Just because you're
right handed doesn't mean you're going to be right handed in
combat. The person you give your pistol to might not be right
handed.
Pistols such as the Glock and Smith&Wesson M&P allow you to
move parts to make the pistol left handed. That's not the
same as being ambidextrous, and once so configured will
present a problem for the right handed shooter (which may
be you, being forced to shoot with your support side hand).
The truly ambidextrous pistols that I know of are:
Springfield Armory XD
Ruger American
Some of the Fabrique Nationale Herstal pistols
Some of the Heckler and Koch pistols
Some of the Walther pistols
Charter Arms makes a left handed revolver. But, you
should not be using a revolver for combat. They don't
hold enough ammunition. They take too long to reload.
They are too difficult to reload under stress or one handed.
All other revolvers are extremely right handed and difficult
to manipulate left handed.
If you choose to have a manual thumb safety on your
pistol, it should be ambidextrous. But, you should not
have a manual thumb safety. Unless, you are going to
practice enough to automatically defeat the safety when
you present your pistol, and automatically engage the
safety immediately before holstering (which takes about
2000 deliberate correct repetitions). So, in the modern
manual of arms, the safety is only engaged when the pistol
is holstered. If you have a properly designed holster,
it will cover the trigger. So, the manual thumb safety
is not useful. That's why most modern combat pistols
don't have manual thumb safeties.
***** Instructors *****
"In martial arts and especially if you claim to teach self-defense,
the price of error is blood. The luxury of an instructor is that
it will not be your blood. That makes bullshit more reprehensible,
not less." -- Rory Miller
Instructors, please read "The Farnam Method of Defensive Handgunning"
by John S. Farnam; completely, not just the parts that pertain to you.
Because you will have to teach those left handed revolver techniques to
your student. Well, you will, if you are worth your salt.
Shooting Sports Industry Influencer Series: John Chapman
https://www.getzone.com/shooting-sports-industry-influencer-series-john-chapman/
Excerpt:
"Talking negatively about other instructors is a huge red flag."
This is truth.
My aunt Lois told me, if you don't have anything nice to say,
don't say anything.
It's a matter of maturity, spiritual maturity.
"Every time I teach a class,
I discover I don't know something."
-- Clint Smith, Director of Thunder Ranch
The Telephone Game and the Training Industry
https://tacticalprofessor.wordpress.com/2017/05/14/the-telephone-game-and-the-training-industry/
Colonel Robert Lindsey to his fellow trainers:
"We are not God’s gift to our students.
Our students are God’s gift to us."
***** Pedagogy *****
"Train, Practice, Compete are the key
elements in the development of humans."
-- John M. Buol, Jr.
***** Education *****
Video Podcast: Concealed Carry and Responsibilities
http://www.downrange.tv/blog/video-podcast-concealed-carry-and-responsibilities/42719/
This is reality.
Excerpt:
Adaptive thinkers and competent doers.
Louis Awerbuck: Interview With a Madman
https://louisawerbuckinterviewwithamadman.blogspot.com/2009/02/jeff-cooper-once-told-me-that-he.html
Excerpts:
. . . All males from the shoulder line to the waist are the same height,
whether it’s me or a basketball player. And from nipple to nipple they’re
all nine inches wide. So in a full frontal shot, if you’re out nine inches
here you’ve got nothing. . . .
[Mr. Awerbuck's training is one of the reasons that I took my
children to a 4-day defensive handgun class when they were 14 years
old. He was correct about a lot of things. And humble to the end.
-- Jon Low]
The odds and stakes of home protection
https://tacticalprofessor.wordpress.com/2018/12/23/the-odds-and-stakes-of-home-protection/
Driving 201: Road Tactics
https://www.integratedskillsgroup.com/blog/driving-201-road-tactics
Small Arms Survey report: Improvised weapons
http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/about-us/highlights/2018/highlight-report-improvised.html
Free download at
http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/fileadmin/docs/U-Reports/SAS-improvised-craft-weapons-report.pdf
We're not talking about zip-guns. We're talking craft-production.
We're not talking handtools in your garage. We're talking top of the
line milling machines and lathes. No, I'm not advertising for my
employer.
An Introductory Guide to the Identification of
Small Arms, Light Weapons, and Associated Ammunition
http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/resources/publications/by-type/handbooks/weapons-id-handbook.html
Free downloads at the web site. For those of you who have been through
any of the intelligence schools, check out chapters 7, 8, and 9. I have
a high school classmate who has worked as an intelligence analyst since
grad school. He sits in an air conditioned office in Suitland, MD.
I told him that he should get out in the field and see the real world.
Criminals do not appear out of no where.
If you didn't see him coming, shame on you.
"Criminal Assault Pre-Incident Indicators"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XPbCw9pV90c&fbclid=IwAR0Vq3tOjlj7MQbqBbGREnaTXwH9IGXjPMAtSkyPhALrQsfvPHk0390JYSI
If you didn't take immediate action (like running away)
when you noticed him, shame on you.
"I'm the victim! It's not my fault!"
Completely false. If you live defensively, you will have time to avoid.
"The car accident wasn't my fault. I had the right of way."
Completely false. If you drive defensively, you will never get into a collision.
(Even if someone intentionally attempts to ram you.)
If you have a collision with a stationary object, you are an incompetent
driver, and you need to take training and practice until you are competent.
Cars are unstable when driven backwards. If you can drive
backwards fast in a controlled manner, you are well on your way
to becoming a competent defensive driver.
If you are constantly scanning 360 degrees around, even when
you are stopped at an intersection, you will notice the car barreling
down behind you, and you will have time to pull onto the sidewalk
to avoid getting rear ended.
Yes, we are that type of person.
Awareness & Action!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=56Bp6jxKR6s
FPFTraining
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSV5s-3gY-0WLDewDQ5WbPA
“Destiny doesn’t make appointments,
nor does she waste her time with the naive and unready!”
-- John Farnam
***** News, Legal, Philosophical, and Political stuff *****
Downrange Failure
https://tacticalprofessor.wordpress.com/2018/12/27/downrange-failure/
Media Hype Questionable Gun Control Study
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=lXGgI2E5JUw
What you believe depends on what you choose to read and watch.
https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=747672642281894&id=100011174952414
"There is no journalism. There is only propaganda."
-- Prof. Yerkes, English Department, Columbia University (~1977 A.D.)
"When You Give a Teacher a Gun" in Gentlemen's Quarterly magazine
https://www.gq.com/story/when-you-give-a-teacher-a-gun
A reporter embeds with a FASTER Saves Lives class in Ohio.
Few tyrants argue for 'slavery of the masses.'
Instead, they argue for the power to
'protect people from themselves.'
-- AE Samaan
***** Survival Tips *****
"If you prepare for the emergency,
the emergency ceases to exist!"
-- Dr. Sherman House
This is why you must never send your child to a government school.
UNPREPARED AND OVERWHELMED
http://projects.sun-sentinel.com/2018/sfl-parkland-school-shooting-critical-moments/
This happens all over the world, all the time. About once
a week world wide. (I read and analyze open source intelligence.
It was my job in the Marine Corps for 3 decades.) A concentration
of children with unarmed and untrained adults is a honey pot for
criminals and terrorists. Notice the sexual predators kept at the
school by the district administrators in spite of the investigator's
recommendation to fire that faculty member.
When Cops Shoot an Unarmed Kid
http://www.activeresponsetraining.net/when-cops-shoot-an-unarmed-kid
This is truth. As Ralph Morz says, police departments
disqualify any applicant with any arrest record. So, they end up
with applicants who have never been in a fight, not even a shoving
conflict. Can such people handle violent confrontations? They
can't even conceive of a violent confrontation. So, what do they
do when they can't control the situation? They go to guns.
Don't go to stupid places.
Don't do stupid things.
Don't hang out with stupid people.
-- John Farnam
Or, . . . as my girlfriend says,
"That's a horrible idea. What time?"
***** Basics *****
"Panic is simply the lack of preprogrammed responses."
-- Tom Givens
Training: Three ready positions every concealed carrier should know
https://www.guns.com/news/review/training-three-ready-positions-every-concealed-carrier-should-know
The problem with the Sul position is that you only have one
hand on the pistol. So, we teach a retention Sul position, which
is the same as the Sul, except that the support side hand is in
front of the pistol (holding the pistol), instead of behind the pistol.
The thumb tips are still in contact to prevent the possibility of
shooting your support side hand. (Ya, I know that sounds stupid.
But, it's a real thing.)
"Fear is an instinct. Courage is a choice."
-- Rear Admiral Joseph Kernan, USN
***** Miscellany *****
"We are what we repeatedly do.
Excellence is not an act.
It is a habit."
-- Aristotle
Pro Tip: Understanding Parallax | Shooting USA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q7Q9O_jzs6Q
How Does it Work: Open Bolt vs Closed Bolt Firearms
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=Ga4uoWmfEt4
Individuals and churches come to me for training.
Usually after a traumatic experience. When they realize
how inept they are at personal or organizational security.
A young lady asked me for training because she and her
friend had been followed by two men in a Kroger grocery
store. The men followed them out to their car.
I reach out to churches, businesses, and individuals.
Because the training prevents the criminal predator from
choosing the trained person to victimize in the first
place, avoiding the trauma. Training changes the person's
personality, behavior, body language, etc. The trained
person leaks information that makes it clear to any
observer this is not an easy submissive target.
For the latest version (it changes almost daily)
of my lesson plans for my NRA Defensive Pistol course,
send me an email. Jon_Low@yahoo.com
“After our enemies with guns have all been wiped out,
there will still be enemies without guns, and they
are bound to struggle desperately against us.
We must never regard these enemies lightly.”
-- Mao Tse Tung
Report to the Second Plenary Session of the
Seventh Central Committee of the
Communist Party of China, 1949 A.D.
Cheers,
Low Jun Hin
Report to the Sheepdogs of Defensive Pistolcraft
Patriotic Defenders of the Second Amendment
United States of America, 2019 A.D.
Jonathan D. Low
Jon_Low@yahoo.com
***** Mindset *****
I am the kit fox,
I live in uncertainty.
If there is anything difficult,
If there is anything dangerous to do,
That is mine.
-- Sioux warrior's song
Please read "The Farnam Method of Defensive Handgunning"
by John S. Farnam. To order the book, send a check for $30
made out to Defensive Training International to
Mrs. Vicki Farnam
1281 E Magnolia Street
Suite D/340
Fort Collins, CO 80524
Make sure to include your address.
Mr. Farnam teaches to shoot from a stationary position.
Don't move and shoot at the same time. (The games such as IDPA
and IPSC love to force the competitor to shoot while moving.)
But, shooting while moving drastically increases your
probability of missing, and every miss is damaging property
and injuring innocent people, maybe killing them.
"Only those who risk going too far can
possibly find out how far one can go."
-- T.S. Elliot
Voluntary Victims
http://defense-training.com/2018/voluntary-victims/
Excerpt:
“Stay alert and keep your head up.
Out here, not all ‘organ donations’ are voluntarily!”
Complacency kills.
“Success is not final, failure is not fatal,
it is the courage to continue that counts.”
“Never, Never, Never Give Up.”
-- Winston Churchill
***** Safety *****
“The fast and/or emphatic reholster
is an awesome way to shoot yourself.”
-- Chuck Haggard
". . . personal defense is a lifestyle, not a hobby."
-- Sheriff Jim Wilson
***** Training *****
Why do I need to train?
"To each there comes in their lifetime a special moment
when they are figuratively tapped on the shoulder and
offered the chance to do a very special thing, unique
to them and fitted to their talents. What a tragedy if
that moment finds them unprepared or unqualified for
that which could have been their finest hour."
-- Winston Churchill
Stop practicing shooting!
https://thestreetstandards.wordpress.com/2018/12/12/stop-practicing-shooting/
Please read the comments by Marcus Wynne at the end of the blog post.
5 quick and easy spec-ops trigger control tips for defensive pistol precision
http://exclusive.multibriefs.com/content/5-quick-and-easy-spec-ops-trigger-control-tips-for-defensive-pistol-precisi/law-enforcement-defense-security
“When you aren’t skilled and confident,
you get scared and you over react.”
-- Greg Ellifritz
Practice smarter: Information is key to improving shooting
http://exclusive.multibriefs.com/content/practice-smarter-information-is-key-to-improving-shooting/law-enforcement-defense-security
Practice smarter: The physiology behind learning
http://exclusive.multibriefs.com/content/practice-smarter-the-physiology-behind-learning/law-enforcement-defense-security
Practice smarter: Putting it all together
http://exclusive.multibriefs.com/content/practice-smarter-putting-it-all-together/law-enforcement-defense-security
Your Tactical Training Scenario- Castle Doctrine
https://www.activeresponsetraining.net/your-tactical-training-scenario-castle-doctrine
Over the Christmas and New Year vacation, I practiced on the simulators
with Axiom Training in Summerville, SC. Email: fma.axiomtraining@yahoo.com
We had students from 11 years of age (female) to 60 (male). We consistently
found that the students shoot over the bad guy, when the bad guy ducks or
falls due to being shot.
John Farnam says you should fire your first shot to the bad guy's
navel (because it is difficult for him to move in such a way so as to
avoid getting hit there) and then the subsequent 3 rounds up the midline to
his neck (and then move).
We had a very ambiguous scenario in which a young man and a young
woman were lying on a couch in a college dormitory setting. He was
holding a knife and trying to convince her to do things. It was not
clear that she was in distress or not enjoying the situation.
The 11 year old girl presented her pistol from concealment and
fired 3 times into the guy (all good solid hits that would have
incapacitated him immediately). In the debriefing, she said that she
thought he was attacking her with the knife (and couldn't understand
how such behavior could be play). When questioned about any concerns
she might have had about missing and hitting the young lady (who was
lying next to the guy), she said it never entered her mind. When
asked if she had used her sight to aim, she said no. She said she
just pointed and shot.
In another scenario, a middle age woman (wife and mother of two)
watched a guest in her house get beaten to death and then allowed the
attacker to turn on her and kill her without presenting her pistol
from her holster. She put her hands on her face and turned to look
at us.
Yes, you can learn a lot in simulator practice. The simulator
is sometimes the crowbar that pries your eyes open to see reality.
Training scars
Are you doing something in training classes that you should not be
doing in combat? Are you doing something during your practice sessions
that you should not be doing in combat?
At Front Sight we learned Administrative Actions. We would do a
chamber check and a magazine check after every exercise before
holstering. The idea was that it ensured you were prepared for the
next exercise. We were repeatedly told that these were administrative
actions and that we were not to do them in a combat situation. But,
as Sara Ahrens says,
“Be careful what you teach. Because your students will do in combat
whatever you have trained them to do, no matter how ridiculous.
Be careful what you practice. Because you will do in combat whatever you
have practiced, no matter how ridiculous.”
(These are not direct quotes. I have paraphrased Ms. Ahrens.)
So, perhaps the correct thing to do is to dispense with the
administrative actions and simply holster after the After Action Drills.
Then you can practice reloading and clearing malfunctions when needed
in real time.
At Front Sight we never picked up spent casings. The casings
were considered part of the gravel surface on the ground. But, on
some ranges, students are required to police up their brass after
every exercise. Better to pick up brass at the end of the day.
Or, leave the brass on the ground for the brass hounds. There are
people who reload and would love to pick up your brass for you.
Training & Practice: You Need Both to Build Self-Defense Skills
https://www.shootingillustrated.com/articles/2019/1/4/training-practice-you-need-both-to-build-self-defense-skills/
Excerpt:
We train to learn new and proper techniques.
We practice those techniques often enough so
that they become a habit. And it is also the
reason for continuing our education by
taking more classes. Those classes reinforce
what we have learned and give us a chance to
make sure that we are practicing it properly.
There are actually many bad instructors in the
training industry. So, you have to be careful.
If you see them violating any of the 4 basic safety
rules:
RULE I: ALL GUNS ARE ALWAYS LOADED.
RULE II: NEVER LET THE MUZZLE COVER ANYTHING
YOU ARE NOT WILLING TO DESTROY.
RULE III: KEEP YOUR FINGER OFF THE TRIGGER
UNTIL YOUR SIGHTS ARE ON THE TARGET.
RULE IV: BE SURE OF YOUR TARGET.
in their YouTube.com or Photobucket videos or
advertising material, avoid them.
If you see them violating the safety rules in
class or allowing others to violate the safety rules,
leave the class. Don't worry about losing your tuition.
This is a life and death situation.
I have to mention this because very dangerous
practices have appeared in classes on YouTube.com
videos and after action reports from classes as
reported on several instructor forums.
Live fire while persons are down range is wrong.
Dry fire with real pistols while persons are down
range is wrong. Dry fire while aimed at persons is wrong.
"But, Staff, we did that sort of training in
the Marine Corps."
Yes, that is true. We fired artillery over the
heads of other guns in our battery. We crawled under
live machinegun fire and live explosive detonations.
But, I do not believe that that sort of training is
appropriate for civilian self defense operations.
The Armed Forces accept training casualties,
including fatalities. We, as civilian instructors,
should strive for zero training casualties.
Our insurance carriers won't tolerate casualties.
"I would like to see every
woman know how to handle
guns as naturally as they
know how to handle babies."
-- Annie Oakley
Rangemaster newsletter, January 2019 A.D.
http://rangemaster.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/2019-01_RFTS-Newsletter.pdf
Excerpt:
Remember that recency trumps everything in retention of motor skills, . . .
"You train for the people who love you."
-- Tatiana Whitlock
***** Tactics *****
Audacity wins.
-- Carl von Clausewitz
"FBI Miami Firefight" by Edmundo and Elizabeth Mireles,
2017. (No publisher listed.) ISBN 978099510308
Excerpts:
". . . In the military, if you run into an ambush,
you assault through the ambush. In law enforcement,
if you run into an ambush, you seek cover, return fire
if possible and call for back up. Two diametrically
opposed philosophies came into direct conflict on that
day." Page 82.
[I teach my students that an immediate explosive
counter attack (or preemptive attack, without telegraphing
your intention) is effective because surprise is a force
multiplier. Col. Cooper espouses similar advise in his book,
"Principles of Personal Defense", ISBN-10: 1581604955
ISBN-13: 978-1581604955
-- Jon Low]
IN EXTREMIS COMMUNICATION, PART 3
https://pointdriventraining.com/2015/12/24/in-extremis-communication-part-3/
Who Dares Wins
-- motto of the Special Air Service
***** Techniques *****
"The shorter the fight, the less hurt you get."
-- John Holschen
10 Common Handgun Draw Mistakes, and How to Fix Them
https://www.personaldefenseworld.com/2018/12/10-handgun-draw-mistakes/
My comments:
-
Snatch, Don’t Pull
[I had to think about this for a while.
I'm pretty sure what the author is talking about
is jerking the pistol out of the holster, as
opposed to smoothly pulling the pistol out of
the holster. In order to get the inertia
effect that the author is talking about, you
have to have a non-zero third derivative of
displacement with respect to time. [Zeroth
derivative is displacement. 1st derivative is
velocity. 2nd derivative is acceleration.
The automotive industry calls the 3rd derivative
"jerk", because that's what the passengers
in the car feel.] So, you have to jerk the
pistol out of the holster. (Always a good
idea, because in combat, easy things become
difficult and difficult things become impossible.
So, make sure you can do everything easily in
training and practicing.) -- Jon Low]
-
Support Hand
[For us, civilian concealed carriers, the
support hand would not normally be free to slap
the chest. Rather, it would be holding the
concealment garment out of the way. Or, it would
be occupied, forcing a one handed presentation
from the holster. So, slapping the the chest
with the support hand may be forming a training scar.
-- Jon Low]
-
Trigger Control
[All bad autonomic nervous system responses are
defeated by the surprise break. That's why Col.
Jeff Cooper taught it. Anticipating recoil, and
pushing the muzzle low left (for a right handed
shooter), and breathing incorrectly (such as not
breathing) are autonomic nervous system responses.
-- Jon Low]
-
Slow Down Strings
[This is essential, because you can do all
these things only as fast as you can think.
Letting your pre-programmed responses outrun
your rational thought is wrong.
You may have had the experience of outrunning
your GPS unit while driving because you were
driving too fast. Bad results, you missed your
exit, you got into the wrong lane, etc. Worst
case, the cop does not stop you for speeding in
time, and you collide with another vehicle or
pedestrian, killing many. (You may not understand
what I am saying. When I was young, I hated the
cops for giving me speeding tickets. But, I am now
more mature and thoughtful. So, I realize that
the cops pulling me over for speeding, prevented
me from killing many people.) -- Jon Low]
-
Lack of Economy of Motion
“. . . speed is the economy of motion, . . .”
[You must not push yourself to go faster.
Rushing is one of the three causes of mishaps.
The Marine Corps calls self imposed rushing,
time compression. Distraction, breaking habits,
and time compression cause mishaps (in particular
crashing aircraft).
If you want to go faster, practice.
With deliberate practice, you will automatically
get faster.
It takes about 2000 repetitions to engrain
muscle memory, so you can execute the action without
conscious thought. How many times have you pissed
into the toilet bowl? Way more than 2000, right?
Why do you still miss? Because, your are not doing
it deliberately. You are not concentrating on what
you are doing. Repetition of an action is not the
same as deliberate practice. -- Jon Low]
-
Re-holstering
“If you don’t practice that and you’re in a
high-stress situation it’s going to be very difficult.”
[If you don't re-holster, the cops might shoot you,
because you are the person with the pistol in hand
at an active crime scene. -- Jon Low]
*** The following are related and should be read in the order presented. ***
Front sight focus or point shooting: Which is better?
http://exclusive.multibriefs.com/content/front-sight-focus-or-point-shooting-which-is-better/law-enforcement-defense-security
Sighted vs. point shooting: Myths and realities
http://exclusive.multibriefs.com/content/sighted-vs.-point-shooting-myths-and-realities/recreation-leisure
Excerpts:
This is something that shooters can eventually do
subconsciously . . . in a few thousandths of a second
instead of 0.4 seconds, or more.
. . .
Everything was being driven by the subconscious.
. . .
But I do agree with point shooting as a step in the sighted shooting process.
Why the quickest thing you can do to shoot better is something you shouldn’t do
http://exclusive.multibriefs.com/content/why-the-quickest-thing-you-can-do-to-shoot-better-is-something-you-shouldnt/law-enforcement-defense-security
Speed vs. accuracy in training and self-defense
http://exclusive.multibriefs.com/content/speed-vs.-accuracy-in-training-and-self-defense/law-enforcement-defense-security
Excerpt:
So, it’s really important that you do the shooting fundamentals
on autopilot so that your cortex can make smart choices about
whether or not to shoot and what to shoot.
*** End of related articles. ***
Craig Douglas teaches How to draw a firearm while standing in a crowd
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZwYmNwlVi8&fbclid=IwAR0ihslCuwjd-UGzvEXuDwBA9beNJr2RvLDfozErA7RvJZzBWO6Ib4DQCjw
After Drawing, When Should You See Your Sights?
https://gundigest.com/handguns/concealed-carry/after-drawing-when-should-you-see-your-sights
HOW TO ESCAPE A STANDING REAR CHOKE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMESzGWGV7M
This technique is similar to the technique taught
in the Marine Corps Martial Arts Program. As with all
self-defense techniques, the goal is to escape.
The Marine Corps technique's (taught in 1981) goal was
to incapacitate or kill. The Judo we learned in boot
camp was not the sport Judo taught in civilian schools
for progression into Olympic competition. Sport Judo
is sanitized. They do not teach techniques that would
injure or kill the opponent. Parents wouldn't send
their children to such classes.
How do you win a gunfight? Don’t be there.
-–John Farnam
***** Gear *****
Avoidance, Deterrence, and De-escalation
-- John Farnam
"FBI Miami Firefight" by Edmundo and Elizabeth Mireles,
2017. (No publisher listed.) ISBN 978099510308
Excerpt:
"Keeping in mind that the Wound Ballistics Workshop
concluded that size does matter, . . . " (the author
italicized the word "does"). Page 138.
[That is why you should shoot the biggest bullet
that you can shoot accurately. -- Jon Low]
I got a holster from
Craft Holsters
https://www.craftholsters.com/
Ivana Krasku 980/9
96901 Banska Stiavnica
Slovakia
(They had initiated the contact because apparently someone in Slovakia is reading this blog.)
Model: Open-Muzzle IWB Holster
Color: Black
Handed: Right
Gun: manufacturer Ruger, model American, .45 ACP
As described and pictured on the web page,
https://www.craftholsters.com/open-muzzle-iwb-holster-p79
$59.95
Shipping $17.95 UPS
The material quality is high. The quality of workmanship
is high. The areas that need to be reinforced are (so the
mouth of the holster stays open and it appears that the holster
will not wear out in normal usage before the pistol does).
Double stitching throughout. Molding is well done.
Tension screw is effective at controlling the friction on
the trigger guard that holds the pistol in the holster.
(I like my holsters tight, so my pistol won't fall out
when I break dance. Don't want to be like that FBI special
agent who dropped his pistol at the night club and then
negligently shot a guy when the agent picked up the pistol.
Ya, I have to jerk hard to get the pistol out of the holster,
but that's the trade off I'm willing to make.)
As with all high quality leather holsters, it is tight at
first and needs a break in period, but then it holds the pistol
firmly and consistently. I had forgotten the smell of high
quality leather. I haven't bought a leather holster since
my Kramer decades ago. (I've been using hybrid holsters
of leather and Kydex.) The snaps that hold the holster to
my belt are secure. Wearing the holster in the 3 o'clock
position is comfortable. No sharp edges digging into me
or anything like that. I can bend my leg at the hip without
the holster impeding movement. There is no adjustment
(as in most hybrid holsters) for cant or position of
carry up and down relative to your belt. But, it is
designed correctly, so that's not a problem.
I recommend this holster without reservation.
Finding a pistol grip that fits your hand is essential
for weapon retention and accuracy. Your glove size
(circumference measured around your knuckles) is not relevant.
The length of your fingers (not your thumb) is really what matters.
When you have established a correct high tight grip, and
the barrel is in line with the bones of your forearm
(in the same line, not just parallel to) your fingers
should wrap around the grip so that your finger tips point
back toward you.
Try grabbing a hammer. Got a solid strong grip?
Try grabbing a pencil in the same way. Too small, right?
Try grabbing a basketball in the same way. Too big, right?
There is an optimal size of an object that allows you to
get your strongest hand grip on that object. On your pistol grip,
it is the largest grip that allows your finger tips to
point back toward you.
Why do you need a strong grip? So, the pistol doesn't
come out of your hand. Well, someone may be trying to rip
it out of your hand or you may have bumped into something
that would knock the pistol out of your hand.
Ordering some full size self-defense pistols in .45 ACP
from fattest grip to thinnest grip (in my opinion)
we have (magazine capacity + 1 in the chamber):
Glock G21, 13+1
Para Ordnance, 14+1
Springfield Armory XD, 13+1
Heckler & Kock USP, 12+1
Heckler & Kock HK45, 10+1
Smith & Wesson M&P, 10+1
Ruger American, 10+1
CZ 97 B, 10+1
Model 1911 type single stack pistols, 8+1
(Of course, you can change the stocks, back strap,
etc. to change the size of the grip.) Grip size is more
important than magazine capacity. Don't be silly with
life and death decisions.
Once, you find a pistol with correct grip size for
your hand, you have to adjust the trigger so that when
you place the center of your fingerprint on the center
of the trigger, and you have taken the slack out of the
trigger, the last bone of your trigger finger is
perpendicular to the barrel. That is to say, your
trigger finger is pressing the trigger straight to the
rear, without any vector component of force in any other
direction. So, your gunsmith may have to move your
trigger, or you may have to change your trigger. Just
do it. Don't compromise your grip to get proper trigger
placement.
I met a Customs and Border Patrol Officer at an
instructor's class whose hand was too small for his
pistol's grip (a Glock). So, he rotated his hand around
the grip, so he could get his finger on the trigger.
(So, his thumb did not lay flat against the side of
his pistol, but rather pointed out to the side.)
He had to do this because his agency would not allow
him to use some other pistol and would not allow him
to modify the trigger on his issued pistol. (He put in
a lot of practice and shot quite well. But, WHY?
This is akin to forcing all of your agents to wear
the same size shoes. Can you imagine trying to work
in shoes that don't fit your feet?) As a civilian,
you don't have such ridiculous restrictions. So,
get a proper fitting pistol grip and move your trigger
to accommodate the length of your trigger finger.
Your pistol should be ambidextrous. Just because you're
right handed doesn't mean you're going to be right handed in
combat. The person you give your pistol to might not be right
handed.
Pistols such as the Glock and Smith&Wesson M&P allow you to
move parts to make the pistol left handed. That's not the
same as being ambidextrous, and once so configured will
present a problem for the right handed shooter (which may
be you, being forced to shoot with your support side hand).
The truly ambidextrous pistols that I know of are:
Springfield Armory XD
Ruger American
Some of the Fabrique Nationale Herstal pistols
Some of the Heckler and Koch pistols
Some of the Walther pistols
Charter Arms makes a left handed revolver. But, you
should not be using a revolver for combat. They don't
hold enough ammunition. They take too long to reload.
They are too difficult to reload under stress or one handed.
All other revolvers are extremely right handed and difficult
to manipulate left handed.
If you choose to have a manual thumb safety on your
pistol, it should be ambidextrous. But, you should not
have a manual thumb safety. Unless, you are going to
practice enough to automatically defeat the safety when
you present your pistol, and automatically engage the
safety immediately before holstering (which takes about
2000 deliberate correct repetitions). So, in the modern
manual of arms, the safety is only engaged when the pistol
is holstered. If you have a properly designed holster,
it will cover the trigger. So, the manual thumb safety
is not useful. That's why most modern combat pistols
don't have manual thumb safeties.
***** Instructors *****
"In martial arts and especially if you claim to teach self-defense,
the price of error is blood. The luxury of an instructor is that
it will not be your blood. That makes bullshit more reprehensible,
not less." -- Rory Miller
Instructors, please read "The Farnam Method of Defensive Handgunning"
by John S. Farnam; completely, not just the parts that pertain to you.
Because you will have to teach those left handed revolver techniques to
your student. Well, you will, if you are worth your salt.
Shooting Sports Industry Influencer Series: John Chapman
https://www.getzone.com/shooting-sports-industry-influencer-series-john-chapman/
Excerpt:
"Talking negatively about other instructors is a huge red flag."
This is truth.
My aunt Lois told me, if you don't have anything nice to say,
don't say anything.
It's a matter of maturity, spiritual maturity.
"Every time I teach a class,
I discover I don't know something."
-- Clint Smith, Director of Thunder Ranch
The Telephone Game and the Training Industry
https://tacticalprofessor.wordpress.com/2017/05/14/the-telephone-game-and-the-training-industry/
Colonel Robert Lindsey to his fellow trainers:
"We are not God’s gift to our students.
Our students are God’s gift to us."
***** Pedagogy *****
"Train, Practice, Compete are the key
elements in the development of humans."
-- John M. Buol, Jr.
***** Education *****
Video Podcast: Concealed Carry and Responsibilities
http://www.downrange.tv/blog/video-podcast-concealed-carry-and-responsibilities/42719/
This is reality.
Excerpt:
Adaptive thinkers and competent doers.
Louis Awerbuck: Interview With a Madman
https://louisawerbuckinterviewwithamadman.blogspot.com/2009/02/jeff-cooper-once-told-me-that-he.html
Excerpts:
. . . All males from the shoulder line to the waist are the same height,
whether it’s me or a basketball player. And from nipple to nipple they’re
all nine inches wide. So in a full frontal shot, if you’re out nine inches
here you’ve got nothing. . . .
[Mr. Awerbuck's training is one of the reasons that I took my
children to a 4-day defensive handgun class when they were 14 years
old. He was correct about a lot of things. And humble to the end.
-- Jon Low]
The odds and stakes of home protection
https://tacticalprofessor.wordpress.com/2018/12/23/the-odds-and-stakes-of-home-protection/
Driving 201: Road Tactics
https://www.integratedskillsgroup.com/blog/driving-201-road-tactics
Small Arms Survey report: Improvised weapons
http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/about-us/highlights/2018/highlight-report-improvised.html
Free download at
http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/fileadmin/docs/U-Reports/SAS-improvised-craft-weapons-report.pdf
We're not talking about zip-guns. We're talking craft-production.
We're not talking handtools in your garage. We're talking top of the
line milling machines and lathes. No, I'm not advertising for my
employer.
An Introductory Guide to the Identification of
Small Arms, Light Weapons, and Associated Ammunition
http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/resources/publications/by-type/handbooks/weapons-id-handbook.html
Free downloads at the web site. For those of you who have been through
any of the intelligence schools, check out chapters 7, 8, and 9. I have
a high school classmate who has worked as an intelligence analyst since
grad school. He sits in an air conditioned office in Suitland, MD.
I told him that he should get out in the field and see the real world.
Criminals do not appear out of no where.
If you didn't see him coming, shame on you.
"Criminal Assault Pre-Incident Indicators"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XPbCw9pV90c&fbclid=IwAR0Vq3tOjlj7MQbqBbGREnaTXwH9IGXjPMAtSkyPhALrQsfvPHk0390JYSI
If you didn't take immediate action (like running away)
when you noticed him, shame on you.
"I'm the victim! It's not my fault!"
Completely false. If you live defensively, you will have time to avoid.
"The car accident wasn't my fault. I had the right of way."
Completely false. If you drive defensively, you will never get into a collision.
(Even if someone intentionally attempts to ram you.)
If you have a collision with a stationary object, you are an incompetent
driver, and you need to take training and practice until you are competent.
Cars are unstable when driven backwards. If you can drive
backwards fast in a controlled manner, you are well on your way
to becoming a competent defensive driver.
If you are constantly scanning 360 degrees around, even when
you are stopped at an intersection, you will notice the car barreling
down behind you, and you will have time to pull onto the sidewalk
to avoid getting rear ended.
Yes, we are that type of person.
Awareness & Action!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=56Bp6jxKR6s
FPFTraining
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSV5s-3gY-0WLDewDQ5WbPA
“Destiny doesn’t make appointments,
nor does she waste her time with the naive and unready!”
-- John Farnam
***** News, Legal, Philosophical, and Political stuff *****
Downrange Failure
https://tacticalprofessor.wordpress.com/2018/12/27/downrange-failure/
Media Hype Questionable Gun Control Study
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=lXGgI2E5JUw
What you believe depends on what you choose to read and watch.
https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=747672642281894&id=100011174952414
"There is no journalism. There is only propaganda."
-- Prof. Yerkes, English Department, Columbia University (~1977 A.D.)
"When You Give a Teacher a Gun" in Gentlemen's Quarterly magazine
https://www.gq.com/story/when-you-give-a-teacher-a-gun
A reporter embeds with a FASTER Saves Lives class in Ohio.
Few tyrants argue for 'slavery of the masses.'
Instead, they argue for the power to
'protect people from themselves.'
-- AE Samaan
***** Survival Tips *****
"If you prepare for the emergency,
the emergency ceases to exist!"
-- Dr. Sherman House
This is why you must never send your child to a government school.
UNPREPARED AND OVERWHELMED
http://projects.sun-sentinel.com/2018/sfl-parkland-school-shooting-critical-moments/
This happens all over the world, all the time. About once
a week world wide. (I read and analyze open source intelligence.
It was my job in the Marine Corps for 3 decades.) A concentration
of children with unarmed and untrained adults is a honey pot for
criminals and terrorists. Notice the sexual predators kept at the
school by the district administrators in spite of the investigator's
recommendation to fire that faculty member.
When Cops Shoot an Unarmed Kid
http://www.activeresponsetraining.net/when-cops-shoot-an-unarmed-kid
This is truth. As Ralph Morz says, police departments
disqualify any applicant with any arrest record. So, they end up
with applicants who have never been in a fight, not even a shoving
conflict. Can such people handle violent confrontations? They
can't even conceive of a violent confrontation. So, what do they
do when they can't control the situation? They go to guns.
Don't go to stupid places.
Don't do stupid things.
Don't hang out with stupid people.
-- John Farnam
Or, . . . as my girlfriend says,
"That's a horrible idea. What time?"
***** Basics *****
"Panic is simply the lack of preprogrammed responses."
-- Tom Givens
Training: Three ready positions every concealed carrier should know
https://www.guns.com/news/review/training-three-ready-positions-every-concealed-carrier-should-know
The problem with the Sul position is that you only have one
hand on the pistol. So, we teach a retention Sul position, which
is the same as the Sul, except that the support side hand is in
front of the pistol (holding the pistol), instead of behind the pistol.
The thumb tips are still in contact to prevent the possibility of
shooting your support side hand. (Ya, I know that sounds stupid.
But, it's a real thing.)
"Fear is an instinct. Courage is a choice."
-- Rear Admiral Joseph Kernan, USN
***** Miscellany *****
"We are what we repeatedly do.
Excellence is not an act.
It is a habit."
-- Aristotle
Pro Tip: Understanding Parallax | Shooting USA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q7Q9O_jzs6Q
How Does it Work: Open Bolt vs Closed Bolt Firearms
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=Ga4uoWmfEt4
Individuals and churches come to me for training.
Usually after a traumatic experience. When they realize
how inept they are at personal or organizational security.
A young lady asked me for training because she and her
friend had been followed by two men in a Kroger grocery
store. The men followed them out to their car.
I reach out to churches, businesses, and individuals.
Because the training prevents the criminal predator from
choosing the trained person to victimize in the first
place, avoiding the trauma. Training changes the person's
personality, behavior, body language, etc. The trained
person leaks information that makes it clear to any
observer this is not an easy submissive target.
For the latest version (it changes almost daily)
of my lesson plans for my NRA Defensive Pistol course,
send me an email. Jon_Low@yahoo.com
“After our enemies with guns have all been wiped out,
there will still be enemies without guns, and they
are bound to struggle desperately against us.
We must never regard these enemies lightly.”
-- Mao Tse Tung
Report to the Second Plenary Session of the
Seventh Central Committee of the
Communist Party of China, 1949 A.D.
Cheers,
Low Jun Hin
Report to the Sheepdogs of Defensive Pistolcraft
Patriotic Defenders of the Second Amendment
United States of America, 2019 A.D.
Jonathan D. Low
Jon_Low@yahoo.com
Monday, December 24, 2018
CWP, 24 December 2018 Anno Domini
Merry Christmas!
May I invite your attention to
The Art of Instructing (Part 1 of 2)
http://www.dtioperator.com/free-videos/
As Mr. Farnam says, the firearms training
at police academies and military boot camps is
poor. I too realized this truth from my experience.
(In Marine Corps Recruit Training in 1981,
we were not trained to keep our trigger finger
in the register position. This resulted in
many tragic training and combat friendly casualties.)
So, I took my children to a 4-day pistol class
at Front Sight Firearms Training Institute
when they turned 14 years of age. I then took
my son to a 4-day M-16 class before he entered
Marine Corps recruit training. Because I wasn't
going to leave it to some large institution that
has to train hundreds of persons a day to train
my children. Neither should you.
***** Mindset *****
“Success is not final, failure is not fatal,
it is the courage to continue that counts.”
“Never, Never, Never Give Up.”
-- Winston Churchill
Some are disturbed by the fact that after using lethal force
in self-defense, the good guy is criminally prosecuted and civilly
sued in the courts. How unfair. How unjust. As I tell my
children, "The world is not fair. The sooner you understand this
and accept it, the sooner you will be able to use it to your
advantage; rather than whining about it."
What does the Bible say about this?
"There is a vanity that takes place on earth, that there
are righteous people who are treated according to the conduct
of the wicked, and there are wicked people who are treated
according to the conduct of the righteous. I said that this
also is vanity." Ecclesiastes 8:14, New Revised Standard Version
Boundaries
http://www.activeresponsetraining.net/boundaries
Decisions must be made now, because you cannot predict
when the incident will occur. Maybe the woman was not
refusing, maybe she was just hesitating. Dithering kills.
Know what you're going to do before you have to do it in
a high stress situation.
The immediate explosive counter attack (without telegraphing
your intentions) is effective, because you take the element of
surprise, which is a force multiplier.
"Physical courage is an instinct.
Moral courage is a much more difficult intellectual decision."
-- Pastor Mike Ayon
***** Enemy Mindset *****
Complacency kills.
"Only those who risk going too far can
possibly find out how far one can go."
-- T.S. Elliot
***** Safety *****
“The fast and/or emphatic reholster
is an awesome way to shoot yourself.”
-- Chuck Haggard
Let me tell you something I tell my children (not that they
ever listen to me or believe me). If you wear jewelry or give
jewelry, you have been corrupted by the propaganda of the world
into believing that jewelry is good. That is a false belief.
Jewelry does not feed anyone. It does not clothe anyone.
It does not house anyone. It cannot be used as a tool for
transportation or security. Quite the contrary,
jewelry tells the prospective mugger that even if you don't have
any money or credit cards in your wallet, he will at least get
that ring. Jewelry tells the prospective kidnapper that the
prospective victim is loved by someone who will pay a large ransom
for her. Jewelry attracts the wrong kind of attention.
It is a vanity. You don't want to associate with the type
of people that jewelry impresses.
Jewelry tells the incel person that you are the object
of his hatred.
"5 things to know about incels"
https://www.policeone.com/mass-casualty/articles/482200006-5-things-to-know-about-incels/
Don't kid yourself. Incels are real and have committed many
mass murders.
***** Training *****
“When you aren’t skilled and confident,
you get scared and you over react.”
-- Greg Ellifritz
Can eye dominance change? Yes. Tom Clark writes to tell of
his changing when he got cataracts. It wasn't obvious to him at
first why his groups were opening up. But, after an eye dominance
test (which he does with every class he teaches), the problem was
discovered. After about 100 repetitions, the dominant eye was
firmly in control and the groups tightened back up.
I have found that using your dominant eye for aiming has a
strong psychological effect. You will have much more confidence
in your aiming when using your dominant eye.
If you still use your sights to aim, you should do this instead
http://exclusive.multibriefs.com/content/if-you-still-use-your-sights-to-aim-you-should-do-this-instead/recreation-leisure
What Really Happens In A Gunfight?
http://www.handgunsmag.com/editorial/tactics_training_what_happens_gunfight/138051
Excerpts:
Awareness is as important to gun fighting as is trigger control.
The history of gun fighting for more than a century has shown
that the person that lands the first solid hit will usually win
the confrontation.
Many advised that they had taken the time to think about what
they would do in the event they were attacked and had even played
out scenarios in their head.
Objects that are large and of contrasting color are easier to
see under stress, which makes the current generation of semi-auto
sights on the wrong end of the sight plane. I, for one, have
highlighted the front sight of all my pistols with bright orange
emergency warning tape. It offers a contrast that is large and
bold and I feel is the reason that I can recall my sights during
high stress events.
Dr. Vincent DiMaio, a noted pathologist and author of the
book Gunshot Wounds, has been quoted as saying the stopping power
comes from, "Where you hit the person and how many times you
can hit them."
Those that understood what was happening to them better
handled the sensation during the encounter versus the people
who did not.
. . . those who are totally comfortable with what they did,
have no doubt in their justification to do so and have suffered
no side effects whatsoever.
Today, Saturday, 8 December 2018, I took Basic Tactical
Trauma Care given by Josh Black and Jason Rader.
Things I learned:
If you had taken such a course a few years ago, you would
have learned the ABC, Airway - Breathing - Circulation as the
order of priority of care. The modern theory is MARCHE,
Massive Hemorrhaging - Airway - Respiration/Raking - Circulation/CPR -
Head Injury/Hypothermia - Evacuation, as the priority of treatment.
We learned all kinds of professional tricks to prepare the
tourniquet and other gear so that you can use it in chaotic high
stress situations. (When your hands are slippery with blood.
When one of your arms is not working. When you can't lift your leg.
Etc.)
We watched a video in which a guy gets shot in the leg
severing his femoral artery and loses consciousness in 17 seconds.
So, we then trained to put a tourniquet on ourselves in less
than 17 seconds. Yes, as a matter of fact you can do it.
It's just a matter of deliberate, intentional, motivated practice.
Sure, it takes 3 minutes to die from loss of blood, but if you
don't get your tourniquet on before you pass out in 17 seconds,
you die. So, you have 17 seconds, not 3 minutes.
We learned how to effectively slow arterial bleeding with
aimed direct pressure, to give you time to get the tourniquet
on the victim, or to pack the wound. If you don't know exactly
where the arteries are, you are not going to be able to pinch
them off.
We executed 2 scenarios in 2-man teams. Actually
executing the things you thought you learned and practiced
in class is an essential part of training. If you don't
actually execute a tactical scenario in your class, you
don't know if you've learned anything.
We learned how to identify yourself as a good guy,
so the cops don't shoot you.
We learned how much blood a given person has and what
the symptoms are at particular levels of blood loss.
We learned how to do Blood Sweeps and Skin Rakes to
find the injuries. No, as a matter of fact it is not easy
to find an injury on a responsive subject. It is
extremely difficult on an unresponsive subject. [PJ's
(U.S. Air Force Pararescuemen) told of a person they
rescued and though they had stabilized in transport
back to base. The person died because they had failed
to find a bullet entrance wound in his armpit.]
We learned how to deal with open, closed, tension,
and hemo pneumothorax (by definition the presence of air
or gas in the pleural cavity, but it can also be blood, hemo).
We learned how to determine blood pressure by
whether or not there is a pulse at a particular location
on the body.
We learned that part of your duty is to gather
intelligence for the next level of medical care. Yes,
you have to give the Emergency Medical Technicians or
Para Medics a report, MIST, Mechanism of Injury, Injury,
Signs and Symptoms, the Treatment that you administered.
Only use real CAT or SoftT tourniquets. The cheap
counterfeits on the market don't work, which may lead to
death. The other uncertified tourniquets that you can
buy on Amazon.com don't work, that's why they are not
certified.
Using a tourniquet correctly will not cause an
amputation of the limb. Once you put the tourniquet
on, don't loosen it, don't take it off. Let the
doctor do that. If you don't have the courage and
pain tolerance to apply a tourniquet correctly,
you will stop veinal flow, but not arterial flow;
which means blood will accumulate in the limb causing
swelling and killing the tissue. So, learn how
to do it correctly!
Use Combat Gauze. It is impregnated with hemostat.
John Farnam's advice for training and everyday carry,
http://defense-training.com/thank-you/#gf_4
Please view the videos at
http://www.dtioperator.com/free-videos/
Mr. Farnam asks that you share this information.
How Handgun Training Makes You A Better Precision Rifle Shooter
https://gundigest.com/rifles/tactical-rifles/how-handgun-training-makes-you-a-better-precision-rifle-shooter
If you're wondering what the author is talking about in
regards to instructors standing down range between the targets
while students shoot at the targets, contact me, and I'll tell
you about it off line.
"You train for the people who love you."
-- Tatiana Whitlock
***** Tactics *****
Audacity wins.
-- Carl von Clausewitz
". . . personal defense is a lifestyle, not a hobby."
-- Sheriff Jim Wilson
***** Techniques *****
"The shorter the fight, the less hurt you get."
-- John Holschen
Don’t Dig the Rig #17
http://www.activeresponsetraining.net/dont-dig-the-rig-17
Greg explains why front pocket carry is a bad idea.
Ambush Prevention Strategies for Patrol Officers
http://www.activeresponsetraining.net/ambush-prevention-strategies-for-patrol-officers
Greg suggests some techniques to avoid an attack
when sitting in your car.
I tell my students, don't sit in your car to do anything.
Get into your car and go. When you get where you're going, get out.
Texting in your parked car in a dark parking lot is asking
for trouble.
Situational Awareness Tips & Drills
https://modernsurvivalblog.com/security/situational-awareness-tips/
SouthNarc’s Favorite GUN DISARM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l2bkgbGFtmg&feature=youtu.be&fbclid=IwAR2SxwKlJ5zxIvtxmaKTJ-5cwOS3kd8Y8OBnLv0gM6YyvF3GoUgFtY4-5RE
Low Light Tactics for the Regular Person
https://www.integratedskillsgroup.com/blog/low-light
The picture of the Harries flashlight technique is wrong.
The support side elbow should be down, not sticking out to the side.
In the picture, the left arm is pushing the right arm up.
This is wrong. The left arm should be pushing left, while the
right arm pushes right. So, the "CON:" listed is wrong.
How do you win a gunfight? Don’t be there.
-–John Farnam
***** Gear *****
Avoidance, Deterrence, and De-escalation
-- John Farnam
Jeff Gonzales explains why he carries an extra magazine
rather than a back up gun.
https://medium.com/@jefflgonzales/two-guns-or-29c8d546850b
Who dares wins.
-- motto of the Special Air Service
***** Instructors *****
"Every time I teach a class,
I discover I don't know something."
-- Clint Smith, Director of Thunder Ranch
Teach with the knowledge that your students will teach
their friends, relatives, colleagues at work, etc. intentionally
or unintentionally. So, explain in detail why you are teaching
a particular technique. Your student should never have to
appeal to authority (no matter how great an authority you are).
Your student should always be able to convince his audience by
logical argument (without mentioning your name, because you
stole everything you teach from others). For instance, I teach
the Chapman version of the Weaver position because the advantages
are that:
1. It places your support side arm in front of the vital organs
in your torso, making it more difficult for the enemy to strike
your heart and lungs. (For those of us who do not regularly
wear body armor. If you are wearing body armor, it makes sense
to present the front of your armor to the enemy and not expose
the side of your armor.)
2. It is the same stance for pistol and long gun. So,
transitioning between the two is easier than with other positions.
3. It allows the shooter to pull with the support side arm bicep.
If the support side arm is locked out straight (as in the isosceles
stance), you can't pull with the support side arm. You have to
pull with the support side arm to prevent the muzzle from flipping
up on recoil. If the muzzle flips up on recoil, it takes longer
and is harder to get the sights on the target for the second and
subsequent shots.
4. It looks more aggressive to the enemy (a significant
psychological advantage) because it is a fighting stance similar
to a boxing stance. The body language says, “I am ready and
willing to fight.”
5. It reduces the width of the target that you present to the enemy.
This has a strong psychological affect on the enemy as it makes his
target smaller and thus reduces his confidence in hitting his target.
6. It gives the shooter a supported position when the shooter
transitions to the kneeling position or the squatting position.
7. The Harries flashlight technique uses the Weaver stance.
http://michaelharries.com/index.php
8. It flows naturally from the interview position that you
assumed, because you were aware of the situation, because
you were in condition yellow when the enemy started the incident.
If you can't explain why you are teaching the techniques
that you are teaching, you owe it to your students to do the
research, so that you can explain the reasons for using the
technique and explain the details of the technique.
Colonel Robert Lindsey to his fellow trainers:
"We are not God’s gift to our students.
Our students are God’s gift to us."
***** Pedagogy *****
"We are what we repeatedly do.
Excellence is not an act.
It is a habit."
-- Aristotle
The Developmental Model
https://firearmusernetwork.com/2017/11/25/developmental-model/
Excerpt:
"I too was merely once a small arms instructor
with no understanding or appreciation for how
competition is actually the essential part of
development."
"Train, Practice, Compete are the key
elements in the development of humans."
***** Education *****
“That nation is surest to live in peace,
that is most capable of making war;
and a man with a sword always by his side,
shall have least occasion to make use of it.”
-- John Trenchard
Rangemaster Newsletter
http://rangemaster.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/2018-12_RFTS-Newsletter.pdf
Mistaken Identity Shootings
http://www.thetacticalwire.com/features/3f871d07-c5d2-4d59-bc17-46b27a0f1b88
Excerpt:
"After you had to defend yourself, put your gun
BACK IN THE HOLSTER while keeping an eye on the bad guy
so you reduce the risk of getting shot by the police."
“Destiny doesn’t make appointments,
nor does she waste her time with the naive and unready!”
-- John Farnam
***** News, Legal, Philosophical, and Political stuff *****
Civil War happens when the victimized are armed.
Genocide happens when they are not!
-- A.E. Samaan
“Red-Flag,” revisited!
http://defense-training.com/2018/red-flag-revisited/
Write to your Representative and Senator before
you lose your liberty. If you are too lazy or apathetic
to do so for yourself, do it for your children who will
have to live under these laws.
Sheriff: Woman kills jail escapee who kicks in her door
https://apnews.com/c84c1f16fb414aac990bf71670099070
Excerpt:
“This is the shining example” of why owning and
knowing how to use a gun is important, the sheriff said.
Placed in Harm’s Way, Unarmed!
http://defense-training.com/2018/placed-in-harms-way-unarmed/
Brazilian Lawmakers Push Law Recognizing Right to Own Guns for Self-Defense
https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2018/12/02/brazilian-lawmakers-push-law-recognizing-right-own-guns-self-defense/
Ohio state lawmakers pass firearms bill, with
changes, in effort to avoid Gov. Kasich's veto
https://myfox28columbus.com/news/local/state-lawmakers-pass-firearms-bill-with-changes-in-effort-to-avoid-kasich-veto
This new Ohio law brings Ohio into line with the other 49
states in that the prosecutor must prove beyond a reasonable
doubt that the defendant's acts were not self-defense. Previous
Ohio law forced the defendant to prove by a preponderance of the
evidence that his act was self-defense. That's a big difference.
Andrew Branca says that even if you can afford an expert witness,
that doesn't mean you can get him to testify for you at trial. It is
at the sole discretion of the trial judge as to whether or not your
expert witness will be allowed to testify.
It is necessary, but not sufficient, for your expert witness
to be relevant. Relevant means both material (it affects legal
arguments that matter) and probative (it would help the finder of
facts reach a decision).
It doesn't matter what expertise the expert witness has,
all that matters is what expertise the judge thinks the expert
witness has. As Hayes and Ayoob explained in their lecture,
"The Firearms Instructor as Expert Witness" at the 2018 Tactical
Conference, as an expert witness, you have to convince the judge
that you are a subject matter expert and that the subject matters
to the case being tried. Manny (Emanuel) Kapelsohn also mentioned
that you have to convince the judge without causing the judge
to think that your testimony would be prejudicial.
“Totalitarian states can do great things,
but there is one thing they cannot do:
They cannot give a rifle to a factory-worker,
and then tell him to take it home and keep it in his bedroom.
That rifle, hanging on the wall of the working-class flat or
laborer’s cottage, is The symbol of Democracy!
It is our job to see that it stays there!”
-- George Orwell
***** Survival Tips *****
"If you prepare for the emergency,
the emergency ceases to exist!"
-- Dr. Sherman House
What cops need to tell their families about active shooters
https://www.policeone.com/active-shooter/articles/482011006-What-cops-need-to-tell-their-families-about-active-shooters/
Extreme Weather Driving Guide
https://www.geico.com/more/driving/auto/car-safety-insurance/extreme-weather-driving-guide/
"Staff, this stuff is basic. Why mention it in your blog?"
This information is for those who don't have a plan. They
may use this information to form their plan; to know what to do
in the event of . . .
If a person does not know what to do, he panics. If he knows
what to do, he executes his plan.
Don't go to stupid places.
Don't do stupid things.
Don't hang out with stupid people.
-- John Farnam
***** Basics *****
"Panic is simply the lack of preprogrammed responses."
-- Tom Givens
"Fear is an instinct. Courage is a choice."
-- Rear Admiral Joseph Kernan, USN
***** Miscellany *****
For the latest version (it changes almost daily)
of my lesson plans for my NRA Defensive Pistol course,
send me an email. Jon_Low@yahoo.com
Few tyrants argue for 'slavery of the masses.'
Instead, they argue for the power to
'protect people from themselves.'
-- AE Samaan
Your Servant,
Jon
Jonathan D. Low
Jon_Low@yahoo.com
May I invite your attention to
The Art of Instructing (Part 1 of 2)
http://www.dtioperator.com/free-videos/
As Mr. Farnam says, the firearms training
at police academies and military boot camps is
poor. I too realized this truth from my experience.
(In Marine Corps Recruit Training in 1981,
we were not trained to keep our trigger finger
in the register position. This resulted in
many tragic training and combat friendly casualties.)
So, I took my children to a 4-day pistol class
at Front Sight Firearms Training Institute
when they turned 14 years of age. I then took
my son to a 4-day M-16 class before he entered
Marine Corps recruit training. Because I wasn't
going to leave it to some large institution that
has to train hundreds of persons a day to train
my children. Neither should you.
***** Mindset *****
“Success is not final, failure is not fatal,
it is the courage to continue that counts.”
“Never, Never, Never Give Up.”
-- Winston Churchill
Some are disturbed by the fact that after using lethal force
in self-defense, the good guy is criminally prosecuted and civilly
sued in the courts. How unfair. How unjust. As I tell my
children, "The world is not fair. The sooner you understand this
and accept it, the sooner you will be able to use it to your
advantage; rather than whining about it."
What does the Bible say about this?
"There is a vanity that takes place on earth, that there
are righteous people who are treated according to the conduct
of the wicked, and there are wicked people who are treated
according to the conduct of the righteous. I said that this
also is vanity." Ecclesiastes 8:14, New Revised Standard Version
Boundaries
http://www.activeresponsetraining.net/boundaries
Decisions must be made now, because you cannot predict
when the incident will occur. Maybe the woman was not
refusing, maybe she was just hesitating. Dithering kills.
Know what you're going to do before you have to do it in
a high stress situation.
The immediate explosive counter attack (without telegraphing
your intentions) is effective, because you take the element of
surprise, which is a force multiplier.
"Physical courage is an instinct.
Moral courage is a much more difficult intellectual decision."
-- Pastor Mike Ayon
***** Enemy Mindset *****
Complacency kills.
"Only those who risk going too far can
possibly find out how far one can go."
-- T.S. Elliot
***** Safety *****
“The fast and/or emphatic reholster
is an awesome way to shoot yourself.”
-- Chuck Haggard
Let me tell you something I tell my children (not that they
ever listen to me or believe me). If you wear jewelry or give
jewelry, you have been corrupted by the propaganda of the world
into believing that jewelry is good. That is a false belief.
Jewelry does not feed anyone. It does not clothe anyone.
It does not house anyone. It cannot be used as a tool for
transportation or security. Quite the contrary,
jewelry tells the prospective mugger that even if you don't have
any money or credit cards in your wallet, he will at least get
that ring. Jewelry tells the prospective kidnapper that the
prospective victim is loved by someone who will pay a large ransom
for her. Jewelry attracts the wrong kind of attention.
It is a vanity. You don't want to associate with the type
of people that jewelry impresses.
Jewelry tells the incel person that you are the object
of his hatred.
"5 things to know about incels"
https://www.policeone.com/mass-casualty/articles/482200006-5-things-to-know-about-incels/
Don't kid yourself. Incels are real and have committed many
mass murders.
***** Training *****
“When you aren’t skilled and confident,
you get scared and you over react.”
-- Greg Ellifritz
Can eye dominance change? Yes. Tom Clark writes to tell of
his changing when he got cataracts. It wasn't obvious to him at
first why his groups were opening up. But, after an eye dominance
test (which he does with every class he teaches), the problem was
discovered. After about 100 repetitions, the dominant eye was
firmly in control and the groups tightened back up.
I have found that using your dominant eye for aiming has a
strong psychological effect. You will have much more confidence
in your aiming when using your dominant eye.
If you still use your sights to aim, you should do this instead
http://exclusive.multibriefs.com/content/if-you-still-use-your-sights-to-aim-you-should-do-this-instead/recreation-leisure
What Really Happens In A Gunfight?
http://www.handgunsmag.com/editorial/tactics_training_what_happens_gunfight/138051
Excerpts:
Awareness is as important to gun fighting as is trigger control.
The history of gun fighting for more than a century has shown
that the person that lands the first solid hit will usually win
the confrontation.
Many advised that they had taken the time to think about what
they would do in the event they were attacked and had even played
out scenarios in their head.
Objects that are large and of contrasting color are easier to
see under stress, which makes the current generation of semi-auto
sights on the wrong end of the sight plane. I, for one, have
highlighted the front sight of all my pistols with bright orange
emergency warning tape. It offers a contrast that is large and
bold and I feel is the reason that I can recall my sights during
high stress events.
Dr. Vincent DiMaio, a noted pathologist and author of the
book Gunshot Wounds, has been quoted as saying the stopping power
comes from, "Where you hit the person and how many times you
can hit them."
Those that understood what was happening to them better
handled the sensation during the encounter versus the people
who did not.
. . . those who are totally comfortable with what they did,
have no doubt in their justification to do so and have suffered
no side effects whatsoever.
Today, Saturday, 8 December 2018, I took Basic Tactical
Trauma Care given by Josh Black and Jason Rader.
Things I learned:
If you had taken such a course a few years ago, you would
have learned the ABC, Airway - Breathing - Circulation as the
order of priority of care. The modern theory is MARCHE,
Massive Hemorrhaging - Airway - Respiration/Raking - Circulation/CPR -
Head Injury/Hypothermia - Evacuation, as the priority of treatment.
We learned all kinds of professional tricks to prepare the
tourniquet and other gear so that you can use it in chaotic high
stress situations. (When your hands are slippery with blood.
When one of your arms is not working. When you can't lift your leg.
Etc.)
We watched a video in which a guy gets shot in the leg
severing his femoral artery and loses consciousness in 17 seconds.
So, we then trained to put a tourniquet on ourselves in less
than 17 seconds. Yes, as a matter of fact you can do it.
It's just a matter of deliberate, intentional, motivated practice.
Sure, it takes 3 minutes to die from loss of blood, but if you
don't get your tourniquet on before you pass out in 17 seconds,
you die. So, you have 17 seconds, not 3 minutes.
We learned how to effectively slow arterial bleeding with
aimed direct pressure, to give you time to get the tourniquet
on the victim, or to pack the wound. If you don't know exactly
where the arteries are, you are not going to be able to pinch
them off.
We executed 2 scenarios in 2-man teams. Actually
executing the things you thought you learned and practiced
in class is an essential part of training. If you don't
actually execute a tactical scenario in your class, you
don't know if you've learned anything.
We learned how to identify yourself as a good guy,
so the cops don't shoot you.
We learned how much blood a given person has and what
the symptoms are at particular levels of blood loss.
We learned how to do Blood Sweeps and Skin Rakes to
find the injuries. No, as a matter of fact it is not easy
to find an injury on a responsive subject. It is
extremely difficult on an unresponsive subject. [PJ's
(U.S. Air Force Pararescuemen) told of a person they
rescued and though they had stabilized in transport
back to base. The person died because they had failed
to find a bullet entrance wound in his armpit.]
We learned how to deal with open, closed, tension,
and hemo pneumothorax (by definition the presence of air
or gas in the pleural cavity, but it can also be blood, hemo).
We learned how to determine blood pressure by
whether or not there is a pulse at a particular location
on the body.
We learned that part of your duty is to gather
intelligence for the next level of medical care. Yes,
you have to give the Emergency Medical Technicians or
Para Medics a report, MIST, Mechanism of Injury, Injury,
Signs and Symptoms, the Treatment that you administered.
Only use real CAT or SoftT tourniquets. The cheap
counterfeits on the market don't work, which may lead to
death. The other uncertified tourniquets that you can
buy on Amazon.com don't work, that's why they are not
certified.
Using a tourniquet correctly will not cause an
amputation of the limb. Once you put the tourniquet
on, don't loosen it, don't take it off. Let the
doctor do that. If you don't have the courage and
pain tolerance to apply a tourniquet correctly,
you will stop veinal flow, but not arterial flow;
which means blood will accumulate in the limb causing
swelling and killing the tissue. So, learn how
to do it correctly!
Use Combat Gauze. It is impregnated with hemostat.
John Farnam's advice for training and everyday carry,
http://defense-training.com/thank-you/#gf_4
Please view the videos at
http://www.dtioperator.com/free-videos/
Mr. Farnam asks that you share this information.
How Handgun Training Makes You A Better Precision Rifle Shooter
https://gundigest.com/rifles/tactical-rifles/how-handgun-training-makes-you-a-better-precision-rifle-shooter
If you're wondering what the author is talking about in
regards to instructors standing down range between the targets
while students shoot at the targets, contact me, and I'll tell
you about it off line.
"You train for the people who love you."
-- Tatiana Whitlock
***** Tactics *****
Audacity wins.
-- Carl von Clausewitz
". . . personal defense is a lifestyle, not a hobby."
-- Sheriff Jim Wilson
***** Techniques *****
"The shorter the fight, the less hurt you get."
-- John Holschen
Don’t Dig the Rig #17
http://www.activeresponsetraining.net/dont-dig-the-rig-17
Greg explains why front pocket carry is a bad idea.
Ambush Prevention Strategies for Patrol Officers
http://www.activeresponsetraining.net/ambush-prevention-strategies-for-patrol-officers
Greg suggests some techniques to avoid an attack
when sitting in your car.
I tell my students, don't sit in your car to do anything.
Get into your car and go. When you get where you're going, get out.
Texting in your parked car in a dark parking lot is asking
for trouble.
Situational Awareness Tips & Drills
https://modernsurvivalblog.com/security/situational-awareness-tips/
SouthNarc’s Favorite GUN DISARM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l2bkgbGFtmg&feature=youtu.be&fbclid=IwAR2SxwKlJ5zxIvtxmaKTJ-5cwOS3kd8Y8OBnLv0gM6YyvF3GoUgFtY4-5RE
Low Light Tactics for the Regular Person
https://www.integratedskillsgroup.com/blog/low-light
The picture of the Harries flashlight technique is wrong.
The support side elbow should be down, not sticking out to the side.
In the picture, the left arm is pushing the right arm up.
This is wrong. The left arm should be pushing left, while the
right arm pushes right. So, the "CON:" listed is wrong.
How do you win a gunfight? Don’t be there.
-–John Farnam
***** Gear *****
Avoidance, Deterrence, and De-escalation
-- John Farnam
Jeff Gonzales explains why he carries an extra magazine
rather than a back up gun.
https://medium.com/@jefflgonzales/two-guns-or-29c8d546850b
Who dares wins.
-- motto of the Special Air Service
***** Instructors *****
"Every time I teach a class,
I discover I don't know something."
-- Clint Smith, Director of Thunder Ranch
Teach with the knowledge that your students will teach
their friends, relatives, colleagues at work, etc. intentionally
or unintentionally. So, explain in detail why you are teaching
a particular technique. Your student should never have to
appeal to authority (no matter how great an authority you are).
Your student should always be able to convince his audience by
logical argument (without mentioning your name, because you
stole everything you teach from others). For instance, I teach
the Chapman version of the Weaver position because the advantages
are that:
1. It places your support side arm in front of the vital organs
in your torso, making it more difficult for the enemy to strike
your heart and lungs. (For those of us who do not regularly
wear body armor. If you are wearing body armor, it makes sense
to present the front of your armor to the enemy and not expose
the side of your armor.)
2. It is the same stance for pistol and long gun. So,
transitioning between the two is easier than with other positions.
3. It allows the shooter to pull with the support side arm bicep.
If the support side arm is locked out straight (as in the isosceles
stance), you can't pull with the support side arm. You have to
pull with the support side arm to prevent the muzzle from flipping
up on recoil. If the muzzle flips up on recoil, it takes longer
and is harder to get the sights on the target for the second and
subsequent shots.
4. It looks more aggressive to the enemy (a significant
psychological advantage) because it is a fighting stance similar
to a boxing stance. The body language says, “I am ready and
willing to fight.”
5. It reduces the width of the target that you present to the enemy.
This has a strong psychological affect on the enemy as it makes his
target smaller and thus reduces his confidence in hitting his target.
6. It gives the shooter a supported position when the shooter
transitions to the kneeling position or the squatting position.
7. The Harries flashlight technique uses the Weaver stance.
http://michaelharries.com/index.php
8. It flows naturally from the interview position that you
assumed, because you were aware of the situation, because
you were in condition yellow when the enemy started the incident.
If you can't explain why you are teaching the techniques
that you are teaching, you owe it to your students to do the
research, so that you can explain the reasons for using the
technique and explain the details of the technique.
Colonel Robert Lindsey to his fellow trainers:
"We are not God’s gift to our students.
Our students are God’s gift to us."
***** Pedagogy *****
"We are what we repeatedly do.
Excellence is not an act.
It is a habit."
-- Aristotle
The Developmental Model
https://firearmusernetwork.com/2017/11/25/developmental-model/
Excerpt:
"I too was merely once a small arms instructor
with no understanding or appreciation for how
competition is actually the essential part of
development."
"Train, Practice, Compete are the key
elements in the development of humans."
***** Education *****
“That nation is surest to live in peace,
that is most capable of making war;
and a man with a sword always by his side,
shall have least occasion to make use of it.”
-- John Trenchard
Rangemaster Newsletter
http://rangemaster.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/2018-12_RFTS-Newsletter.pdf
Mistaken Identity Shootings
http://www.thetacticalwire.com/features/3f871d07-c5d2-4d59-bc17-46b27a0f1b88
Excerpt:
"After you had to defend yourself, put your gun
BACK IN THE HOLSTER while keeping an eye on the bad guy
so you reduce the risk of getting shot by the police."
“Destiny doesn’t make appointments,
nor does she waste her time with the naive and unready!”
-- John Farnam
***** News, Legal, Philosophical, and Political stuff *****
Civil War happens when the victimized are armed.
Genocide happens when they are not!
-- A.E. Samaan
“Red-Flag,” revisited!
http://defense-training.com/2018/red-flag-revisited/
Write to your Representative and Senator before
you lose your liberty. If you are too lazy or apathetic
to do so for yourself, do it for your children who will
have to live under these laws.
Sheriff: Woman kills jail escapee who kicks in her door
https://apnews.com/c84c1f16fb414aac990bf71670099070
Excerpt:
“This is the shining example” of why owning and
knowing how to use a gun is important, the sheriff said.
Placed in Harm’s Way, Unarmed!
http://defense-training.com/2018/placed-in-harms-way-unarmed/
Brazilian Lawmakers Push Law Recognizing Right to Own Guns for Self-Defense
https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2018/12/02/brazilian-lawmakers-push-law-recognizing-right-own-guns-self-defense/
Ohio state lawmakers pass firearms bill, with
changes, in effort to avoid Gov. Kasich's veto
https://myfox28columbus.com/news/local/state-lawmakers-pass-firearms-bill-with-changes-in-effort-to-avoid-kasich-veto
This new Ohio law brings Ohio into line with the other 49
states in that the prosecutor must prove beyond a reasonable
doubt that the defendant's acts were not self-defense. Previous
Ohio law forced the defendant to prove by a preponderance of the
evidence that his act was self-defense. That's a big difference.
Andrew Branca says that even if you can afford an expert witness,
that doesn't mean you can get him to testify for you at trial. It is
at the sole discretion of the trial judge as to whether or not your
expert witness will be allowed to testify.
It is necessary, but not sufficient, for your expert witness
to be relevant. Relevant means both material (it affects legal
arguments that matter) and probative (it would help the finder of
facts reach a decision).
It doesn't matter what expertise the expert witness has,
all that matters is what expertise the judge thinks the expert
witness has. As Hayes and Ayoob explained in their lecture,
"The Firearms Instructor as Expert Witness" at the 2018 Tactical
Conference, as an expert witness, you have to convince the judge
that you are a subject matter expert and that the subject matters
to the case being tried. Manny (Emanuel) Kapelsohn also mentioned
that you have to convince the judge without causing the judge
to think that your testimony would be prejudicial.
“Totalitarian states can do great things,
but there is one thing they cannot do:
They cannot give a rifle to a factory-worker,
and then tell him to take it home and keep it in his bedroom.
That rifle, hanging on the wall of the working-class flat or
laborer’s cottage, is The symbol of Democracy!
It is our job to see that it stays there!”
-- George Orwell
***** Survival Tips *****
"If you prepare for the emergency,
the emergency ceases to exist!"
-- Dr. Sherman House
What cops need to tell their families about active shooters
https://www.policeone.com/active-shooter/articles/482011006-What-cops-need-to-tell-their-families-about-active-shooters/
Extreme Weather Driving Guide
https://www.geico.com/more/driving/auto/car-safety-insurance/extreme-weather-driving-guide/
"Staff, this stuff is basic. Why mention it in your blog?"
This information is for those who don't have a plan. They
may use this information to form their plan; to know what to do
in the event of . . .
If a person does not know what to do, he panics. If he knows
what to do, he executes his plan.
Don't go to stupid places.
Don't do stupid things.
Don't hang out with stupid people.
-- John Farnam
***** Basics *****
"Panic is simply the lack of preprogrammed responses."
-- Tom Givens
"Fear is an instinct. Courage is a choice."
-- Rear Admiral Joseph Kernan, USN
***** Miscellany *****
For the latest version (it changes almost daily)
of my lesson plans for my NRA Defensive Pistol course,
send me an email. Jon_Low@yahoo.com
Few tyrants argue for 'slavery of the masses.'
Instead, they argue for the power to
'protect people from themselves.'
-- AE Samaan
Your Servant,
Jon
Jonathan D. Low
Jon_Low@yahoo.com
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