Friday, May 31, 2024

CWP, 31 May MMXXIV Anno Domini

 

Greetings Sheepdogs, 
 
"NRA Show, 2nd Day" by John Farnam
Excerpt:  
     " . . . the Democrat prosecutor for Cook County (Chicago) today announced her office 
would not prosecute illegal gun cases arising from routine traffic stops.  
     If anyone still doubts that leftist Democrats are working tirelessly to arm violent 
criminals and keep them out of jail and in circulation, their skepticism can now be 
finally set aside!  
     These same Democrats are simultaneously working tirelessly to take all guns away 
from us non-criminals.  
     Today also, a terrified Chicago mother frantically called 911 multiple times to report 
a home invasion involving two masked men.  She was told. “We have no units to send!”  
     This nauseating hypocrisy is finally starting to haunt Democrats!"  
 
Gun Owners of America
Gun Owners Advocacy and Leadership Summit (GOALS)
Knoxville Convention Center
701 Henley St, Knoxville, TN 37902
August 17-18, 2024 – Knoxville, Tennessee
Free for GOA Members
Register at 
Hope to see you there!  
 
Table of Sections:  (highlight section name and press Ctrl F)
  Prevention
     Mindset 
         Situational Awareness
     Safety
     Training 
     Practice 
  Intervention
     Strategy
     Tactics
     Techniques 
  Postvention
     Aftermath
     Medical
     Survival
  Education
     Legal
     Instruction
          Instructors
          Students
          Andragogy
     Gear
Cryptology
SigInt
Intel
After Thoughts
 
*************************************************************************
*****     *****     ***** Prevention *****     *****     *****
Things you can do to avoid the lethal force incident.  
 
Table of contents:  
     Mindset 
     Safety
     Training 
     Practice 
 
*************************************************************************
----- Mindset -----
Figuring out the correct way to think.  
 
     ‟We don’t decide what is necessary to survive a 
lethal force encounter initiated by someone else.  
That person decides what’s necessary for us to survive.”  
– William Aprill
 
"Concealed Carry Gun Articles Personal Defense
Self-Defense Mindset: How Prepared Are You?"  
by Marty Hayes
 
     ‟Fear is an instinct.  Courage is a choice.”  
-- Rear Admiral Joseph Kernan, USN
 
"Lists!" by John Farnam
 
     "You brought a gun to the fight.  That doesn’t mean it’s YOUR gun.  
The gun belongs to whomever can keep it.  Think about that before intervening 
in other folks’ problems.  When is the last time you practiced your in-hand weapon 
retention skills?"  
-- Greg Ellifritz
     [When was the last time you practiced your holstered weapon retention skills?  
-- Jon Low]  
 
"How to Hold a Revolver Correctly and Safely
Hold a revolver the wrong way and you could wind up hurting yourself.  
Here's the correct way to do it, both for safety's sake and for better accuracy"
by RICHARD MANN
Excerpt:  
     "The most common way to shoot a pistol with two hands is with both thumbs 
relaxed and pointing forward.  It can be unsafe to shoot a revolver this way.  
     This is because when you fire a revolver, hot gases escape from between the 
cylinder and forcing cone, and they blast outward at 90 degrees.  If you’re shooting 
a rimfire revolver and your thumb is in this area, it will feel uncomfortable; 
you might even receive a slight burn.  If you’re shooting a centerfire revolver, 
like a 44 Magnum, this blast can permanently damage or possibly remove the tip 
of your thumb.  So, consider this an iron-clad safety rule:  
When shooting a revolver, never allow your fingers, thumb, or any body part, 
to extend past the forward edge of the cylinder.  
 
     ‷If you look at someone bigger, faster, and stronger and immediately think, 
‶I'm at a disadvantage″,  
I have news for you:  you are.  
But that's only because you just put yourself there for no reason.  
     The truth is that anyone can do debilitating violence to anyone else.  
Your size, your speed, your strength, your gender -- 
all the factors that untrained people think make the difference when it comes to violence -- 
all matter far less than your mindset and your intent.‴  
-- Tim Larkin
 
     "If you don’t feel comfortable carrying with a chambered round, you should either 
seek more training or carry a revolver.  Thinking you’ll have the time/ability to rack a 
round into the chamber during your gunfight is equivalent to thinking you’ll have time 
to put your seatbelt on before the drunk driver crashes into your car."  
-- Greg Ellifritz
 
     “You are no more armed because you are wearing a pistol 
than you are a musician because you own a guitar.” 
from Principles of Personal Defense by Col. Jeff Cooper, USMC, (1920 – 2006 A.D.)
 
***** Situational Awareness ***** 
How to avoid being taken by surprise.  
 
     "Jeff Cooper's Color Code exists to help you get your head 
around the need to kill someone in the immediate future."  
-- John Hearne
---
     Jeff Cooper's Color Code of Mental Awareness  
UNAWARE - of what's going on around you.  (White)  
AWARE - of who is around you and what they are doing.  (Yellow)  
ALERT - to a potential threat and taking action to avoid the threat.  (Orange)  
ALARM - by a real threat and taking action to escape the threat, 
     which might include shooting to PREVENT the attack.  (Red)  
COMBAT - front sight, press.  Shooting to STOP the attack.  (Black)  
     When there is no longer a threat, your shooting must stop.  Shooting when there is 
no longer a threat cannot be justified as self-defense.  Revenge is a murder charge in 
the making.  
 
     “You need to have the capacity for danger.  You need to be ‘dangerous’.  
Yet, you need to learn how to not use it except when necessary.  
And, that is not the same thing as being harmless.  
     There's nothing virtuous about harmlessness.  
Harmless just means you’re ineffectual and useless.”  
-- Jordan Peterson 
 
*************************************************************************
----- Safety -----  
How to prevent the bad thing from happening in the first place.  
How to avoid shooting yourself, friendlies, and innocent bystanders.  
 
Jeff Cooper′s Rules of Gun Safety  
RULE I:  ALL GUNS ARE ALWAYS LOADED.  
RULE II:  NEVER LET THE MUZZLE COVER 
                  ANYTHING YOU ARE NOT WILLING TO DESTROY.  
RULE III:  KEEP YOUR FINGER OFF THE TRIGGER 
                   UNTIL YOUR SIGHTS ARE ON THE TARGET.  
RULE IV:  BE SURE OF YOUR TARGET.  
 
"Handgun Safety Skills Course" by Dustin Salomon
     I think you ought to pull the pistol in close to you when performing administrative 
operations.  You're just stronger doing things in close to your body.  
 
     "It's easier to stay out of trouble than to get out of trouble."  
-- Claude Werner
 
John Farnam's rules to keep you out of trouble:  
Don’t go to stupid places.  
Don’t associate with stupid people.  
Don’t do stupid things.  
Have a “normal” appearance.  
Be in bed by 10:00 PM (your own bed).  
Don’t fail the attitude test.  
 
*************************************************************************
----- Training -----
Figuring out the correct tasks to practice.  
 
     “Train, Practice, Compete 
are the key elements in the development of humans.”  
-- John M. Buol, Jr.
 
"Guest Shot: Standards in Training" by Dave Spaulding
Hat tip to Greg Ellifritz.  
Excerpts:  
     "Few people have experienced armed conflict, which is a good thing, 
so they confuse their training course or competition experience with combat.  
As much as we may want them to be, they’re not the same.  Although both 
involve shooting guns and stress, the stress level isn’t equal in severity.  
A gunfight is more DURESS, an unbelievable amount of pressure."  
     "Armed conflict should be avoided at all costs because you always run the 
risk of losing, no matter how well trained and prepared you are.  Worse yet, 
many people believe they’re better trained and prepared than they really are.  
People “suffering” from this condition enter a fight with a serious disadvantage 
they don’t know they have.  Confusing proficiency in a particular drill with 
combat preparation is a symptom of this affliction."  
[A blind spot is not an area you know you can't see.  A blind spot is an area you don't know 
that you can't see.  A superstition is not a false belief that someone else holds.  A superstition 
is a belief that you know to be true, that is fase. -- Jon Low]  
     "Standards and drills should be viewed as vehicles toward preparation, 
as should training and competition, but neither should be confused with 
being prepared to act.  This is a long process that is undertaken at multiple 
levels.  It cannot be completed in a weekend class."  
     [The El Presidente is shot from a stationary position.  What would happen in the real 
world if three guys were attacking you?  You'd probably be moving (toward cover if 
available), while shooting.  Or, you might go to a squatting or kneeling or prone position.  
All kinds of possibilities.  
-- Jon Low]  
 
==========================================================
Intruder Action and Response training
by Defend Systems
Tracey Mendenhall
Jason Tucker
Brink Fidler
15 May 2024
at the Gordon Jewish Community Center in Nashville, TN.  
 
     The Columbine High School attack was a planned bombing.  
But none of the bombs detonated.  The attackers shoot with 
small arms for 49 minutes before committing suicide.  
 
     Doors should be able to lock from the inside to prevent attacker from 
entering the room.  
     Doors should be solid core and open out, so they cannot be kicked in.  
     To save lives, stop the bleeding and prevent any air from getting into 
the box (neck to navel, all the way around, including arm pits).  
     Cover and concealment is more important than distance.  The bad guy 
can shoot you as long as he can see you.
     If there is no cover, run toward the shooter to escape his view.  
     Be aware of your location and direction.  Always know the numerical 
street address of where you are and which way is north.  
     Label places in the building so that the stranger responders can find 
locations in the building.  
     React vs. Response.  Have a well defined response to the emergency.  
This required Training, Experience, and External Stimulus.  This allows 
you to by pass Denial and Deliberation; and jump directly to Decisive 
Action.  
     Do not stay in place.  Do not lie on the ground.  Run toward an exit.  
Run toward a safe place.  If you cannot run because you have 9 babies 
to care for, Fortify by locking the door, covering the windows, and moving 
all persons to a hard corner (not visible or shootable from the doorway).  
     Attack the eyes.  Pepper spray, gouging with fingers, etc.  
     D.E.F.E.N.D.
  Deter - Lock doors. Scripting. Be vigilant of strangers.  Talk to them.  
Be assertive (and polite).  Don't allow backpacks into the facility.  If you 
must, search them.  Trust your instincts.  
  Evade - Leave immediately.  Don't second guess.  Locate multiple exits 
upon entering the location.  Everyone else is going to use the main 
entrance / exit, so use another exit.  Break window if necessary to escape.  
Do you have the tools to break the window?  Make an exit by kicking 
through dry wall.  Call 911, when safe to do so.  If you must whisper, 
it is not safe.  
  Fortify - Secure the room.  Lock doors.  Cover windows.  Move everyone 
to a hard corner.  
  Evaluate - Where am I?  If you have to whisper, do not call 911.  Where 
is the bad guy?  Which way to safety?  
  Notify - Call 911.  Give numerical address.  Say "Active Shooter".  
Describe bad guy's location (in terms that a stranger could understand).  
Describe weapon.  How many are injured.  
  Defend - Fight!  Call for help.  Assume a warrior mindset.  Accept injury 
over death.  
 
     Police priorities are:  
1.  Stop the killing.  (Shoot the bad guy.)  
2.  Stop the dying.  (Treat the wounded.)   
3.  Evacuate the innocent.  
4.  Process the crime scene.  
     Show your hands (with nothing in them) so you don't get shot by the cops.  
     Responding officers will be in different uniforms or in plain clothes.  
 
     Have a relationship with a trauma care provider, now, before the incident.  
 
     Finger in back of trigger to prevent the gun from firing.  
     Grab handgun with two hands.  Hang on tight.  Twist handgun 
to point it at the bad guy.  Hang onto the handgun.  
     Grab long gun with two hands (not on barrel).  Push up and drive 
the bad guy back.  
     
     Pressure points to stop bleeding.  Knee in groin.  Shin across upper 
arm by shoulder.  Finger or hand pressure on a child.  
     Where is the trauma kit?  Must have a trauma kit.  
     Bleeding on arms or legs, apply a tourniquet high and tight (as close 
the shoulder or groin as possible).  Tighten until the bleeding stops.  
If necessary, apply a second tourniquet touching the first tourniquet.  
Tighten until the bleeding stops.  Apply more tourniquets if necessary.  
Use CAT tourniquet on adults.  Use SWAT-T tourniquet on children.  
     Bleeding at junctions, pack the wound with gauze or tee shirt or 
paper towels or etc.  Fill hole.  Push toward the heart.  Hold pressure 
for 10 minutes.  Apply pressure dressing.  
     Any hole between neck and navel, apply chest seal.  Anything that 
prevents air flow will work:  credit card, plastic wrap, packing tape, etc.  
Duct tape is not air tight, so it won't work.  Burp every 5 minutes to 
let air out.  Don't let any air in the hole.  
     Keep the patient warm.  Whole blood will not clot at lower temperatures.  
That's why the blood bank keeps their blood in refrigerators.  So wrap the  
patient in a blanket.  
     
Cheers,
Jon
==========================================================
 
     I know training can be difficult.  Let me share some words of encouragement that 
my teacher told me, that I believe apply to all training regimens.  
     "Keep in mind that this is some seriously next level material.  It is totally normal 
that the first time you see this stuff, you find it confusing.  You find it difficult to 
understand.  So, confusion should not discourage you. It does not represent any 
intellectual failing on your part.  Rather, keep in mind that it represents an opportunity 
to get even smarter." – Tim Roughgarden, Professor of Computer Science 
and other stuff at Stanford University
 
Email from Mike Ox -- 
Q: I don't really want to shoot anyone. Can't I just fire a warning shot?  
A: No. You're responsible for any round that leaves your muzzle.  
If you or someone else is under immediate threat of serious bodily harm,  
do you really have the time to identify a safe backstop and fire a warning shot?  
Some experts have said that NOT firing a warning shot is why Rittenhouse 
was found to be innocent rather than guilty . . . it's that big of a deal.  
---
Q: Can't I just shoot a bad guy in the hand holding his gun or his leg 
so that I just injure him?  
A: Unless you have magic bullets that are trained to avoid arteries in 
the arms and legs, there's a decent chance that any solid hit to the 
human body could lacerate an artery and be fatal.  
Furthermore, there is a much higher chance of missing or over-penetration 
when aiming for the arms or legs.  
---
Q: Why train using the sights when I won't have time in a real gunfight 
and I'll have to use instinct shooting?  
A: Despite claims to the contrary, studies on gesture activated appliances 
has shown that people are not naturally good pointers -- it's a learned skill.  
And, when most people point, they point with their knuckles on top 
(gangster style) instead of with their knuckles up and down . . . like you 
hold a pistol or carbine.  
---
Q: I've heard that I shouldn't draw my gun unless I'm going to shoot.  Is that right?  
A: No.  What if your attacker turns and runs when they see your gun?  
What if you're home alone at night and your "attacker" ends up being a 
friend or relative?  
Ever hear of a good guy holding an attacker at gunpoint until police arrive?  
It's more accurate to say that you shouldn't draw your gun unless the situation 
justifies you shooting and you're WILLING to shoot.  
-- Mike (Ox) Ochsner
 
     You need training because:  
You don't know what you don't know.  
Much of what you know is false.  
It's good to the have the answers before the criminal tests you.  
-- Claude Werner (paraphrased)
---
     But what does that mean?  
Jordan Peterson's recipe for incremental improvement.  Improvement compounds.  
 
Email from Mike Ox -- 
     If you're 45 years old or better, January 28th, 1986 is one of the mornings that you'll 
probably remember forever.  It was the morning of the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster.  
One of the astronauts was a teacher named Christa McAuliffe, and, because of that, 
kids across the country (like me) were gathered around TVs in their classrooms, 
cafeterias, and gymnasiums to watch the launch . . . and explosion.  It was a big deal, 
especially for grade schoolers.  Many teachers felt a kindred spirit with McAuliffe and 
imagined how cool it would be to be in her shoes & spacesuit.  It was easy for them to 
check out of reality for a bit and project themselves from the classroom to being an 
astronaut in the shuttle.  
     So, if you don't remember, the crash was caused by a leaking O-ring.  It wasn't really 
"faulty" because it hadn't been tested or proven to work in the real-world cold 
temperatures they experienced the night before the launch . . . only in ideal training 
and testing conditions.  In fact, one engineer in particular refused to do his final sign-off 
because he predicted this failure the night before.  Basically, they trained and tested in 
one set of conditions and hoped that it would transfer over to what the real world threw 
at them.  The first time they were "tested" was in a real world situation where lives were 
on the line . . . and they were using them in "out of spec" conditions.  
     After the fact, there were cries for accountability and grilling on why the O-rings 
hadn't been tested in the launch conditions they faced that day.  It seems obvious.  
If you're training for an event where lives depend on performance, you want to 
incorporate as much real-world context into your training as possible.  Engineers got 
demoted and fired for not doing this simple step, and most people agreed that it was 
the right thing to do.  But what if we applied that same standard to firearms training?  
Most gun owners who train normally do sterile, boring, range training facing a single 
direction, shooting a single target, and POSSIBLY making the decision to draw and 
shoot based on a beep, whistle, or audible command.  That's not reality.  At all.  
     And every way our training is different from reality is like an "out of spec" O-ring 
that people bet their lives on.  Most people don't realize just how many "out of spec" 
O-rings they've got in their training . . . until they get a rude awakening when lives 
are on the line.  To be fair, nobody makes a conscious decision to be unprepared for 
a gunfight . . . it's more a matter of not knowing what to do to be prepared, how to 
pack training into an already jam-packed schedule, and how to afford it.  
-- Mike Ox
  
     “The secret of success is this. 
Train like it means everything when it means nothing – 
so you can fight like it means nothing when it means everything.” 
-- Lofty Wiseman
 
"Stop Teaching Drawstroke First" by Dustin Salomon
 
     "Safe gun handling and knowing how to operate the gun competently is one thing.  
How to fight with the gun is a whole other plane of knowledge."  
-- Tiger McKee
 
     "Those motivated by a desire to improve their 
gunfighting skills as opposed to a quest for trophies, 
must be willing to bleed ego on the match results 
to avoid shedding blood in combat."  
-- Andy Stanford
 
     “If you are reading this and can’t put your hand on your defensive firearm, 
all of your training is wasted.” -- Col. Jeff Cooper
 
--- Classes and Conferences ---
 
"Understanding the Terrain:  
An Overview of Brain-Based Tactical Training Design (2 Day Version)" 
by Dustin Salomon
Nashville, TN, July 24-25, 2024
Start Time: 9:00am on both days 
$350 
 
Kinetic Combat Pistol by David S Jenkins, $ 450 USD
Last Resort Firearms Training, 4220 Gravel Pit Rd, White Hall, Arkansas, USA
Sat, Aug 31, 2024, 8:00 AM EDT – Sun, Sep 1, 2024, 6:00 PM EDT 
7:00 AM – 5:00 PM CDT
$ 450 USD
Hat tip to Ed Monk.  

"The art of misdirection | Apollo Robbins | TED"
     The point is, if you can misdirect the enemy's attention, you can shoot him before he 
knows you have a gun, much less drawn it, much less aimed it at you.  Did you ever 
wonder why some famous gunslingers of the Old West and modern times never got 
shot?  This sort of thing comes naturally to some.  But anyone can learn to misdirect 
attention.  
     There is no such thing as cheating.  All is fair in love and war.  
 
"Anticipation Explained & How To Stop It" by Alston Trainings
     The "secret sauce" is the "surprise trigger break".  It defeats all of your autonomic 
nervous system responses to the report and the recoil by ensuring that the bullet is 
out of the muzzle before any autonomic nervous system response such as jerk, freeze, 
push, flinch, etc.  And it always works, which allows you to hit your target on demand 
every time.  
     Rather than 4 pounds, 4 pounds, 4 pounds, etc.; I would suggest 
1 pound, 2 pounds, 3 pounds, 4 pounds, 5 pounds, etc.  The pistol will fire before you 
get to 5 pounds.  And because you didn't intend to fire the shot, it will be a surprise 
break and you will get a good hit.  
     Of course, you also need follow through.  Don't look to see where the bullet hit.  
Rather, continue to aim.  Get the sights back on the target that you just shot.  Two 
sight pictures for each shot.  One before the shot and one after the shot.  If you don't 
get the second shot picture, you don't have follow through.  Sight alignment and 
sight picture determine where the pistol is pointed before the firing pin hits the 
primer.  Follow through determines where the pistol is pointed when the bullet 
exits the muzzle, a thousandths of a second later.  A millisecond is enough time to 
push the sights (and thus the bullet) right off the target.  That's how you get misses.  
[Didn't know that, did you?  Well, it's true.  Lack of follow through causes misses.]  
 
     ‟Training is NOT an event, but a process. 
Training is the preparation FOR practice.”  
-- Claude Werner
 
*************************************************************************
----- Practice -----
How to get proficient at that task.  
 
Why practice?  
    “To each there comes in their lifetime a special moment 
when they are figuratively tapped on the shoulder and 
offered the chance to do a very special thing, unique 
to them and fitted to their talents.  What a tragedy if 
that moment finds them unprepared or unqualified for that 
which could have been their finest hour.”  
-- Winston Churchill
 
From an email from Mike Ox -- 
Q: Why should you dry fire in the dark?  
A: Because it's a GREAT way to improve your draw stroke speed & accuracy.  
     WHAT?  
One of the cool things about the brain is that when you reduce sensory input, 
you improve the performance of what's left.  We can take advantage of this to 
shortcut the process of getting our sights to come into automatic alignment 
between our dominant eye and intended target.  Here's how you do it . . .  
     First off, get in a dark room like a closet.  Pitch black if possible.  
     Second, you want one of the following 3 targets.  
The dimmest full-screen light app you can find for your phone.  (This is a last resort)  
Something that's 2"x2" or bigger that glows in the dark.  
A medium-sized "electric candle" (my favorite) . . .  
     And third, you want an inert training tool like a SIRT or dry fire cord in 
your pistol to make it temporarily unable to chamber a live round.  If you're 
going to do dry fire with a platform capable of chambering and firing live 
rounds (which I don't recommend), you need to take all of the necessary 
safety precautions.  
     Now that you're all set up, practice your presentation, with the goal of having 
your presentation deliver the sights or dot directly between your dominant eye 
and the target.  This is especially effective with red dots . . . which is key for 
people trying to make the switch.  
     There's something about stripping away all of the visual noise.  It slows things down.  
It makes it easier to find the dot.  And the brain seems to learn how to line up the 
dot automatically quicker with this method than when doing the same number of 
reps with full light.  
     Try it from the holster, from low ready, from compressed ready.  
Then try combining drawing and leaning or stepping off line.  
     This a great example of training smarter.  
-- Mike Ox
 
     ‟Be careful what you practice.  
Because you will do in combat 
whatever you have practiced, 
no matter how ridiculous.”  
-- ‶Shooting in Self-Defense″ by Sara Ahrens 
 
"Tightening Your Accuracy and Performance Standards
Take your skills one step further."  
by CLAUDE WERNER
"Tightening Your Accuracy and Performance Standards" by tacticalprofessor
 
     “Willingness is a state of mind.  Readiness is a statement of fact!”  
-- Lt. Gen. David M Shoup, USMC Commandant 1960-1963
 
     "People rust faster than equipment."  
-- John Hearne
 
     ‶Practice is the small deposits you make over time, 
so that in an emergency, you can make that big withdrawal.″  
-- Chesley Burnett Sullenberger, III
 
*************************************************************************
*****     *****     ***** Intervention *****     *****     *****
Suggestions on how to deal with the incident that you failed to avoid.  
 
     Awareness, Avoidance, De-Escalation, Escape 
 
Table of contents:  
     Strategy
     Tactics
     Techniques 
 
*************************************************************************
----- Strategy -----
Deciding on the end state and how to achieve it, 
which tactics to use, which includes walking away.  
 
     “How do you win a gunfight?  
Don't be there.”  
-- John Farnam
 
“Provocation” by John Farnam
Excerpts:  
     "When someone says, “Don’t worry. You’re safe here,” never believe it!"  
     "Many gun-carriers fail to appreciate how wide a net “provocation” 
can become in self-defense cases!"  
 
     Never send your kids into gun-free-zones.  The purpose of gun-free-zones is to 
create unarmed victims for armed criminal to prey upon.  
     "How mass killers pick out venues where their victims are sitting ducks"
by John Lott
     "An Ex-Marine, who planned a racist mass shooting to kill white people, 
targeted a gun-free zone" by John Lott
 
"Editor’s Notebook: 2023 Statistics" by Rich Grassi
Excerpt:  
     ". . . avoidance is not cowardly but smart."  
 
"Considerations for Fighting With a Little One at Your Side"
by Melody Lauer
Hat tip to Greg Ellifritz.  
Excerpt:  
     "You Should Make the Hardest Decisions Now"  
 
     "You win gunfights by not getting shot."  
-- John Holschen
 
*************************************************************************
----- Tactics ----- 
Maneuver and fire in support of your strategy.  
 
     "Real fights are short."
-- Bruce Lee
 
"Judit Polgar punishes Karpov in the Queen's Indian Defense" by ChessNetwork
     ". . . if you're overly preoccupied with positional ideas you may be more 
vulnerable to Tactical motifs."  
     (Do you remember who Karpov is?)  
 
     “Fortuitous outcomes reinforce poor tactics.”  
-- Chuck Haggard
 
"DOUBLE-KISS SHOTS ... Real Game Winners" by Dr. DaveBilliards
     Safeties are easier than making the hard shot.  
Just as taking cover is easier than making the hard shot.  
You have to be alive to win.  Taking cover (playing the safety) allows you to stay live longer.  
 
     "You often don't know where the bad guy is who is shooting at you."  
-- Phillip Groff
 
"Editor’s Notebook: Field Shooting Accuracy, Part II" by Rich Grassi
 
     "The shorter the fight, the less hurt you get."
-- John Holschen
 
     "Conceal Carry During Pregnancy | The First Trimester"
by Ally Corless
     "Conceal Carry During Pregnancy | The Second Trimester"
by Ally Corless
Excerpt:  
     "Changing Plans
Now that I am further along, this is looking a little different.  I am adjusting by 
planning on going to my tools more quickly, and having my hands on them earlier."  
    "Conceal Carry During Pregnancy | Training and Classes"
by Ally Corless
 
*************************************************************************
----- Techniques -----
Ways to execute a given task in support of your tactics, 
especially when disabled or under stress.  
 
     "Use only that which works, 
and take it from any place you can find it."
-- Bruce Lee 
 
"How to Hold a Pistol
Handgun shooting can be difficult to master, especially if you don't start with a good grip"
by Tyler Freel
     I don't agree.  But it's important to entertain varying techniques to find one that 
works for you.  
 
     "The foundations of your grip are established 
before you even draw the pistol from the holster."  
-- Tanner Denton
 
"Seat Belts and Appendix Carry" by Greg Ellifritz
 
     "Grip first, then press."  
--  Mike Seeklander
 
"Visual Process
Let your eyes fire the gun."
by STEVE TARANI 
 
     If you can't immediately get to your firearm, gouge the enemy's eye.  This always works, 
to blind him or to give you time to get your pistol.  If he is wearing glasses or goggles, 
gouge up under his eye protection.  This should always be your first choice for attack.  No, 
not like what you saw in the Three Stooges.  All fingers out straight (because everyone is 
moving), drive your fingers through his eyes into his brain, grab his skull, and drive his 
head to the ground.  As Tim Larkin says, your best impact weapon is the ground and it is 
always available.  
     If you can get behind the enemy, a blood choke will always work.  Center your elbow 
in the middle of his sternum, grab your upper arm above the elbow, place your other hand 
behind his head, and squeeze the sides of his neck.  This constricts the carotid arteries 
preventing blood flow to the brain.  
Or, if his neck is too big, center your elbow in the middle of his sternum, grasp your hands 
together, bend at the elbow trying to get your hands to touch your shoulder, press your head 
hard against his head.  Keep squeezing the sides of his neck until he passes out (goes limp 
and collapses).  He will pass out within 7 seconds, usually much less.  
     If you cut blood flow to the brain for ~3 minutes he will die.  About 2 minutes will 
cause brain damage.  Be careful.  
     If you want a long drawn out fight where no one is incapacitated, use the techniques 
in the fighting sports.  But, that's really stupid because the enemy won't be using those 
techniques.  And you'll get exhausted within a minute or two.  After which time, you 
won't be able to do anything.  Then the enemy will just beat you to death.  
     If you want to immediately end the fight, take out his eyes.  Because as John Holschen 
says, the shorter the fight, the less hurt you get.  
 
     Reload technique taught to me by Osvaldo Gonzalez.  
With magazines in your mag pouch with bullets pointing backwards, 
pull mag out with support side hand.  Base plate of mag is in palm, mouth of mag is pointing 
out the thumb side of your hand.  Supinate (palm up) your hand (mag pointing away from 
the mag well).  Eject the mag from the pistol into your supinated hand.  Pronate your hand.  
Now the new mag is pointing toward the pistol's mag well.  Insert new mag.  Stash old mag.  
 
"Real Defensive Gun Use Reminds Us Why We Carry Chamber Full"
by John Correia
Hat tip to Greg Ellifritz.  
     It took the good guy 9 seconds to chamber a round before he could fire his pistol.  
That is a reality of high stress situations.  Easy things become difficult.  Difficult things 
become impossible.  That is why you must practice and adjust your equipment until 
everything is easy and automatic.  If you are struggling to do anything, you are WRONG!  
Taoism says everything you do should be easy, smooth, and flowing.  Never struggle.  
Struggling means you are not following your path (your tao, your way).  Struggling means 
you are doing something wrong.  Get training to learn to do it correctly and practice 
so that you always automatically do it correctly.  (2000 repetitions would normally be 
necessary to achieve an acceptable level of proficiency.  5 reps in the morning when 
you put on your gear, 5 reps in the evening before you take off your gear, for 3 )  
     "Israeli carry" means carrying your pistol without a cartridge in the chamber.  
This means you must rack the slide before you can fire the pistol.  This is criminal 
stupidity.  Always carry with a round in the chamber.  You will never have time to 
chamber a round.  You will never have time to get your pistol if it is not physically 
attached to your body.  That is reality.  Accommodate reality.  
 
     "It's not daily increase but daily decrease - hack away at the inessentials!" 
-- Bruce Lee
 
*************************************************************************
*****     *****     ***** Postvention *****     *****     *****
     Suggestions on how to treat your wounds or the wounds of your loved ones.  
     Suggestions on how to avoid prosecution, conviction, and prison time.  
     Suggestions on how to avoid the civil law suit and judgment.  
 
Table of contents:  
     Aftermath
     Medical
     Survival
 
*************************************************************************
----- Aftermath ----- 
     You must be alive to have these problems:  criminal and civil liability.  
 
     “The true soldier fights not because he hates what is in front of him, 
but because he loves what is behind him.”
― G.K. Chesterton
 
     In the right hand column of this web page, click on "Never Talk To The Police"
or use the direct address 
 
     In the right hand column, click on the link labeled "Self Defense Insurance".  
Or, the direct link is, 
Read this before you buy insurance.  You need to make an informed decision.  
The various policies are drastically different.  
     "You need to read the fine print." -- Massad Ayoob  
 
     “Your understanding and consent are not required 
for someone to take your life, kill your loved ones, 
and destroy all you hold dear.” 
-- William Aprill 
 
*************************************************************************
----- Medical -----
 
     "If you prepare for the emergency,
the emergency ceases to exist!"
-- Sherman House
 
"Active Shooter Medicine: Are Tourniquets as Important as Everyone Thinks?"
by Brian McLaughlin
     Concerning that video, it's way easier to burp a chest seal than to fiddle with a valve 
on a decompression needle.  Seal the entry and exit holes.  Then you won't need to use 
the needle in the first place.  Silly Hollywood movie.  
 
*************************************************************************
----- Survival -----
 
     "If you stay fit, you do not have to get fit. 
If you stay trained, you do not have to get trained. 
If you stay prepared, you do not have to get prepared."
-- Robert Margulies
 
*************************************************************************
*****     *****     ***** Education *****     *****     *****
 
Table of contents:  
     Legal
     Instruction
     Gear
 
*************************************************************************
 
     "You will never get smarter or broaden your horizons 
if you're unwilling to learn from others and read."
-- Becca Martin
 
"Weekend Knowledge Dump- May 17, 2024" by Greg Ellifritz
 
"The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly – April 2024" by Claude Werner
Excerpt:  
     "If you have to shoot an attacker, keep shooting until the attacker is 
‘neutralized with bullets,’ as the French say.  The shots don’t need to be at cyclic rate 
but dropping your gun to waist level after every shot is not a formula for success, 
as we see in this case."  
     “When you carry a gun, you lose the privilege of defending your honor.”
     Cited article, 
     At the Tactical Professor, 
 
     A Historical Note:  
Some list members may have noted that, in the most recent “progressive” attack 
on Justice Alito, he is accused of the “crime” of flying a flag that was seen at the 
January 6, 2021, protest at the Capitol.  From a vendor of historical flags:  
     The History of the Washington Cruisers Flag:  This flag was used by George Washington 
on his squadron of six schooners which he outfitted at his own expense in the fall of 1775.  
This flag was a variation of the New England Pine Tree flag.  It was later modified and 
adopted by the Massachusetts Navy.  The Sons of Liberty would rally under a large tree, 
in Boston Massachusetts, which came to be known as "The Liberty Tree".  This tree 
became a symbol of American independence.  Knowing they were up against a great 
military power, they believed they were sustained by still a greater power, thus their 
"APPEAL TO HEAVEN".  
     The reason that the pine tree became associated with the movement for American 
independence is that the British availed themselves of the tall pines in the American 
colonies as masts for naval vessels and some colonists sought to deprive them of such 
access.  
     As to the Gadsden flag that became the emblem of the Tea Party movement, as 
summarized on my own website's Favorite Quotations page:  
Arguably the first official American flag, the Gadsden flag was presented to Commodore 
Esek Hopkins, Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Navy, by Colonel Christopher 
Gadsden in 1775.  Gadsden was South Carolina's representative to the Continental 
Congress and he also presented a copy of the flag to his own state's legislature.  This flag 
probably preceded the First Navy Jack, which features an uncoiled rattlesnake on a 
background of thirteen stripes with the same motto.  
     (On naval vessels, a jack is the flag flown at the bow of a ship while the flag flown 
at the stern, to identify the vessel's nationality, is an ensign.)  
-- Stephen P. Wenger
 
     “Strange as it may seem, no amount of learning can cure stupidity, 
and formal education positively fortifies it.” -- Stephen Vizinczey
     "Cuckoo’s Nest!" by John Farnam
 
     "Cogito, ergo armatum sum." (I think, therefore armed am I.)
-- John Farnam
 
*************************************************************************
----- Legal -----
 
     "Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. 
It is wholly inadequate for the governance of any other.
-- John Adams, October 11, 1798
 
Ayoob: "The Misunderstood Concept Of Disparity Of Force"
by Docent
Cited article, 
"THE MISUNDERSTOOD CONCEPT OF DISPARITY OF FORCE"
by Massad Ayoob
 
"Men With Machine Guns Ambush Prison Convoy Killing Two Officers 
In Gun Controlled France" by Colion Noir
     All of France's gun-control-laws didn't prevent the bad guys from getting machineguns 
and using them to kill law-enforcement-officers.  The purpose of gun-control-laws is to 
criminalize the behavior of political enemies so that they can be arrested, imprisoned, 
fined, and stripped of the right to vote.  Those who advocate gun-control-laws are evil.  
 
"The Constitutional Concept of “Arms” under the Second Amendment."
by John Harris
 
"Hawaii Legalizes Butterfly, Switchblade & Gravity Knives & More!"
by (no byline)
Hat tip to Stephen P. Wenger, http://spw-duf.info
 
     "Law of Self Defense" by Andrew Branca 
(free book, just pay for shipping so you don't have to go to Colorado to pick it up)  
 
"Judge Sentences NYC Man to 10 Years for Gunsmithing After Saying 
2nd Amendment 'Nonexistent' in Courtroom" by Jeff Charles
Hat tip to Stephen P. Wenger.  
 
     "The 5 Elements of Self Defense" by Andrew Branca (free of charge) 
 
"Shot in Bed by SWAT Team During Home Raid | More Charges!"
by The Civil Rights Lawyer
     Why people vote to defund the police.  
 
"DHS Admits to Monitoring 3D Printer Purchases with the Help of Amazon, eBay, and PayPal"
by John Crump
Hat tip to Stephen P. Wenger.
 
Steven Oberman of the law firm of Oberman and Rice.  
Davidson County, Tennessee.  
 
Email from Tennessee Firearms Association -- 
May 19, 2024
     Federal Court in Texas issues temporary restraining order against ATF to prohibit 
its enforcement of the "engaged in business" rule against members of TFA, GOA, 
GOF, VCDL and others.  
     On May 1, 2024, Tennessee Firearms Association, on behalf of its members, 
filed a lawsuit in the Northern District of Texas as a co-plaintiff with the States of Texas, 
Louisiana, Mississippi, and Utah, Gun Owners of America, Gun Owners Foundation, 
the Virginia Citizens Defense League and Jeffrey Tormey.  
     On May 19, 2024, Judge Matthew J. Kacsmaryk issued a temporary injunction in 
favor of the citizens of Texas, Mr. Tormey, all members of GOA and GOF, all members 
of Tennessee Firearms Association and all members of the VCDL against the 
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives prohibiting the ATF from enforcing 
the new “engaged in business” rule against the plaintiffs.  This is not a national injunction 
so citizens of Tennessee who are not members of TFA, VCDL, GOA or GOF are not 
protected by this injunction.  
     The lawsuit presented several theories to support the assertion that the ATF’s rule 
should be blocked.  The only issue that the Court addressed, since it alone was found 
to be adequate to block the ATF’s new rule from going into effect, was the claim under 
the Administrative Procedures Act.  The Court found that “Plaintiffs are substantially 
likely to succeed on the merits” of that claim – a claim which would render the 
proposed rule void.  
     The Court also found that the individual Plaintiff and the organizational plaintiffs 
(GOA, GOF, TFA and VCDL) would clearly be irreparable harmed if the ATF’s rule 
were allowed to go into effect because “Plaintiffs understandably fear that these 
presumptions will trigger civil or criminal penalties for conduct deemed lawful just 
yesterday.”  The Court rejected entirely the ATF’s assertion that there was no basis 
to fear civil or criminal prosecutions from it under its new Rule on what the Court 
characterized as a “just trust us” assertion.  
     The Court’s temporary injunction is through June 2, 2024.  The Court has requested 
additional briefing but appears likely to extend the injunction past that time.  
John Harris
Executive Director
Tennessee Firearms Association
 
From email from Stephen P. Wenger -- 
     Worth Noting in the Eighth Circuit:  Security guard at a high-crime Des Moines, Iowa 
apartment complex calls police after he sees a vehicle moving about very late at night 
to various places where it's illegal to park, with a passenger swinging a gun around.  
Police arrive, vehicle tries to leave, police conduct a Terry stop, and they discover the gun.  
Yikes!  The guy with the gun is a felon, so it's a federal crime for him to have it.  
District court:  Permitless carry is legal in Iowa so those circumstances didn't provide 
reasonable suspicion for the stop and search; gun suppressed.  
Eighth Circuit: Seems plenty suspicious to us, gun unsuppressed.  
https://reason.com/volokh/2024/05/17/short-circuit-a-roundup-of-recent-federal-court-decisions-263/
Hat tip to Stephen P. Wenger.  
 
"Second Amendment Roundup: Just in Time for the Supreme Court to Consider in Rahimi
The Ninth Circuit invalidates the felon gun ban for non-violent offenses with no 
Founding-era analogues."  
by STEPHEN HALBROOK
Hat tip to Stephen P. Wenger.  
 
"ATF Apparently Seizing “Lethal Eye Muzzle Devices”:  What You Need to Know"
by James Reeves
 
"Millions of Americans Suddenly Get 2nd Amendment Rights Back"
by Roman Balmakov
 
     "Troubling details emerge in ATF's killing of man allegedly "engaged in the business" 
of selling guns" by Legally Armed America
     Do you understand?  How did the U.S. House Committee find out about the previous 
week's assembly and decision not to execute the search warrant?  I guess someone's got 
a conscience.  That's a big problem for the planners.  
     "Darrell Issa Excoriates ATF Director To His Face Over Decision 
To No-Knock Raid Suspect's House" by Forbes Breaking News
 
"Federal Judge Slams Qualified Immunity" by Steve Lehto
     Qualified Immunity is not a law, it's just a U.S. Supreme Court ruling.  
 
ARKANSAS FEDERAL COURT REFUSES TO ISSUE PRELIMINARY 
INJUNCTION AGAINST ATF “ENGAGED IN BUSINESS RULE”
by John Harris
Excerpt:  
     "At this time, there is no injunction against the ATF’s “engaged in business” rule that 
has been issued in this action nor any in other court that would protect the rights of 
Tennesseans.  The only exception is believed to be the temporary restraining order that 
was issued in the Northern District of Texas and which protects those individuals who 
might reside in Tennessee and who are also members of the Tennessee Firearms Association, 
Gun Owners of America and/or the Virginia Citizens Defense League."  
 
" 'PLAY THE VIDEO' ATF Chief Left SPEECHLESS After Jim Jordan 
REVEALED Disgusting 'Home Raid' Video..." by Master Samet
     When the federal LEOs cut the electrical power to your house, jam all cell phone 
commuication, kick in your front door at night, and invade your home; 
if you don't shoot the federal LEO first, they will shoot and kill you.  
     If you shoot warning shots instead of shooting to stop the attack (which would have 
been a head shot, because they were all wearing body armor), the federal LEO will 
shoot and kill you.  
     If you shoot to wound instead of shooting to stop the attack, the federal LEO will 
shoot and kill you.  
     "Better to be the victor than the victim." -- Massad Ayoob
     Better to be in prison than dead.  
     I am confident that President Trump would pardon anyone convicted of shooting a 
federal LEO under such circumstances.  Oh, wait, Trump's Department of Justice 
declined to prosecute cases under such circumstances.  That's even better.  
 
"SCOTUS Unanimously Sides With NRA in First Amendment Case"
by Stephen Gutowski
     "For those shocked to see Sotomayor (an Obama nomination) writing this opinion, 
note that this was an Amendment I case, not an Amendment II case."  
-- Stephen P. Wenger
     [Unanimous decisions by the U.S. Supreme Court are rare.  It just goes to show how 
fucked up New York is. -- Jon Low]
 
"Gov. Lee (Tennessee) signs bill preventing local government from enacting red flag laws"
by Tori Gessner
 
2024 TENNESSEE LEGISLATIVE REVIEW
 
    “Is there no virtue among us?  
If there is not, we are without hope!
No form of government, existing nor theoretical, will keep us from harm.
To think that any government, in any form, will insure liberty and happiness 
for a dishonorable population represents the height of self-deception.”  
-- James Madison, 1788
 
*************************************************************************
----- Instruction -----
 
     Colonel Robert Lindsey to his fellow trainers:  
"We are not God's gift to our students.  
Our students are God's gift to us."  
 
----- Instructors -----
 
     Be careful what you teach.  
Because your students will do in combat
whatever you have trained them to do, 
no matter how ridiculous.
-- "Shooting in Self-Defense" by Sara Ahrens
 
     "Teach them diligently . . . "
-- Deuteronomy 6:7 
 
     "Remember, 
the students who require the extra effort 
are the ones who need us the most!"
-- John Farnam
 
     "You must teach skill sustainment as part of training."  
-- John Hearne
 
----- Students -----
 
      "Load your magazines before class.  If I have a class of 20 students, 15 of them will 
show up with pre-filled magazines.  The other five students will waste an enormous 
amount of class time to fill their magazines while the other students and I wait."  
-- Greg Ellifritz
 
"So you Wanna Take a Shooting Course?" by Dave Merrill 
Hat tip to Greg Ellifritz.  
     The comments section is good too.  
 
----- Andragogy -----
 
     ‟An instructor should not expect any learning to take 
place the first time new information is presented.”  
-- ‶Building Shooters″ by Dustin Salomon
 
     “The most valuable resource that all teachers have is each other.  
Without collaboration, our growth is limited to our own perspectives.”  
-- Robert John Meehan
 
*************************************************************************
----- Gear -----
And the safe storage thereof.  
 
     “Mission drives the gear train.”
-- Pat Rogers
 
"2024 NRA Show and Convention, Dallas, TX" by John Farnam
P20iX
Max Output 4000 Lumens
EDC35
Max Output 5,000 Lumens
TM9K Pro
Max Output 9,900 Lumens
GUN NUTZ
BULLET-LOADER-TRAY (B.L.T)
(I got one of these.  It works.  Very easy to load magazines.)  
Ammo-Up
Brass picker uppers
 
"NRA Show, 2nd Day" by John Farnam
 
"2024 NRA Show, Last Day" by John Farnam
 
     Don't call attention to yourself.  Carry your gear in tote bags or insulated 
pinic bags or musical instrument cases.  Not military ammo cans and gun cases.  
The bad guys won't attack you if they don't know you exist.  
 
"Alliant Powders Suspended Shipments Of Smokeless Powders For Reloading"
by Gary Marbut
Hat tip to Stephen P. Wenger.
---
"To counter China, the US must strengthen ammunition production"
In this op-ed, retired Maj. Gen. James Marks discusses the importance 
of domestic nitrocellulose production to keep up with America's needs.
by   JAMES "SPIDER" MARKS
     Do you understand?  
 
"The Age-Old Debate
Are revolvers out of date?  Not hardly, says Sheriff Jim"
by SHERIFF JIM WILSON
     I don't agree.  But entertaining varying opinions is essential.  
 
"Tinkering with the Defensive Pistol" by Uncle Zo (I met him at Tac Con 2024.)  
     Never use any tool in a manner that it was not design for.  If the pistol has a thumb safety, 
you must use it.  (So you must know when to use it.  As in expert training customs and 
practices.  Not, what you happen to think in your ignorance.)  
     You don't practice enough to reliably defeat the safety when you draw the pistol?  
Then you better get a pistol without a thumb safety.  Modern pistols don't have thumb 
safeties, because the modern manual of arms for pistols requires a holster, and the 
holster is the safety.  That is to say, a proper holster that completely covers the trigger 
guard acts as the safety for the pistol.  
 
"5 Reasons Not To Carry A Gun In A Purse" by Colion Noir
     Inconsistent positioning.  
 
     I've always forbidden students from using reloads or remanunufactured ammo in 
my classes.  But with the increase in the cost of ammo, I am reconsidering.  
Freedom Munitions
remanufactured ammo
     I felt bad for a student who spent $600 for 1000 rounds of Federal 45 ACP for the class.  
Freedom Munitions will sell 1000 of remanufactured ammo 45 ACP for $353.97 including 
tax and no shipping charge.  Significant difference.  
 
"Fitting the pistol to your hand" by Ben Stoeger
     If you can reach the mag release or the slide stop while in a proper grip, you are WRONG!  
Because you are capable of  inadvertently ejecting the magazine or stopping the slide, while 
shooting.  
 
"Memorial Day, 2024" by John Farnam
 
"SHOOTING 101: Understanding the Three Primary “Types” of Firearms"
by Mark Chesnut
 
 
Hello Jonathan, 
     Within the concealed carry world, carrying a spare magazine is hotly debated subject.  
When the subject comes up in our courses I take the time to go into greater detail.  
Not everyone likes what they hear and few take it for action, but those who do will find 
a greater peace in the long run.  
     Reason #1:  Risk Assessment is higher than normal
There is no simple answer as to when to carry or when not to carry a spare magazine.  
Some will default without much thought.  That is fine as long as they can do a good 
job concealing the spare magazine.  This one good reason not to carry the spare when 
you cannot conceal it well enough to avoid unwanted attention.  If you have no risk 
assessment process for when you carry that might be the first place to start.  If we 
have three threat levels, low, medium and high it should seem obvious we avoid any 
area/region with a high threat level.  Just don't go unless unavoidable.  That leaves 
low and medium.  The real question is how do you tell the difference.  For me, 
anytime I go someplace I'm not familiar with I will go heavier by adding a spare 
magazine.  Since I'm unfamiliar with what is normal my early detection or assessment 
might be off.  
     Reason #2:  Lower capacity magazine in your primary
With the micro compact pistols growing in popularity it might be a good idea to carry 
a spare magazine.  On average we are seeing a 10 round magazine capacity and the 
question on everyone's mind is "will that be enough".  To be honest, I don't know nor 
do I think anyone can say with absolute certainty.  That's the point, we are training 
for an unknowable, unknown event.  The primary magazine might be enough, or it 
might not forcing a reload.  If your magazine capacity is less than 10, then it is 
definitely a good idea to carry a spare.  Even if the spare is the same capacity as the 
primary.  When I factor in Reason #1 with a micro, carrying a spare makes a lot of sense.  
     I carry a micro compact pistol a lot, especially in the summer months.  The smaller 
and lighter package makes it ideal in those conditions.  There are also times when I 
carry a backup gun as my primary such as in a pocket or ankle holster.  In this condition, 
carrying a spare magazine is almost a given for me since these pistols are generally 
really small and sometimes lower capacity.  Whatever your reason for or against 
carrying a spare magazine think it through and have a good answer for those 
contingencies.  
Good luck, 
JLG (Jeff L. Gonzales)
P.S. feel free to share with other like minded folks.
 
"It's Too Hot to Carry! — GMP #232" by GUNS and American Handgunner Magazines
     Tom McHale and Brent Wheat.  
 
"WHEN YOU SHOULD (AND SHOULDN’T) USE A SHOULDER HOLSTER"
by Mike Boyle
Hat tip to Greg Ellifritz.  
Excerpt:  
     "Safety equipment that might be used in defense of your life is no place to cut 
corners, and this is especially true of holsters.  If that Brand X rig costs but a 
fraction of a similar unit from one of the major manufacturers or small custom 
shops, that should send up a red flag.  Inferior materials compromise durability 
and weapon retention, even during normal physical activity.  When selecting a 
shoulder holster, avoid those “hobby grade” soft nylon rigs that are supposed to 
fit a wide range of handguns."  
 
"SMALL GUN TRADEOFFS" by Karl Rehn, KR Training
 
     “Your car is not a holster.” 
-- Pat Rogers
 
*************************************************************************
[I have received complaints that the following sections are getting harder and harder 
to read.  I am sorry.]  
 
     *****     *****     *****  Cryptology  *****     *****     *****
 
     "Arms discourage and keep the invader and plunderer in awe, 
and preserve order in the world as well as property.  
Horrid mischief would ensue were the law-abiding deprived of their use." 
-- Thomas Paine
 
     Cryptosystems are considered "arms" by federal law, ITAR, 
International Traffic in Arms Regulations.  That means cryptosystems are 
covered by the 2nd Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.  Never let the 
government infringe on your right to keep and bear cryptosystems, to 
include home made cryptosystems.  
 
"It was amazing.  We didn't know any physics.  It never occurred to me 
that it would be applied to physics.  But that's the thing about mathematics.  
You never know where it's going to go."   
-- Jim Simons (1938 - 2024)
 
     "Computer science has nothing to do with computers or science."  
-- Donald Knuth
 
Large Language Model, Jordan Peterson
 
     "Nothing in life is to be feared; it is only to be understood.  
Life is not easy for any of us.  But what of that?  We must have 
perseverance and above all confidence in ourselves.  We must 
believe that we are gifted for something, and that this thing 
must be attained."  
-- Marie Curie
 
"Trust the Science": Journals Closing Because Of Tsunami Of Fake Research
by Docent
Do you understand?  
 
     "Premature optimization is the root of all evil."  
-- Donald Knuth
 
     "KAN: Kolmogorov-Arnold Networks" by 
Ziming Liu, Yixuan Wang, Sachin Vaidya, Fabian Ruehle, 
James Halverson, Marin Soljačić, Thomas Y. Hou, and Max Tegmark
Reading through the bibliography / references is always a good place to start.  
     "Kolmogorov Arnold Networks (KAN) Paper Explained - 
An exciting new paradigm for Deep Learning?" by Neural Breakdown with AVB
See the first pinned comment for errata.  
     There are a lot of ways to decompose multi-variant functions, such as the Fourier 
Transform.  
 
"Sabine Hossenfelder: «Freier Wille – das macht keinen Sinn» | 
Sternstunde Philosophie | SRF Kultur" 
by SRF Kultur Sternstunden
     Light traveling at a constant speed in its medium (space) regardless of the 
speed of the transmitter isn't so strange.  Sound travels at a constant speed in 
its medium regardless of the movement of the source of the sound.  That is 
why a bullet's maximum effective range is the maximum range at which it is 
supersonic.  When the bullet transitions from super to sub sonic, it is in its own 
shockwave, which is unstable.  When super sonic, the bullet is in front of its 
shockwave.  When subsonic there is no shock wave, so no transition.  
 
***** Signals Intelligence and Ground Electronic Warfare, Cyber Security ***** 
 
     “Your character is what you do when no one is looking.”  
-- Thomas Jefferson
 
"Novel attack against virtually all VPN apps neuters their entire purpose
TunnelVision vulnerability has existed since 2002 and may already be known to attackers."
by Dan Goodin
Hat tip to Bruce Schneier.  
 
"LLMs’ Data-Control Path Insecurity
Someday, some AI researcher will figure out how to separate the data and control paths.  
Until then, we’re going to have to think carefully about using LLMs in potentially 
adversarial situations—like on the Internet." by Bruce Schneier
     Marine Corps Signals Intelligence was MOS 2600.  Cryptologic Communication 
Technicians were MOS 2651.  Get it?  No coincidence.  
 
     ‟If violent crime is to be curbed, it is only the intended victim who can do it.  
The felon does not fear the police, and he fears neither judge nor jury.  
Therefore what he must fear is his victim.”  
-- Col. Jeff Cooper, "Principles of Personal Defense" 
 
From the Merge -- 
     The Army is experimenting with long-range drones and high-altitude balloons in the 
Pacific.  The effort is being led by one of the service’s Multi-Domain Task Forces (MDTF), 
which has 3 platoons—1 for the electronic spectrum, 1 for drones, and 1 for balloons.  
     The Merge’s Take:  When you think of the Army and the air domain, you probably 
think of the air littorals—close to the ground.  Not this unit.  They are sensing up to roughly 
100,000 feet across the electromagnetic spectrum—so keep an eye on the 2 systems under 
test.  The drone is a Kraus Hamdani Aerospace K1000, a Group 2-sized drone with solar 
panel wings that can fly 70+ hours and advertises completely autonomous operations and 
swarming with onboard AI.  The K1000 been used by the Army in various experimentation 
campaigns, and other services seem to be taking notes—last month, the K1000 was 
selected to field with the Marine Corps.  The balloon is Urban Sky’s Stratospheric 
Microballoon.  The startup offers 10-centimeter high-resolution imaging from 6-pound 
payloads on small(ish) high-altitude balloons and closed a $9.75m Series A round last year.  
 
"Gaza Pier Ready for Deliveries, Navy Command Ship USS Mount Whitney Underway"
by SAM LAGRONE
     Chatter in the comments.  
 
     What do you notice?  
Large audience, crowd anonimity.  Simplex.  
 
"I Reverse Engineered a Dangerous Virus and Found Something WEIRD 
(ESXiargs ransomware deep dive)" by Low Level Learning
 
"Don’t sacrifice US leadership on GPS to protect against unproven security risks
In this op-ed, two representatives from the telecom industry argue the US should 
not restrict receive-only signals operated by China and Russia."  
by DAVID GROSSMAN and LISA DYER
     This is more important than it appears.  What does SigInt say to the CO when the 
grunts ask the CO to strike the enemy comms?  
 
     Flippers.  
 
Breaking Defense has a weekly newsletter, "Networks & Digital Warfare" at 
 
*************************************************************************
     *****     *****     *****  Intelligence  *****     *****     *****
Gathering, Analyzing, Disseminating
 
     "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, 
the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."  
-- Second Amendment, U.S. Constitution 
 
     The art and practice of Intelligence is an arm protected by the 2nd Amendment 
to the U.S. Constitution.  Never let anyone infringe upon your God given right 
to keep and bear intelligence.  (The enemy will try to dumb you down.  Resist!)  
 
"Army soldiers not impressed with Strykers outfitted with 50-kilowatt lasers, 
service official says “They will tell you everything and they're not worried 
about your feelings,” said Doug Bush."
by Ashley Roque
 
     "Good habits and skill beat luck every time."
-- Sheriff Jim Wilson
 
"CIA system exposed informants; at least 30 killed in China"
by CBS News
Investigative journalist Zach Dorfman.
"Chinese assets killed from 2010 to 2012 because of a botched CIA communication system."  
[What's on your time line?]  
"Persons not using the system were wrapped up."  
[Yes.]  
Open source report (New York Times) seven years after the incident.  
[Why?  What' on the time line?]  
 
"What We Know About China's Spy Agency"
by Bloomberg
 
"Pentagon should streamline software adoption with more testing enclaves, experts urge
As the Defense Department and Congress strive to streamline clumsy 
Authorization To Operate (ATO) procedures for software, 
the Pentagon also needs more computing infrastructure to test and experiment with new code."  
by   SYDNEY J. FREEDBERG JR.
     Read between the lines.  
 
"As Taiwan’s new president takes office, report warns of cyber side of China’s 
‘long-term’ strategy
"The PRC shows a strategic preference for activities in cyberspace and other 
domains that gradually bolster its position over an extended period, prioritizing 
steady progress and cumulative gains over immediate, overt victories," 
a report about PRC cyber activities by Booz Allen finds."
by   COLIN CLARK
 
     Days on the training calendar.  
 
"The Merge"
 
Breaking Defense
 
*************************************************************************
     *****     *****     *****  After Thoughts   *****     *****     *****
 
"Snow White and the Evil Queen"
Release date August 9, 2024 (United States)
On Bentkey, on Daily Wire.  
 
Same people, same country.  
Half adopt communism, half adopt capitalism.  
North and South Korea.  The results are obvious.  
 
     In case you don't understand why people flock to the United States.  
 
     In case you don't understand Democrats.  
 
     In case you don't understand Iran and the European Court.  
 
     In case you don't understand Pride Month.  
     Pride is a cardinal sin.  
 
     In case you don't understand your nasal cavities.  
 
     In case you don't understand the difference between Santa Rosa County 
and Canada.  
 
     In case you don't understand because you've got your head buried in the sand.  
"Deep State: FBI Authorized To Use Deadly Force Against Trump & Secret Service"
by Docent
     Cited article, 
"FBI Agents Were Authorized to Use Deadly Force and 
Told to Be Prepared to Engage With Trump and Secret Service 
During Mar-a-Lago Raid"
by Debra Heine
     Cited article, 
Notice the list.  
     Hey, I used to carry a courier card.  On the back of the card were orders from the President 
of the United States to all government employees, law enforcement officers, and armed 
forces personnel to render all aid and assistance to the bearer of the card.  So, we would 
never let anyone arrest us or seize our classified material.  We would use as much force 
as necessary to mantain control of our classified material.  We killed a lot of government 
employees, law enforcement officers, and foreign armed forces personnel who wouldn't 
recognize our courier cards.  No disciplinary action.  No investigation.  Do you understand?  
 
     In case you don't understand why skyscrapers don't fall over.  
 
"Who Spawned the Current Generation of Narcissists?" by MARK ALEXANDER
 
"Give A Man A Hammer ..." by Docent
Cited article, 
     Hard to find persons willing to apply for police jobs.  So, you've got to lower the standards 
to fill the rolls with bodies.  Thus, the obvious result.  
 
    “You can’t truly call yourself ‘peaceful’
unless you are capable of great violence.  
If you’re not capable of violence, you’re not peaceful, 
you’re harmless.  Important distinction.”  
-- Stef Starkgaryen 
 
Semper Fidelis,
Jonathan D. Low
Email:  Jon_Low@yahoo.com
Radio:  KI4SDN









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