Greetings Sheepdogs,
"Independence Day" by John Farnam
"A free people ought not only to be armed, but disciplined;
to which end a uniform and well-digested plan is requisite;
and their safety and interest require that they should promote
such manufactories . . ."
-- George Washington,
First Annual Address, to both Houses of Congress, January 8, 1790
Patrick "Tate" Adamiak
US Navy Sailor Wrongfully Convicted and Sentenced to 20 Years in Federal Prison
For Legally Owned Military Memorabilia.
After the American bombing of the nuclear facilities in Iran, President Trump
posted the event on Truth Social. A friend of mine called me and asked if it
were true.
I said, "Yes. Why do you ask?"
She said, "There is no report of the event on any of the other news source."
I said, "Well, that is an indication of good Operational Security. I guess
Tulsi Gabbard found and plugged the leaks.
But, don't worry, there will be more leaks in the future. The deep state is deep."
And sure enough, a traitor at DIA (Defense Intelligence Agency) leaked a false
bomb assessment damage report [convoluted terminology intentional] immediately
after the bombing. Wasn't that precious?
"No freeman shall ever be debarred the use of arms."
-- Thomas Jefferson
I have received questions about the high resolution color photos that I embed
in the blog postings. Some are family, just a grandfather showing off pictures of
his grandkids. Some are friends (usually of the shooting type). Some are family
friends (achieving milestones). Some are students. Some are colleagues.
Some are public photos published to promote a person and advance their
"brand" and hence their "celebrity"; and so are used by many for steganography.
Because so many unique IP addresses hit the sites to download the picture that
it becomes effectively hard to identify persons or organizations.
We understand that "hard" in the computational complexity sense may not be
enough if a nation state is willing to devote resources to the endeavor. That's
why it is so important to be the small fish in the big pond. Go unnoticed.
When I worked in Riyadh, we had no plaques on the doors. We were not listed
on the first floor directory of building occupants. The bad guys won't kill you
if they don't know you exist, which is better than not knowing where you are.
Table of Contents:
Prevention
Mindset
Situational Awareness
Safety
Training
Psychology
Practice
Intervention
Strategy
Tactics
Techniques
Postvention
Aftermath
Medical
Survival
Education
Legal
Instruction
Gear
Cryptology
Signals Intelligence
Intelligence
Religion and Politics
*************************************************************************
Muzzle discipline.
Trigger finger discipline.
*************************************************************************
***** ***** ***** Prevention ***** ***** *****
Things you can do to avoid the lethal force incident.
Table of sections:
Mindset
Safety
Training
Psychology
Practice
*************************************************************************
------------------------------ Mindset and Attitude --------------------------------
Figuring out the correct way to think.
The Warrior's Prayer
Dear God,
Please give us discernment to distinguish
friend from foe from innocent bystanders.
Give us clear vision so our aim is true.
Give us calm so we execute correctly.
Give us spiritual maturity so that we stop the attack
without excessive force, without revenge.
Amen
"Pastor Crucified—Killer Planned to Murder 14 Christian Leaders
in Shocking Jailhouse Confession"
by Keith Graves
Excerpt:
"Let evil come. Let it try. We will be watching. We will be ready.
And God will be with us."
[Well, that's all nice and fine, but suboptimal. As Michael Mann says,
"Prevention, not reaction." Your intelligence units must be finding the
threats, and your security units must be interdicting the threats, before
they get to your front door. Because by then it's too late, in the sense
that you will suffer casualties if you fight the enemy on your property.
No, as a matter of fact, the police won't do this for you. Only you and
your brethren can do this for your congregation.
Why do you think there were no large scale organized terrorist attacks
on U.S. soil after 9/11? Because the second President Bush declared the
Global War On Terrorism and we implemented this prevention policy.
If you don't implement a prevention policy, Ed Monk's class will tell
you how many casualties you can expect during every minute of the
attack. It's never zero. The only way to get zero casualties is to prevent
the attack. And yes, you can. It's simple. Not easy, simple. Identify the
threat and interdict the threat. Don't wait for the threat to attack, that's
just stupid.
-- Jon Low]
I guess that's how it works.
"Fairy tales do not tell children the dragons exist.
Children already know that dragons exist.
Fairy tales tell children the dragons can be killed."
-- G.K. Chesterton
I received from God something I didn't deserve.
So I'm giving generously to others what they don't deserve.
Because I don't meet the standard. I set the standard.
"Your life is as good as your mindset." -- Nicola Cavanis
"There are no dangerous weapons, only dangerous men." -- Robert A. Heinlein
Marc McYoung: "What Do I Do When Someone IS Shooting At Me?"
by Docent
Primary source,
Primary source of primary source,
---
Marc MacYoung's blog index page,
---
The RAPE PREVENTION section:
Excerpt:
"Afraid To Call Parents For Help
Raw fact of life, teenaged girls are the most likely to get raped.
Another raw fact, usually there's booze and drugs involved.
They're in a situation and know something is wrong, but they
don't call you to come and get them. Why? Because they're
more afraid of your anger about their underage drinking or
getting high. Rape is a vague threat to the young. On the other
hand, your anger is far more real to them. So what happens?
They don't call you for help and bad things happen."
---
[Over the last couple of decades, I have made a concerted effort to outreach to
young ladies because as Marc says, they are the primary target of criminal
predators. But they are very difficult to get into our classes, because they don't
have agency; they don't have money; they don't have cars or means of transportation;
they don't care; etc. So you, instructors / mentors / caring adults must outreach to
the parents or guardians.
I have picked up little girls from such situations. Ya, they call me (the Court
Appointed Special Advocate for children) instead of their drug addicted mothers
(drug addicted parents are possible, but absent father is usually the case) or
negligent parent (some parents don't care, and so won't bother to pick them up).
Making babies is a human right, don't you know. No training. No education.
No permits. It's a right. A person doesn't lose this right when she is convicted
of a felony. She doesn't lose this right when she is convicted of domestic violence.
-- Jon Low]
“My grandfather, a cop and blooded gunfighter, was present one night when
I was a small child and had a nightmare. My parents, of course, were dedicated
to calming me down and included the old canard of "there's no such thing as monsters"
in their assurances. My grandfather later sat me down and told me there were indeed
monsters in the world. "What makes 'em scary," he told me, "is they look like
everyone else. But if you keep your eye on 'em and be on your guard . . . sooner
or later, you'll see the mask slip." ”
-- Jay Winton
"How I know what women want: their feelings don't matter"
by Orion Taraban, Psy.D.
Observing how people behave betrays what they want.
You can't see yourself, that's why you need an instructor who can look at you.
"An unarmed man can only flee from evil and
evil is not overcome by fleeing from it." -- Jeff Cooper
‟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
"I do not carry a pistol so that I may impose my will on others.
I carry a pistol so that others may not impose their will on me."
-- Tom Givens
"Before all else, be armed." -- Nicolo Machiavelli
"The line between everyday life and sudden violence is thinner than most realize."
-- Tim Larkin
"Firearms are second only to the constitution in importance,
they are the people's liberty's teeth." -- George Washington
“Happiness is the by-product of achievement” -- Jeff Cooper
"Be so focused on watering your grass that
you don't have time to check if someone else's is greener."
-- Nicola Cavanis
"Survival is a mindset, not a skill set."
-- Greg Shaffer
"Your gunfights will always be anomalies.
So are those of all the instructors you venerate.
It’s useful to keep those facts in mind."
-- Greg Ellifritz
“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
‷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
"Have your affairs in order."
-- John Hearne
*************************************************************************
*************************************************************************
------------------------------ Situational Awareness --------------------------------
How to avoid being taken by surprise.
"Many people don't realize that your awareness skills
are more important than your marksmanship skills.
Well, you can't shoot something you don't know is there,
or don't know it needs to be shot!" -- Tom Givens
"The Active Mindset" by Tom McHale
The simple act of . . . being active is arguably the single most important thing
you can do when going about your daily business.
In the old days before smartphones, you might have seen the occasional person
walking down the street reading a paper or talking on a flip phone. Now, we have
far too many new inventions distracting us. What percentage of people you see in
public are buried in their smartphones? Would you say 50 percent? Maybe 75
percent? Higher? Can we agree the majority of people in this day and age are not
paying a whit of attention to their surroundings?
So, step one is to pay attention to your surroundings. It’s a conscious decision
not to allow yourself to be distracted or zoned out while in public. Saying and
doing that are two different things, so let’s consider some strategies to help maintain
active awareness.
Put Away Your Phone
The easiest way to prevent self-destruction is to step away from the primary
device that causes it.
While we all like to think we’re first-class multitaskers, the human brain isn’t
wired that way. Until you have an Intel Quad Core logo inked on your forehead,
your brain will do one thing at a time. Sure, you can switch back and forth quickly,
but not nearly so rapidly as you might believe.
Let me prove it to you. With my phone in my pocket and using average speed,
it takes me about seven seconds to retrieve it, unlock it with my fingerprint or face
identification, and check a new message. That’s the time to check just one text,
social media post, or short email—the minimum time required to respond to one
“ding” from your mobile device.
I’ll bet you a ribeye steak (medium-rare, please) that on very, very few occasions
do we check “just one thing” when the phone comes out. So, in reality, seven
seconds is an exceedingly optimistic best-case scenario.
What can happen in just seven seconds? Many life-changing events can occur
just that fast.
Someone intent on attacking you can cover over 20 yards. We’re not talking
about Usain Bolt’s speeds either—those figures assume a rate of just seven miles
per hour. Sprinters move at over 20 mph.
A car moving 70 miles per hour can travel 700 feet—a good bit over two
football fields or a very long par three hole on a golf course.
If you happen to be standing in line at a fast-food joint or waiting to pay at a
convenience store, someone who’s not even in the building can open the door,
get inside, and commence robbing the place.
Those are just a few examples of things that can go down during a quick peek
at just one item on your phone.
Now, imagine what can happen when you start typing a response or reading
other incoming messages. Better yet, rather than guessing, look around the next
time you’re out and see how long the average person is looking down at their
phone before they raise their head to see where they are. Seriously, time a few,
and you’ll probably be shocked at how much time elapses.
While you’re at it, imagine you are a criminal looking for victims.
Would you choose someone from the “nose in the phone” committee
as an ideal victim candidate?
-- Tom McHale
"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)
"An officer may be forgiven for losing a battle,
but never for being taken by surprise."
-- Jeff Cooper
*************************************************************************
------------------------------ Safety --------------------------------
How to prevent the bad thing from happening in the first place.
How to avoid shooting yourself, friendlies, and innocent bystanders.
How to prevent unauthorized persons from using your guns.
Jeff Cooper′s Rules of Gun Safety
RULE I: ALL GUNS ARE ALWAYS LOADED.
RULE II: NEVER LET THE MUZZLE COVER ANYTHING
THAT 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.
---
RULE V: Maintain control of your gun. -- Stephen P. Wenger
"Christian Church Massacre Thwarted!" by John Farnam
---
"Source Close to the Investigation Shares New Details on Michigan Church Shooting"
by Keith Graves
---
"Breaking" news reports are often wrong. Better to wait for reliable sources.
“Then Jesus said to His disciples, whoever does not have a sword should sell
his coat and buy a sword.”
– Book of Luke 22:36, New Life Version of the Bible
Showing mercy and grace has nothing to do with being stupid and complacent.
If you recognize the guy as a threat, tell him he's not welcome. Tell him to go
away. Call the cops and have him arrested for trespass. [We had a trespass waiver
on file with the Nashville Police Department. I asked the police to arrest the thug.
The responding officer told me, "It's just an internet prank." And the police officer
let the thug get into his car and drive away. Such is the Nashville Police Department.]
From inside the church, the automatic weapon fire sounded like drums.
Install bollards. Not just have them available.
The automobile is an excellent weapon. Use it.
Having a safe house is an excellent idea. Have one in your plan. There is no
point in evacuating into an open parking lot. The bad guys have a really hard time
getting a bomb into your building. But it's real easy for them to drive a car bomb
into your parking lot. [I've survived a truck bomb. I know what I'm talking about.]
You must have training. No, it's not the church's responsibility to train the security
team. It's your responsibility to get training and to practice.
You must hold evacuation drills. Because you don't know what you don't know.
You won't find out that you don't have enough adults to guide the children out of the
building if you've never held a drill. Evacuation and rally points are in your plan,
right? The plan that you have practiced, discovered what doesn't work, and rewritten
several times. Herman Melville rewrote section of "Moby Dick" 13 times. And it
got better with each rewriting, as your plan will.
You won't be able to break the windows or glass doors to escape, because they
have all been laminated. But if you know that ahead of time, you won't try to break
the glass. You will have a different escape route planned.
Have your own self-defense insurance. Read the fine print. Don't assume the
church is going to cover your legal expenses. Or, the civil judgment.
75% of all violent incidents start outside in the parking lot. So you need to have
persons in the parking lot to interdict. If the bad guys get into the building, you can
expect a much higher body count.
The bad guy brought a rifle. Are you prepared to interdict a rifleman?
"But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet to
warn the people and the sword comes and takes someone’s life, that person’s
life will be taken because of their sin, but I will hold the watchman accountable
for their blood."
-- Ezekiel 33:6, New International Version (NIV)
". . . who were building the wall. Those who carried materials did their work
with one hand and held a weapon in the other, and each of the builders wore his
sword at his side as he worked."
-- Nehemiah 4:17 and 18, New International Version (NIV)
"Gut feelings are guardian angels."
-- Nicola Cavanis
"SIG 320 discharge to groin" by CarryTrainer (Mickey Schuch)
"Safety is something that happens between your ears,
not something you hold in your hands."
-- Jeff Cooper
"THE PRESS CHECK" by Suarez Tactics
Chamber indicators can be wrong. Dirty, carbon build up, etc. Can't see them in
low light conditions.
"It's easier to stay out of trouble than to get out of trouble."
-- Claude Werner
"You are not responsible for negative reactions to your boundaries."
-- Nicola Cavanis
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.
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)
"The Concealed Carry Trap" by Gary Evens
Hat tip to Greg Ellifritz.
I can't find the Mike Seeklander article that Evens refers to.
Please send me a link if you can find it.
Excerpt:
1. Do you know how to select and utilize gear that will ensure your survival
versus allow you to lose your gun during a dynamic situation?
2. When dealing with a potential threat more than three yards away can you
access and draw your firearm efficiently and quickly (under 2 seconds),
and do you practice those techniques weekly (at a minimum)?
3. If you were forced to deal with that same threat and they were less than
three yards away, do you know what to do in that close proximity?
4. What if that same threat was so close they could grab or punch you
(less than a yard)? Would you know how to handle that situation (could you
protect yourself against the punch)?
5. If you were seated in your vehicle, seat-belted in, would you know how
to handle that?
6. If during your critical incident, you drew and shot the threatening person,
yet they failed to be affected, would you know how to handle that or what
caused it?
7. What if during your critical incident you were injured or had one of your
hands occupied. Could you still draw, reload, or clear malfunctions in your
handgun with one hand only?
8. What if you had something that provided cover, could you use that cover
efficiently and still return fire?
9. During your incident, you might experience some physiological and
psychological effects that if misunderstood could easily rattle you.
Do you know what to expect?
10. Lastly, have you ever exposed yourself to simulated stress that
simulates the real fight, and if not, do you know what it will be like?
If you cannot answer every one of these questions with a firm “Yes”,
then you are not prepared to defend yourself from a violent attack.
"Your curriculum needs to be recent, relevant, and realistic."
-- Austin Killmer (AOR's Lead Firearm Instructor)
"The restless target." by Orion Taraban, Psy.D.
Wednesday, June 25th, 2025
It has never been easier to access the teachings of some of the greatest
minds – past and present – than today. Experts regularly discuss their views
on podcasts, and masters present their models on social media. Much of this
content focuses on success and personal development, which is a great
collective resource for mankind.
However, there is one potential liability here of which the average viewer
need be aware, namely: the same strategies will not work at different levels
of development. The best investment advice is functionally meaningless to
the person still struggling with debt. Maintenance strategies look very
different than seduction tactics. While airplanes take off into the wind,
they will reach their destination more quickly with a tailwind.
Some advice is bad; however, most advice is just inapplicable.
An opinion that doesn't speak to your personal experience isn't necessarily wrong.
A strategy that doesn't seem relevant to your situation isn't necessarily incorrect.
There are exceptions to every rule. Dismissing a perspective simply because it
doesn't speak to your current circumstances can be problematic. Why? Because
your circumstances will change. And when they do, you might be glad to have
some wisdom appropriate to your new situation in your back pocket.
Warmly,
Orion
"Having a gun is important.
But knowing WHEN to use it is even more important."
-- Greg Ellifritz
Task Overload Confusion [updated since last posting]
Please take Chuck Haggard's class,
Task Overload Confusion has lead to many deaths.
---
Weapon Mounted Lights - (turning on and off)
Chuck Haggard says, use your support side thumb to manipulate your weapon
mounted light. NEVER use your trigger finger. Task Overload Confusion will
cause you to press the trigger and fire the pistol subconsciously when you meant
to turn the light on or off consciously. In high stress situations your subconscious
will execute your Automatic Motor Programs. (If you don't understand this, take
Dustin Salomon's course on the neuroscience of firearms training. He lives here
in Middle Tennessee and gives his class at the Glock Store occasionally.)
You have trained to press the trigger with your index finger tens of thousands
of times. You will not be able to overcome this training under the debilitating
stress of a lethal force encounter. Your index finger WILL press the trigger.
Lots of documented cases, some resulting in unintentional death.
---
Tasers -
Having two different tools that are handled in the same way will cause
Task Overload Confusion. NEVER carry or use a Taser. Lots of documented
cases where the police officer shot the suspect with his pistol while believing
he was holding his Taser.
"How Could an Officer Mistake a Gun for a Taser?"
by Shawn Hubler and Jeremy White
Excerpt:
" “If you train enough, you should be able to tell,” said Scott A. DeFoe,
a retired sergeant with the Los Angeles Police Department. "
[That is complete bullshit. No amount of training or practice can overcome
Task Overload Confusion -- Jon Low]
---
Holsters -
NEVER use a holster that uses your trigger finger to defeat the retention mechanism.
In a high stress situation, your trigger finger will continue to press, because that is what
you have trained it to do over tens of thousands of repetitions. When the trigger clears
the holster, the trigger finger will press the trigger. BANG! Now you've got a hole in
your leg.
Using your trigger finger to BOTH defeat the retention device AND to fire
the pistol will cause Task Overload Confusion.
Read "The Serpa Compendium" by Greg Ellifritz
---
Weapon Mounted Lights - (searching vs. aiming)
NEVER use a weapon mounted light for searching. To do so violates
Safety Rule 2: Never muzzle anything that you are not willing to destroy.
You will confuse "things that you are searching for" with "things that you
intend to shoot". You will confuse the "task of shooting" with the "task
of searching".
Use a separate hand held flashlight.
---
Don't overload your trigger finger with multiple tasks.
Don't carry different tools that have the same manual of arms.
Don't use the same tool for two different purposes.
The weapon mounted light is for aiming.
The hand held light is for searching.
This list could go on for pages, but you get the idea.
"Most deadly force encounters occur spontaneously, without warning and
at extremely close ranges. Realistically, you may not have the time or the
space to effectively draw, no matter how fast your drawstroke."
-- Jeff L. Gonzales
[So, you better learn and practice some hand-to-hand combat techniques. -- Jon Low]
Email from John Murphy --
Lessons from the Firing Line
With over twenty years of teaching armed self-defense and decades more study
on the topic I have seen, and learned, a few things. Below are a few examples of
recurring lessons.
1. Small Guns are Harder to Shoot
Small guns are often purchased with the thought that they’ll somehow be easier to
shoot and certainly will just disappear when carried. The reality is that Sir Isaac
Newton’s laws have not been repealed and the benefit of having more gun to hold
on to during the “equal and opposite reaction” phase of a shot remains a constant.
I certainly understand the desire to reduce the footprint of the pistol, but at some
point consideration must be given to the purpose that gun is being carried, which
is to fight as effectively as possible. Good holster and clothing choices go a long
way toward mitigating the concealment concerns of larger handguns. I am NOT
saying that small pistols don’t have a place, but they require more experienced
hands to wield effectively. There are many very shootable and concealable midsized
guns on the market. Start there.
2. The Danger of Cut Corners
Quality support gear like holsters, belts, magazine carriers, etc. can really make or
break a concealed carry set up. The holster, for example, must protect the trigger,
hold the gun securely, and remain in one fixed place. This last bit is very important.
The problem with “easy on” paddle type holsters is that they’re also easy off and
during an aggressive draw stroke the whole package comes away leaving you with
a holstered gun that you’re pointing at the target. It has been my experience that
the holsters and support gear available at most gun stores are substandard. Look to
holster brands like JM Custom Kydex, Dark Star Gear, Phlster, and Tenicor to
“buy once, cry once." If you have questions don’t hesitate to contact me before
you part with your hard earned money.
3. Understand the Whole Problem
Purchasing and storing a gun, let along carrying a lethal weapon, requires a depth
of understanding of many issues far beyond just that object. An informed Citizen-
Defender will have a sense of self and will be equipped with pre-decisions that
are supported by both adequate equipment and acquired skills that are maintained
and periodically tested. The skills include what to say as well as what to do before,
during and after a conflict or incident, not just employing force. “Just Get Home”
our flagship course, covers these topics in detail and starts with a six hour view
ahead on YouTube, available 24/7 for just the time it takes to watch.
-- John Murphy
---
"Just Get Home! (Formerly Street Encounter Skills and Tactics)" by John Murphy
Five hour series of videos to prepare you for his class.
This is priming.
"No learning should be expected the first time information is presented." -- Dustin Salomon
So you must expose your students to your information before the start of the fist class.
John Farnam asks his students to read his book before class. I send all of my class
documents to my students a month before the start of the class to give them time to
read over the equipment list (and acquire all necessary equipment), the course outline,
etc. So the students know exactly what we are going to do before they show up for
class. No surprises (except for those exercises that require surprise, ambiguity, etc.).
"There are three different areas, or disciplines, in which the armed person must train.
These are mindset, gun handling, and marksmanship. Each is equally important, and
you must be at least competent in all three areas."
-- Tom Givens
"Close Quarters Handgun Training
What to do when things get up close and personal."
by Claude Werner
Review of class by Chuck Haggard of Agile Training hosted by
The Complete Combatant in the mountains of North Georgia.
"In reality, we are training for an unknown event, against unknown threats,
by developing as many known skills as possible."
-- Jeff Gonzales
"Why Is Strength And Fitness Necessary For Competitive Shooters?
Boost your competition shooting performance with targeted strength,
agility and cardio training—because running the gun isn’t all that matters."
by Corey Howard
Excerpt:
"Get some cardio in so you can function more efficiently.
Do some regular strength training so you’re a stronger, more stable athlete, and
work on your agility so that you can transition faster."
“Train, Practice, Compete
are the key elements in the development of humans.”
-- John M. Buol, Jr.
"To . . . not prepare is the greatest of crimes;
to be prepared beforehand for any contingency is the greatest virtue."
-- Sun Tzu
“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
"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
“If you are reading this and can’t put your hand on your defensive firearm,
all of your training is wasted.” -- Col. Jeff Cooper
"If you’re not measuring your training,
what you’re doing is called playing."
-- Chris Sajnog
"In order to measure, we must be able to quantify."
-- Aaron Cowan
"When you're training to protect yourself and others, speed always comes last.
In the more than twenty-five years I've been training people in self-protection,
I've never heard from someone who used self-protection tools in the field and
felt like they suffered from a lack of speed at the moment of truth. In fact, I
usually hear the opposite: it's much more common to suffer from a lack of
accuracy or force." -- Tim Larkin
"A mistake that makes you humble is better
than an achievement that makes you arrogant."
-- Nicola Cavanis
“Training deals not with an object,
but with the human spirit and human emotions.”
--Bruce Lee
"To preserve liberty, it is essential that the whole body of people always
possess arms and be taught alike, especially when young, how to use them."
-- Richard Henry Lee
Signer of the Declaration of Independence
“It may seem difficult at first but everything is difficult at first.”
-- Miyamota Mushashi
"We should not forget that the spark which ignited the American Revolution
was caused by the British attempt to confiscate the firearms of the colonists."
-- Patrick Henry
*************************************************************************
------------------------------ Psychology --------------------------------
"Train and practice so that you can stay in your rational mind,
and force your enemy into his emotional mind. The emotional
mind makes bad judgments which will allow you to win."
-- John Hearne
Email from Orion Taraban, Psy.D. --
"Hold on."
Wednesday, July 2nd, 2025
Over the course of my life, I've passed through some awful nights. Nights when
I felt like I was unraveling. Nights when the darkness was fathomless and complete.
Nights when I thought I wouldn't make it til morning. Those were very difficult times.
In situations like this, I break the motionless hours into smaller fragments of time.
When things get really hard, I just try to get through the next ten seconds. You can
bear pretty much anything for ten seconds: unbearable heat, biological cessation,
even the vacuum of space. I've passed many nights ten seconds at a time.
The important thing is to hold on. The moment – whatever it is – will pass.
This is an inevitability. And since the moment will pass – one way or another – what
will you have to show for the time? Will you fold and break? Or will you hold and
rise? Don't give up. You can last ten more seconds.
This week's behavioral experiment:
Do you know someone who is passing through difficulty? Offer your support,
as appropriate.
Warmly,
Orion
[Perhaps the proximate cause of suicide is choosing not to hold on for
10 more seconds.
I was attending a small church in Nashville, TN (It no longer exists.).
One night a lady came to the evening service to tell the pastor that she had
received a flyer from one of the pastor's sons, and so was here. (Our pastor
would often arrange outings where we, the congregation, would hit an
apartment complex knocking on doors and inviting residents to attend our
services.) She told the pastor that she was about to commit suicide, but
stopped when there was an incessant knocking on her front door. She
thought it must be important, perhaps a message from God.
Indeed it was. You don't even need to know that that person "is passing
through difficulty" to offer your support. How could your offer not be
"appropriate"?
-- Jon Low]
*************************************************************************
*************************************************************************
------------------------------ Conferences --------------------------------
Attending classes and conferences is required for growth.
Stagnation is complacency. Complacency kills.
"The supreme power in America cannot enforce unjust laws by the sword;
because the whole body of the people are armed, and constitute a force
superior to any bands of regular troops that can be, on any pretense,
raised in the United States."
-- Noah Webster
Gun Owners of America annual meeting, free of charge
Knoxville Convention Center, Knoxville, TN
9 - 10 August 2025 A.D.
---
GOA Defend Her High Caliber Brunch, $15
Sunday, August 10th at 11:00 AM
The Marriott Ballroom in Knoxville, TN.
TFALAC’s 2025 Annual Event
Saturday, September 6, 2025
Farm Bureau Expo Center at the
James E. Ward Agricultural Center on the
Wilson County Fairgrounds.
945 East Baddour Parkway
Lebanon, Tennessee 37087
Bullets & Bibles Conference, $750
Friday, September 12, 2025 – Sunday, September 14, 2025
Living Water Ranch, north of Manhattan, KS.
For more information about lodging (free lodging in the dorms) on site or
meals (3 meals a day included in registration fee) or
if you have any questions regarding the event,
contact our Bullets & Bibles Conference Coordinator,
Vonda Copeland
director@fhftc.org
or call 785-293-2449.
Guardian Conference, $800
September 19th - 21st, 2025 in Oklahoma City
40th annual Gun Rights Policy Conference! Free.
Sept. 26 - 28 in Salt Lake City, Utah, at the
Salt Lake Marriott Downtown at City Creek.
Combatives Association Summit, $899.00
October 24 - 26, 2025
D'Iberville, Mississippi
Register at
Rangemaster Tactical Conference, $639
TacCon26 is scheduled for
March 27-29, 2026 at
the Dallas Pistol Club in Carrollton, Texas
*************************************************************************
------------------------------ Classes --------------------------------
Attending classes and conferences is required to avoid teaching
obsolete material, and to ensure you are teaching best practices.
"Advanced Defensive Handgun" by John Farnam
08 - 09 November 2025 A.D.
Nashville, TN (well, actually a bit north in Cross Plains, TN)
Venue: Deer Hollow Fire Arms Training
Massad Ayoob Group
Click on "Training Calendar"
Blog
West Coast Armory North, John Holschen
11714 Airport Rd Everett WA, 98204
425-265-7143
rangemaster@westcoastarmorynorth.com
Law of Self Defense, live online class upcoming dates
September 27, 2025
TFI Academy (Keith Tyler)
Training in Context (Tatiana Whitlock)
Active Response Training (Greg Ellifritz)
Modern Warriors
Rangemaster Certified Instructors
Map of Rangemaster Certified Instructors
Dustin Salomon
KR Training
Kari Grayson
Citizens Safety Academy
Carry Trainer, Mickey Schuch
Paladin Training, Inc.
Citizen-Defender, John Murphy
Virginia Private Firearms Training (for private lessons), John Murphy
Defensive Training International, John Farnam
Quips,
Rangemaster, Tom Givens
Newsletter,
Trident Concepts, Jeff Gonzales
Apache Solutions, Tim Kelly
Harris Combative Strategies, Randy Harris
Mead Hall Range & Tactics
Two Pillars Training, John Hearne
Mike Seeklander
‟Training is NOT an event, but a process.
Training is the preparation FOR practice.”
-- Claude Werner
*************************************************************************
*************************************************************************
------------------------------ Practice --------------------------------
How to get proficient at that task.
"Remember, the day you plant the seed is not the day you earn the fruit."
-- Nicola Cavanis
"There is no glory in practice, but without practice there is no glory."
-- Jeff Gonzales
‟Be careful what you practice.
Because you will do in combat whatever you have practiced,
no matter how ridiculous.”
-- Sara Ahrens, ‶Shooting in Self-Defense″
"Your speed doesn't matter. Forward is forward."
-- Nicola Cavanis
"Practice your shooting by doing exactly the same thing,
exactly the same way, every time, until it is completely automatic."
-- Duaine Zeitz
“Willingness is a state of mind. Readiness is a statement of fact!”
-- Lt. Gen. David M Shoup, USMC Commandant 1960-1963
Everyone wants to win. Few are willing to put in the practice to ensure their win.
"Remember, growing may feel like breaking at first."
-- Nicola Cavanis
"Failure is evidence that someone tried to do something."
-- Ingersoll
"You have to be lucky to win. And the more you practice, the luckier you get."
-- Col. Lones Wigger
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
‶Practice is the small deposits you make over time,
so that in an emergency, you can make that big withdrawal.″
-- Chesley Burnett Sullenberger, III
"People rust faster than equipment."
-- John Hearne
*************************************************************************
***** ***** ***** Intervention ***** ***** *****
Suggestions on how to deal with the incident that you failed to avoid.
Table of sections:
Strategy
Tactics
Techniques
*************************************************************************
------------------------------ Strategy --------------------------------
Deciding on the end state and how to achieve it.
"Never let fear decide your fate." -- Nicola Cavanis
"Shoot First, Ask . . . . Something, Something" by Jamie Green
Defense of home can quickly become an emotionally charged topic.
The mere suggestion there might be a better alternative than to seek out
and shoot anything that moves may get some folks riled up. The ideas
of barricading in a safe location or simply getting the family out of the
house and letting the police sort it out feel like foreign concepts. After all,
it is their home, their castle and they have the right to defend it. While
that is correct (recognizing that some state laws may vary on the exact
rights of the homeowner regarding illegal intrusion), we might need to
think beyond the initial knee jerk response and consider the long-term
ramifications of a hasty decision.
While the concept of home defense should be simple enough – protecting
our families at all costs against danger – the realities may not be quite so
simple.
When acting under castle doctrine, we may tend to view home defense as
an unquestionable right to use lethal force. Anyone entering without
permission (and in some states even attempting to enter) will face the music.
Can you shoot that person? Of course you can. However, it is important to
recognize that when the smoke clears there will be more to the situation.
Depending on your state and local laws you may face some serious questions,
and the next steps may be criminal charges and, in many cases, civil litigation
as a very possible outcome.
If we have given much thought to a plan for home protection, typically,
the practice scenario ends with a score of Good Guy 1, Intruder 0. Good to
return to what we were doing, all is well. Generally, we give no thought to
the reasonableness that might overlay our actions, who the intruder might be,
or what alternative plan might work better. Also, we often fail to include in
our plan the variables that may be present such as how many, are they armed,
or even the intent of the intruder.
Perhaps even more shocking is that we seldom consider the person entering
may not pose any sort of threat to our wellbeing. Have you ever heard of
teenagers sneaking in and out during the wee hours? How about an individual
suffering from dementia or Alzheimer’s returning to what they remember as
their own residence? While these may be considered unlawful intrusions,
does the situation require lethal force? These questions lead us to the importance
of identifying before shooting.
The most difficult part of any aspect of self-protection is the ability to craft
the perfect plan. Since we have no real way to determine the lengths to which
others may be willing to go, we must plan and prepare as best we can. Installing
cameras inside/outside the home, hardening entrances by installing three-inch
screws in the lock striker plates, and keeping doors and windows locked are great
steps to help keep your family safe. Also don’t forget about locking the door
between the house and attached garage.
Creating a plan and then communicating the plan to everyone in the household
is the best first step you can do to keep your home safe. As Benjamin Franklin so
astutely pointed out “[an ounce] of prevention is worth a pound of cure”.
-- Jamie Green
“How do you win a gunfight?
Don't be there.”
-- John Farnam
"You win gunfights by not getting shot."
-- John Holschen
*************************************************************************
------------------------------ Tactics --------------------------------
Maneuver and fire in support of your strategy.
"Superior judgment trumps superior skills." -- Dan Millican
From an email from Jeff L. Gonzales --
Hello Jonathan,
In today’s world, the importance of being prepared for unexpected threats has
become more apparent than ever. Whether it’s a targeted home invasion or
widespread civil unrest, having the means to defend yourself and your loved
ones is a serious responsibility. While handguns and shotguns are common
choices for home defense, a well-configured rifle—particularly an AR-platform—
offers distinct advantages in terms of accuracy, capacity, and adaptability.
In high-stress situations where every second and every shot counts, a rifle can
provide the control and confidence needed to respond effectively to threats
inside or around the home.
When setting up an AR-15 for home defense, the focus should be on reliability,
simplicity, and practical effectiveness. Begin with a dependable rifle chambered
in 5.56 NATO or .223 Remington, ideally with a barrel length between
10.3 to 16 inches. Shorter barrels offer better maneuverability indoors, though
legal requirements must be considered when using a short-barreled rifle (SBR)
or AR pistol. A quality two-point sling should be added next. The sling acts like
a holster for the rifle—keeping the weapon secured to the body and allowing
control while performing tasks such as opening doors, making a call, or assisting
others. A white light is also essential; clear identification of a target is mandatory
before any defensive action is taken. A high-quality weapon-mounted light
enables positive identification in low-light conditions, which is both morally
and legally critical. This should be paired with a red dot sight or low-power
variable optic (LPVO) to enable fast, accurate target acquisition under stress.
If legally owned, a suppressor is a valuable addition, reducing sound, muzzle
flash, and concussion—all of which aid in maintaining awareness and control
during a defensive encounter.
Consider this Pro-Tactical Tips for AR15 in a home defense situation:
1. Clear Methodically Using Angular Domination: Rather than rushing through
doorways or blind corners, employ a deliberate method of angular domination—
a tactic focused on controlling and gradually exposing sectors of fire from a
position of cover. By incrementally shifting position, one section of the room
or hallway is revealed at a time, allowing threats to be identified and addressed
while minimizing unnecessary exposure. When using a rifle like an AR-15,
maintain a compact stance, keep the muzzle oriented toward potential threat areas,
and move with precision to retain control in confined spaces.
2. Use Light with Discipline: a weapon-mounted light is essential, but avoid
constantly leaving it on. Instead, use momentary bursts (brief “on-off” taps) to
quickly scan or confirm a target, then move. This prevents giving away your
position and somewhat preserves night vision. Practice activating the light with
the weak hand while staying on target—it’s a perishable skill. Light control is
critical both tactically and ethically, as proper target identification is non-negotiable.
3. Know Your Boundaries — Hold, Don’t Hunt: In most home defense scenarios,
the most effective tactic is not to clear the structure alone, but rather to secure a
defensible position, control choke points such as hallways or doorways, and
initiate a call for assistance. Allow threats to approach rather than actively
pursuing them. The AR-15 performs well in this role—its accuracy and magazine
capacity offer a significant advantage if engagement becomes necessary.
Maintaining a fixed position minimizes risk to all occupants within the home
and enhances overall control of the situation. The one exception to this principle
is the need to safeguard children or other vulnerable individuals elsewhere in
the home—retrieving and securing them may take priority, even if it requires
movement through the structure.
In the context of home defense, the AR-15, when configured responsibly and
supported by sound tactics, can be an effective and reliable tool. Its accuracy,
capacity, and adaptability offer clear advantages in protecting loved ones during
high-stress, close-quarters situations. However, owning and employing such a
platform carries serious legal, moral, and practical responsibilities. Proper
training, discipline in use, and a clear understanding of when and how to act are
essential. Home defense is about actively and tactically protecting the home by
establishing control over key areas, minimizing exposure to risk, and making
disciplined, legally sound decisions in dynamic and high-stress environments.
Good luck out there,
JLG
P.S. Feel free to share this with any like-minded folks who might benefit.
"Real fights are short." -- Bruce Lee
Cover and Concealment — A Missing Training Element
by Travis Pike
Hat tip to Greg Ellifritz.
[The author uses the word "splatter". I think he means "spalling". When the
enemy bullet hits the cover that you are behind and the cover material breaks off
and hits you, that's spalling. The term is usually used in the context of what
happens when an enemy round hits your armored fighting vehicle.
-- Jon Low]
"Ineffective and potentially dangerous, point shooting should be avoided at all costs
and aimed fire employed in any lethal-force scenario."
-- Massad Ayoob
"You often don't know where the bad guy is who is shooting at you."
-- Phillip Groff
"The shorter the fight, the less hurt you get."
-- John Holschen
“People shoot you because they see you.
They see you because you let them.
Don’t let them see you.”
-- Clint Smith
". . . only shoot as fast as you can assess, and . . . assess after each shot,
both of which we should be training to do all the time anyway."
-- Ralph Mroz, "Street Focused Handgun Training"
"Without discrimination,
you're going to shoot the wrong person really fast."
-- Paul Howe
“Fortuitous outcomes reinforce poor tactics.”
-- Chuck Haggard
“When you’re in the dark, stay in the dark;
when you’re in the light, light up the dark.”
-- Stephen P. Wenger
"Be stronger than your strongest excuse."
-- Nicola Cavanis
‟Fear is an instinct. Courage is a choice.”
-- Rear Admiral Joseph Kernan, U.S. Navy
"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
---
". . . if the assailant has a gun, it may actually be the easiest
gun for you to access, if you know how to take it from him."
-- Stephen P. Wenger
---
When was last time you practiced your in-holster weapon retention skills?
Have you taken a class to learn such techniques?
“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.)
*************************************************************************
------------------------------ Techniques --------------------------------
Ways to execute a given task in support of your tactics,
especially when disabled or under stress.
"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
Tuck your chin and pull your head back. Your ears should be in line with the vertical
line through your center of mass. That is correct posture. If your head is forward, you
are putting strain on your neck muscles. If your head is forward, you are inviting an
upper cut to your chin.
This may be hard to do after a lifetime of slouching. You may initially find it hard
to breath with this posture. You may need help from a physical therapist. It's worth it.
Expend the time and effort. It's worth it.
"It's not daily increase but daily decrease - hack away at the inessentials!"
-- Bruce Lee
"Trigger Ingress: What It Is And Why You Should Care"
by Scott Murdock
Hat tip to Greg Ellifritz.
This is in the Technique section rather than the Gear section,
because I think it is more a matter of technique. Yes, you must
have bought a correct holster in the first place. But changing or
modifying the holster is out of our control immediately before
fight. While looking at the holster during insertion of the pistol
into the holster is technique. If you don't look, you won't see the
draw string from your windbreaker in your holster, and you won't
know that it is in the trigger guard until you pull it to straighten
out your windbreaker. BANG!
“What’s the number one reason for reloading?
Missing the target!”
-- Claude Werner
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/O0hxDxIk0rM
Can you do this?
"Grip first, then press."
-- Mike Seeklander
"Use only that which works,
and take it from any place you can find it."
-- Bruce Lee
"Denn jedes Mal, wenn was geht, ist Platz für Neues.
Und wenn es gestern nicht sein soll, dann klappt es heut 🦋"
-- Nicola Cavanis
There are many techniques for doing any given task.
Search and experiment until you find one that works for you.
"The foundations of your grip are established
before you even draw the pistol from the holster."
-- Tanner Denton
"Why are the little things called little things?
They are everything."
-- Nicola Cavanis
*************************************************************************
*************************************************************************
***** ***** ***** 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.
“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
"CCW Safe Review 2025: No Defense Limits?"
by Eric Hung, Founder, CEO and Paul Yen, Esq.
In the right hand column of this web page, click on "Never Talk To The Police"
or use the address,
"In Self-Defense Podcast 137: Defensive Display with Greg Ellifritz"
Audio (if you're driving), video (if you like looking at the globe trotting playboy),
and transcript (for those who read faster than the talking heads can talk).
In the right hand column, click on the link labeled "Self Defense Insurance".
Or, the 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
“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
*************************************************************************
------------------------------ Medical --------------------------------
"If you prepare for the emergency,
the emergency ceases to exist!"
-- Sherman House
Tactical Emergency Casualty Care Course - NAEMT Certified, $495.00
Tracey Mendenhall | VP of Operations
(Life Saving Ninja)
DEFEND SYSTEMS
(615) 480-7758
“Your character is what you do when no one is looking.”
-- Thomas Jefferson
*************************************************************************
------------------------------ Survival --------------------------------
"Survival is a mindset, not a skill set."
-- Greg Shaffer
"Survival is not based solely on technique. Survivability may hinge on the use
of the correct technique appropriate to the environment you are fighting in.
Oh, and yes, marksmanship is always valuable."
-- Clint Smith
"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
Rangemaster JULY 2025 NEWSLETTER
May I invite your attention to the article on "Follow Through"?
---
"Gunsite: Reconnecting with the Roots of
Modern Combative Shooting"
by Jeff Boren
Excerpts:
“This principle, captured perfectly by Hans Hofmann—
"The ability to simplify means to eliminate the unnecessary so that the
necessary may speak"—defines the approach we observed throughout
our Gunsite experience.”
---
"It's not daily increase but daily decrease - hack away at the inessentials!"
-- Bruce Lee
---
“The most effective instructors don't accept vague answers. They make you work.
They force you to articulate clearly, testing more than just technical knowledge—they
test your mindset. This deliberate pressure is the essence of professional instruction.”
---
"It's better to be wrong than to be vague."
-- Freeman Dyson
---
“In our profession, the journey matters more than any credential or destination.
You can't simply love outcomes—you have to love the process, the continuous
refinement, the patient building of understanding.”
---
"The man who loves walking will walk further than the man who loves the destination."
-- Phil Knight
---
“. . . while techniques may win matches or look impressive on camera,
principles save lives.”
---
“. . . without understanding the original context, those adaptations risk
becoming arbitrary rather than principled.”
---
“When Jerry explains why a particular technique was developed,
or shares an account of when it worked (or didn't), he's not just filling time;
he's preserving context that gives meaning to the instruction.”
"Interview With The Gunfighter pt.1 - Bill Jordan" by WeaponsAffair
(interviewed by Johnny Rowland)
"Interview With The Gunfighter pt.2 - Bill Jordan"
"Interview With The Gunfighter pt.3 - Bill Jordan"
---
WeaponsAffair
"Heroes and Habits: Lessons From Real World Armed Self-Defense Situations"
by John Boch
Hat tip to Greg Ellifritz.
Active Self Protection, John Correia
"My Gun Culture" by Tom McHale
Quips, John Farnam
Active Response Training, Greg Ellifritz
Weekend Knowledge Dump- June 27, 2025
The Tactical Professor, Claude Werner
Rangemaster Newsletter, Tom Givens
American Handgunner Magazine
Tactical Science
International Association of Law Enforcement Firearms Instructors
Alien Gear blog
Shooting Classes Blog
"Cogito, ergo armatum sum." (I think, therefore armed am I.)
-- John Farnam
*************************************************************************
------------------------------ Legal --------------------------------
“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
From an email from Law of Self Defense --
On Friday, June 27th, the Louisiana Supreme Court reversed the murder conviction
of Kayla Giles Coutee, by a vote of 4 to 3.
Giles had been convicted at trial of the murder of her estranged husband during a
child-custody swap in a Walmart parking lot on September 8, 2018. Giles’ conviction
was affirmed on appeal, and the matter then moved on to the Louisiana Supreme Court
and the just announced reversal.
Of course, the reason the Giles case is of particular interest to the
Law of Self Defense community is that Giles had been abandoned by her
“self-defense insurance” company, USCCA, shortly after her prosecution began.
Although Giles was a fully paid member of USCCA, which promises to cover
members’ legal expenses in the aftermath of a use-of-force event, USCCA abruptly
stopped doing so after covering only a small portion ($50,000) of Giles’ legal costs.
Her conviction resulted. [Because you get as much justice as you can afford
in the U.S. -- Jon Low]
-- Andrew Branca
---
Tim Schmidt is the Chairman & Co-Founder of the
United States Concealed Carry Association (USCCS, the education and training
organization)
and the CEO & Co-Founder of Delta Defense (the insurance carrier).
When questioned about the incident, Tim Schmidt said that they stopped paying
because it was a crime, and they exclude criminal acts from coverage.
Stop and think about that. The only time you would need the coverage is
when you have been accused of a crime. And the accusation, not the conviction,
is enough for them to determine that it was a crime. What's wrong with that picture?
When USCCA initially stopped paying, Kayla Giles sued USCCA. She lost
the law suit, because USCCA claimed that her criminal conviction proved that
it was a crime, so they were justified in not paying. This was disingenuous, because
the lack of money is what caused the poor defense that resulted in her conviction.
You get as much justice as you can afford in America. With a competent defense,
which she could not afford, she would have been acquitted at trial. Thus, the
Louisiana Supreme Court result.
When she or her children sue USCCA, they will have a very strong tort.
---
"Major Self Defense Case Ruling: Kayla Giles Conviction OVERTURNED!"
by Guns & Gadgets 2nd Amendment News
"Why You Should Still Get a Concealed Carry Permit —
Even in a Constitutional Carry State"
by Jacob Paulsen
"The Ultimate Guide to Responsible Constitutional Carry"
by Jacob Paulsen
---
The video shows an FBI agent, Chase Bishop age 30, break dancing.
He drops his pistol, because he didn't carry his pistol in a proper holster
that would retain his pistol. He then shoots an innocent bystander when
he picks up his pistol, because he violated Safety Rule 3. FBI Director
Christopher Wray (a slimy scumbag who resigned before Trump could
fire him) did not fire Bishop, the FBI agent (because the buffoon is
actually "one of the FBI's best agents", that should tell you something).
Bishop, the FBI agent, was prosecuted in Denver for third-degree
assault and pled guilty, avoiding any jail time. Sentenced to two years
of probation, and $1,600 in fines and court costs. (A pretty sweet plea
deal. Do you think any of us would get such a deal?) [Ya, the court
ordered Bishop to compensate the victim, Tom Reddington, but various
insurance companies covered that. "Mile High Spirits bar said at the
time that the patron who was shot was welcome to complimentary
drinks forever at the bar."]
Bishop is still working for the FBI in Georgia (last I heard). When
you're loyal to the deep state, . . .
Excerpt from the CNN report --
"He [FBI agent, Bishop] moved to pick the weapon up and
unintentionally fired one shot, police said. Bishop then put the
gun back in his pants and walked away with his hands up.
One person was struck in the lower leg, police said.
An attorney for the victim told CNN affiliate KMGH that the
bullet hit the victim’s main artery and that he could have bled
to death if not for a person who applied a tourniquet."
So, Bishop, the FBI agent, didn't even bother to render aid
to the victim he just shot. Bishop fled the scene. Rather like
hit and run.
Bishop did not surrender to police at the scene of the incident.
Rather, he showed up the next day with his attorney. Yup, one
of the FBI's best.
What do you think about that plea deal?
From Greg Ellifritz's Weekend Knowledge Dump- June 27, 2025
"I worked a homicide before I retired where four separate eye witnesses each
incorrectly identified the same person in a photo line up as the killer. They all
picked the wrong person. They all picked the same wrong person in the lineup.
The person they chose looked almost nothing like the actual killer."
-- Greg Ellifritz
Dear Jonathan:
"Over the past two weeks, I published several op-eds. In The Federalist,
I argued that “As Deportations Rise, The U.S. Is On Track For The Lowest
Murder Rate On Record.”
While FBI director Kash Patel attributed the drop in murders to
“letting cops be cops”—by relocating FBI agents out of Washington, D.C.,
and rolling back the Biden administration’s DEI mandates on law
enforcement—I suggested another key factor: the Trump administration’s
deportation of criminal illegal immigrants. Deporting these individuals
not only removes criminals from communities, but also sends a message.
Those who haven’t been caught are more likely to lay low to avoid arrest
and deportation. I appeared on Steve Bannon's WarRoom
as well as Lars Larson's national radio show
to discuss this op-ed."
-- Dr. John R. Lott, Jr. PhD
Crime Prevention Research Center
358 S 700 E, Ste B, B409, Salt Lake City, UT 84102
johnrlott@crimeresearch.org
(484) 802-5373
[Please subscribe,
-- Jon Low]
Wasn't me. Some other guy did it. But if the jury (finder of fact) decides
that it was me, it was self-defense. Does this apply in your state?
It does in some states.
Is your attorney aware of this? Most attorneys are not. Because the vast
majority of attorneys are incompetent in self-defense law.
Andrew Branca doesn't like this because it is illogical. If you claim self
defense, you are saying, "Yes, I shot the guy, and I was justified in doing so."
But if you say, "I didn't do it. I wasn't there. I don't know anything about it."
Then claiming self-defense (that you did it) doesn't make sense.
But some state supreme courts have ruled that you can claim that "some
other guy did it", but if you find that I did it, "it was self-defense".
"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
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------------------------------ Instruction --------------------------------
"Remember,
the students who require the extra effort
are the ones who need us the most!"
-- John Farnam
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----- Instructors -----
"The limited time you spend with students may be the only training they ever receive!"
-- John Farnam
“The most valuable resource that all teachers have is each other.
Without collaboration, our growth is limited to our own perspectives.”
-- Robert John Meehan
“The student’s purpose is to expand their body of knowledge and social network.
The instructor’s purpose is to help the student achieve the student’s goals.”
-- Amy Schwartz
"When you're training to protect yourself and others, speed always comes last.
In the more than twenty-five years I've been training people in self-protection,
I've never heard from someone who used self-protection tools in the field and
felt like they suffered from a lack of speed at the moment of truth. In fact, I
usually hear the opposite: it's much more common to suffer from a lack of
accuracy or force." -- Tim Larkin
Colonel Robert Lindsey to his fellow trainers:
"We are not God's gift to our students.
Our students are God's gift to us."
“Qui docet, discet.” (Who teaches, learns.)
-- American Society of Law Enforcement Trainers
“He who dares to teach must never cease to learn.”
-- Richard Henry Dana
"Every time I teach a class,
I discover I don't know something."
-- Clint Smith
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
"You must teach skill sustainment as part of training."
-- John Hearne
"You don't have to memorize formulae.
Because you can always derive them from first principles."
-- Sven Hartman
[So teach principles, not formulae.]
"Thinking is the hardest thing a person can do.
That's why so few people do it."
-- Henry Ford
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----- Students -----
"It's better to be wrong than to be vague."
-- Freeman Dyson
[If you are wrong, the instructor can correct you. If you are vague, no one can help you.]
"Failure is an indication that someone tried to do something."
-- Ingersoll
"Growth is uncomfortable because you've never been there before."
-- Nicola Cavanis
"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
"Try.
Try again.
Try once more.
Try differently.
Try again tomorrow.
Try and ask for help.
Try find someone who's done it.
Try to fix the problem.
Keep trying until you succeed."
-- Nicola Cavanis
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----- Andragogy -----
‟An instructor should not expect any learning to
take place the first time new information is presented.”
-- ‶Building Shooters″ by Dustin Salomon
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The one thing almost all male prisoners have in common
is lack of a father figure when growing up.
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------------------------------ Gear --------------------------------
And the safe storage thereof.
“Mission drives the gear train.”
-- Pat Rogers
"Zeroing In: Choosing the Right Zero Distance for Your Red Dot Pistol"
by Tatiana Whitlock
Hat tip to Greg Ellifritz.
On the radio, I've heard advertisements for a pistol that fires pepper balls. They claim
that police all over the county use the pepper ball shooters. My research indicates that is
false. I have not been able to find any police department that uses them. I went to
a demonstration of the technology. My conclusion is that they are ineffective for self-
defense purposes.
"Sig Sauer’s P320 banned by Chicago Police Department and other law enforcement agencies"
by Miguel Ortiz
Dallas PD
Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA)
Milwaukee Police Department
Washington State Criminal Justice Training Commission (WSCJTC)
Denver Police Department
Chicago Police Department, the second-largest police department in the nation
"The (un)Importance of Gear" by Rich Grassi
Hat tip to Greg Ellifritz.
Excerpt:
"Competence breeds confidence."
"BATFE BANS Non-Lethal Training Ammunition For Civilian Use
[UPDATE: BAN REVERSED!]"
by David Lane
Hat tip to Greg Ellifritz.
Excerpt:
"The ATF has issued a new ruling reversing the ban and making simunitions
available for all Americans. ATF Ruling 2025-2 is effective immediately."
Why ear plugs are better than ear muffs.
Anderson bought out by Ruger.
“Your car is not a holster.”
-- Pat Rogers
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***** ***** ***** Cryptology ***** ***** *****
Cryptosystems are considered "arms" by federal law, ITAR,
International Traffic in Arms Regulations. That means cryptosystems are
protected 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, to include sharing cryptosystems with
others.
"Nothing can change the frequency of a signal."
-- Neil Frazer, Prof. University of Hawaii
[This is a deep truth in physics. Signal, not carrier. Frequency is in the time domain,
so it would be wave number in the space domain.
-- Jon Low]
So when tracking a signal on a channel, you can rest assured that the frequency
of the signal is as originally generated. Otherwise, you would have causality problems.
And we can't violate Relativity, can we.
"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
"How to Become a Millionaire by Solving One Math Problem"
by Xyla Foxlin
"Never memorize anything. Rather, study it until it becomes obvious."
-- Norman Christ
"The Obviously True Theorem No One Can Prove" (because it might not be true)
by Veritasium
Excerpt:
"We don't know what's important, but we do know what we love."
Goldbach’s Conjecture
"Computer science has nothing to do with computers or science."
-- Donald Knuth
"There are 4 Levels of Reading."
by Benjamin Keep, PhD, JD
Notice the quote from Francis Bacon. Grok is a term made up by
Robert A. Heinlein in his 1961 science fiction novel Stranger in a Strange Land.
Grok means to eat. In the book they cooked and ate a guy to understand him.
Get it?
"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
Irrational to the power of an Irrational = a Rational?
The famous "non-constructive" proof
by bprp math basics
Ya, I love blue pen red pen.
"Premature optimization is the root of all evil."
-- Donald Knuth
Let ↑ mean "raised to the power of".
Consider the Hausdorff measure. Consider the Lebesgue measure.
The n-dimensional volume of a closed convex set of diameter d is, at most,
π↑(½ n) (½ d)ⁿ / (½ n)!
the volume of a ball of diameter d. (As n approaches ∞, the volume of a unit
ball approaches zero. While the volume of a unit hyper cube remains constant at one.)
Let Lⁿ be the Lebegue n-dimensional outer measure.
Let Hⁿ be the Hausdorff n-dimensional outer measure. Ya, I know the notation
is usually a superscript s, not n, because we are using Souslin sets, but you know
what I mean.
If E ⊂ Rⁿ , then Lⁿ(E) = cₙ Hⁿ(E), where cₙ = π↑(½ n) / 2ⁿ (½ n)! .
---
Let T be an equilateral curvilinear triangle with sides of unit radius.
Let {Vᵢ} be a finite set of open discs with E ⊂ ⋃ᵢ Vᵢ . Then there is
a finite set of sequences γ such that
E is a subset of the union of Tₛ ᗄ s ∊ γ
and
∑ | Vᵢ |ᵗ ≥ 4⁻ᵗ ∑ rᵗₛ
ⁱ s ∊ γ
Hey, this blog doesn't support Teχ typesetting.
---
Sometimes the solution to your problem is in a literature search,
not in new math.
"The Geometry of Fractal Sets" by K. J. Falconer.
ISBN 0 521 25694
ISBN 0 521 33705
"You don't need to memorize theorems,
because you can always derive them from first principles."
-- Sven Hartman
"All that we don't know is astonishing.
Even more astonishing is what passes for knowing."
-- Philip Roth
"Handbook of Applied Cryptography"
by Alfred J. Menezes, Paul C. van Oorschot and Scott A. Vanstone
"Computer Security and the Internet:
Tools and Jewels from Malware to Bitcoin", Second Edition
by Paul C. van Oorschot
ISBN: 978-3-030-83410-4 (hardcopy), 978-3-030-83411-1 (eBook)
"An Introduction to Error Correcting Codes with Applications"
by Scott A. Vanstone , Paul C. Oorschot
Research and Publications (P. Van Oorschot)
Alfred J. Menezes
Scott A. Vanstone
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***** ***** ***** Signals Intelligence,
Ground Electronic Warfare,
Cyber Security,
(sometimes Air Electronic Warfare too) ***** ***** *****
"A free people ought not only be armed and disciplined,
but they should have sufficient arms and ammunition to maintain
a status of independence from any who might attempt to abuse them,
which would include their own government."
--George Washington
When I was in SigInt (Signals Intelligence) school during the Cold War (1981),
an instructor told us about a unit that specialized in destroying the careers of
competent officers and advancing the careers of incompetent officers in the NATO
countries. NATO referred to the unit as Z2. The Soviets ran that unit out of Poland.
You may be thinking, "Why would they teach this sort of stuff to the lowest ranking
enlisted Intelligence personnel? They can't do much, for or against, an officer's career."
Intelligent persons who are made aware of things can recognize those things. And
once one understands what's going on, one can take action. The levers of power are
all over the place for those who think.
Recently, you may have noticed that the Obama and the Biden administrations
implemented "diversity" and "wokeness" in the U.S. Armed Forces. These programs
(pogroms) have allowed the weak and corrupt to push the honorable and competent
out of the U.S. Armed Forces. The people (as used in the U.S. Constitution) are
responsible for Obama; they voted for him. Biden not so much; because about 80
million votes for Biden didn't come from eligible U.S. citizens.
"Linux Has A New Problem . . ." by Low Level
"Mexican Cartel Hacked FBI Agent's Phone to Hunt Down Informants"
by Seytonic
It is so sad that so many of our colleagues have turned to the dark side.
Oh, I can prove that I have not. My 1st ex-wife is still alive, and as my
father says, I don't have a pot to piss in.
This is why VPNs (virtual private networks) are so dangerous.
"Ticketmaster Was Right About the Eras Tour (Taylor Swift)" by Maxinomics
An explanation of the economics. Which is the only reality.
". . . in 1984, of course, that police stations in China started issuing national ID
cards to those over the age of 16. Citizens still need them to travel, pay taxes or
gain access to public services. Now the Communist Party wants to take the next
step. On July 15th [2025 A.D.] the government will launch “digital ids” for use
on the internet, shifting responsibility for online verification from private firms to
the government."
Excerpt from "China’s giant new gamble with digital IDs"
by The Economist.
Hat tip to Sid Ontai.
Breaking Defense has a weekly newsletter, "Networks & Digital Warfare" at
Crypto-Gram by Bruce Schneier
2600
‟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"
"Make Me Wanna Die" - The Pretty Reckless (Cover by First to Eleven)
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***** ***** ***** Intelligence ***** ***** *****
"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
"CIA Top Secret Middle East Missions" by Cappy Army
Timber Sycamore
On X.com, the supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei says Iran
has defeated the Israelis and Americans and has slapped them
down in a decisive victor.
The Iranian government is rounding up traitors and dissidents, and
executing them in the streets, as opposed to arresting them and executing
them in prisons. Significant difference. Sometimes you want people to
disappear, sometimes you want their bodies rotting in the streets. So,
everybody can see them.
It's so hard to know who to believe.
"Deep Intel on the Future of Iran's Nuclear Program"
by Ward Carroll
with Darya Dolzikova, senior fellow at the Royal United Services Institute
Hat tip to Sidney Ontai.
"Israel Update" by John Farnam
"Take A Personal Guided Tour Of The B2 Spirit Stealth Bomber.
Including Rare Cockpit Footage." (Captain Joshua Page, narrator)
by Maximus Aviation
The surface coating (I hesistate to call it paint) is black, in the sense that it
absorbs radar frequency radiation. Very cool stuff. I took an in house radar
class when I worked at Lockheed Martin, Naval Electronics and Surveillance
Systems, Surface Systems in Moorestown, NJ. I got to work both sides, the
Aegis radar systems and the radar counter measures.
"MUST WATCH: General Caine Breaks Down Moment By Moment
The U.S. Strikes On Iran At Pentagon Briefing"
by Forbes Breaking News
“I like to say the B-21 is put together by bartenders, babysitters, and baristas.
Why do I say that? Because when I go out and walk the floor and I talk to people
out there, I go, ‘What was the last job you had before you came here?’ And those
are the answers I get: ‘I was a server at TGI Fridays.’ Right now, they’re putting
together the most sophisticated aircraft in the history of the world, right? And doing
a hell of a good job at it.”
— Tom Jones, Northrop Grumman Corporate Vice President and
Aeronautics Sector President at Northrop Grumman
[Some jobs require experience, but Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity trump
any experience. And Tom Jones is proud of it. The planes won't start falling
out of the sky until after he's retired. So it's all good. -- Jon Low]
Hat tip to the Merge.
"Iranian Woman Drops BOMBSHELL on Gaza, Hamas, and Israel |
Interview with Elica Le Bon"
by The Officer Tatum
"Celebrated NY DEI Boss Arrested by FBI | Chinese Spy & $44M Fraud"
by Nate The Lawyer
"Good habits and skill beat luck every time."
-- Sheriff Jim Wilson
The Dispatch
"StrategyPage"
"The Merge"
Breaking Defense
Intrigue
1440
29155
Global Recaps
Timber Sycamore
Ground News
"Karley Scott Collins - Cowboy Shit"
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A warning I got from FaceBook.com
Get it? As in chess the threat is more powerful than the capture.
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***** ***** ***** Religion and Politics ***** ***** *****
"I hate it when I'm trying to eat a salad and
it falls in the trash and I have to eat a taco instead."
-- Nicola Cavanis
"Bill O'Reilly on WHY Progressives, Like Zohran Mamdani,
Are Winning Election in Large Cities"
by Bill O'Reilly
"Viral Liberal Comedian Whitney Cummings Turns Pro Gun Because OF This [having children]!"
by Colion Noir
"Ben Shapiro EXPOSES What No One Else Will About Tucker Carlson"
by Rabbi Yisroel Goldstein
A parade of idiots.
Ronald Reagan
"BREAKING: 3 HUGE WINS From the Supreme Court" by Ben Shapiro
At least one parent has to be a legal U.S. citizen for the child to be a U.S. citizen.
No universal injunctions.
Parents can opt their children out of sexual perversion training in government
schools.
Porn sites must verify age. (Anyone on the site can type in their age. That's all
the verification there is.)
Why? Because there is a 6 to 3 conservative majority on the U.S. Supreme Court.
Why? Because we elected Donald Trump in 2016. Elections have consequences.
"Oliver Anthony Takes the Redpill" by Hannah Pearl Davis
Stop looking for unicorns, because they don't exist.
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/cv6qtzjqSh8
Never let anyone tell you the FBI are good guys.
"The truth does not change according to our ability to stomach it."
-- Mary Flannery O'Connor
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"History teaches us that history teaches us nothing." -- James Bachmann
"The Siege of Fort Ticonderoga" by AH1Tom
This is from the Project Appleseed newsletter. I encourage you to join
Project Appleseed by participating in one of their shooting matches, or
attending one of their lectures,
[V1cam] Kīlauea volcano, Hawaii (west Halemaʻumaʻu crater)
by USGS
"Stop short or go long: the two paths to a relationship"
by Orion Taraban, Psy.D.
“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
"Slither" - Velvet Revolver (Full Band Cover by First To Eleven)
"Elizabeth Nichols - I Got A New One"
"Jackson" is a tip of the hat to the co-author of the song.
"All I want...: the problem with dating today" by Orion Taraban, Psy.D.
"It is not possible to live a contented life if you want what is impossible."
"Barracuda" - Heart (Cover by First to Eleven)
My mother told me, always ask politely first. You have to give the other guys a
chance to save face, to leave, to save their lives. Sometimes that's enough and
everyone wins.
If they won't, then you can kill them. And it's better that you do. If you leave
it to someone else, that other person may not be as competent as you, may not be
as tough as you. The event may leave him broken or destitute. His family may
leave him. But nothing can hurt you. Because you have made peace with your
God. Go valiantly into the world.
Semper Fidelis,
Jonathan D. Low
Email: Jon_Low@yahoo.com
Radio: KI4SDN
It's not enough to have useful quotes that are cited above,
you have to be pretty to get your picture here.
Nicola Cavanis
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