Greetings Sheepdogs,
***** Mindset *****
“Success is not final, failure is not fatal,
it is the courage to continue that counts.”
“Never, Never, Never Give Up.”
-- Winston Churchill
Self-defense begins in your head, not your holster.
https://www.shootingillustrated.com/articles/2018/10/8/head-vs-holster-the-importance-of-a-solid-self-defense-mindset/
A Failure to Acknowledge Reality
http://www.activeresponsetraining.net/a-failure-to-acknowledge-reality
Excerpt:
You either accept reality and use it to your advantage,
or it will automatically work against you.
You shouldn’t listen to the “shoulds”. Or should you?
http://www.grantcunningham.com/2018/10/you-shouldnt-listen-to-the-shoulds-or-should-you/
Bring Enough Brain to the Fight
https://tinkertalksguns.wordpress.com/2018/10/05/bring-enough-brain-to-the-fight/
Excerpts:
Be aware of your limitations.
Be aware of the limitations of your weapon.
Be aware of your purpose.
A gun is not a solution;
it is simply a tool that increases your options.
You need to use your most effective asset - your brain - to chose
the correct options and make the most of them.
Get comfortable being uncomfortable.
Aggressiveness in Self Defense
https://www.armedcitizensnetwork.org/agressiveness-in-self-defense
Excerpt:
I often refer to George Patton’s famous quote,
“No fire drill has ever caused a fire.”
THE SWORD THAT KILLS
https://blog.suarezinternational.com/2018/10/the-sword-that-kills.html
Excerpt:
". . . God has given you the ability to reach the level you
have this weekend. Whether you like it or not, you have a
calling now to resist evil when it is presented to you,
because by doing so lives of the innocents will be saved.
The hand that kills is also the hand that saves."
Audacity wins.
-- Carl von Clausewitz
[My translation from the German. -- Jon Low]
***** Enemy Mindset *****
Commonalities:
http://defense-training.com/2018/commonalities/
Complacency kills.
. . . I will search . . .
and punish those who are complacent . . .
Zephaniah 1:12 (New International Version)
***** Safety *****
“The fast and/or emphatic reholster
is an awesome way to shoot yourself.”
-- Chuck Haggard
12 Safety Tips For Driving At Night
https://www.geico.com/more/driving/auto/car-safety-insurance/driving-at-night/
***** Training *****
“When you aren’t skilled and confident,
you get scared and you over react.”
-- Greg Ellifritz
The stages of my NRA Defensive Pistol course:
Theory - Safety; lectures covering mindset, laws, and such;
manipulation of pistols with dummy ammo; maneuver and tactics;
~20 hours in the classroom.
Practicum - Safety, lectures, live fire exercises;
~20 hours on an outdoor range.
Close quarter combat with the pistol - ~3 hours in a classroom.
Introduction to IDPA - ~2 hours in a classroom.
Tactical scenarios - we shoot an IDPA match in a tactically correct
manner, not racing to win the game; ~4 hours, $25.
Force-on-force using Simunitions - ~4 hours, 09:00 - 13:00 Saturday, $100.
Judgment (shoot / no-shoot) exercises on video simulators - ~2 hours
per person, $25.
Medical (e.g. Point of Injury Trauma Care by Kevin Hunt) - ~2 hours, ~$50
(if you already have first aid training, otherwise ~16 hours, $360).
Self defense law (e.g. Law of Self Defense by Andrew Branca) - ~8 hours,
$150 (You can do this online.).
Ya, this is a lot more than the minimum requirements. The NRA
only sets minimums. Always teach the fundamentals, because much of
what your students know is false. That's why they have come to take
your course. They want to know the truth.
I consider this the minimum training to be intellectually competent
to carry a concealed pistol for self defense.
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
Front Sight Focus - Why?
https://www.ssusa.org/articles/2018/9/27/front-sight-focus-why/
Shooting at the Speed of Decision Making
http://rangemaster.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/2018-10_RFTS-Newsletter.pdf
Coach Ray Harvey writes to say:
The idea of "Zombie Routines" is another way of talking
about properly practicing a particular routine or subroutine
until it begins to occur without conscious thought on your part.
I once asked Nancy Johnson "How many items are on
your Shot Plan?" Your Shot Plan is the list of actions that
you go through in order to prepare for each properly
executed shot. I expected her to say something like "20,"
but she surprised me by saying "about four."
She had properly practiced her shot plan until MOST
of her conscious actions had become Zombie Routines
and she no longer needed a list. She no longer needed
to "think" consciously about those actions.
Two months later, she won the Gold Medal in
Women's Air Rifle at the Olympics in Sydney, Australia.
It takes proper practice and it doesn't happen overnight.
Ask your coach how many proper repetitions it takes!
At the age of 68, I took up playing the upright bass.
I only practice once a week, but I have developed several
Zombie Routines on which I routinely get compliments.
Competence is its own reward.
Best regards from the road playing bluegrass music
in Maggie Valley (for money) tonight,
Coach Ray Harvey
Concerns With Concealed Carry And Winter Gloves
https://www.concealedcarry.com/safety/concerns-with-concealed-carry-and-winter-gloves/
Your Tactical Training Scenario - Properly Timing your Resistance Efforts
http://www.activeresponsetraining.net/your-tactical-training-scenario-properly-timing-your-resistance-efforts
Creating new mental maps.
Excerpt:
"Attempting to draw your gun and shoot while the bad guy
has his gun out and aiming at you is suicidal."
[If I didn't have anecdotal experience that conflicted
with this, I would agree. Anecdotal experience is not
statistically significant. But, it demonstrates the
existence of an exception to the rule. Whether the rule
be "common sense" or an "obvious conclusion".
There is a saying that action beats reaction every time.
This means that the person who initiates an action will be
a tempo ("tempo" used in the technical sense as in chess)
ahead of the opponent who has to react to the action.
Of course, reaction time depends on whether or not the
reacting person has a pre-programmed response to the action.
How many criminals would have a pre-programmed response
to an immediate counter-attack? How many criminals
would have had the experience of a sheep attacking them?
(Which is what you should look like at this point
in the scenario.)
Are you playing a song you know? Playing a song off
sheet music that you've never heard before? Playing a
song you've never heard before without documentation?
A lot of famous professional musicians in Nashville
don't / can't read music. That shocked me, when I fist
learned that. Because I studied music theory for many
years and practiced reading and playing music until
I could know that the described music wasn't euphonic
by reading it without playing it. But, there are such
people. As my mother told me, "Everyone is different."
If you pay attention, you can recognize such people;
an important survival skill. -- Jon Low
(If you don't know what I'm talking about, consider
reading
The Essential Guide to Banjo Jamming
https://fingerstylebanjo.com/jamming/
as cited in last month's blog posting)]
"Some songs are diamonds. Some songs are rocks."
-- John R. Cash (Johnny Cash)
Concealed-Carry for Beginners: Tips for Continued Training
https://www.shootingillustrated.com/articles/2018/10/10/concealed-carry-for-beginners-tips-for-continued-training/
Excerpt:
". . . it is difficult for me to be very sympathetic
with those who will spend several thousand dollars
on a two-week vacation, but cry about the cost of
defensive training. In my view, they just don’t have
their priorities in the proper order."
. . .
"It is also my right to get as good with those
firearms as I am possibly able through quality
instruction, specialized training[,] and purposeful
practice."
Skill Set: Working the Fundamentals
http://www.thetacticalwire.com/features/81d66011-c323-4b88-881b-bf736af304a0
Excerpt:
". . . [moving, communication, using cover[,] and defensive shooting]
. . . are not instinctual or natural. Instinct tells you to hug in
tight and close to cover, which is not where you want to be.
It’s natural to focus on the threat while shooting as opposed to
the front sight. Instinct tells you to root to the ground when
fighting; we want to be moving. The only way to learn the required
skills is through practice. At the same time you’re overriding
the instinctual part of the brain that’s screaming at you to do
the wrong thing."
"The next time you’re thinking about going to the range
to burn some ammo consider staying home and working on your
tactics for that time."
[Instinct tells you to run away. Which is exactly what the
criminal predator expects you to do. Because he does not expect
the immediate forceful counter-attack, you will have the element
of surprise. Surprise is a force multiplier. -- Jon Low]
Train How You Are
https://www.concealedcarry.com/firearms-ownership/train-how-you-are/
Excerpt:
"Train how you are. Don't adjust yourself to standards
just because someone is telling you to. Otherwise, how
will you know that your methods work? How will you know
that you can actually maneuver while shooting a gun
wearing flip flops?"
[Perhaps you should show up to your next training class
(or IDPA match ) wearing the clothes you normally do on
a day to day basis. As opposed to your taci-cool wardrobe.
Have you ever worn that photographers vest in the real world?
-- Jon Low]
Got Training, Got Tourniquet, Now Where To Put It? Four Ideas For TQ Carry
https://www.concealedcarry.com/firearms-ownership/tourniquet-four-ideas-for-tq-carry/
Excerpt:
"Stopping rapid blood loss is a skill everyone who’s serious
about protecting themselves and their family can and should
learn, whether or not they carry a gun. It’s more likely
to be needed than CPR, simple to learn, and inexpensive to
equip oneself. If you’re not trained yet, I encourage you
to change that, and to practice with your chosen equipment."
Underground Tradecraft: Tactical Application of the Defensive Sidearm, Part Three
https://mountainguerrilla.wordpress.com/2013/08/28/underground-tradecraft-tactical-application-of-the-defensive-sidearm-part-three/
Tom Givens writes to say,
"Establishing a Dominance Paradigm" is our once per year specialty
course in which Southnarc, Wlliam Aprill and Tom Givens, along
with several trained role players, put students through an
immersion level learning experience. Each of the trainers
presents on his own specialty, then we blend it all together
in a series of force on force exercises in a unique indoor
training environment.
When: Fri, Jan 11, 2019, 8:00 AM – Sun, Jan 13, 2019, 7:00 PM CST
Where: BDC Gun Room
40960 Hardesty Road
Shawnee, OK 74801
$795
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/establishing-a-dominance-paradigm-givenssouthnarcaprill-shawnee-ok-tickets-47238931917?fbclid=IwAR0e8Y_2f80WjnpnI-HnJb8QluC9m1iEGhda-pCIbuBQUiLHkI3X9cpdIzA
Ed Mireles, FBI Miami Firefight Lecture
When: Sat, December 1, 2018 11:30 AM – 6:30 PM EST
Where: DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Tampa Airport - Westshore
4500 West Cypress Street
Tampa, FL 33607
$125
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/ed-mireles-fbi-miami-firefight-lecture-tickets-46999765564?fbclid=IwAR3c_e-r7d60aX7PohIuOEr3ze8mHJraFyOYBm1eNFM-xreZWVevii9L2P0
The Kata
https://blog.suarezinternational.com/2018/10/at-the-force-on-force-class-we-had-one-resistive-student-i-rarely-get-these-guys-much-any-more-because-you-have-to-commit-to.html
Fighting or shooting . . . which are you practicing?
https://handguncombatives.blogspot.com/2018/10/fighting-or-shooting.html
Excerpt:
This is sure to piss someone off, but then I guess I just don’t care.
"You can't please everyone. Even God can't please everyone."
-- Pastor Greg Surrat
"You train for the people who love you."
-- Tatiana Whitlock
***** Tactics *****
". . . personal defense is a lifestyle, not a hobby."
-- Sheriff Jim Wilson
"Only those who risk going too far can
possibly find out how far one can go."
-- T.S. Elliot
***** Techniques *****
Avoidance, Deterrence, and De-escalation
-- John Farnam
From the Ground Up: Grip and Recoil Management
https://www.targetbarn.com/broad-side/grip-recoil-management/
Use These Non-Permissive Environment Carry Tips to Enhance Your Concealed Carry
https://www.itstactical.com/warcom/firearms/non-permissive-concealed-carry-tips/
Excerpt:
Conceal Like Your Life Depends On It. It Might.
How to Ram Through a Vehicular Roadblock
https://www.artofmanliness.com/articles/how-to-ram-through-a-vehicular-roadblock/
Ten Major Tactical Mistakes
https://www.swatmag.com/article/street-smarts-ten-major-tactical-mistakes/
Cold Weather Carry
http://www.handgunsmag.com/editorial/cold-weather-carry/181320
The Myth of Pain Compliance
https://www.calibrepress.com/2018/10/the-myth-of-pain-compliance/
Excerpt:
A wise man once said that the quicker a fight is over,
the less chance there is for things to go wrong.
"The shorter the fight, the less hurt you get."
-- John Holschen
Concealed Carry: 3 Things Women Can Teach Men
https://www.nrafamily.org/articles/2018/10/27/concealed-carry-3-things-women-can-teach-men/
How do you win a gunfight? Don’t be there.
-–John Farnam
***** Gear *****
Who dares, wins.
-- motto of the Special Air Service
Conversation about pocket pistols
https://tacticalprofessor.wordpress.com/2018/10/02/conversation-about-pocket-pistols/
5 Great IWB Holsters for Concealed-Carry
https://www.shootingillustrated.com/articles/2018/9/25/5-great-iwb-holsters-for-concealed-carry/
[The basic Alien Gear Inside the Waistband holster
is perfectly functional and costs $40. There is
no need to buy anything more expensive. -- Jon Low]
Officer accidentally shoots himself in leg at Henrico gun range
https://wtvr.com/2018/10/04/colonial-shooting-academy-shooting/
[More evidence that you should never use a SERPA holster.
You should never let your friends, relatives, subordinates,
students, etc. use it. There is no up side. There are lots
of effective alternatives. -- Jon Low]
One Magazine is Rarely Enough
https://www.americas1stfreedom.org/articles/2018/10/12/one-magazine-is-rarely-enough/
Spencer Keepers writes to say,
. . . Trust me, sights really do matter so pick some that you can see well,
and zero them with your training and carry ammo. I think some of
you might be really pleased with the results!! [The context was that
the sights that come on Glocks from the factory need to be replaced.]
***** Instructors *****
Colonel Robert Lindsey to his fellow trainers:
"We are not God’s gift to our students.
Our students are God’s gift to us."
PRISON THINKING
https://medium.com/@danjohn84123/prison-thinking-5c1ebfef27a4
Excerpt:
"And, yes: coaching is that simple."
[Simple does not mean easy. Simple means not complex.
Simple may require deep thought to master. Simple may
require thousands of repetitions to master. -- Jon Low]
Be shepherds of God’s flock that is under your care,
watching over them — not because you must,
but because you are willing, as God wants you to be;
not pursuing dishonest gain, but eager to serve;
not lording it over those entrusted to you,
but being examples to the flock.
-- 1st Peter, Chapter 5, Verse 2 to 3, New International Version
Why You Should Let Someone Else Teach Loved Ones To Shoot
https://www.concealedcarry.com/firearms-ownership/why-you-should-let-someone-else-teach-loved-ones-to-shoot/
"Every time I teach a class,
I discover I don't know something."
-- Clint Smith, Director of Thunder Ranch
***** Pedagogy *****
If you are helping someone and
expecting something in return,
you are doing business, not kindness.
PARADIGM SHIFT IN TRAINING
https://blog.suarezinternational.com/2018/10/paradigm-shift-in-training.html
"We are what we repeatedly do.
Excellence is not an act.
It is a habit."
-- Aristotle
***** Education *****
***
I attended a lecture on "Active Shooter Threats" by
Brink Fidler of Defend Systems,
DefendSystems.com
at the Brentwood Baptist Church in Brentwood, TN.
Some of the things that I learned:
Tell your supervisor at work about threats against you.
Brink told us of an incident where a lady was going through
a very bad divorce. Her husband went to her place of work
and shot up the place killing several persons. If they had
known, they never would have let him in. Oh, but it's so
embarrassing. Get over yourself! Lives are at stake.
Have a plan.
[Every instructor says this. Have a fire plan.
Have an emergency disaster plan. Have a plan for what
you, your spouse, and you kids will do if a robber
walks into the restaurant you are dining in. -- Jon Low]
If you have a plan, you will take Decisive Action
immediately. Otherwise, you will dither, and dithering
results in negative outcomes.
The average response time for police is 3 minutes
in urban areas (from the time the 911 dispatcher gets
the initial call). Most of the damage will be done in
the first few seconds of the attack.
[Statistically speaking, if you practice a lot,
it will take you 1.5 seconds to present your pistol
and fire (from the time you decide to take Decisive Action).
If you have to clear a concealment garment, add 0.5 seconds.
That's 2 seconds to end the event and prevent all the carnage,
if you choose to. It's a choice that should already
have been made. Because you won't have time to consider
the decision during the event. -- Jon Low]
Deter - Be assertive.
Evade - Run!
Fortify - Lock and barricade. Block windows.
Lights out.
Evaluate - Look around, listen, figure out what's
going on.
Notify - Call 911 when you are safe to do so. You
are safe to do so when you don't have to whisper into
your cell phone. Tell the dispatcher what happened, description
of the attacker, what weapon system the attacker has,
location, and injuries. Yes, this matters. If the
attacker is armed with a handgun, the first police on
scene will enter and attempt to engage. If there are
multiple attackers armed with an automatic rifles,
the police will need to call for back up with the appropriate
tools to handle the situation.
Defend - Counter Assault. Sometimes an explosive
counter attack is the best defense. [Ya, you might get hurt.
But, statistically, 97% of people admitted to emergency
rooms with gun shot wounds walk out. Modern medicine is
great. -- Jon Low]
Consider the police priorities when they respond
to an active murderer event:
1. Stop the killing.
2. Stop the dying.
3. Evacuate.
4. Process the crime scene.
So, they are not going to stop to help you. They
are going to walk over your bleeding body to get
to the bad guy.
[In reality, you are responsible for your security
and your survival. Accept it.
The Marine Corps Drill Instructors taught us the
same thing in Marine Corps recruit training. Stopping
to help your wounded buddy is wrong. Drive the enemy
back to allow the corpsman to advance to take care of
your buddy. -- Jon Low]
The reason so many more people don't die in active
murderer events is because some of the bystanders knew how
to stop bleeding. You need to be such a person.
[Take a fist aid class. Take a more advanced
fist aid class.
Direct pressure on the wound. Elevate the wound.
Treat for shock (cover him with a blanket to keep him
warm and elevate his legs to keep blood pressure to
his brain.)
Learn when to apply a tourniquet. Lean how
to apply a tourniquet. Carry a fist aid kit with you.
They are small and about $100. Don't skimp on life
and death matters. You may be saving the life of
someone you love. -- Jon Low]
***
I attended "Home Defense" by Ken Alexandrow of
Agape Tactical,
AgapeTactical.com
at the 5.11 store in Nashville, TN.
Some of the things I learned:
Ken told of a young man recently graduated from
high school in 1920 A.D. who wanted to be a lumberjack
in California, starting pay $27 per week. He felled
19 trees on his first day on the job. The next day
he only felled 15. The next day only 12. He apologized
to his foreman for his decline in productivity. To
which his foreman responded by asking, "When was the
last time you sharpened your ax?"
When was the last time YOU sharpened YOUR ax?
Ken told us of an interview with a survivor of
the recent shooting at the Waffle House in Antioch, TN
immediately after the incident occurred. The police
officer asked the citizen for identification.
The citizen reached to his back pocket revealing a
pistol in a holster on his belt. The officer shouted
commands to stop. The citizen had forgotten that he
was wearing the pistol. The citizen said that he had
gotten his permit a year earlier and hadn't even drawn
his pistol since then.
Don't be that guy. Sharpen your ax. Train like
the life of your loved ones depended on your training.
Train often. [Correctly pronounced "offen", the "t" is
silent and always has been. English is a Germanic
language. The English word "often" is derived from
the German word "offen". Pronouncing the "t" is wrong
on many levels. -- Jon Low]
Deterrence --
Have a dog in your house. Ken said that in his 26
years on the Metro Nashville Police, he never took a
burglary report on a house that had a dog in it. A dog
outside in the yard didn't prevent burglaries, but a
dog inside did.
Most crimes are crimes of opportunity. Strive to
eliminate the opportunity. Use "Ring System", "Nest",
"Arlow", or some such system that allows you to see
who is at your door or around your house and talk to
them, no matter where you are. Yes, you need WiFi.
So, get it. Join the 21st century.
Light your house. Light the area around your house.
Detection --
Your yard need not be pretty, but it must be tactically
correct. You must have line of sight from inside your house
to outside your house.
Your alarms must sound outside your house. (Think
about it.)
You must pay attention. You must avoid
"Inattentional Blindness". Ken showed the
YouTube.com video, "selective attention test".
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJG698U2Mvo
Denial --
Replace the screws in your door locks with longer
screws that actually go through the studs of the frame
of your house, not just the decorative wood paneling.
Laminate all of your windows and screen doors with
"Eversafe Window Laminate". It's only $15 per square
foot. It's not bullet proof, but it maintains the
integrity of the window to prevent entry. All of the
Williamson County, Tennessee public school are laminating
all of their exterior windows. (Ken gave us the phone
number of the owner of the company. I will share it
with you upon request.)
If your house is broken into while you are at home,
it's a home invasion, not a burglary. Burglars make sure
no one is home. The home invader is there for you or
your women. "You must access your weapon before your feet
hit the floor." If your master bedroom is on the first
floor, the enemy will find your master bedroom within
8 second (assuming he doesn't already know where it is).
If your master bedroom is on the second floor, he will
find your master bedroom within 15 seconds (assuming
he doesn't already know where it is).
[We never raided a house without intel giving us the
floor plan at least a week in advance. So, we practiced
the raid for a week (in one instance we had a year to
practice), knowing exactly where the targets would be.
(Yes, I know what I just said. I know what it means.)
So, if it's anything more than a common criminal, the
times will be much shorter.
If you hold political office, PAY ATTENTION!
Your security detail is not designed nor competent to
stop tier one operators. I worked recruiting duty
with a Master Sergeant who was stationed at "8th and I"
during the Nixon Presidency. When the riots were
raging, they were staged in the tunnels connecting
the Marine barracks with the White House. They were
afraid they would have to shoot American citizens.
If you are not the POTUS, you don't have a detachment
of Marines. So, you have to take precautions. You
saw how ineffective the Capitol Police were at
preventing the attack on U.S. Representative Steve Scalise.
You are responsible for your security. Leaving it
to anyone else is foolish.
I am doing my duty to protect you, by advising
you to get training, so you can protect yourself.
-- Jon Low]
10% of the criminals cause 90% of the crime. They
do not fear arrest or imprisonment. To them, prison is
continuing education, where they learn to do their crimes
better and avoid getting caught the next time. And there
will be a next time. If you believe that our justice
system rehabilitates anyone, you are wrong. Catch and
release is in full effect.
You must have a plan and you must teach your plan
to your family. If you don't teach your children
how to escape and where to go in case of a fire, they will
wait for you to rescue them and die of smoke inhalation.
Yes, that would be your fault.
Pistol bullets will penetrate 9 sheets of drywall.
Two 2X4's will stop most pistol bullets. So, you should
consider using a shotgun loaded with bird shot for home
defense. It should have a short legal barrel. Get the
tax stamp if you need to. Or, get a short barreled
shotgun without a stock, they are sold as pistols. You
don't need a 12 gauge. A 20 ga. will work fine indoors.
If you cannot escape, shelter in place. Lock and
barricade doors and windows.
Have a gun safe that you can open quickly while
groggy.
Plan for children. They should know what to do
in case of emergency, not just wait for you. Because
you might not be able to get to them before they die.
Teach your kids gun safety: Don't touch. Leave
the area. Tell an adult.
If you decide to engage the bad guy, you become
a bullet magnet. Have a plan for those around you.
Ken trains his family to run away from him if he says,
"Get away from me!" If your spouse is a gun person,
you might have a different plan.
What to do after the incident --
Notify law enforcement.
Don't have a gun in your hands when the police
arrive. Holster your pistol when you determine the
threat is over. (I know, sometimes hard to determine.)
Ask for an attorney. If you can't afford one,
they have to get one for you. But, if you can afford
one, you should really prefer that one.
Stay silent until your attorney is with you.
Let your attorney interview you and let your attorney
give your statement to the police. (The police really
appreciate this.) [I have taken statements from
excited persons. What a disaster. My notebook was
filled with pages of nonsense. -- Jon Low]
You do have to identify yourself to the police.
So, give them your driver's license or your carry
permit. You also have to give them your phone number.
Consider legally putting a suppressor on your
home defense weapon (Yes, they are legal in Tennessee
and other Southern States.), so you can hear bad guy
number 2 and 3. That way they won't surprise you
after you stop bad guy 1.
Get extra magazines for your pistol. Install
night sights on your pistol. (The tritium glow in
the dark kind. Don't scrimp on emergency tools.)
When coming around corners, do it from a prone
position. Near the ground is not where the enemy
expects you to be. Shooting upward mitigates the
risk of misses or pass throughs hitting someone
immediately down range of your intended target.
***
It’s Not Me, It’s You
http://ballisticradio.com/2018/09/19/its-not-me-its-you-podcast-season-6-ballistic-radio-episode-272-september-16th-2018/
Excerpt:
“If you are known as a menace to your neighborhood and
then you have the best shooting – it is the best textbook,
self-defense shooting in the world – you still might go to
prison because when they interview everybody and the
media is out there interviewing everybody all your
neighbors are going to say, “I bet he murdered that guy.
He was an absolute menace to society. Nobody likes him . . .”
It can bite you in the rear end.” — Erik Utrecht
"This very important podcast covers the difference between
a “person who owns a gun” and a “responsible gun owner.”
This distinction is lacking in our industry. We should do a
better job at policing our own ranks before someone decides
to do it for us." -- Greg Ellifritz
***
I attended "Point of Injury Trauma Care" by
Kevin Hunt of Prepared Medical Response,
www.preparedmed.com
Some of the things I learned:
"Hope is not a strategy"
STOP THE BLEEDING FIRST!
Call 911 as soon as possible.
The primary thing is to stop the bleeding. The person
will bleed to death before anything else kills him. A person
can bleed to death in 3 minutes.
My how things change. I was still thinking "direct pressure"
to stop bleeding, but the modern theory is:
1. If the bleeding is on an arm or leg, tourniquet first
(the tourniquet should be high [as close to the torso as possible,
no matter where the bleeding is] and tight [no pulse]).
Use a CAT or SOFT tourniquet. If you don't know why, take
a class and find out. Using a cheap tourniquet you found on
Amazon.com is stupid on many levels. Using a tourniquet will
not cause the victim to lose a limb. This is 2018 A.D.
Let the doctor remove the tourniquet. You can apply a tourniquet
in 30 seconds, if you've done it before. It takes 3 minutes
to bleed to death. So, this is a big win.
2. If the bleeding is from the torso, seal (every hole,
entry and exit wounds). You must prevent air from entering
the body.
3. If the wound is at the junction of torso and limb, pack
the hole until you fill it, and then apply a pressure dressing.
Apply direct pressure. Tuck the bandage or use duct tape.
That's what I get for going a few years without training.
(Fortunately, my company Military Systems Group, provides
such training for their employees.)
Once you stop the bleeding, call 911. Yes, as a matter
of fact, the victim will bleed to death while you are chatting
with the dispatcher. So, stop the bleeding first.
---
If you find an unresponsive person check for a pulse by
feeling in the valley between the muscle on the side of the
neck and wind pipe at the front center of the neck. Check for
10 seconds. If 3 or less beats in the 10 seconds, start CPR
(cardiopulmonary resuscitation). 100 thrusts per minute.
The songs "Staying Alive" and "Another One Bites the Dust"
are 100 beats per minute songs. So, you can sing them while
performing CPR to maintain appropriate blood circulation.
If you go to fast, you won't allow the blood to enter the
heart (so you won't get any blood flow). If you go to slow,
you won't achieve adequate blood pressure to keep the brain
alive. After 2 minutes of CPR (You will be exhausted if you
are doing it correctly.) take a break to call 911.
The chest compressions must go to 2/3rds the depth
of the chest. Yes, you will break the ribs. That's okay.
(In Tennessee you are protected by Good Samaritan laws.
Unless, you intentionally engage in gross negligence.)
The ribs will detach from the sternum. Nobody ever died
from broken ribs. They do die from lack of blood to the
brain. Lock your elbows. Use the muscles in your back.
It takes 4 to 5 chest compressions to get the
blood pressure up to a useful level. Once you stop
CPR the blood pressure drops to zero.
If they have a pulse, stop CPR.
---
Don't worry about breathing for the victim initially.
Take care of bleeding first, blood pressure second.
The human can go 6 minutes without breathing before lack
of oxygen will cause brain damage. If the person is not
breathing, tilt the head back to clear the air way,
otherwise he will choke on his tongue. Pinch his nose
and blow into his mouth. If the face is small as with a
child, cover the nose and mouth, and blow. If his chest
does not rise (being filled with air), clear the air way
as best you can. (Yes, this is dirty messy business.)
30 chest compressions, 2 breaths, repeat. Keep going
until relieved by medical personnel.
If you don't want to tilt the head back because of
neck injury, lay the victim on his back, grab behind the
jaw bone, and pull the jaw bone straight up.
If you have any kind of barrier (as a tee shirt),
use it, because the victim will vomit (even if he doesn't
regain consciousness), and you don't want to get his
vomit into your mouth.
If they are breathing (coughing), stop mouth to
mouth resuscitation.
---
If there are foreign objects (bullets, knives, etc.)
in the victim's body, DO NOT attempt to remove them. If
they fall out, don't put them back in. [Remember the
situation we are operating in. Extremely high stress.]
---
Electrocution causes burns and cardiac arrest.
To treat for electrocution:
Make sure the electricity is turned off.
If you can't, disconnect the victim from the electricity,
using an insulative object.
If he's on fire, put the fire out.
If his heart has stopped, start CPR. Don't worry
about the burns. Keep the blood flowing. The doctors
will give him antibiotics and skin graphs later, if he's
alive. Your job is to keep him alive.
---
Here in Tennessee we are protected by Good Samaritan Laws.
Check the laws in the jurisdiction in which you live.
"If we stay ready we don't have to get ready"
***
The American Warrior Show
http://americanwarriorshow.com/index.html
The Lessons of Special Agent Edmundo Mireles
https://americanhandgunner.com/the-lessons-of-special-agent-edmundo-mireles/
Excerpts:
". . . bullet size does matter when trying to stop a large land mammal
like a human being."
"I survived on good tactics, good cover, looking for targets,
moving to try to flank the subjects, good firearms techniques and
firearms discipline, and the teamwork shown by Gilbert and Ron
by providing overwatch and covering fire on my position."
"An element of faith, and an ability to channel rage
into a dynamic and absolutely necessary physical response
in spite of terribly debilitating injury."
The book may be ordered at
https://edmireles.com/
Church Security Resource Compilation
http://www.activeresponsetraining.net/church-security-resource-compilation
Gas adjustment on an AR-15 type rifle
http://defense-training.com/2018/gas/
Rangemaster newsletter, November 2018
http://rangemaster.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/2018-11_RFTS-Newsletter.pdf
***** News, Legal, Philosophical, and Political stuff *****
Civil War happens when the victimized are armed.
Genocide happens when they are not!
-- A.E. Samaan
Every wonder how older nations can be so far behind
us in basic human rights such as self defense?
"Salvini: Italian State Will Strengthen Self-Defence Rights,
Cover Legal Costs of Home Defenders"
https://www.breitbart.com/london/2018/10/07/salvini-italian-state-will-strengthen-self-defence-rights-cover-legal-costs-of-home-defenders/
"Self-Defense" About to Become "Illegal" in South Africa
http://defense-training.com/2018/self-defense-about-to-become-illegal-in-south-africa/
The Rise of Self-Defense in Gun Advertising: The American Rifleman, 1918-2017
https://osf.io/preprints/socarxiv/jt8qa/
Armed Church Security in Colonial America
https://gunculture2point0.wordpress.com/2018/10/01/armed-church-security-in-colonial-america/
Birth of a new Ukrainian church brings fears of violence
https://apnews.com/916f1eb16da24aedace5c39e9f13f94f
The headline should read,
"Schism of Ukrainian Orthodox Church from the Russian Orthodox Church".
There is nothing new about this church. The last vestiges of the
Union of Soviet Socialist Republics are being pulled out by the roots.
Only those Americans who don't remember the Socialists could possibly
support socialism.
Blackwater-Style Firm for Jihadists Opens Training Camp with Donor Help
https://pjmedia.com/homeland-security/blackwater-style-firm-for-jihadists-opens-training-camp-with-donor-help/
Following the American model. American innovation leading
everywhere. They will harvest the sheep. Prepare.
Good Guys With Guns Took Down Lots Of Bad Guys In 2017
https://americanhandgunner.com/good-guys-with-guns-took-down-lots-of-bad-guys-in-2017/
“The Tzar's police had Lenin, but released him!
Bavarian police had Hitler, but released him!
Rhodesia had Mugabe, but released him!
We had Bin Laden, but released him!
We repeatedly fail to learn from history,
and we'll continue to pay for it.
Just ask a Romanov . . . if you can find one!”
-- Anonymous
Footnote: The Saudis were holding Osama Bin Laden
in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. U.S. President
Clinton could have asked the Saudis to hold him
indefinitely. They do that sort of thing in Saudi.
Yes, Clinton knew who he was and exactly the
threat he posed to us. (I know of what I speak.)
You find it strange that Clinton would have told
the Saudis that they should release him because we
have no interest in him?
Then you must have forgotten about all the terrorists
that Clinton released from our federal prisons.
That's why the FBI rebelled against Clinton. That's
why Clinton imposed a 2 year hiring freeze on the
FBI. He effectively purged all of the politically
incorrect FBI leaders and installed his people in
all of the leadership positions.
Obama did the same thing. That's why Trump
is having to fire all these FBI agents, including
the Director.
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
12 Safety Tips For Driving At Night
https://www.geico.com/more/driving/auto/car-safety-insurance/driving-at-night/
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
Pistol Grip Basics
https://www.ssusa.org/articles/2018/10/5/pistol-grip-basics/
Excerpt:
We’re hardwired to blink and/or jerk the trigger
in anticipation of the noise, so dry-firing a
few minutes each day helps develop muscle memory
that can override this natural instinct.
[Well, if it is a hardwired instinct, will
practice ever override it? Probably not.
Will you ever practice enough (2000 correct
repetitions) to engrain such muscle memory?
Probably not. So, the surprise break is
really the way to defeat your autonomic nervous
system responses to the report and recoil. -- Jon Low]
How To: Master Sight Radius, Sight Picture & Hold
https://www.nrafamily.org/articles/2018/10/9/how-to-master-sight-radius-sight-picture-hold/
A few minutes ago, I was talking to a young
Metro Nashville Police officer in my favorite coffee
shop, "Flat Rock Coffee, Tea, and More" (The former
Mayor has been known to hold meetings here, before
she accepted a plea deal and resigned. I have seen
the former Police Chief here in the early morning
hours meeting "friends". The world is so small that
to think you can do anything without being seen is
foolish.).
She told me she wanted to work on her long
range (for pistol) accuracy. I asked her how she
had been taught to shoot.
She responded,
Hold the sights on the target and
Pull the trigger without jerking it.
I asked her if she had been taught how to achieve
a surprise trigger break. She had not. So, I
explained it to her.
(Sight alignment, sight movie)
Line up the sights on the target.
(Trigger control)
Touch the trigger.
Take the slack out of the trigger.
Smoothly increase pressure on the trigger.
Do not fire the shot, just keep increasing pressure.
(Follow through)
The pistol will fire, when it does,
trap the trigger to the rear.
Get the sights back on the target.
Reset the trigger.
[Of course, there is much more to it than that.
But, this was just a casual conversation in a
coffee shop.]
I assured her that the surprise break would
defeat all of her autonomic nervous system
responses to the report and recoil.
I have always known that training in any
police department is inadequate due to time and
budgetary constraints. An officer has to
train on her own time and her own dime. We
often talk about this at the Tactical Conference,
and what we can do to help the situation.
Through my Rotary Club, I once donated ten
4-day handgun training certificates to the
Mount Laurel, NJ Police Department. The Police
Department declined to accept them, because they
could not afford to send 10 officers to such
training at Front Sight in Pahrump, NV. Not
even if they spread it out over several decades.
Not even if the officers paid their own way
there and back, and paid their own hotel, and
rental car.
In the previous year, the Police Department
had accepted body armor from my Rotary Club for
their officers.
I explained to my Rotary Club that body
armor protects the police. Training protects
the citizens. As Greg Ellifritz says,
"When you aren’t skilled and confident,
you get scared and you over react."
And the only path to skill and confidence is
expert training.
Common AR Rifle Handling Errors
https://www.ammoland.com/2016/10/common-ar-rifle-handling-errors/
Flunking The Victim Selection Test
https://ccwsafe.com/blog/29625
10 Tips to Stay Within the Law When Traveling with Firearms
https://www.personaldefenseworld.com/2018/10/traveling-with-firearms/
"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
Cheers,
Jon
Thursday, November 1, 2018
Monday, October 1, 2018
CWP, 1 October 2018 Anno Domini
Greetings Sheepdogs,
I am trying to get a few people together for a
Defensive Training International
Instructor Program
(Taught by John Farnam.) in the Nashville, TN area in 2019 A.D.
The course description is about 3/4ths down this web page,
http://defense-training.com/training-courses/
If you would like to attend in 2019 or know anyone who would,
please let me know.
***** Mindset *****
Avoidance, Deterrence, and De-escalation
-- John Farnam
[With apologies to Clive Staples Lewis]
You don't have a soul. You are your soul.
You have a body. You are not your body. Consider
Helen Keller or Stephan Hawking.
You have tools. Your tools do not define you.
They may say something about your taste or what you
can afford. But, that really is insignificant.
The surgeon is not known by his scalpel.
He has no favorite scalpel. He has a skill,
any scalpel will do. (I have seen a tracheotomy
preformed with a steak knife grabbed off a
dinner table.) Similarly, you should concentrate
on honing your skill, any pistol will do.
A person will become comfortable with anything
he practices. Sentimental or personal preferences
have no place in combat preparation. You may not
have a pistol, any knife will do. What is the
best way to hold a knife? The way you are holding
it in the fight. Don’t change grips. Don’t throw
your knife. Lead with the knife, as a fencer,
with your other hand covering your carotid
arteries in your neck (Thanks to Sensei Cat
Fitzgerald). You may not have a knife, a pen will do.
You may not have any weapon, your hands will do.
Concentrate the strength of two of your hands
against one of the enemy's hands or one of his fingers,
and continue to twist; don’t stop when something
breaks. Stomp on his foot over the arch (not the
toes, as he may be wearing steel toed shoes),
the small bones in the foot are easily broken.
Gouge his eyes, if the enemy is wearing glasses
or goggles, gouge up and under the glasses.
A blood choke will incapacitate a person in
8 seconds (often much less than 8 seconds).
(An air choke is ineffective because a person
can hold his breath for a minute or more.)
If you don't know what I'm talking about, ASK!
Keep fighting. As long as you maintain a combat
mindset, you can win.
If you think you are better off submitting,
you are statistically wrong. May I invite your
attention to “More Guns, Less Crime” by John R. Lott Jr.,
ISBN: 978-0226493640;
and you would be doing the criminal’s next
victim a grave disservice.
In the May 2011 issue of the American Rifleman
on page 83, Criminology Professor Gary Kleck of
Florida State University concluded from a study of
National Crime Victimization Survey data that
“Robbery and assault victims who used a gun to
resist were less likely to be attacked or to
suffer an injury than those who used any other
method of self-protection or those who did not
resist at all.”
Position Before Submission – The BJJ Approach To Combat
http://www.iacombatives.com/2018/08/24/position-before-submission-the-bjj-approach-to-combat/
Excerpt:
Position before submission. Essentially what this means is
to have good positional dominance and control before
thinking about the finish. That keeps you conscious, mobile,
and in the fight, and allows you to go to the correct
ending move without risking yourself losing.
We carry to protect our loved ones and our community.
Family resources spent on your training are to protect your
family. When my children turned 14 I took them to Front
Sight for a 4-day Defensive Handgun class. When they were
old enough to carry, I bought them pistols expecting them
to protect me (and their loved ones).
Five NEVERs of Self-Defense
http://weaponsman.com/?p=17511
“The familiar clause, ‘It's better to be lucky than good’
is the most ridiculous homily ever uttered!
In any competitive endeavor, you have to be damned good,
before ‘luck’ can be of any use to you at all.”
-- International Grand Master Garry Kasparov
"You have to be lucky to win, and the more your practice,
the luckier you get." -- Col. Lones Wigger (1937 - 2017),
a friend and mentor
Force!
http://defense-training.com/2018/force/
Excerpt:
“Shoot, when you have no choice!
Don’t, when you have other choices that are reasonably safe.
When you have no choice except to shoot,
who cares if it’s ‘legal?’
When you don’t need to shoot,
who cares if it would have been ‘legal?’ ”
-- Frieling
The foregoing quotation, from a celebrated lawyer,
represents his inevitable answer to the naive question:
“Can/should I shoot someone if they ....?”
Nobody Cares!
http://defense-training.com/2018/nobody-cares/
The “long game” of self defense
http://www.grantcunningham.com/2018/09/the-long-game-of-self-defense/
We are alive today because our ancestors lived long enough to procreate.
We are of the social and economic status that we are because of the decisions
of our ancestors. Never break the chain.
"Time unwinds.
Love's a state of mind."
-- Fleetwood Mac (Rhiannon)
Situational Awareness
http://privateerpublications.com/situational-awareness/
Excerpts:
All self-defense instructors I have spoken to agree
that a confident, alert demeanor will discourage most
opportunistic criminals from choosing you as a target.
If they do, you should have some warning and be able to
take evasive action.
. . .
"When you’ve got an instinct or a feeling something’s
wrong, don’t simply dismiss it, check it out. It could be
something. That’s what I’ve learned: to always trust your
instincts on something like that. . . . "
-- John Long
“In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is
the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing,
and the worst thing you can do is nothing.”
-- President Theodore Roosevelt (NRA Life Member)
[This is also taught at Marine Corps Officer Candidate School.]
How do you win a gunfight? Don’t be there.
-–John Farnam
***** Enemy Mindset *****
They Are Not You: The Mindset of Hate
https://www.personaldefensenetwork.com/article/they-are-not-you-the-mindset-of-hate/
They Are Not You: Preconceptions as Deadly Misconceptions
https://www.personaldefensenetwork.com/article/they-are-not-you-preconceptions-as-deadly-misconceptions/
Excerpt:
"Behavior and demeanor often reveal true purposes;
looks seldom do the same."
Complacency kills.
***** Safety *****
Failure to obey safety rules gets people killed.
https://www.pottsmerc.com/news/state-police-corporal-faces-charges-in-shooting-death-of-state/article_337d872b-5f91-5a2a-9199-206358a4d3dc.html
So, the next time someone violates a safety rule,
tell them. They may take offense and tell you to fuck off.
But, you will be doing the right thing, and perhaps saving a
life (maybe yours).
Failure to watch what you're doing when holstering causes
injuries.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FrJMQupYxaw
Holster carefully and gently. Check to be sure nothing is caught
in your holster.
Check for friendlies down range.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=42&v=HUzTIKAbI3k
Penetration Testing And Using A Car As Cover Part 1&2
http://looserounds.com/2018/08/23/penetration-testing-and-using-a-car-as-cover-part-12/
The authors did the experiments and give you the data.
***** Training *****
“When you aren’t skilled and confident,
you get scared and you over react.”
-- Greg Ellifritz
Gunsite is teaching the 250 Pistol Class
https://www.gunsite.com/classes/nashville-250-pistol-class/
four times a year at the Royal Range in Nashville, TN
https://www.royalrangeusa.com/
December 3, 2018 - December 7, 2018
March 4, 2019 - March 8, 2019
June 3, 2019 - June 7, 2019
September 2, 2019 - September 6, 2019
December 2, 2019 - December 6, 2019
Body language and threat recognition
http://www.backwoodshome.com/body-language-and-threat-recognition/
Marc MacYoung, September 1, 2014 (Facebook posting)
Rule number one about teaching self-defense:
Do NOT teach anything that will get your students killed.
Rule number two:
Do NOT teach anything that will get your students put in prison.
Rule number three:
No matter how much they want to learn other stuff,
focus on rules one and two.
Wilson Combat's Going Tactical with Mike Seeklander (12 episodes)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4idEuv4A5n4&index=2&list=PLFJTW6YkjgiS4wK2WdG2ONgvgIVFSbWuG&t=12s
Nice techniques. Pay attention to the details.
In some of the episodes, he's using a pistol with a compensator,
which blows gasses upward. This is going to throw burning powder
into you face when shooting from a close contact position. So,
you should never use a pistol with a compensator for self defense.
Mr. Seeklander talks about using a short barreled rifle.
This weapon requires special licensing. There is another
alternative, bullpups. Moving the receiver back to the butt
plate gives you a short rifle with a rifle length barrel.
Lead with your eyes. Eyes, Muzzle, Trigger. Drive your
gun with your feet. Good techniques.
In Pursuit of Better Practice (an Interview with Claude Werner)
https://www.armedcitizensnetwork.org/in-pursuit-of-better-practice
Excerpt:
Training is not an event: it is a journey.
As an intelligence analyst, it is my job to filter information
for you. I read a lot of stuff and filter out the rubbish, and
present what I believe to be useful information to you in this
blog. However, I feel compelled to mention the fact that a
firearms instructor is teaching unsighted fire at
non-close-contact ranges (20 feet). I believe unsighted fire
at ranges where you could use your sights is wrong.
You have a duty to fire accurately, because every miss is
damaging property and injuring bystanders, maybe killing them.
In order to shoot accurately, you must use your sights.
You must correctly align your front and rear sights.
You must focus on the front sight (hard focus,
see the serrations and the scratches on the front sight).
Unsighted fire is intentional negligence.
Fit Enough to Fight
https://www.t-nation.com/training/fit-enough-to-fight
A few years ago, I got stabbed in the thigh.
It didn't hurt. I carried on. Training does work.
You too can get this effect.
Using pistol matches for training:
Move slowly enough to see the edge of your target before it sees you.
(If you are racing to win the game and run past a target without
seeing it, it shot you and you lose.) And shooting the edge when it
comes into view. Don't wait till you have a center of mass shot.
Because by then the enemy has a center of mass shot on you.
Don't muzzle the no shoot targets. (Pointing a gun at someone
without justification is aggravated assault.)
Stay back away from corners. (There is a bad guy hiding behind
every corner. Always a good assumption.)
Stay back away from walls. (Bullets don't ricochet off
walls the way light reflects off a mirror.)
Don't game the scenario.
The Essential Guide to Banjo Jamming
https://fingerstylebanjo.com/jamming/
Yes, this relates directly to your self defense training.
Every combat situation is you playing a song you don't already
know. Do you see the beauty? the elegance?
5 Things to Master for Weak-Side Shooting
https://www.americas1stfreedom.org/articles/2018/9/18/5-things-to-master-for-weak-side-shooting/
Shoot Straight: Breaking Out of the Square Range Rut
https://www.itstactical.com/warcom/firearms/breaking-square-range-rut/
ADVICE TO THE FIGHT-FOCUSED GUN STUDENT
http://blog.suarezinternational.com/2018/09/advice-to-the-fight-focused-gun-student.html
Excerpt:
The lack of physical fitness in the gun world is shameful and
embarrassing and indicative of a culture of self-gratification and
a lack of self-discipline. One is unfit because one chooses a
lifestyle that gets [one] there.
It is not about gun SPORT. Any martial science that is turned
into a sport loses a great deal of [its] martial value.
See Olympic fencing.
When you come to class, please come prepared.
. . . do not show up to an advanced level class when you have not
been to a basic level class.
"You train for the people who love you."
-- Tatiana Whitlock
***** Tactics *****
". . . personal defense is a lifestyle, not a hobby."
-- Sheriff Jim Wilson
MINDSET AND LIFE
http://looserounds.com/2018/08/20/mindset-and-life/
Excerpt:
"Manage the Clock. Most criminals stay up late and
sleep late, too. If you have unavoidable business
in their precincts, do it at seven o’clock in the
morning when they’re down for the count, not at
midnight when they’re just warming up."
Tatiana Whitlock demos some options when you have to fight with family around.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hQq7ao6vsH8
Never fire warning shots!
http://lawofselfdefense.com/law_case/williams-v-state-2018-ga-lexis-584-ga-supreme-court-2018/
As Andrew Branca explains in this case, the firing of a
single warning shot resulted in a felony murder conviction
and life sentence. Which was upheld by the Georgia Supreme
Court upon appeal.
The defendant didn't shoot at anyone. He didn't hurt anyone.
He fired a warning shot, which was deemed aggravated assault (a felony)
by the jury (the finders of the facts). And because someone died
during the felony, he was convicted of felony murder.
Acts of criminal stupidity are very expensive.
Never fire warning shots!
Contact Distance Shooting . . . Rescuing a Friend or Family Member
http://www.activeresponsetraining.net/contact-distance-shooting-rescuing-a-friend-or-family-member#comments
Ralph Mroz, in his Close Quarter Combat with pistol course,
teaches to lock up with your partner or the enemy, and then
attempt a contact shot from the side of the neck down into
the torso of the enemy. (That's why you need to take a close quarter combat
class.)
Stepping to the Side While Drawing
http://privateerpublications.com/stepping-side-drawing/
Excerpt:
"The situation dictates what you do. So practice different options."
-- Dean Thompson
BREACH OR BYPASS - ARMOR SOLUTIONS
http://blog.suarezinternational.com/2018/09/breach-or-bypass-armor-solutions.html
Excerpt:
The face . . . the face . . . nothing but the face.
Only those who risk going too far can
possibly find out how far one can go.
-- T.S. Elliot
***** Techniques *****
Don't go to stupid places.
Don't do stupid things.
Don't hang out with stupid people.
-- John Farnam
How gauche
https://www.corneredcat.com/how-gauche/
Bad habits result in injury and death.
The subject formed the bad habit because he
didn't know any better, because he did not
invest in competent expert training.
He didn't know what he didn't know.
Potty Training
https://www.corneredcat.com/potty-training/
Craig Douglas of Shivworks talks about how to manage a strangers aproach
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uwCtu79iMDs
Overlooked Training Tactics – Blade Deployment | JTT
https://www.breachbangclear.com/overlooked-training-tactics-blade-deployment/
Greg Ellifritz doesn't like the author’s
“thumb on the spine” knife grip. But, having
been a fencer for many years, I do. Being
able to push the cutting edge of your blade
with your thumb is what saber fencers do.
Carrying Crossdraw: Don't
https://www.integratedskillsgroup.com/blog/crossdraw
Carry your concealed pistol in a high quality
inside the waistband holster (no retention devices)
on a high quality belt (stiff) on your firing side
at the point of your hip. Anything else is wrong,
for many reasons. For details, ask me for a copy
of my book "Defensive Pistol" and read the section
on holsters. You can contact me at Jon_Low@yahoo.com
Why it’s time to ditch small of back carry
https://www.guns.com/2018/08/30/its-time-to-ditch-small-of-back-carry-and-this-is-why/
Going to the ground in a fight is common.
If you fall on your back (voluntarily or involuntarily)
you risk spinal injury. Even if you go to your back
correctly as taught in martial arts classes, such as
Aikido.
In a seated position, unless you are on a stool
without a back rest, any kind of back rest encumbers
your presentation from your holster.
These Mistakes Make Your Pistol Red Dot Sight Deadweight
https://guerrillaapproach.com/pistol-rds/
Head up! Not tilted. Your inner ear is in your
head. If you tilt your head, you destroy your inner
ear balance. (Not tilted forward. Not tilted to the
side. Not tilted at all!)
Shoulders down and relaxed. Tense muscles are
slow muscles. Relaxed muscles are quick.
Lean forward from the hips, not the waist.
Arch your back. Throw your chest out. Don't slouch!
If you practice this in the mirror, you will
immediately see your mistakes and automatically
correct them. Mirrors don't lie. Without mirror
practice, you will tell yourself all kinds of
ridiculous lies and believe them. It's true.
I've been coaching for decades. I've seen it in
children and adults. You're probably not practicing
at an Olympic Training Center, so you don't have
videos of yourself to analyze. But, mirrors work.
That's why dance studios have mirrors on the walls.
Even if someone is recording you on their phone,
it's not immediate feedback. The mirror is
immediate feedback.
Single-Handed Shooting: Why Practice It?
https://www.shootingillustrated.com/articles/2018/9/4/single-handed-shooting-why-practice-it/
Pistol Trigger Control Tips (but it works for rifle too)
https://www.ssusa.org/articles/2018/9/4/pistol-trigger-control-tips/
Excerpt:
“It takes a lot of self discipline to watch your sights
drifting ever so slightly. Your natural inclination is to
try and wait until your sight picture is perfect and then
squeeze off your shot, but that never works,” said Hemphill.
This is truth. It never works. So, if you are doing
this, you are wrong (and always will be, you can't make
such a technique work). Smoothly continuously increase
pressure on your trigger to achieve a surprise trigger break.
[If you don't believe the surprise break will work for you,
you need to fix your attitude. If you think you can
intentionally fire the shot when you want to, and get
accurate shots, you are wrong. You are human.
Therefore, you have an autonomic nervous system. Your
autonomic nervous system responses to your intentional
shot will defeat you every time. That's how God designed
your autonomic nervous system. For good natural purpose.
Shooting is not a natural thing, as throwing a rock is. So,
you have to defeat your autonomic nervous system to
get good shots. That's just truth. It's not good or bad.
That's just the way the human brain works.]
Paper Cutter Choke
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=96&v=6sOChetcV_M
Pistol Whip: When You Should Use a Handgun as an Impact Weapon
https://www.ballisticmag.com/2018/08/29/pistol-whip-technique-impact-weapon/
This article advocates pistol punching under certain
circumstances.
You must keep your trigger finger in the register position.
A finger in the trigger guard will eventually get broken when
the pistol rotates.
In close quarter combat training, we cut the trigger
guards off of the plastic dummy pistols to avoid breaking
fingers. (Now, the pistols won't holster properly, but
it's a trade off.)
Friendly fire is never friendly
https://www.strategosintl.com/blog/2018/9/13/friendly-fire-is-never-friendly
Excerpts:
Our best advice is to draw your weapon only until the threat is mitigated,
then immediately holster it.
. . .
Law enforcement wants to see your empty hands raised in the air.
. . .
If your weapon is drawn while you scream “I am a good guy!” then
confusion, chaos and tragedy are likely outcomes.
John Farnam apparently does not like the chamber check
taught at Front Sight (and by others).
"Up until now, Glock’s legal department recommended against
forward slide serrations, and anything else that would temp
fingers and hands to get near the muzzle. Apparently, they were
overruled this time, in an attempt to attract non-serious
shooters and others who own guns for non-serious purposes.
I think the legal department was, and is, right!
During reloading and stoppage-reduction, hands should not
go forward of the ejection port, nor is there any legitimate
reason for hands to be there.
Who grab slides forward of the ejection port invariably
drape fingers over the muzzle!
Not smart, and not necessary!"
Source:
http://defense-training.com/2018/g45/
“The fast and/or emphatic reholster is an
awesome way to shoot yourself.”
-- Chuck Haggard
***** Gear *****
“Arms are permissible, when there is no hope except in arms.”
-- Niccolo Machiavelli
What’s a Holster For?
https://www.corneredcat.com/whats-a-holster-for/
Excerpt:
". . . Carrying the gun on your belt is not
equivalent experience to actually using the
holster for its intended function."
-- attribution not given in the article
Downloadable targets
https://www.slytactraining.com/learning-center/fundamental-targets
Tips On Buying Used Handguns
https://survivalblog.com/tips-buying-used-handguns-pat-cascio/
The Best .38 Special Defensive Ammunition (and other stuff)
http://www.activeresponsetraining.net/the-best-38-special-defensive-ammunition
Reducing White Space For Better Accuracy
https://www.ssusa.org/articles/2018/9/4/reducing-white-space-for-better-accuracy/
Friends Don’t Let Friends Open Carry
http://www.activeresponsetraining.net/friends-dont-let-friends-open-carry
***** Instructors *****
Colonel Robert Lindsey to his fellow trainers:
"We are not God’s gift to our students.
Our students are God’s gift to us."
Developing an Emergency Response Plan for the Training Environment
https://www.personaldefensenetwork.com/article/developing-emergency-response-plan-training-environment/
"Every time I teach a class,
I discover I don't know something."
-- Clint Smith, Director of Thunder Ranch
***** Pedagogy *****
If you are helping someone and expecting
something in return, you are doing
business, not kindness.
Cognitive Load: How Does This Affect our Shot Process?
https://primaryandsecondary.com/cognitive-load-how-does-this-affect-our-shot-process/
When teaching your students, be careful not to
cause a cognitive overload.
Teach your students how to avoid cognitive overload
in self-defense situations.
You are teaching correctly if your students teach
their friends and relatives in such a way so as to
avoid cognitive overload.
***** Education *****
Dirty Little Secrets
https://www.corneredcat.com/dirty-little-secrets/
Excerpt (paraphrased):
". . . women will more often need to defend
themselves from people they [know]."
When I was military police (I always make the distinction
so the LEO's won't point out that I was never a "sworn officer".),
anytime anyone was injured, we would always find and question
the spouse (boyfriend, significant other, etc.), even if the
victim swore it wasn't him (especially if the victim were dead).
Because, it was almost always him.
Let me share a letter with you --
Dear Mothers, Sisters and Daughters,
May I invite your attention to the article,
"Human Predators: Four Features and Four Phases of Assault"
http://www.kristinprentissott.com/human-predators-four-features-and-four-phases-of-assault/
If you pay attention, you can avoid the attack.
Never submit to attack. Statistically speaking, you
have a much better chance to avoid getting hurt if you
fight back with an explosive counter attack. To submit
does the criminal's next victim a grave disservice.
You must immediately tell the police.
You must sign the complaint. You must testify.
You may be wondering why claims of sexual assault are
viewed skeptically by law enforcement. Let me explain.
Every time we answer a domestic and find the guy beating
the gal, we arrest the guy. We ask the gal to sign the
complaint. Sometimes she refuses to. If she does sign it,
at trial she says that he did not attack her, and sometimes
that the cops caused the fight.
Every time we answer a domestic and find the guy not
beating the gal, the gal will claim that the guy was beating
her and she will use magic words such as "he was choking me".
Which under Tennessee law forces us to arrest the guy.
The magistrate always warns the gal that if she is lying,
she will be prosecuted for filing a false report. At trial,
she will not show up, or if she does show up, she will say
that he had not attacked her.
Statistically speaking, half of all rape complaints are
false. This is true in the Armed Forces and civilian worlds.
(We don't mean insufficient evidence to prosecute. We
mean the complaint is false.)
Greg Ellifritz tells of a domestic he responded to.
The guy had shot the gal in the head. The bullet entered
her forehead, split the two lobes of her brain, and exited
the back of her skull. She did not die. She did not lose
consciousness. Greg interviewed her immediately after
the shooting. She refused to press charges, because she
loved him and she knew he loved her.
Yes, there really are such people. (You've probably
never met such persons, because your parents protected
you from such social circles.) If you practice such
stupidity, your children will learn it from you.
If he hits you, you must immediately leave and break
off the relationship. Because if you don't, he now knows
that hitting you is an acceptable part of your relationship.
Domestic abuse always escalates until the victim is dead
or the victim decides to leave.
Sincerely,
(a conglomeration of magistrates, law enforcement
officers, and firearms instructors)
Armed Citizens Legal Defense Network, Inc. newsletter,
https://www.armedcitizensnetwork.org/september-2018-front-page
"Veni, vidi, Deus vicit".
(I came, I saw, God conquered.)
-- King Jan Sobieski of Poland, September 11th, 1683 A.D.
The Polish Warrior King Jan Sobieski defeated the Moors at the gates of Vienna.
Compare to Julius Ceasar (correctly pronounced in Latin
it's euphonic), "Veni. Vidi. Vici." (I came. I saw. I conquered.)
[For those who have not studied Latin, the "V" is pronounced
as an English speaker would pronounce a "W".]
Rack, Rack. Who’s There? Shotgun Myths, Misconceptions, and Truths
https://www.swatmag.com/article/rack-rack-whos-shotgun-myths-misconceptions-truths/
Brownells sells an excellent recoil absorbing stock.
[I couldn't find the one that I bought on the Brownells web site.
I guess they don't sell it anymore. But, here is one example,
https://www.brownells.com/shotgun-parts/stock-forend-parts/buttstocks/mossberg-500-knoxx-specops-geniii-buttstock-prod103578.aspx
]
I installed it on my (then)girlfriend's Mossberg and she was
able to shoot it happily.
Concerning self defense insurance --
If the policy only reimburses you if you are acquitted,
the insurance company has a huge financial incentive
to ensure you are convicted. One would politely call
that a conflict of interest. That's the problem with
the NRA Carry Guard policy and others of that ilk.
You want a policy that pays your attorney up front,
because legitimate attorneys insist on payment up front,
because they know you will lose all incentive to pay
them once you have been acquitted (or convicted).
You also want a policy that will pay to bail you
out of jail. Spending time in jail exposes you to rape,
sodomy, battery resulting in permanent debilitating
injury, infection with nasty diseases, etc.
Spending time in jail disqualifies you from
donating blood, for good reason. Just as male homosexual
intercourse disqualifies you from donating blood.
In matters of life and death, there is no room for
political correctness.
You also want a policy that will get you competent
expert witnesses to testify for you.
One of the fringe benefits of taking a class from
Massad Ayoob (and others), is that he will testify for you
in the event you are prosecuted. I consider it my duty
as an instructor to testify for my students.
I would consider
Armed Citizens Legal Defense Network, Inc.
https://armedcitizensnetwork.org/
as I am familiar with several of the board members.
Concealed Carry Permit Holders Across the United States 2018
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3233904
How a Botched Study Fooled the World About the U.S. Share of Mass Public Shootings:
U.S. Rate is Lower than Global Average
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3238736
Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program
https://ucr.fbi.gov/crime-in-the-u.s/2017/crime-in-the-u.s.-2017
Tom Givens comment on the report --
You do realize these numbers are total bull, right?
This is a voluntary reporting system. Of 14,000 police
agencies in the US, about a third don't report info
to the UCR. In my metro area, for instance, the metro
population is 3,083,660. The UCR only lists the crimes
from 4 cities in that metro area, with a total
population of 847,095. That means the crimes affecting
the other 2,236,565 residents were not counted. My town,
for instance, is in that metro area. We had 5 homicides
and almost 200 Aggravated Assaults, but they are not
included in the UCR. This means the violent crime
totals for the US in the UCR are grossly under-reported.
HANDGUN WOUNDING FACTORS AND EFFECTIVENESS
http://www.activeresponsetraining.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/fbi-hwfe.pdf
Excerpt:
Choosing a bullet because of relatively shallow penetration
will seriously compromise weapon effectiveness, and needlessly
endanger the lives of the law enforcement officers using it.
No law enforcement officer has lost his life because a bullet
over penetrated his adversary, and virtually none have ever been
sued for hitting an innocent bystander through an adversary.
On the other hand, tragically large numbers of officers have
been killed because their bullets did not penetrate deeply enough.
. . .
Those who disparage science and laboratory methods are either
too short sighted or too bound by preconceived (or perhaps proprietary)
notions to see the truth. The labs and scientists do not offer sure
things. They offer a means of indexing the damage done by a bullet,
understanding of the mechanics of damage caused by bullets and the
actual effects on the body, and the basis for making an informed
choice based on objective criteria and significant statistics.
. . .
Kinetic energy does not wound. Temporary cavity does not wound.
The much discussed "shock" of bullet impact is a fable and "knock down"
power is a myth. The critical element is penetration. The bullet must
pass through the large, blood bearing organs and be of sufficient
diameter to promote rapid bleeding. Penetration less than 12 inches
is too little, and, in the words of two of the participants in the
1987 Wound Ballistics Workshop, "too little penetration will get
you killed." Given desirable and reliable penetration, the only way
to increase bullet effectiveness is to increase the severity of the
wound by increasing the size of hole made by the bullet. Any bullet
which will not penetrate through vital organs from less than optimal
angles is not acceptable. Of those that will penetrate, the edge is
always with the bigger bullet.
[What is the logical conclusion? Shoot a copper jacketed
round nose bullet (for maximum penetration) in .45 caliber
(for maximum hole size). -- Jon Low]
The Science of CQB, Gunfighting, and Not Getting Shot
https://www.tierthreetactical.com/the-science-of-cqb-gunfighting-and-not-getting-shot/
***** News, Legal, Philosophical, and Political stuff *****
Civil War happens when the victimized are armed.
Genocide happens when they are not!
-- A.E. Samaan
My paraphrase of Andrew Branca's report on
State v. Scott 2018 South Carolina --
South Carolina man standing on the porch of his house (curtilege)
[I used to teach the South Carolina Concealed Weapons Permit course.]
shot at a group of people in multiple cars who were shooting at his
house in an attempt to kill his daughter who had retreated into his
house. His bullet kills one of the people in the cars. State attorney
charges him with murder. He claims self defense. The trial judge
grants him immunity from prosecution based on self defense. State
attorney appeals. Appellate court affirms the trial court decision
granting immunity. State attorney appeals. Supreme court affirms
appellate court decision to affirm trial court decision granting
immunity. Huge legal fees? Not in this case. Defendant had a public
defender all the way to the Supreme court. Yeah, South Carolina!
http://lawofselfdefense.com/law_case/state-v-scott-2018-s-c-lexis-105-sc-supreme-court-2018/
You think this would happen in Florida? Massad Ayoob is still
waiting for reimbursement from Florida for a case he testified in
as an expert witness. Florida is supposed to reimburse the defense
costs if the defendant is acquitted.
“You get to have your own opinion, but not your own facts!”
http://defense-training.com/2018/you-get-to-have-your-own-opinion-but-not-your-own-facts/
NRA’s List of Anti-Gunners
http://www.2acheck.com/the-boycott-list/nras-list-of-antis/
Because it's not on the NRA-ILA web site anymore.
France is proposing to give all local cops guns
https://qz.com/1386042/france-is-proposing-to-give-all-local-cops-guns/
Crime Wave United Kingdom:
Govt Moves to Stop Knife Sales as Blade Crime Hits 7-Year High
https://www.breitbart.com/london/2018/09/15/govt-restrict-knife-sales-blade-crime/
Contrast with the state of Tennessee in the U.S.A. where
there is no such thing as an illegal knife. Yes, you can
walk into Wal Mart and buy a fully automatic knife (switch blade).
You can also mail order such. No age limit. No ID required.
In the UK, they don't understand freedom. No knife sales to
individuals. No whittling. No carving. No shaving. Going
to have to wax.
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
69 Timeless Travel Tips and Tricks | After 4+ Years On the Road
https://www.nomadichustle.com/timeless-travel-tips/
Tip number 4 really works. During Operation Iraqi Freedom,
some bad guys approached a local to gather intel on me. The
local was a guy who worked with me at the Royal Saudi Air
Force Base in Riyadh. He told the enemy terrorists to leave me
alone. So, they did. (At least until the attacks on May 11th
2003.) [Ya, there's a lot more to the story.] I had talked to him.
I had found out that his son was studying computer science. So, I
gave him a copy of "The C++ Programming Language"
by Bjarne Stroustrup for his son.
Make friends. You never know when it will save your life.
Pat McNamara Offers 2 Unique Takes on the ‘Bug Out Bag’
https://www.personaldefenseworld.com/2018/09/pat-mcnamara-bug-out-bag/
***** Basics *****
"Panic is simply the lack of preprogrammed responses."
-- Tom Givens
Guns of ISG: Why the Handgun?
https://www.integratedskillsgroup.com/blog/guns-of-isg-handgun
"Fear is an instinct. Courage is a choice."
-- Rear Admiral Joseph Kernan, USN
***** Miscellany *****
"Militum semper memento"
(Always remember the soldiers.)
3D Animation Showing How IWI Tavor X95 Rifle Works
https://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2018/09/21/3d-animation-showing-how-iwi-tavor-x95-rifle-works/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=4&v=ZMjrI-55fYw
This morning I was sitting in McDonalds eating
breakfast, when I heard a little girl asking her
mother for a Happy Meal. She could pronounce it
correctly. She knew exactly what it was. I've
worked for McDonalds (flipping burgers and mopping
the floors in high school). I've done statistical research
for McDonalds. All I could think was that all that money
spent on research, marketing, advertising, etc.
worked. McDonalds got that little girl to eagerly
ask her mother for a Happy Meal. It wasn't an
accident. It wasn't incidental. It was planned,
executed, and achieved.
If you live in our society, and have a craving
for something, it is almost certain that that craving
is the fruition of a well financed marketing plan.
Yes, it works in the firearms industry. Yes,
it works in the self defense training industry.
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
Cheers,
Jon
I am trying to get a few people together for a
Defensive Training International
Instructor Program
(Taught by John Farnam.) in the Nashville, TN area in 2019 A.D.
The course description is about 3/4ths down this web page,
http://defense-training.com/training-courses/
If you would like to attend in 2019 or know anyone who would,
please let me know.
***** Mindset *****
Avoidance, Deterrence, and De-escalation
-- John Farnam
[With apologies to Clive Staples Lewis]
You don't have a soul. You are your soul.
You have a body. You are not your body. Consider
Helen Keller or Stephan Hawking.
You have tools. Your tools do not define you.
They may say something about your taste or what you
can afford. But, that really is insignificant.
The surgeon is not known by his scalpel.
He has no favorite scalpel. He has a skill,
any scalpel will do. (I have seen a tracheotomy
preformed with a steak knife grabbed off a
dinner table.) Similarly, you should concentrate
on honing your skill, any pistol will do.
A person will become comfortable with anything
he practices. Sentimental or personal preferences
have no place in combat preparation. You may not
have a pistol, any knife will do. What is the
best way to hold a knife? The way you are holding
it in the fight. Don’t change grips. Don’t throw
your knife. Lead with the knife, as a fencer,
with your other hand covering your carotid
arteries in your neck (Thanks to Sensei Cat
Fitzgerald). You may not have a knife, a pen will do.
You may not have any weapon, your hands will do.
Concentrate the strength of two of your hands
against one of the enemy's hands or one of his fingers,
and continue to twist; don’t stop when something
breaks. Stomp on his foot over the arch (not the
toes, as he may be wearing steel toed shoes),
the small bones in the foot are easily broken.
Gouge his eyes, if the enemy is wearing glasses
or goggles, gouge up and under the glasses.
A blood choke will incapacitate a person in
8 seconds (often much less than 8 seconds).
(An air choke is ineffective because a person
can hold his breath for a minute or more.)
If you don't know what I'm talking about, ASK!
Keep fighting. As long as you maintain a combat
mindset, you can win.
If you think you are better off submitting,
you are statistically wrong. May I invite your
attention to “More Guns, Less Crime” by John R. Lott Jr.,
ISBN: 978-0226493640;
and you would be doing the criminal’s next
victim a grave disservice.
In the May 2011 issue of the American Rifleman
on page 83, Criminology Professor Gary Kleck of
Florida State University concluded from a study of
National Crime Victimization Survey data that
“Robbery and assault victims who used a gun to
resist were less likely to be attacked or to
suffer an injury than those who used any other
method of self-protection or those who did not
resist at all.”
Position Before Submission – The BJJ Approach To Combat
http://www.iacombatives.com/2018/08/24/position-before-submission-the-bjj-approach-to-combat/
Excerpt:
Position before submission. Essentially what this means is
to have good positional dominance and control before
thinking about the finish. That keeps you conscious, mobile,
and in the fight, and allows you to go to the correct
ending move without risking yourself losing.
We carry to protect our loved ones and our community.
Family resources spent on your training are to protect your
family. When my children turned 14 I took them to Front
Sight for a 4-day Defensive Handgun class. When they were
old enough to carry, I bought them pistols expecting them
to protect me (and their loved ones).
Five NEVERs of Self-Defense
http://weaponsman.com/?p=17511
“The familiar clause, ‘It's better to be lucky than good’
is the most ridiculous homily ever uttered!
In any competitive endeavor, you have to be damned good,
before ‘luck’ can be of any use to you at all.”
-- International Grand Master Garry Kasparov
"You have to be lucky to win, and the more your practice,
the luckier you get." -- Col. Lones Wigger (1937 - 2017),
a friend and mentor
Force!
http://defense-training.com/2018/force/
Excerpt:
“Shoot, when you have no choice!
Don’t, when you have other choices that are reasonably safe.
When you have no choice except to shoot,
who cares if it’s ‘legal?’
When you don’t need to shoot,
who cares if it would have been ‘legal?’ ”
-- Frieling
The foregoing quotation, from a celebrated lawyer,
represents his inevitable answer to the naive question:
“Can/should I shoot someone if they ....?”
Nobody Cares!
http://defense-training.com/2018/nobody-cares/
The “long game” of self defense
http://www.grantcunningham.com/2018/09/the-long-game-of-self-defense/
We are alive today because our ancestors lived long enough to procreate.
We are of the social and economic status that we are because of the decisions
of our ancestors. Never break the chain.
"Time unwinds.
Love's a state of mind."
-- Fleetwood Mac (Rhiannon)
Situational Awareness
http://privateerpublications.com/situational-awareness/
Excerpts:
All self-defense instructors I have spoken to agree
that a confident, alert demeanor will discourage most
opportunistic criminals from choosing you as a target.
If they do, you should have some warning and be able to
take evasive action.
. . .
"When you’ve got an instinct or a feeling something’s
wrong, don’t simply dismiss it, check it out. It could be
something. That’s what I’ve learned: to always trust your
instincts on something like that. . . . "
-- John Long
“In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is
the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing,
and the worst thing you can do is nothing.”
-- President Theodore Roosevelt (NRA Life Member)
[This is also taught at Marine Corps Officer Candidate School.]
How do you win a gunfight? Don’t be there.
-–John Farnam
***** Enemy Mindset *****
They Are Not You: The Mindset of Hate
https://www.personaldefensenetwork.com/article/they-are-not-you-the-mindset-of-hate/
They Are Not You: Preconceptions as Deadly Misconceptions
https://www.personaldefensenetwork.com/article/they-are-not-you-preconceptions-as-deadly-misconceptions/
Excerpt:
"Behavior and demeanor often reveal true purposes;
looks seldom do the same."
Complacency kills.
***** Safety *****
Failure to obey safety rules gets people killed.
https://www.pottsmerc.com/news/state-police-corporal-faces-charges-in-shooting-death-of-state/article_337d872b-5f91-5a2a-9199-206358a4d3dc.html
So, the next time someone violates a safety rule,
tell them. They may take offense and tell you to fuck off.
But, you will be doing the right thing, and perhaps saving a
life (maybe yours).
Failure to watch what you're doing when holstering causes
injuries.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FrJMQupYxaw
Holster carefully and gently. Check to be sure nothing is caught
in your holster.
Check for friendlies down range.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=42&v=HUzTIKAbI3k
Penetration Testing And Using A Car As Cover Part 1&2
http://looserounds.com/2018/08/23/penetration-testing-and-using-a-car-as-cover-part-12/
The authors did the experiments and give you the data.
***** Training *****
“When you aren’t skilled and confident,
you get scared and you over react.”
-- Greg Ellifritz
Gunsite is teaching the 250 Pistol Class
https://www.gunsite.com/classes/nashville-250-pistol-class/
four times a year at the Royal Range in Nashville, TN
https://www.royalrangeusa.com/
December 3, 2018 - December 7, 2018
March 4, 2019 - March 8, 2019
June 3, 2019 - June 7, 2019
September 2, 2019 - September 6, 2019
December 2, 2019 - December 6, 2019
Body language and threat recognition
http://www.backwoodshome.com/body-language-and-threat-recognition/
Marc MacYoung, September 1, 2014 (Facebook posting)
Rule number one about teaching self-defense:
Do NOT teach anything that will get your students killed.
Rule number two:
Do NOT teach anything that will get your students put in prison.
Rule number three:
No matter how much they want to learn other stuff,
focus on rules one and two.
Wilson Combat's Going Tactical with Mike Seeklander (12 episodes)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4idEuv4A5n4&index=2&list=PLFJTW6YkjgiS4wK2WdG2ONgvgIVFSbWuG&t=12s
Nice techniques. Pay attention to the details.
In some of the episodes, he's using a pistol with a compensator,
which blows gasses upward. This is going to throw burning powder
into you face when shooting from a close contact position. So,
you should never use a pistol with a compensator for self defense.
Mr. Seeklander talks about using a short barreled rifle.
This weapon requires special licensing. There is another
alternative, bullpups. Moving the receiver back to the butt
plate gives you a short rifle with a rifle length barrel.
Lead with your eyes. Eyes, Muzzle, Trigger. Drive your
gun with your feet. Good techniques.
In Pursuit of Better Practice (an Interview with Claude Werner)
https://www.armedcitizensnetwork.org/in-pursuit-of-better-practice
Excerpt:
Training is not an event: it is a journey.
As an intelligence analyst, it is my job to filter information
for you. I read a lot of stuff and filter out the rubbish, and
present what I believe to be useful information to you in this
blog. However, I feel compelled to mention the fact that a
firearms instructor is teaching unsighted fire at
non-close-contact ranges (20 feet). I believe unsighted fire
at ranges where you could use your sights is wrong.
You have a duty to fire accurately, because every miss is
damaging property and injuring bystanders, maybe killing them.
In order to shoot accurately, you must use your sights.
You must correctly align your front and rear sights.
You must focus on the front sight (hard focus,
see the serrations and the scratches on the front sight).
Unsighted fire is intentional negligence.
Fit Enough to Fight
https://www.t-nation.com/training/fit-enough-to-fight
A few years ago, I got stabbed in the thigh.
It didn't hurt. I carried on. Training does work.
You too can get this effect.
Using pistol matches for training:
Move slowly enough to see the edge of your target before it sees you.
(If you are racing to win the game and run past a target without
seeing it, it shot you and you lose.) And shooting the edge when it
comes into view. Don't wait till you have a center of mass shot.
Because by then the enemy has a center of mass shot on you.
Don't muzzle the no shoot targets. (Pointing a gun at someone
without justification is aggravated assault.)
Stay back away from corners. (There is a bad guy hiding behind
every corner. Always a good assumption.)
Stay back away from walls. (Bullets don't ricochet off
walls the way light reflects off a mirror.)
Don't game the scenario.
The Essential Guide to Banjo Jamming
https://fingerstylebanjo.com/jamming/
Yes, this relates directly to your self defense training.
Every combat situation is you playing a song you don't already
know. Do you see the beauty? the elegance?
5 Things to Master for Weak-Side Shooting
https://www.americas1stfreedom.org/articles/2018/9/18/5-things-to-master-for-weak-side-shooting/
Shoot Straight: Breaking Out of the Square Range Rut
https://www.itstactical.com/warcom/firearms/breaking-square-range-rut/
ADVICE TO THE FIGHT-FOCUSED GUN STUDENT
http://blog.suarezinternational.com/2018/09/advice-to-the-fight-focused-gun-student.html
Excerpt:
The lack of physical fitness in the gun world is shameful and
embarrassing and indicative of a culture of self-gratification and
a lack of self-discipline. One is unfit because one chooses a
lifestyle that gets [one] there.
It is not about gun SPORT. Any martial science that is turned
into a sport loses a great deal of [its] martial value.
See Olympic fencing.
When you come to class, please come prepared.
. . . do not show up to an advanced level class when you have not
been to a basic level class.
"You train for the people who love you."
-- Tatiana Whitlock
***** Tactics *****
". . . personal defense is a lifestyle, not a hobby."
-- Sheriff Jim Wilson
MINDSET AND LIFE
http://looserounds.com/2018/08/20/mindset-and-life/
Excerpt:
"Manage the Clock. Most criminals stay up late and
sleep late, too. If you have unavoidable business
in their precincts, do it at seven o’clock in the
morning when they’re down for the count, not at
midnight when they’re just warming up."
Tatiana Whitlock demos some options when you have to fight with family around.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hQq7ao6vsH8
Never fire warning shots!
http://lawofselfdefense.com/law_case/williams-v-state-2018-ga-lexis-584-ga-supreme-court-2018/
As Andrew Branca explains in this case, the firing of a
single warning shot resulted in a felony murder conviction
and life sentence. Which was upheld by the Georgia Supreme
Court upon appeal.
The defendant didn't shoot at anyone. He didn't hurt anyone.
He fired a warning shot, which was deemed aggravated assault (a felony)
by the jury (the finders of the facts). And because someone died
during the felony, he was convicted of felony murder.
Acts of criminal stupidity are very expensive.
Never fire warning shots!
Contact Distance Shooting . . . Rescuing a Friend or Family Member
http://www.activeresponsetraining.net/contact-distance-shooting-rescuing-a-friend-or-family-member#comments
Ralph Mroz, in his Close Quarter Combat with pistol course,
teaches to lock up with your partner or the enemy, and then
attempt a contact shot from the side of the neck down into
the torso of the enemy. (That's why you need to take a close quarter combat
class.)
Stepping to the Side While Drawing
http://privateerpublications.com/stepping-side-drawing/
Excerpt:
"The situation dictates what you do. So practice different options."
-- Dean Thompson
BREACH OR BYPASS - ARMOR SOLUTIONS
http://blog.suarezinternational.com/2018/09/breach-or-bypass-armor-solutions.html
Excerpt:
The face . . . the face . . . nothing but the face.
Only those who risk going too far can
possibly find out how far one can go.
-- T.S. Elliot
***** Techniques *****
Don't go to stupid places.
Don't do stupid things.
Don't hang out with stupid people.
-- John Farnam
How gauche
https://www.corneredcat.com/how-gauche/
Bad habits result in injury and death.
The subject formed the bad habit because he
didn't know any better, because he did not
invest in competent expert training.
He didn't know what he didn't know.
Potty Training
https://www.corneredcat.com/potty-training/
Craig Douglas of Shivworks talks about how to manage a strangers aproach
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uwCtu79iMDs
Overlooked Training Tactics – Blade Deployment | JTT
https://www.breachbangclear.com/overlooked-training-tactics-blade-deployment/
Greg Ellifritz doesn't like the author’s
“thumb on the spine” knife grip. But, having
been a fencer for many years, I do. Being
able to push the cutting edge of your blade
with your thumb is what saber fencers do.
Carrying Crossdraw: Don't
https://www.integratedskillsgroup.com/blog/crossdraw
Carry your concealed pistol in a high quality
inside the waistband holster (no retention devices)
on a high quality belt (stiff) on your firing side
at the point of your hip. Anything else is wrong,
for many reasons. For details, ask me for a copy
of my book "Defensive Pistol" and read the section
on holsters. You can contact me at Jon_Low@yahoo.com
Why it’s time to ditch small of back carry
https://www.guns.com/2018/08/30/its-time-to-ditch-small-of-back-carry-and-this-is-why/
Going to the ground in a fight is common.
If you fall on your back (voluntarily or involuntarily)
you risk spinal injury. Even if you go to your back
correctly as taught in martial arts classes, such as
Aikido.
In a seated position, unless you are on a stool
without a back rest, any kind of back rest encumbers
your presentation from your holster.
These Mistakes Make Your Pistol Red Dot Sight Deadweight
https://guerrillaapproach.com/pistol-rds/
Head up! Not tilted. Your inner ear is in your
head. If you tilt your head, you destroy your inner
ear balance. (Not tilted forward. Not tilted to the
side. Not tilted at all!)
Shoulders down and relaxed. Tense muscles are
slow muscles. Relaxed muscles are quick.
Lean forward from the hips, not the waist.
Arch your back. Throw your chest out. Don't slouch!
If you practice this in the mirror, you will
immediately see your mistakes and automatically
correct them. Mirrors don't lie. Without mirror
practice, you will tell yourself all kinds of
ridiculous lies and believe them. It's true.
I've been coaching for decades. I've seen it in
children and adults. You're probably not practicing
at an Olympic Training Center, so you don't have
videos of yourself to analyze. But, mirrors work.
That's why dance studios have mirrors on the walls.
Even if someone is recording you on their phone,
it's not immediate feedback. The mirror is
immediate feedback.
Single-Handed Shooting: Why Practice It?
https://www.shootingillustrated.com/articles/2018/9/4/single-handed-shooting-why-practice-it/
Pistol Trigger Control Tips (but it works for rifle too)
https://www.ssusa.org/articles/2018/9/4/pistol-trigger-control-tips/
Excerpt:
“It takes a lot of self discipline to watch your sights
drifting ever so slightly. Your natural inclination is to
try and wait until your sight picture is perfect and then
squeeze off your shot, but that never works,” said Hemphill.
This is truth. It never works. So, if you are doing
this, you are wrong (and always will be, you can't make
such a technique work). Smoothly continuously increase
pressure on your trigger to achieve a surprise trigger break.
[If you don't believe the surprise break will work for you,
you need to fix your attitude. If you think you can
intentionally fire the shot when you want to, and get
accurate shots, you are wrong. You are human.
Therefore, you have an autonomic nervous system. Your
autonomic nervous system responses to your intentional
shot will defeat you every time. That's how God designed
your autonomic nervous system. For good natural purpose.
Shooting is not a natural thing, as throwing a rock is. So,
you have to defeat your autonomic nervous system to
get good shots. That's just truth. It's not good or bad.
That's just the way the human brain works.]
Paper Cutter Choke
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=96&v=6sOChetcV_M
Pistol Whip: When You Should Use a Handgun as an Impact Weapon
https://www.ballisticmag.com/2018/08/29/pistol-whip-technique-impact-weapon/
This article advocates pistol punching under certain
circumstances.
You must keep your trigger finger in the register position.
A finger in the trigger guard will eventually get broken when
the pistol rotates.
In close quarter combat training, we cut the trigger
guards off of the plastic dummy pistols to avoid breaking
fingers. (Now, the pistols won't holster properly, but
it's a trade off.)
Friendly fire is never friendly
https://www.strategosintl.com/blog/2018/9/13/friendly-fire-is-never-friendly
Excerpts:
Our best advice is to draw your weapon only until the threat is mitigated,
then immediately holster it.
. . .
Law enforcement wants to see your empty hands raised in the air.
. . .
If your weapon is drawn while you scream “I am a good guy!” then
confusion, chaos and tragedy are likely outcomes.
John Farnam apparently does not like the chamber check
taught at Front Sight (and by others).
"Up until now, Glock’s legal department recommended against
forward slide serrations, and anything else that would temp
fingers and hands to get near the muzzle. Apparently, they were
overruled this time, in an attempt to attract non-serious
shooters and others who own guns for non-serious purposes.
I think the legal department was, and is, right!
During reloading and stoppage-reduction, hands should not
go forward of the ejection port, nor is there any legitimate
reason for hands to be there.
Who grab slides forward of the ejection port invariably
drape fingers over the muzzle!
Not smart, and not necessary!"
Source:
http://defense-training.com/2018/g45/
“The fast and/or emphatic reholster is an
awesome way to shoot yourself.”
-- Chuck Haggard
***** Gear *****
“Arms are permissible, when there is no hope except in arms.”
-- Niccolo Machiavelli
What’s a Holster For?
https://www.corneredcat.com/whats-a-holster-for/
Excerpt:
". . . Carrying the gun on your belt is not
equivalent experience to actually using the
holster for its intended function."
-- attribution not given in the article
Downloadable targets
https://www.slytactraining.com/learning-center/fundamental-targets
Tips On Buying Used Handguns
https://survivalblog.com/tips-buying-used-handguns-pat-cascio/
The Best .38 Special Defensive Ammunition (and other stuff)
http://www.activeresponsetraining.net/the-best-38-special-defensive-ammunition
Reducing White Space For Better Accuracy
https://www.ssusa.org/articles/2018/9/4/reducing-white-space-for-better-accuracy/
Friends Don’t Let Friends Open Carry
http://www.activeresponsetraining.net/friends-dont-let-friends-open-carry
***** Instructors *****
Colonel Robert Lindsey to his fellow trainers:
"We are not God’s gift to our students.
Our students are God’s gift to us."
Developing an Emergency Response Plan for the Training Environment
https://www.personaldefensenetwork.com/article/developing-emergency-response-plan-training-environment/
"Every time I teach a class,
I discover I don't know something."
-- Clint Smith, Director of Thunder Ranch
***** Pedagogy *****
If you are helping someone and expecting
something in return, you are doing
business, not kindness.
Cognitive Load: How Does This Affect our Shot Process?
https://primaryandsecondary.com/cognitive-load-how-does-this-affect-our-shot-process/
When teaching your students, be careful not to
cause a cognitive overload.
Teach your students how to avoid cognitive overload
in self-defense situations.
You are teaching correctly if your students teach
their friends and relatives in such a way so as to
avoid cognitive overload.
***** Education *****
Dirty Little Secrets
https://www.corneredcat.com/dirty-little-secrets/
Excerpt (paraphrased):
". . . women will more often need to defend
themselves from people they [know]."
When I was military police (I always make the distinction
so the LEO's won't point out that I was never a "sworn officer".),
anytime anyone was injured, we would always find and question
the spouse (boyfriend, significant other, etc.), even if the
victim swore it wasn't him (especially if the victim were dead).
Because, it was almost always him.
Let me share a letter with you --
Dear Mothers, Sisters and Daughters,
May I invite your attention to the article,
"Human Predators: Four Features and Four Phases of Assault"
http://www.kristinprentissott.com/human-predators-four-features-and-four-phases-of-assault/
If you pay attention, you can avoid the attack.
Never submit to attack. Statistically speaking, you
have a much better chance to avoid getting hurt if you
fight back with an explosive counter attack. To submit
does the criminal's next victim a grave disservice.
You must immediately tell the police.
You must sign the complaint. You must testify.
You may be wondering why claims of sexual assault are
viewed skeptically by law enforcement. Let me explain.
Every time we answer a domestic and find the guy beating
the gal, we arrest the guy. We ask the gal to sign the
complaint. Sometimes she refuses to. If she does sign it,
at trial she says that he did not attack her, and sometimes
that the cops caused the fight.
Every time we answer a domestic and find the guy not
beating the gal, the gal will claim that the guy was beating
her and she will use magic words such as "he was choking me".
Which under Tennessee law forces us to arrest the guy.
The magistrate always warns the gal that if she is lying,
she will be prosecuted for filing a false report. At trial,
she will not show up, or if she does show up, she will say
that he had not attacked her.
Statistically speaking, half of all rape complaints are
false. This is true in the Armed Forces and civilian worlds.
(We don't mean insufficient evidence to prosecute. We
mean the complaint is false.)
Greg Ellifritz tells of a domestic he responded to.
The guy had shot the gal in the head. The bullet entered
her forehead, split the two lobes of her brain, and exited
the back of her skull. She did not die. She did not lose
consciousness. Greg interviewed her immediately after
the shooting. She refused to press charges, because she
loved him and she knew he loved her.
Yes, there really are such people. (You've probably
never met such persons, because your parents protected
you from such social circles.) If you practice such
stupidity, your children will learn it from you.
If he hits you, you must immediately leave and break
off the relationship. Because if you don't, he now knows
that hitting you is an acceptable part of your relationship.
Domestic abuse always escalates until the victim is dead
or the victim decides to leave.
Sincerely,
(a conglomeration of magistrates, law enforcement
officers, and firearms instructors)
Armed Citizens Legal Defense Network, Inc. newsletter,
https://www.armedcitizensnetwork.org/september-2018-front-page
"Veni, vidi, Deus vicit".
(I came, I saw, God conquered.)
-- King Jan Sobieski of Poland, September 11th, 1683 A.D.
The Polish Warrior King Jan Sobieski defeated the Moors at the gates of Vienna.
Compare to Julius Ceasar (correctly pronounced in Latin
it's euphonic), "Veni. Vidi. Vici." (I came. I saw. I conquered.)
[For those who have not studied Latin, the "V" is pronounced
as an English speaker would pronounce a "W".]
Rack, Rack. Who’s There? Shotgun Myths, Misconceptions, and Truths
https://www.swatmag.com/article/rack-rack-whos-shotgun-myths-misconceptions-truths/
Brownells sells an excellent recoil absorbing stock.
[I couldn't find the one that I bought on the Brownells web site.
I guess they don't sell it anymore. But, here is one example,
https://www.brownells.com/shotgun-parts/stock-forend-parts/buttstocks/mossberg-500-knoxx-specops-geniii-buttstock-prod103578.aspx
]
I installed it on my (then)girlfriend's Mossberg and she was
able to shoot it happily.
Concerning self defense insurance --
If the policy only reimburses you if you are acquitted,
the insurance company has a huge financial incentive
to ensure you are convicted. One would politely call
that a conflict of interest. That's the problem with
the NRA Carry Guard policy and others of that ilk.
You want a policy that pays your attorney up front,
because legitimate attorneys insist on payment up front,
because they know you will lose all incentive to pay
them once you have been acquitted (or convicted).
You also want a policy that will pay to bail you
out of jail. Spending time in jail exposes you to rape,
sodomy, battery resulting in permanent debilitating
injury, infection with nasty diseases, etc.
Spending time in jail disqualifies you from
donating blood, for good reason. Just as male homosexual
intercourse disqualifies you from donating blood.
In matters of life and death, there is no room for
political correctness.
You also want a policy that will get you competent
expert witnesses to testify for you.
One of the fringe benefits of taking a class from
Massad Ayoob (and others), is that he will testify for you
in the event you are prosecuted. I consider it my duty
as an instructor to testify for my students.
I would consider
Armed Citizens Legal Defense Network, Inc.
https://armedcitizensnetwork.org/
as I am familiar with several of the board members.
Concealed Carry Permit Holders Across the United States 2018
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3233904
How a Botched Study Fooled the World About the U.S. Share of Mass Public Shootings:
U.S. Rate is Lower than Global Average
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3238736
Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program
https://ucr.fbi.gov/crime-in-the-u.s/2017/crime-in-the-u.s.-2017
Tom Givens comment on the report --
You do realize these numbers are total bull, right?
This is a voluntary reporting system. Of 14,000 police
agencies in the US, about a third don't report info
to the UCR. In my metro area, for instance, the metro
population is 3,083,660. The UCR only lists the crimes
from 4 cities in that metro area, with a total
population of 847,095. That means the crimes affecting
the other 2,236,565 residents were not counted. My town,
for instance, is in that metro area. We had 5 homicides
and almost 200 Aggravated Assaults, but they are not
included in the UCR. This means the violent crime
totals for the US in the UCR are grossly under-reported.
HANDGUN WOUNDING FACTORS AND EFFECTIVENESS
http://www.activeresponsetraining.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/fbi-hwfe.pdf
Excerpt:
Choosing a bullet because of relatively shallow penetration
will seriously compromise weapon effectiveness, and needlessly
endanger the lives of the law enforcement officers using it.
No law enforcement officer has lost his life because a bullet
over penetrated his adversary, and virtually none have ever been
sued for hitting an innocent bystander through an adversary.
On the other hand, tragically large numbers of officers have
been killed because their bullets did not penetrate deeply enough.
. . .
Those who disparage science and laboratory methods are either
too short sighted or too bound by preconceived (or perhaps proprietary)
notions to see the truth. The labs and scientists do not offer sure
things. They offer a means of indexing the damage done by a bullet,
understanding of the mechanics of damage caused by bullets and the
actual effects on the body, and the basis for making an informed
choice based on objective criteria and significant statistics.
. . .
Kinetic energy does not wound. Temporary cavity does not wound.
The much discussed "shock" of bullet impact is a fable and "knock down"
power is a myth. The critical element is penetration. The bullet must
pass through the large, blood bearing organs and be of sufficient
diameter to promote rapid bleeding. Penetration less than 12 inches
is too little, and, in the words of two of the participants in the
1987 Wound Ballistics Workshop, "too little penetration will get
you killed." Given desirable and reliable penetration, the only way
to increase bullet effectiveness is to increase the severity of the
wound by increasing the size of hole made by the bullet. Any bullet
which will not penetrate through vital organs from less than optimal
angles is not acceptable. Of those that will penetrate, the edge is
always with the bigger bullet.
[What is the logical conclusion? Shoot a copper jacketed
round nose bullet (for maximum penetration) in .45 caliber
(for maximum hole size). -- Jon Low]
The Science of CQB, Gunfighting, and Not Getting Shot
https://www.tierthreetactical.com/the-science-of-cqb-gunfighting-and-not-getting-shot/
***** News, Legal, Philosophical, and Political stuff *****
Civil War happens when the victimized are armed.
Genocide happens when they are not!
-- A.E. Samaan
My paraphrase of Andrew Branca's report on
State v. Scott 2018 South Carolina --
South Carolina man standing on the porch of his house (curtilege)
[I used to teach the South Carolina Concealed Weapons Permit course.]
shot at a group of people in multiple cars who were shooting at his
house in an attempt to kill his daughter who had retreated into his
house. His bullet kills one of the people in the cars. State attorney
charges him with murder. He claims self defense. The trial judge
grants him immunity from prosecution based on self defense. State
attorney appeals. Appellate court affirms the trial court decision
granting immunity. State attorney appeals. Supreme court affirms
appellate court decision to affirm trial court decision granting
immunity. Huge legal fees? Not in this case. Defendant had a public
defender all the way to the Supreme court. Yeah, South Carolina!
http://lawofselfdefense.com/law_case/state-v-scott-2018-s-c-lexis-105-sc-supreme-court-2018/
You think this would happen in Florida? Massad Ayoob is still
waiting for reimbursement from Florida for a case he testified in
as an expert witness. Florida is supposed to reimburse the defense
costs if the defendant is acquitted.
“You get to have your own opinion, but not your own facts!”
http://defense-training.com/2018/you-get-to-have-your-own-opinion-but-not-your-own-facts/
NRA’s List of Anti-Gunners
http://www.2acheck.com/the-boycott-list/nras-list-of-antis/
Because it's not on the NRA-ILA web site anymore.
France is proposing to give all local cops guns
https://qz.com/1386042/france-is-proposing-to-give-all-local-cops-guns/
Crime Wave United Kingdom:
Govt Moves to Stop Knife Sales as Blade Crime Hits 7-Year High
https://www.breitbart.com/london/2018/09/15/govt-restrict-knife-sales-blade-crime/
Contrast with the state of Tennessee in the U.S.A. where
there is no such thing as an illegal knife. Yes, you can
walk into Wal Mart and buy a fully automatic knife (switch blade).
You can also mail order such. No age limit. No ID required.
In the UK, they don't understand freedom. No knife sales to
individuals. No whittling. No carving. No shaving. Going
to have to wax.
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
69 Timeless Travel Tips and Tricks | After 4+ Years On the Road
https://www.nomadichustle.com/timeless-travel-tips/
Tip number 4 really works. During Operation Iraqi Freedom,
some bad guys approached a local to gather intel on me. The
local was a guy who worked with me at the Royal Saudi Air
Force Base in Riyadh. He told the enemy terrorists to leave me
alone. So, they did. (At least until the attacks on May 11th
2003.) [Ya, there's a lot more to the story.] I had talked to him.
I had found out that his son was studying computer science. So, I
gave him a copy of "The C++ Programming Language"
by Bjarne Stroustrup for his son.
Make friends. You never know when it will save your life.
Pat McNamara Offers 2 Unique Takes on the ‘Bug Out Bag’
https://www.personaldefenseworld.com/2018/09/pat-mcnamara-bug-out-bag/
***** Basics *****
"Panic is simply the lack of preprogrammed responses."
-- Tom Givens
Guns of ISG: Why the Handgun?
https://www.integratedskillsgroup.com/blog/guns-of-isg-handgun
"Fear is an instinct. Courage is a choice."
-- Rear Admiral Joseph Kernan, USN
***** Miscellany *****
"Militum semper memento"
(Always remember the soldiers.)
3D Animation Showing How IWI Tavor X95 Rifle Works
https://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2018/09/21/3d-animation-showing-how-iwi-tavor-x95-rifle-works/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=4&v=ZMjrI-55fYw
This morning I was sitting in McDonalds eating
breakfast, when I heard a little girl asking her
mother for a Happy Meal. She could pronounce it
correctly. She knew exactly what it was. I've
worked for McDonalds (flipping burgers and mopping
the floors in high school). I've done statistical research
for McDonalds. All I could think was that all that money
spent on research, marketing, advertising, etc.
worked. McDonalds got that little girl to eagerly
ask her mother for a Happy Meal. It wasn't an
accident. It wasn't incidental. It was planned,
executed, and achieved.
If you live in our society, and have a craving
for something, it is almost certain that that craving
is the fruition of a well financed marketing plan.
Yes, it works in the firearms industry. Yes,
it works in the self defense training industry.
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
Cheers,
Jon
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