Because some people decide whether or not to read the blog post based on the first photo they see.
Greetings Sheepdogs,
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
"No freeman shall ever be debarred the use of arms."
-- Thomas Jefferson
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***** ***** ***** Prevention ***** ***** *****
Things you can do to avoid the lethal force incident.
“To those who have fought for it,
freedom has a flavor that the protected will never know.”
― P. McCree Thornton
Table of sections:
Mindset
Safety
Training
Psychology
Practice
*************************************************************************
Articles about John Holschen --
"John Holschen-RIP" by Greg Ellifritz
"Braintrust Assembled: Dustin Salomon, John Hearne, and John Holschen" by Lee Weems
"John Holschen: Aligning Training with Reality" by Lee Weems
"What a Training Program Should Be" by Lee Weems
------------------------------ Mindset and Attitude --------------------------------
Figuring out the correct way to think.
“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
"The Gas Station Clerk" by Greg Ellifritz
Excerpt:
"All of those innocent victims had the same opportunity I had with regard to
choosing to get quality training and carry a gun. For whatever reason, they
chose not to purse those avenues. Decisions have consequences. If you choose
to outsource your protection to the police, then you’ll have to wait for the police
to arrive to solve your problem. That’s on you, not me."
". . . you should definitely come up with a plan of your own before you are
thrust into the chaos of a lethal force threat."
"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
Green Ops Podcast with Tom Givens
Rangemaster students, 69 wins, 0 loses, 3 forfeits, 40 injuries.
Forfeit means the student was not carrying a gun at the time of the criminal attack
and was murdered.
Wal Mart parking lots.
Girl raped and beaten in the bathroom at police headquarters. There are no
safe spaces.
‟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: The First Steps
it's time to put theory into practice."
by Kevin Creighton
Excerpts:
No one, in the history of everything, has ever accidentally fallen into carrying a pistol.
No one fell into being a good cook; it takes effort to learn how to prepare food in a
creative, tasty manner.
No one ever fell into being a good musician; every rock star can tell you about the
hours and hours of practice they put into honing their craft.
If you understand that you are your own first responder and want to take charge of
your personal security, the only way to do it is to do it.
And nobody will notice, because nothing happened. However, you have just made
concealed carry a part of your lifestyle.
"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
"The Failure of the Defensive Mindset" by Paul Markel
Hat tip to Greg Ellifritz.
Excerpt:
“The purpose of fighting is to win. There is no possible victory in defense.
The sword is more important than the shield and skill is more important than either.
The final weapon is the brain. All else is supplemental.”
-- John Steinbeck, Jr.
---
Pre-emptive strikes / shots are legally justified as self-defense. No law in the
United States forces you to take the first punch or first shot before responding.
Many people are killed with a first strike. Make sure it's the bad guy, not you.
"Before all else, be armed." -- Nicolo Machiavelli
"Gun deaths" is a propaganda term. Guns do not cause death. Guns are tools, like
cars, and so have nothing to do with causing or contributing to death. "Gun deaths"
invokes a logical fallacy.
"The line between everyday life and sudden violence is thinner than most realize."
-- Tim Larkin
"The disposable man: all lives are not worth the same" by Orion Taraban, Psy.D.
Yes, as a matter of fact, this is all about self-defense and defense of others.
Death Before Dishonor.
Life is often harder than death that's why so many men choose death.
"Firearms are second only to the constitution in importance,
they are the people's liberty's teeth." -- George Washington
The eagle does not fight the snake on the ground. It picks it up into the sky and changes
the battle ground, and then it releases the snake into the sky. The snake has no stamina,
no power, and no balance in the air. It is useless, weak, and vulnerable unlike on the ground
where it is powerful, wise, and deadly.
Take your fight into the spiritual realm by praying and when you are in the spiritual realm,
God takes over your battles. Don't fight the enemy in his comfort zone, change the battle
grounds like the eagle and let God take charge through your earnest prayer. You'll be assured
of a clean victory!
-- Joe McCauley
"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
"An unarmed man can only flee from evil and
evil is not overcome by fleeing from it." -- Jeff Cooper
"Your life is as good as your mindset." -- Nicola Cavanis
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
"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
‟Fear is an instinct. Courage is a choice.”
-- Rear Admiral Joseph Kernan, U.S. Navy
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------------------------------ 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
From an email from Tom McHale --
Hi folks!
Recently, a reader sent me a note sharing a personal experience he survived.
For obvious privacy and safety reasons, I’ve removed any and all identifying
information that might reveal his name or location. Let’s call him A.C.
(Armed Citizen) for now.
Anyway, he was gracious enough to allow me to share his story in hopes that
others might learn something from his encounter. In fact, the scenario he survived
makes the point that’s constantly on my mind . . .
Just having a gun won’t necessarily protect you.
There’s a whole lot more to improving your odds of surviving a defensive
encounter than just “having a gun.”
I hear a lot of people confidently talk about “having a gun,” so the undertone
is that they’re near invincible. As Lee Corso would say, “Not so fast, my friend!”
Bad stuff happens, and often it happens by surprise. I would encourage you
to read the story below and really try to avoid Monday morning quarterbacking.
You know, the tendency to just think, "I woulda . . ."
I don’t have space to relay all the details below, but trust that A.C. isn’t a
novice in self-defense, and he was pretty adamant about how being armed
wouldn’t have made much difference in this particular case.
Our sometimes overly self-confident nature often leads us to think,
“Well, I have such good situational awareness that never would have happened to me.”
Or whatever. Instead, think critically and honestly about how prepared you really
are for a dangerous surprise like the one A.C. shares here.
Hopefully, his story will help you consider some things in your personal life strategy.
Tom
---
I’d like to share with you what happened to me a few years back.
I was on my way to my lawyer and had a briefcase full of legal and financial
documents (deeds, bank accounts, will, etc.). On my way there, I stopped at a
bank to get something notarized. When I left, I noticed an old model car with
two occupants following me.
My kids always accused me of being paranoid, as I’m an XXXXXXX Civil War
survivor. So I thought, well, maybe they’re right. I arrived at my lawyer’s building
at about noon and turned into the parking lot. There were a few people milling around,
and the car didn’t follow me into the lot.
As it turned out, they waited out of sight until I got out of my car, locked it and
pocketed the keys. At that moment, the pursuing car drove into the lot, and a huge
man jumped out and tried to trap my briefcase.
Being a Shotokan black belt in my younger years, I instinctively drove my elbow
into his sternum and didn’t let go of the case. He tried again, and again, and I reacted.
At that moment, the car’s driver jumped out and hit me behind my knees, throwing
me to the ground. He then forcefully straddled me and began punching my face. He hit
me about 30 times, breaking four of my ribs, my occipital cavities and my nose. He split
my lips, then grabbed me by the hair and started smashing my head against the pavement.
Not one of the people around bothered to yell or call 911. The building guard was
in the back smoking and talking to his girlfriend on his cell phone. The whole encounter
was videotaped by the building’s security cameras.
After I managed to get up and make it to my lawyer’s office, all bloodied up,
he called 911. I wasn’t armed at that time, nor did I have a license to carry. When the
police came later, they took my statement, and I gave a complete description of the
perpetrators. They didn’t bother to check out the surveillance cameras, and their only
words were, ”You’re lucky to be alive. In nine out of ten similar incidents,
we find the victim dead.” Very comforting!
That was the end of the police involvement. They never even bothered to track
the car or the perpetrators. I was taken by ambulance and spent two days in the
hospital in extreme pain.
A month later, I decided that I wasn’t going to let that happen to me again. I took the
necessary courses to get my carry permit. Having lived through a civil war surrounded
by weapons, I’m very familiar with them. However, in view of the state of the law and
the difficulty of proving self-defense, I rarely carry, except when I’m in “shady places.”
I still go to the shooting range to practice.
Please note that the attack was so fast and surprising that even if I were carrying,
I probably would have ended up being shot with my own weapon. There was absolutely
no time to draw, especially facing two attackers.
I wanted to share my story with you just to emphasize that, although you decide to
carry, the odds may still be against you, as in my situation.
In conclusion, I’m now so aware of my surroundings that I was able to thwart two
other attempts by driving away fast. All of my legal and financial information was in
the hands of bad people, and it was sold on the dark web.
So far, your book is very informative, and I’m just giving an example that when
things can go wrong, they will (Murphy’s law).
A.C.
---
As Tim Larkin says, your hand-to-hand combat techniques must cause immediate
incapacitation. That's not something you're going to learn in a Karate dojo. If they
taught that kind of stuff, they would be sued out of business by their students or the
parents of their students or the people that their students killed. Karate dojos are
for exercise, self discipline, and fellowship; not combat. An elbow into the sternum
isn't going to incapacitate anyone. Fingers or thumb through the eyeball and a
strong grip on the skull, driving the skull down to crack it on the ground would
have avoided the pain and suffering A.C. would sustain.
There are different levels of situational awareness, even within condition yellow
(Cooper) or aware (NRA). A.C. refers to being paranoid. He was not paranoid.
He was complacent. He won't admit it, too embarrassing. Takes time for a car to
drive up to you from out of sight. Takes time for a huge man to get out of a car and
attack you.
Ya, it was fast. But not faster then you could have gouged his eyes. Not faster
than you could have struck the side of his neck. There are techniques for defeating
a mount. Did A.C. know the techniques? Did he execute them? Or did he cover up.
Do you know the techniques? Have you practiced enough to execute them under
the stress of getting repeatedly punched?
That's the thing about training. If you train, it changes your personality. It changes
your body language, your posture, your graceful movement (as opposed to your
ungainly movement). The bad guys look at you and think, "Hard target." So they
never attack you in the first place. It's just like golf; the more you practice, the fewer
strokes you take when you play. Training prevents the attack, because information
leaks. Experienced criminals are very good at picking up the information you leak.
No, sorry, it not a thing you can fake. And the time and effort you would put into
learning how to fake it, would better be put into learning the real stuff. That is why
theatrical fencing, theatrical gun play, and such are gave disservices to anyone wishing
to engage in combat. Learning from TV and movies is learning to be stupid.
---
"I'm getting bullied in school."
Stop touching yourself like an effeminate faggot. Speak proper English. Stop
talking like a faggot.
"I should be able to act anyway I want without being bullied."
That's not reality. Your actions have consequences.
I've told you how to stop the bullying. Your choice.
---
Similarly, if you don't want to be attacked, be a hard target. If you're not willing to
put in the time and effort to make yourself a hard target, accept the fact that pain and
suffering are the consequences. Stay in reality.
"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)
[Terms at the beginning of the line are the NRA terms.
Terms at the end of the line are Col. Cooper's terms.]
"An officer may be forgiven for losing a battle,
but never for being taken by surprise."
-- Jeff Cooper
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------------------------------ 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
"Threats!" by John Farnam
I lived in New Jersey when the bear hunts were outlawed. The bear attacks increased
exponentially. Bear attacks are not rare. They are rarely reported in the media.
Because it doesn't fit the narrative.
"You are not responsible for negative reactions to your boundaries."
-- Nicola Cavanis
"No One Is Coming: Why the FBI Won’t Warn Churches
Why the FBI stays silent on church terror threats and
why your safety team must prepare when no one is coming to help."
by Keith Graves
As Michael Mann says, "Prevention, not reaction." If you are reacting to the threat,
it's too late.
How do you prevent? Establish an intelligence unit in your church that gathers,
analyzes, and disseminates. Establish a direct action unit in your church that receives
intelligence from the intelligence unit and interdicts the threats. If you want zero
casualties in your church, you must kill the bad guys in their beds as they sleep,
before they attack your church. Do you think our Navy SEALs killed Osama bin Laden
on the battlefield? No, they killed him at night in his home where his wives and
children were sleeping. That's how it's done. That's why some churches never get
attacked, while others suffer. You're either willing to do what is necessary or you're not.
There is no in between.
Ask around. There are lots of veterans with intelligence training who would be
happy to help you, train you, connect you with resources, connect you to networks, etc.
Attend the church security group meetings; ask around, you'll find them. Ask to get
into the Jewish security networks; they will let you in, put you on the emailing lists,
put you on the phone lists. Just ask.
Or, you could pray to God to protect you. But that would be superstition.
Or, you could depend on law enforcement to protect you. But that would be stupid.
(They can't even protect themselves, e.g. ICE.)
"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
Muzzle Discipline
Trigger Discipline
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.
"No Safe Place!" by John Farnam
Going into gun-free-zones is a really stupid thing to do.
Gun-free-zones create unarmed victims for armed criminals to prey upon.
So those who create gun-free-zones do so intentionally to create the victims.
Sorry, that's just the truth. There is no other logical explanation.
"Gut feelings are guardian angels."
-- Nicola Cavanis
"Safety is something that happens between your ears,
not something you hold in your hands."
-- Jeff Cooper
"It's easier to stay out of trouble than to get out of trouble."
-- Claude Werner
"A mistake that makes you humble is better
than an achievement that makes you arrogant."
-- Nicola Cavanis
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------------------------------ 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)
This past weekend Bill Hayes and I attended the Bullets & Bibles conference.
The following isn't too clear because I have difficulty reading my handwriting.
Things I learned:
---
Chuck Haggard - Grip/Sights/Trigger
3 types of trigger presses: Crash, Roll, Prep & Press.
"I've had this gear for 4 years and never had any problem."
That's because you've never tested your gear (by using it in a class or combat).
Tight pinky finger. (The opposite of what the stupid gun store clerks
tell my students.) Which means the grip must be long enough for you to get
your pinky fingers on the grip. Grips that are so short that you can't get your
pinkies on the grip are WRONG!
---
Mekkos “Memphis” Beech - Competitive Shooting for Dummies
Stay safe, have fun, learn from others.
I got Memphis' business card. On the back is a link to a video of Yoda trying
to get Luke Skywalker to dry practice. (Sorry, I haven't figured out how to
copy and print a QR code into my blog postings.)
---
Ross Hick - Criminal Psychology: Detection, Avoidance, and Deterrence.
Stranger assailants --
Bad guys tell themselves that they are good guys. (and believe it)
25 feet, public space, unusual attention, selecting victims
12 feet, social space, observed or rushed approach
4 feet, personal space, movement through the interview
1.5 feet, intimate space, closing to arms length (to hit or grab you)
Do not close distance. This is a common mistake done by the untrained.
Distance is your friend. Maintain or expand distance. You are better
trained with your firearm that the bad guy is (doesn't matter if it's true,
just believe it to be true).
Pay attention to what's going on around you so that you will detect the
attack in time to put a barrier between you and the bad guy.
Pre-assault cues:
abrupt, committed movement
grooming, pre-gaming
blocking or hiding hands
staring, glancing (for your gun [because you open carry] or witnesses)
bladed stance, awkward pose
waistband touching (checking for weapon)
Average violent offender:
25 years old
lives with parents or relatives (because he is unable to acquire a residence, not by choice)
high school education
unemployed (because he is unable to get a job, not by choice)
drug and alcohol abuser
arrested 10 times prior to the first serious offense (worked his way up the ladder of violence)
odd social behavior
Watch his hands. You won't see anything in his eyes (that's just Hollywood nonsense).
Don't make threats, just do it. By making threats, the bad guy will figure out that
you won't attack or that you will attack but are not enthusiastic to do so. You don't want to
give the bad guy any information. Especially not about your predilection to use force.
Practice agility. You don't have to be fast or strong; you can win if you are agile.
Bad guys are lazy, but adept.
Known assailants --
Arguments precede murders.
Record odd behavior. Because you will blow it off the first few times, and if you
don't remember past behavior, you may never notice it.
* Niceness is not a character trait. It is a behavior. [Super important! Take this seriously!]
In sexual assaults, there is usually a year and a half between the offense and the report
of the offense to anyone.
---
Ross Hick - Intro to Clearing Structures
Don't bounce your head around. Ya, I know you don't think you're doing this.
Look at the videos of you and you'll see it. It takes training to avoid this behavior.
It slows you down.
Your reaction time is 0.28 to 0.32 seconds. So you must execute your maneuver
in such a way so as to give yourself this much time to make decisions, because the
bad guy won't.
Be aware of visual complexity and compensate for it (by slowing down and
looking for detail). You could be looking at the bad guy straight in the face and
not "see" him if the background is visually complex or foreground objects are
camouflaging.
---
James Williamson - MP5 Operator
Certainty over probability. If the gear usually works, dump it! Find gear that
always works. Or fix your gear so it always works.
Stance for submachinegun -- face target, spread feet shoulder with apart,
move firing-side foot back so that its toe same distance from target as you support-side heel.
I will remove extended safety switch, because it interferes with my trigger finger
when shooting left-handed.
I will adjust stock to fit my pull length.
Don't fight your gear. Change gear so that it works for you. (Neglecting to
do this will get you killed in combat.)
My familiarization fire as a military policeman in the Marine Corps left all kinds
of training scars. The instructor, James Williamson, was a Marine and knew exactly
what I was talking about.
Cadence.
Use a one point sling.
Use ditties (sayings or verbiage that you say to yourself to remember what to do,
because the manual of arms and protocols are not easy to remember for a newbie).
For instance, "Back, out, in, forward" for loading. Because the MP5 does not operate
as an M-16 or AR-15 does. And if you get it wrong, you can jam the system.
It's not more complex. It's just different. And everyone has trained with an AR-15
and so reverts to the AR-15 manual of arms, which will cause the MP5 to jam.
I was so ignorant of firearms back when I was in the Marine Corps and took the
MP5 training, that I didn't even notice the difference in manual of arms.
Tricking the trigger. Wrap your trigger finger all the way around to the back of
the trigger to prevent the trigger from going all the way back. This allows you to
fire single shots when the gun is set for automatic fire. To fire automatic, simply
place your finger on trigger normally.
---
John Correia - Realistic De-Escalation Skills for Private Citizens
John Correia - Choosing a Home Defense Gun
Pathos -- emotion, heart, motivations
which determines your
Ethos -- ethics
which determines your
Logos -- doctrine, teaching
Disciple, discipline, what are your underlying motivations?
Motivations come out eventually.
"The Confidence Gap" The difference between what you feel confident that
you can do, and what you know is necessary to solve the problem.
You have the values that you actually live. Not those you aspire to.
Actual disciple? Am I willing to change my ethos?
---
Stephannie Weidner – The Mind: Stop Fighting It
You will become whatever you believe you are. Choose carefully.
Positive talk causes positive thought causes positive talk causes positive thought . . .
Looking in the mirror and seeing your father. "When did this happen?"
"The Talent Code: Greatness Isn't Born. It's Grown. Here's How."
by Daniel Coyle
Don't think about what you're doing. Just do it.
Visualization, all high performance athletes do it. See yourself performing
successfully.
"Warnings Unheeded: Twin Tragedies at Fairchild Air Force Base"
by Andy Brown
Complacency bias.
The body cannot go where the mind has not gone.
Your subconscious does not like change because what we've been doing has
worked so far. So it's hard to change what you're doing to improve performance.
Your subconscious guards your self image.
Visualization = imagination.
Take advantage of your susceptibility to suggestion.
Consider the captive audience. Paid to be in your class, don't want to be in
your class, don't want to be there at all, required to be there. Such a person will
read a novel through your class (and won't care that you see him doing it).
Yes, you can motivate that person, if you care to, if you care.
Relaxation is essential for learning.
Use strong positive statements.
Say to yourself, "I am strong, resilient, and worthy."
Don't loop all night long. Your brain has other things to do.
Are you not a fast shooter because you're not a fast shooter. (Reread that sentence.
It's not a question.)
Tell people what to do, not what not to do.
There is only a 15% difference in performance between persons with no
experience and experts. So shooting ain't so hard. Don't make it hard.
---
Jeff Boren - The Thinking Defender: Real-Time Decisions Under Stress
Why do you carry a gun? I carry a gun because I might need to shoot someone.
Execute purposeful movement. (E.g. run to cover)
"Cadence is the process. Speed is the outcome." -- Tiffany Johnson
"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
"Learning From Tom Givens" by Massad Ayoob
“Train, Practice, Compete
are the key elements in the development of humans.”
-- John M. Buol, Jr.
Here's what these elite agents – and almost everyone else – gets completely backwards . . .
For true criminals, there IS no escalation. No "Force Continuum."
These misfits go straight from being social one moment . . . to dreaded killers . . .
in a heartbeat.
-- Tim Larkin
“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
"WHAT TO LOOK FOR IN A BASIC DEFENSIVE HANDGUN CLASS"
by Steve Moses
I disagree. I think low light shooting is an essential part of a basic defensive
handgun class, because 80% of civilian self-defense incidents will be in low light
conditions (according to several instructors whose classes I have taken).
Only by shooting in low light conditions will the student understand that there
is no light on the sides of the front sight when attempting to center it in the rear
sight notch, and so be motivated to have a gunsmith or machinist widen the rear
sight notch by 2 hundredths of an inch (depending on sight radius, shooter's arm
length, and such).
Only by shooting in low light conditions will the student understand that his
flashlight is not strong enough to allow him to positively identify targets. And so
be motivated to get a real flashlight, 750 lumens or more.
Only by shooting in low light conditions will the student learn the limits of
his night vision. And the detrimental effects of smoking on his night vision.
And the necessity of having clear shooting glasses (as opposed to those cool
dark glasses).
Only by shooting in low light conditions under stress will the student learn the
horrible results of task overload confusion and so be motivated to only use his
support-side thumb to operate the weapon mounted light. Or, to never use a
weapon mounted light for civilian self-defense. And to understand why using
a pistol is far superior to using a long gun, because long guns require weapon
mounted lights, which leads to searching with the light, violating Safety Rule 2.
Only by shooting in low light conditions under stress will the student learn
how to correctly use the various hand held flashlight techniques, and how
difficult the techniques are. Thus, motivating him to practice. [I've been in
a lot of low light classes where the instructors let the students get away with
all kinds of silly shit, rather than correcting the students. I realize incessant
correction can be frustrating for everyone, but lack thereof causes the student
to think that he is operating correctly, which is FALSE!]
"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
"Gearing Up For A Training Class" by Jeremy Tye
"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
The "Good" Versus "Useful" Paradox in Defensive Pistolcraft
by John Correia
In the high-stakes world of defensive pistolcraft, there’s a critical distinction
between what’s "good" and what’s truly "useful." This isn't just a philosophical
debate; it's a foundational principle that underpins the entirety of the ASP Skills
Summit. The "good" represents a person's raw, technical ability—their marksmanship,
speed, and mastery of a firearm. The "useful" is the application of that skill in a
complex, dynamic, and often ambiguous real-world scenario. The ASP Skills Summit's
curriculum is built on the understanding that one can be exceptionally "good" on the
range, yet objectively "useless" when faced with ambiguity and dynamics.
This paradox is first evident in "team sports", the lynchpin of day 1, where ego
becomes a silent saboteur.
A team member who is technically superb (the "good") can become a detriment
because they over-rely on their individual prowess. Their confidence in their skill
often supersedes sound decision-making, information gathering, and cooperation.
Instead of working as part of a cohesive unit, they may act independently, seeking
to "solve" the problem with their gun handling alone. This creates an observable
ripple effect. The team's overall performance suffers because of a lack of synchronized
effort, and the ego of one individual compromises the effectiveness of the entire group.
This dynamic is so consistent it can be visualized as opposing sine waves between
highly skilled and lesser skilled individuals.
The highly skilled practitioner, riding the crest of the "good" wave, often
demonstrates a decline in decision-making and information-gathering. They become
so focused on their technical employment of the pistol — their speed, their target
acquisition — that they fail to properly process the unfolding situation. Their reliance
on their physical ability means they neglect the "mental game" — the critical steps of
threat identification, de-escalation, and tactical disengagement.
Conversely, the lesser skilled individual, while technically less proficient, tends
to make more appropriate and useful decisions in a defensive context. Their lower
skill level forces them to be more cautious and thoughtful. They're more likely to
rely on their situational awareness, seeking to avoid conflict entirely or to de-escalate
rather than rushing into a gunfight. They are not held captive by a false sense of
invincibility.
This isn't to say that lesser skill is better, but rather that the absence of a high
technical ability forces a reliance on sound judgment.
This is why, in many simulated scenarios, the consequences are so dire. The data
from these simulations is stark: a 74% aggravated assault rate in scenarios where
highly skilled individuals were participants. Quantified by introducing a firearm into
a scenario with no direct or indirect need. This is directly tied to their tendency to
escalate confrontations rather than use their judgment to gather information,
disengage or judiciously approach the situation.
Additionally, a staggering 64% non-combatant engagement rate was observed,
also primarily driven by highly refined skilled individuals. This occurs when their
focus on a perceived threat leads them to neglect the presence of innocent bystanders,
a failure of information gathering and interpretation. The "good" marksman, in their
single-minded pursuit of a technical solution, becomes tragically "useless" or, worse,
a liability.
Ultimately, the ASP Skills Summit serves as a reminder that true defensive
capability is a balance. It's not about being a one-dimensional expert at a specific
skill. It's about training both our gathering and interpretation of information and
our technical employment of defensive tools. Both matter. The goal isn't just to
be "good" with a firearm, but to be "useful" in a crisis. This means cultivating the
judgment to know when to draw, when to shoot, and, most importantly, when to
walk away. The most dangerous weapon is not the gun; it's the practitioner who
believes their skill is the only solution to all problems.
The next time you're evaluating your training and practice. I encourage you to
ask the simple question. Is what I'm working on “Good or Useful”?
-- John Correia
"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
"Understanding distance." by Tim Larkin
"In reality, we are training for an unknown event, against unknown threats,
by developing as many known skills as possible."
-- Jeff Gonzales
Email from Jeff Gonzales --
Hello Jonathan,
As a shooter, I know that performance standards aren’t just numbers on a
page—they’re a roadmap to consistent progress. Standards give us a benchmark,
a way to measure where we are today, and a vision for where we want to be
tomorrow. Without them, it’s easy to drift, but with them, every repetition has
a purpose and every session moves us closer to our goals.
That’s why I’m excited to announce the release of the Pistol Standards Evolution
Brief Pack. This resource is designed to give you clear, structured documentation
of the standards that matter most. It’s practical, easy to use, and built to help you
track your performance as you evolve your skills over time.
Documentation is critical to growth, and here are three reasons why:
Clarity in Training – Writing things down removes guesswork. Documentation
ensures you know exactly what you’re working toward and what success looks like.
Accountability in Progress – When you record your results, you hold yourself
accountable. It’s no longer just a feeling of improvement—you can see it in black
and white.
Vision for the Future – Documentation helps you connect the dots. It shows
your evolution over time and keeps you motivated as you push past plateaus.
The Pistol Standards Evolution Brief Pack is more than just a product—it’s a tool
to help you measure, refine, and achieve your goals and its FREE.
👉 Check it out here,
We’ve built a reputation for holding students to the highest standards.
When we started in this industry, we were the only ones setting this bar,
and we’ve never backed down from that responsibility. We will continue
to push students to grow through standards that are observable, measurable,
and repeatable—because that’s the only way real progress is made.
JLG
P.S. Feel free to share this with any like-minded folks who might benefit.
"Having a gun is important.
But knowing WHEN to use it is even more important."
-- Greg Ellifritz
"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
"Defensive Pistol" by Jonathan D. Low
ISBN: 9781311454133
Last updated on 12 August 2025 A.D.
Draft2Digital does the formatting. It's beyond my control.
If you would like the original in PDF format send me an email at,
Jon_Low@yahoo.com
*************************************************************************
------------------------------ Psychology --------------------------------
“Training deals not with an object,
but with the human spirit and human emotions.”
--Bruce Lee
Yes, this is intentionally in the Training Section. You, Instructors, need to understand
this. Whether you like it or not. Whether you believe it or not. Because I know most
of you are in the business of training. Which is the business of marketing.
---
"What are you selling?" by Orion Taraban, Psy.D.
Wednesday, September 24th, 2025
Successful marketers know that nobody sells what they sell. Coke doesn't sell soda.
Ford doesn't sell cars. Eli Lilly doesn't sell chemicals. Successful marketers don't sell
a product. They sell a feeling – a fantasy.
Think about it. There is absolutely no need on this planet for a sugary carbonated
beverage – but Coca-Cola makes billions of dollars a year. Why? Because they don't
sell soda. They sell joy, connection, and reward. And these are all things that people
are willing to spend money on. Psychoanalysis might call this totemic identification.
The unconscious logic is that if the soda is identified with joy, and if I consume the
soda, then I will be suffused with joy. It's the emotional associative property.
This same principle applies to dating. Like it or not, but you are a commodity in
the sexual marketplace. This is how you appear to people who do not know you.
Sell yourself, and you'll be as successful as Coke selling its soda's nutritional content.
However, if you sell a fantasy – if you can suggest that you are identified with what
others desire – then prepare to watch your optionality go through the roof.
This week's behavioral experiment:
What are the first words a stranger would think upon seeing you?
Is that impression intentional?
Warmly,
Orion
Needs outside of biological or physiological are emotional.
That means psychological.
Self-defense training is essential for physical survival. But that's not why
people buy self-defense training. It's the emotional / psychological need.
"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
*************************************************************************
------------------------------ Conferences --------------------------------
Attending classes and conferences is required for growth.
Stagnation is complacency. Complacency kills. Even worse, it will kill your students.
"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
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
Bullets & Bibles 2026 registration
Friday, August 21, 2026 – Sunday, August 23, 2026
Hosted at Living Water Ranch, north of Manhattan, KS
$650 if you register now.
*************************************************************************
------------------------------ Classes --------------------------------
Attending classes and conferences is required to avoid teaching
obsolete material, and to ensure you are teaching best practices.
Lee Weems
Massad Ayoob Group
Blog
West Coast Armory North
Active Response Training (Greg Ellifritz)
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
Rangemaster, Tom Givens
Trident Concepts, Jeff Gonzales
Apache Solutions, Tim Kelly
Harris Combative Strategies, Randy Harris
Mead Hall Range & Tactics
Two Pillars Training, John Hearne
Classes,
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, growing may feel like breaking at first."
-- Nicola Cavanis
"The Best Shooting Drills for new Gun Owners" by Mitch Eckler
"You have to be lucky to win. And the more you practice, the luckier you get."
-- Col. Lones Wigger
"Training Questions Answered" by Ben Stoeger
"Spread your practice out." (50 rounds 10 times a month,
rather than 250 rounds twice a month)
"Dry fire a drill a bunch and then live fire it once."
"You don't have to pay for classes. You can do a lot on your own."
(Said by a guy who earns his living by teaching classes.)
"Resource allocation is fucked up." (Buying expensive guns and not buying a decent
holster or not being willing to pay for expert training.)
"I watch all this stuff [on YouTube.com], so now I'm more proficient. That is not a
good thought."
In the context of training for self-defense - "Just take the scenario out of it and just
learn to use the tool. Can you shoot accurately? Can you draw and holster the gun
safely? Can you do that faster?"
"Get yourself on a program."
---
"Pranka/Stoeger rifle/pistol full class dump" by Ben Stoeger
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
"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
************************************************************************
***** ***** ***** 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.
“How do you win a gunfight?
Don't be there.”
-- John Farnam
"You win gunfights by not getting shot."
-- John Holschen
"Never let fear decide your fate."
-- Nicola Cavanis
*************************************************************************
------------------------------ Tactics --------------------------------
Maneuver and fire in support of your strategy.
"The shorter the fight, the less hurt you get."
-- John Holschen
"Robbery Starts A Cat-And-Mouse Gunfight At A Car Wash" by Active Self Protection
Lots of misses and non-vital hits. That's why the fight lasted so long.
"People think that they are a lot better than they really are. Get to the range and find
out. Take a class every once in a while. And practice."
“People shoot you because they see you.
They see you because you let them.
Don’t let them see you.”
-- Clint Smith
"Surreptitious Draw 101: Master the Invisible Handgun Pull" by Massad Ayoob
"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
"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.)
". . . 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"
"Superior judgment trumps superior skills." -- Dan Millican
"Real fights are short." -- Bruce Lee
"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
*************************************************************************
------------------------------ Techniques --------------------------------
Ways to execute a given task in support of your tactics,
especially when disabled or under stress.
An "efficient" presentation requires as little motion as possible. Speed does not
come from "hustle", it comes from smoothness and economy of motion. Every
unnecessary motion just adds time to the whole process. Ideally, the handgun will
move through only two lines: straight up and straight out.
-- Tom Givens
"Use only that which works,
and take it from any place you can find it."
-- Bruce Lee
Practice driving backwards. Right hand behind the passenger seat, twist, look,
steer with your left hand. You must have this skill in your repertoire before you
need it.
"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.
Research and experiment until you find one that works for you.
I have attended many classes that espouse the need to shoot firing-side hand only,
and support-side hand only. But rarely will they teach drawing the pistol from
concealment with support-side hand only.
Aq says it's on the assumption that the pistol has already been drawn with the
firing-side hand and that the firing-side hand has been injured during the incident.
If the firing-side hand had been previously injured, the good guy would be wearing
his pistol on his support-side in the first place.
I disagree with this assumption. The firing-side hand could be injured, or
occupied with objects (baby, classified documents, activated handgrenade, etc.)
that you can't drop, before the draw. So allow me to suggest ways to draw your
pistol with support-side hand only. (If you don't understand what I'm writing,
come see me and I will explain and demonstrate.)
---
Reaching around your back --
[Preferred method as it keeps the pistol away from the bad guy in front of you and
allows you to establish a correct grip while the pistol is still in the holster. Pistol
must be at 3 o'clock (right hander) or 9 o'clock (left hander) on your belt on your
waist] --
Reach behind your back.
Get support-side hand under the concealment garment.
Turn palm outboard, thumb forward.
Establish a correct (high and tight) grip.
Draw pistol from holster, keeping pistol pointed down, and bring around
your body.
---
Reaching around your front (1) --
[preferred method as it allows a correct grip while the pistol is still in the holster,
pistol must be at 3 o'clock (right hander) or 9 o'clock (left hander) on your belt on
your waist] --
Reach across your front.
Get support-side hand under the concealment garment.
Turn palm outboard, thumb forward.
Establish a correct (high and tight) grip.
Draw pistol from holster, while obeying Safety Rule 2.
---
Reaching around your front (2) --
Reach across your front.
Get support-side hand under the concealment garment.
With palm inboard, thumb pointed backward, grab pistol grip.
Pull pistol far enough out of the holster to turn it 180 degrees (roll, as opposed
to pitch or yaw) in the holster.
Establish a correct grip and cross-draw.
[If you do this with a Blackhawk SERPA holster, there is an excellent change that the
pistol will become jammed in the holster and you will need to disassemble the holster
to get the pistol out. That is why FLETC forbids the SERPA holster. (Federal Law
Enforcement Training Center, I'm talking about the one in Charleston, SC, but I think
it is true of all of the centers.)]
---
If you can't turn your pistol in your holster or you are using a SERPA holster
(because your agency forces you to, not because you're stupid, because you have
read and understood Greg Ellifritz's article on SERPA type holsters, it's just that
the executives in your agency are dumber than a box of rocks, which includes
the U.S. Army) --
Reaching around your front (3) --
Reach across your front.
Get support-side hand under the concealment garment.
With palm inboard, thumb pointed backward, grab pistol grip.
Draw pistol out of your holster.
In front of your navel, insert pistol between your belt and body.
Turn pistol by 180 degrees (roll, as opposed to pitch or yaw).
Establish a correct grip and draw as if from an appendix holster.
---
If you are not wearing a belt,
Reaching around your front (4) --
Reach across your front.
Get support-side hand under the concealment garment.
With palm inboard, thumb pointed backward, grab pistol grip.
Draw your pistol out of your holster.
Trap your pistol between your knees.
Turn your hand by 180 degrees.
Establish a correct grip and proceed as appropriate.
"The foundations of your grip are established
before you even draw the pistol from the holster."
-- Tanner Denton
In case you don't have a gasoline powered log splitter.
Yes, this is a technique. That's why it's in the Technique Section.
We learned the contact method of chopping wood when I was in the Boy Scouts.
"Why are the little things called little things?
They are everything."
-- Nicola Cavanis
"Joint Breaks:
Attacking The Ankle - Tim Larkin - Target Focus Training - Awareness - Self Protection"
by Tim Larkin
If you're not WILLING to incapacitate the enemy, you're going to lose, because your
mindset is WRONG! It's not your lack of skill (it doesn't take much skill to break a
guy's ankle). It's not your bad judgment. It's your incorrect MINDSET that will doom you.
"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
Open carry is an invitation to be shot first. The carrier will be mistaken for a law
enforcement officer or a courier of high value items. And will be shot first in any
criminal scenario. Just like the armed guard in any bank robbery.
"It's not daily increase but daily decrease - hack away at the inessentials!"
-- Bruce Lee
“What’s the number one reason for reloading?
Missing the target!”
-- Claude Werner
"Grip first, then press."
-- Mike Seeklander
*************************************************************************
*************************************************************************
***** ***** ***** 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
Andrew's comments on George Zimmerman.
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 prosecutor can see if you have a public defender or an expensive private lawyer.
“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
"Yes, You Should Talk to the Cops (Here’s Why)" by Massad Ayoob - Facts and Firearms
When Mas says that the police officer has to give a statement in an officer involved
shooting, he is conflating a "detailed" statement with a "public safety" statement; two
entirely different things. Police officers are not required to give their detailed statements
until after consulting with their union attorney and getting two sleep cycles (and often,
after viewing any available video). Otherwise, they would be giving statements that included
false memories, temporary amnesia, and such. Which is exactly why the civilian involved
in a lethal force incident should not give a statement until after consulting with an attorney;
and must have the attorney present during the statement. Or, better still, write up the
statement with the attorney and have the attorney submit the statement to the police.
Mas says that you didn't empty your magazine, reload, and then empty another
magazine into the bad guy, because you knew when to stop. But, there are many
documented cases in which the police do that exact thing. So if the police couldn't stop
themselves, what makes you think a civilian could. Similarly for talking to the police.
What makes you think that in a high stress situation you would be able to stop talking?
Not talking in the first place is much easier than stopping talking once you've already
started talking.
Mas says you should not be walking around with a loaded gun if you don't know
what constitutes a "good shoot". But it is almost impossible to know if it was a
good shoot before the investigation. After the investigation, the prosecuting attorney
might drop the charges. If not, a jury will decide if it was a good shoot. Or a judge,
if you waive the jury. Which is a viable legal strategy. (Judges have some training
in the law, juries have none. In voir dire, attorneys and judges are generally removed
from the jury pool.)
At the end of the video, Mas says you must have the mental discipline to do what
he suggests. I would argue that almost no one has such mental discipline in a high
stress situation. Such mental discipline is the result of a huge amount of training and
practice that the vast majority of persons will never have.
Mas' quote of Duane from the book "You Have the Right to Remain Innocent" is
about calling 911, not about a detailed post incident statement.
"Don't Talk to the Police" by Regent Law Professor James Duane,
Regent University School of Law
"The Right to Remain Silent: A New Answer to an Old Question" by James J. Duane
"You Have the Right to Remain Innocent" by James Duane
In the right hand column of this web page, click on "Never Talk To The Police"
or use the address,
"What To Do AFTER A Use Of Force | Active Self Protection Extra"
by Active Self Protection Extra
I disagree. Never admit that you understand your rights.
I disagree. A flashlight is a defensive tool. If it is bright enough, it can blind the
assailant.
*************************************************************************
------------------------------ 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
www.defendsystems.com
(615) 480-7758
“Your character is what you do when no one is looking.”
-- Thomas Jefferson
*************************************************************************
------------------------------ Survival --------------------------------
"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
This is an important skill.
"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
"Survival is a mindset, not a skill set."
-- Greg Shaffer
*************************************************************************
***** ***** ***** 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
Pistol Forum
Citizen-Defender, John Murphy
Blog posts,
Rangemaster Newsletter, Tom Givens
OCTOBER 2025 NEWSLETTER
Active Self Protection, John Correia
"My Gun Culture" by Tom McHale
Quips, John Farnam
Active Response Training, Greg Ellifritz
The Tactical Professor, Claude Werner
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
"Tennessee Deserves Better:
Leaders Who Defend The Right To Keep And Bear Arms,
Not Bureaucrats Who Litigate Against It."
by Daniel Turklay (a friend, he bought me breakfast at Cracker Barrel the other day)
"One Permit. All 50 States. Trump Just Made the Call!" by Line45
"State's [NV] Gun Sales Are Frozen" by Liberty Doll
"At the Toronto Sun (Canada):
Self-defence deters criminals more than complying:
By passing gun control laws, Canadian authorities are making it harder
for victims to defend themselves"
by Dr. John Lott and Professor Gary Mauser (Simon Fraser University)
Advocating cowardice is the Canadian way.
"At the Wall Street Journal:
Another Mass Shooting in a ‘Gun-Free Zone’ "
by Dr. John Lott and Congressman Thomas Massie
"Cops Shoot Another Gun Owner In His Own Home | Cops at Wrong House"
by Liberty Doll
Arrogant, corrupt, incompetent cops. Hiding the body cam video and audio,
and the 911 call. I wonder why? No, I don't.
"Supreme Court 9-0 Unanimous Decision Changes Second Amendment & 4th Amen.
Fight! Expansion Sought!" by Armed Scholar
"The Sig 320 is cooked" by Ben Stoeger
10:11 / 16:29 listen carefully. Sig Sauer proved by a preponderance of the evidence
that the plaintiff voluntarily and unreasonably used the P320 pistol knowing that it
was defective and dangerous and was injured as a result. Now stop and think about
that.
---
"North Carolina Federal Court Dismisses a P320 Lawsuit" by SIG SAUER, Inc.
Trial judges can declare anyone an expert, or declare anyone not an expert.
Previously being declared an expert by a superior court doesn't matter. Credentials
don't matter. Experience doesn't matter. The trial judge has total discretion.
It's easy and cheap to influence a judge. [The word "bribe" would indicate a
crime. Certain elements of a crime would need to be presented in evidence to
charge a person (especially a judge) with a crime.]
Once the judge disqualified the plaintiff's expert witnesses, he was then clear
to dismiss the case against Sig. Oh, how convenient. The judge knows that everyone
knows, but he's too arrogant to care.
Sorry, that's reality.
"OSD 344: The ATF shot itself in the foot with Franklin Armory’s new gun"
"Franklin Armory KILLS the NFA SBR Rule with Antithesis"
by The Notorious FDE
Hat tip to Greg Ellifritz.
"California Bans Glock" by Liberty Doll
"DOJ Shocked as Feds Lose Huge Gun Free School Zone Case!!!"
by Guns & Gadgets 2nd Amendment News
Laws only affect law abiding citizens. Criminals don't obey laws, by definition.
All gun laws are infringements of the 2nd Amendment right to keep and bear arms.
So all gun laws are unconstitutional, because the violate the plain text of the 2nd
Amendment. They don't need to violate the history and traditions.
"Civil Rights Division Files the First Department of Justice
Affirmative Lawsuit in Support of Gun Owners"
Hat tip to Stephen P. Wenger.
"NSSF Hails Final Rule Rolling Back Biden-Era Export Restrictions"
Hat tip to Stephen P. Wenger.
"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
*************************************************************************
------------------------------ Instruction --------------------------------
"Remember,
the students who require the extra effort
are the ones who need us the most!"
-- John Farnam
*************************************************************************
----- Instructors -----
“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
"Deadly Force: Lessons From Tom Givens
Training the Trainers"
by Massad Ayoob
Hat tip to Greg Ellifritz.
"A false path will always be tensely, angrily, violently defended by those
it has deceived, because who are so easily deceived are ever too arrogant to repent.”
-- Instructional axiom
Don't use filler words, terms, or phrases. They make you sound stupid. Examples
are: "Quite frankly . . . " , "Well, you know . . . " ,
"I want to say something . . . " Just say what you need to say. If you don't need
to say anything, be quiet.
"I have a question." Just ask your question.
Filler words convey zero information, so they drastically reduce the information
density of your speech and writing. In order for your prose to be crystal clear, they
must have high information density.
Colonel Robert Lindsey to his fellow trainers:
"We are not God's gift to our students.
Our students are God's gift to us."
"4 Differences Between Typical And High Class Escorts" by Isabelle Fox
Miss Fox talks about prostitutes, but the knowledge is directly applicable to the
firearms instructor. It's all about how you conduct your business. You will learn
something, if you pay attention.
“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
"Your curriculum needs to be recent, relevant, and realistic."
-- Austin Killmer
"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
*************************************************************************
----- Students -----
"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
Our friend Sophi Silva
It's not just crossing your legs in the sitting position, it's also kneeling and squatting
positions in pistol and rifle. Lose weight, shoot better.
"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
“It may seem difficult at first but everything is difficult at first.”
-- Miyamota Mushashi
"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.]
*************************************************************************
----- Andragogy -----
‟An instructor should not expect any learning to
take place the first time new information is presented.”
-- ‶Building Shooters″ by Dustin Salomon
From Tom Givens' Instructor Development class (I highly recommend) --
"Ten Principles of Excellent Instruction"
1. Instruction is meaningful. The material is related to the student's past experience,
his present situation, needs, interests, and future goals. When instruction is meaningful,
students want to learn.
2. Check for knowledge. Check students for knowledge or skills they already possess.
Instructors may conduct a pre-test, or canvass the students for prior training and experience.
3. Communication is two-way. Students know that the instructor listens to them, and
instruction is improved as a result.
4. Organize ideas. Information or skills should be structured in an organized, building
block manner. Organize the information into segments that build upon each other in a
logical fashion.
5. Training aids. Training aids are used to save time and to aid in retention.
6. Dynamic. Training methods should be varied, to keep the training interesting.
Use video segments to break up lectures, demonstrate techniques, ask the students
questions.
7. Role models. Provide an enthusiastic and professional role model for your students.
Demonstrate physical skills with proficiency. Have an obvious command of the subject
matter.
8. Require practice. Students must be given the opportunity for realistic practice of
the skills they are being taught. Skills to be tested must be practiced first.
9. Enjoyable and supportive. Positive feedback is provided, which makes the learning
enjoyable, and instills a winning attitude of confidence in the students.
10. Instructional design. Excellent instructors include the following elements in their
lesson design: Motivation, Communication of Objectives, Review of Prerequisites,
Explanation of Essential Information, Demonstration, Practice, Feedback, and
Remediation and Testing.
"Growth is uncomfortable because you've never been there before."
-- Nicola Cavanis
"Thinking is the hardest thing a person can do.
That's why so few people do it."
-- Henry Ford
*************************************************************************
*************************************************************************
------------------------------ Gear --------------------------------
And the safe storage thereof.
The purpose of a high capacity magazine is NOT to let you shoot more;
it is to let you reload less.
-- Tom Givens
SRC Tactical
joseph@srctactical.com
I got padded underwear at the Bullets & Bibles conference. They work. Machine
washable and drier safe. Very comfortable, especially for AIWB carry. I recommend!
“Mission drives the gear train.”
-- Pat Rogers
An interesting perspective.
"AVOID THIS GUN BRAND AT ALL COSTS!
🏆 TOP 7 FIREARM BRANDS RANKED WORST TO BEST!"
by Line45
"Buying Your First Firearm: Tips for a Safe, Stress-Free Experience"
by Tatiana Whitlock
Hat tip to Greg Ellifritz.
"There are no dangerous weapons, only dangerous men."
-- Robert A. Heinlein
In the context of your typical AR-15 platform. Minute of angle = MOA.
The front sight of your iron sights is 7 MOA wide.
When zeroed at 100 yards, to shoot at a target at 200 yards, move the
point of impact up 4 inches at 200 yards by increasing elevation by 2 MOA.
When zeroed at 200 yards, to shoot at a target at 300 yards, move the
point of impact up 6 inches at 300 yards by increasing elevation by 2 MOA.
When zeroed at 300 yards, to shoot at a target at 400 yards, move the
point of impact up 12 inches at 400 yards by increasing elevation by 3 MOA.
When zeroed at 400 yards, to shoot at a target at 500 yards, move the
point of impact up 20 inches at 500 yards by increasing elevation by 4 MOA.
When zeroed at 500 yards, to shoot at a target at 600 yards, move the
point of impact up 30 inches at 600 yards by increasing elevation by 5 MOA.
With a cross wind of 10 miles per hour, compensate with 3 MOA at 300 yards.
With a cross wind of 10 miles per hour, compensate with 5 MOA at 500 yards.
Extrapolate or interpolate accordingly.
Humans can't perceive movement slower than 1 MOA per second.
"Rural Defense – Part II
The long and short of it."
by Sheriff Jim Wilson
"Maximizing Visibility and Protection: A Guide to Shooting Glasses"
Hat tip to Docent.
I need one of these.
"Taking The Mystery Out Of Astigmatism"
by Norman H. Wong, O.D.
Hat tip to Greg Ellifritz.
"World's Fastest Camera vs Bullets!" by Ballistic High-Speed
Excerpt:
"There are almost no physical events in our world that are too fast to see with
this camera."
---
The Mach 40 waves are Rayleigh waves. These are interface waves that travel
along the interface between two media with different indices of refraction, in this
case glass and air. Also known as surface waves. They can be prograde or retrograde,
but are always circular, not sinusoidal, not longitudinal, not transverse. (I'm talking
particle motion, motion of the particles in the media. I'm not talking about the wave
motion.) Electromagnetic waves are transverse, perpendicular to the direction of
propagation (ya, polarization can be circular, but the wave is always transverse.)
Acoustic waves are longitudinal (in the direction of propagation). Rayleigh waves
are seismic waves. [Ya, I studied theoretical seismology in grad school. So I sort
of know what I'm talking about.]
I was shooting my pistol and got a failure to fire. Tap-rack did not work. So I
unloaded and reloaded (Tom Givens' version of Type III malfunction clearing,
failure to extract). [The slide was not attempting to load a cartridge into the chamber
that was obstructed by a spent case. There was no spent casing in the chamber.]
Later, upon inspection, I found a cartridge stuck in the magazine. It was not
parallel to the other cartridges in the magazine. It was pointing down at about
45 degrees.
There were two problems that happened simultaneously to cause the stoppage.
1. The cartridge was too long. The bullet was not seated correctly, not to SAAMI
specification. This problem can be avoided by inspecting the ammunition before
using it. Tom Givens describes a protocol for ammunition inspection in his
Instructor Development class. In condensed overview, it is to look at the ammo
for defects (bent case mouth, etc.), feel the ammo for defects (feel for high primers,
etc.), remove your barrel from your pistol and use it as a go / no-go gauge by inserting
the cartridge into the chamber and removing it from the chamber. It should slide in
and out easily.
2. The magazine follower (the plastic piece that contacts the bottom cartridge and
pushes the cartridges up the magazine body) did not slide easily up and down the
magazine body, because the magazine spring was not snapped into the follower
correctly. After cleaning your magazines (which you do religiously), make sure the
magazine spring is correctly attached to the magazine follower. Being anally retentive
will save your life. It has save mine many times.
“Your car is not a holster.”
-- Pat Rogers
*************************************************************************
*************************************************************************
***** ***** ***** Cryptology ***** ***** *****
Keep a friend. Never borrow. Never lend. Always cite open source.
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.
"A SIMPLE PROOF THAT π IS IRRATIONAL" by IVAN NIVEN
In case you didn't follow that,
"Pi is Irrational: The Simplest Proof" by DFulks Math
The proof that π is transcendental is a bit more involved.
What do you notice about Prof. Filaseta's curriculum vitae? Where does he get
all of his grant money from?
"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
From "Maematika, ee soderzhanie metody i znachenie"
"Mathematics, Its Content, Methods, and Meaning"
edited by A.D. Aleksandrov, A.N. Kolmogorov, and M.A. Lavrent’ev
English translation edited by S.H. Gould. 1963 A.D.
QA36.M2913
ISBN-13: 978-0-486-40916-0
ISBN-10: 0-486-40916-3
-----
In fact, every collection of objects, whether it be a flock of sheep or a pile of
firewood, exists and is immediately perceived in all its concreteness and complexity.
The distinguishing in it of separate properties and relationships is the result of
conscious analysis. Primitive thought does not yet make this analysis, but considers
the object only as a whole. Similarly, a man who has not studied music perceives a
musical composition without distinguishing in it the details of melody, tonality, and
so forth, while at the same time a musician easily analyzes even a complicated
symphony.
-- A.D. Aleksandrov
Volume 1, page 7.
-----
. . . crystallographer and geometer, E. S. Fedorov . . . set himself the problem of
finding all the possible forms of symmetry for crystals. There are 230.
Volume 1, page 23.
-----
. . . consider the Riemann function, which is equal to zero at all irrational points
and equal to 1/q at rational points of the form x = p/q (where p/q is in its lowest terms).
This function is discontinuous at all rational points and continuous at irrational points.
By altering it slightly we may easily obtain an example of a function which is
discontinuous at all points. It is sufficient to set the function equal to unity at the
irrational points.
Volume 1, page 91.
[So, when the function equals zero at the irrational points, the function is continuous
at the irrational points; but when the function equals one at the irrational points, the
function is discontinuous at the irrational points. That doesn't make sense to me.
How about you? I think this is a mistake in editing or translation. I think the statement
is supposed to be "It is sufficient to set the function equal to the reciprocal of the
value of the point at irrational points."
-- Jon Low]
-----
The differential of the function
u = f(x, y, z)
may be written as
du = (∂f / ∂x) dx + (∂f / ∂y) dy + (∂f / ∂z) dz
That is, the differential of a function of multiple independent variables
is the sum of the partial derivatives of the function with respect to an individual variable
times the differential of that same variable.
Volume 1, page 149.
-----
For a function of two variables, z = f(x, v) a local maxima or minima exits
when
fₓ' (x, v) = 0 i.e. (∂f(x, v) / ∂x) = 0
and
fᵥ' (x, v) = 0 i.e. (∂f(x, v) / ∂v) = 0
Volume 1, page 150.
[Well, no. This is what you will see in a lot of textbooks, but it's wrong.
Given the above conditions, the point could be a level ledge where going
right along the x-axis is going up and going left along the x-axis is going
down. But for the sake of argument, let's assume the point (x, v) is a
maxima or minima. The above conditions are still wrong.
Imagine a surface where your point marble moving north or south would
be moving up and when moving east or west would be moving up; but
when moving north-east, north-west, south-east, or south-west would be
moving down. You've cut groves in the surface in those directions.
Or, imagine moving along the x-axis away from the local minima goes
up and moving along the y-axis from the minima goes up. But moving in
a spiral from the minima goes down. You've cut a spiral grove.
Remember that the partial derivative is an infinitesimal displacement
from the point (x, v). The partial derivative doesn't tell you anything about
what's going on further away from the point.
There are even more pathological cases. Study real analysis if this
sort of thing interests you.
-- Jon Low]
-----
N.N. Luzin proved that every measurable function on an interval can be made
continuous by changing its values on a certain set of arbitrarily small measure.
Volume 3, page 30.
[I know. You may have to stop and think about this for a few years. -- Jon Low]
-----
Let us calculate the integral of the Dirichlet (please pronounce this correctly)
function Φ(x) equal to 0 at the rational points and to 1 at the irrational points of
the interval [0, 1]. Since the measure of the set of irrational points of [0, 1] is 1,
the Lebesgue (please pronounce this correctly) integral
₁
∫ Φ(x) dx
⁰
is equal to 1. It is easy to verify that the Riemann integral of this function does
not exits.
[I hope this piques your curiosity as to what a Riemann integral and
Lebesgue integral are useful for. You may think that all of your cryptology
is discrete, but you would be wrong. The theory slips easily back and forth
from discrete to continuous to discrete . . .
The Riemann integral handles nice functions (remember nice is a behavior,
not a character trait). The Lebesgue integral handles more pathological functions
that are at least measurable. You may find ways to "integrate" non-measurable
functions. Oh, yes, the NSA will pay well for such research. Remember our
friend, Prof. Filaseta, cited above. The NSA never had the best and brightest.
And the wokeness caused many competent mathematicians to leave for the
much higher paying private sector. The Puzzle Palace has always outsourced
the hard problems.
-- Jon Low]
Volume 3, page 33.
-----
. . . every bounded measurable function is Lebesgue integrable. The Lebesgue
integral can also be extended to certain classes of unbounded measurable funcions,
. . .
If the functions fₙ(x) are measurable and uniformly bounded:
|fₙ(x)| < K
for every n and every x in [a, s] and if the sequence {fₙ(x)} converges almost
everywhere to f(x), then
ₛ ₛ
∫ fₙ(x) dx → ∫ f(x) dx
ª ª
In other words, the Lebesgue integral permits unrestricted passage to the limit.
In fact, this property of the Lebesgue integral makes it a very convenient and
often an indispensable tool in many investigations. [Do you understand? -- Jon Low]
Volume 3, page 35.
-----
In other words, there are infinitely many distinct forms of regular "2-dimensional
polyhedra." [Regular polygons can have any number of sides.]
--
There are all together five forms of 3-dimensional regular polyhedra:
the tetrahedron, the cube [hexahedron], the octahedron, the dodecahedron, and the
icosahedron.
--
In 4-dimensional space there are six forms of regular polyhedra,
[The author does not list them, but we can figure it out:
1. 5-cell, the 4-d simplex, hyper-tetrahedron, 5 vertices any 4 of which form a tetrahedron.
So the construction would be to take a tetrahedron, pick a point euiqidistant from
all vertices of the tetrahedron in 4-d space, connect the 4 vertices of the tetrahedron
to the new vertex. Voila! A 4-d simplex.
5 3-d faces are tetrahedra: 1 at the base and 4 lateral faces resting on the
2-d faces of the basis.
10 2-d faces are triangles: 4 in the basis and 6 lateral.
10 edges.
5 vertices.
2. 8-cell, the 4-d hypercube, tesseract, formed by taking a 3-d cube and moving it in the 4th
dimension a distance equal to the edge length.
8 3-d faces which are 3-d cubes. In the motion of the 3-d cube each of its
faces sweeps out a 3-d cube so that we obtain 6 cubes as the lateral faces of the
4-d cube, and in addition there are 2 faces: "front" and "back" or the initial and
final position of the moving cube.
24 2-d tetragon (square) faces: 6 each in the initial and final cubes, and another 12 squares
that are swept out by the edges of the cube as it moves from initial to final position.
32 edges: 12 edges of the initial cube, 12 edges of the final cube after
displacement by length equal to the edge length of the initial cube, and 8 lateral edges
(the edges traced out when the initial 8 vertices moved from initial to final position).
16 vertices: 8 for the initial cube and 8 for the final cube after being displaced
in the 4th dimension by length equal the edge length of the initial cube.
3. 16-cell, the 4-d hyperoctahedron (dual of the hypercube)
construction described below in (3).
16 3-d faces, tetrahedra
32 2-d faces, trigons (triangles)
24 edges
8 vertices
4. 24-cell, self dual, see Kamps' paper below for the construction.
24 3-d faces, octahedra
96 2-d faces, trigons (triangles)
96 edges
24 vertices
5. The 120-cell, hyper-dodecahedron, dual of the 600-cell, is the four-dimensional
analogue of the dodecahedron. Because it is the dual of the 600-cell, it would be
possible to derive its vertices by taking the midpoints of the tetrahedral cells of
the 600-cell.
120 3-d faces, dodecahedra
720 2-d faces, pentagon
1200 edges
600 vertices
6. 600-cell, hyper-icosahedron, dual of the 120-cell, which is analogous to the
icosahedron in three-dimensions.
600 3-d faces, tetrahedra
1200 2-d faces, trigon (triangle)
720 edges
120 vertices
]
For detailed descriptions see,
"Four-dimensional regular polytopes" by S.H.E. Kamps
"Platonic Solids in All Dimensions" by John Baez
"List of regular polytopes"
"4-polytope"
Ya, I know. You have to be careful with Wikipedia.
--
But in any space of a larger number of dimensions there are only three [regular polyhedra].
They are:
(1) the analogue to the tetrahedron, the regular n-dimensional simplex, i.e. the simplex
whose edges are all equal;
(2) the n-dimensional cube;
(3) the analogue to the octahedron which is constructed as follows:
The centers of the faces of the cube become the vertices of this polyhedron so that
it is spanned by them, as it were. . . . [the n-dimensional "cube" and the n-dimensional
"octahedron" are duels]
So we see that as far as regular polyhedra are concerned, spaces of two, three, and
four dimensions occupy a special position.
Volume 3, page147.
"Premature optimization is the root of all evil."
-- Donald Knuth
Congratulations, Pathfinder! I hear you decrypted a fine message.
Now you see why it is always best to get payment in full up front.
The customer will always bitch that you did it so quickly, it must have
been easy. You must remind them that they are paying for your intellect,
years of experience, and research; not your time working on the problem.
The ChiComs must be shitting in their pants. I hear that they are
summarily executing everyone who touched the message. They will
never consider that you broke their encryption. They are too arrogant.
Getting them to kill their own loyal competent personnel is the best!
Bravo!
"Computer science has nothing to do with computers or science."
-- Donald Knuth
"Linus Torvalds on his insults: respect should be earned." by TFiR
Respect is earned, not given.
"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
New Confession from Susskind:
"I Can Tell You With Absolute Certainty String Theory Is Not Reality"
by Curt Jaimungal
"You don't need to memorize theorems,
because you can always derive them from first principles."
-- Sven Hartman
"Linux Is Changing – New Filesystems, Multikernels & More" by SavvyNik
"All that we don't know is astonishing.
Even more astonishing is what passes for knowing."
-- Philip Roth
"Never memorize anything. Rather, study it until it becomes obvious."
-- Norman Christ
"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
Stay out of jail. Always cite open source.
*************************************************************************
***** ***** ***** 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
WhatsApp bug. Image format bug.
"this was genuinely interesting" by Low Level
Scan. He talks fast. You might miss it. Our Israeli friends.
Hat tip to Soldier Systems Digest --
"The Invisible Battle: Synchronizing Non-Kinetic Effects in Modern Warfare"
by Robbin Laird
https://sldinfo.com/2025/09/the-invisible-battle-synchronizing-non-kinetic-effects-in-modern-warfare
"Strategic Statecraft in a Fragmented World" by Irregular Warfare Center
Ya, maybe this should be in the Intel Section.
"AFA NEWS: Space Force To Field Electromagnetic Warfare Operations Center
In Next Few Months" by Allyson Park
"Cyber-Warfare – Command-and-Control Analogue"
by Samantha O'Driscoll
"Mobilizing for the ‘invisible war’ " by Bryan Clark
"Unify Information Warfare for Joint Operations"
by Lieutenant Commander Brett P. Jansen, U.S. Navy
"Russian Navy Breached, Crypto Scam Dismantled & Dam Cyberattack"
by Cybernews
Breaking Defense has a weekly newsletter, "Networks & Digital Warfare" at
Crypto-Gram by Bruce Schneier
These seem to be deliberately implemented backdoors.
All grunt work should be done by the computer. Only work not possible for a
computer should be done by analysts. Analysts are normally distributed.
What this result does, though, is make it impossible to provide general proofs
of security for Fiat-Shamir.
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"
*************************************************************************
***** ***** ***** 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, Constitution of the United States of America
Bret Cooper reports on Nepal revolution.
Did you read about this in the main stream? Get it?
"FSB Seizes Putin’s Generals in Kremlin PURGE" by Jason Jay Smart
---
"RUSSIANS IN SHOCK. Brazilians Encircle and Kill Russians in Pokrovsk! | RFU News"
---
"Moscow’s Land Bridge to St. Petersburg Is Gone—
Millions Panic as Ukraine Shut Down $20B Main Link"
by PPR GLOBAL
The Railway War (Saint Petersburg Project).
9:20 / 13:03 compare to American, CSX for instance, rails.
---
"NO FUEL NO MONEY: FROM MOSCOW TO BASHKORTOSTAN Vlog 1171:
War in Ukraine" by Anna from Ukraine
---
"❗️SHOCK! EXPLOSIONS ROCK CENTRAL MOSCOW:
STRATEGIC TARGETS HIT! RUSSIA’S AVIATION PARALYZED! |
DASHA" by UKRAINE TODAY
Information concentration camp.
Strikes on air fields in Russia.
---
"COMPLETE MORON: SOLOVYOV'S PROPAGANDA REVEALED
LOCATION OF RUSSIA’S SECRET DRONE BASE || 2025"
by Warthog Defense
Geolocation.
U.S. arresting South Korean workers (software engineers) in the U.S. and
deporting them to South Korea? I have heard of such in local news. More
pieces to the puzzle.
---
"BREAKING NEWS:
MASS PANIC IN MOSCOW, FLIGHTS CANCELLED Vlog 1175:
War in Ukraine" by Anna from Ukraine
---
"PANIC AND CHAOS IN MOSCOW: DAY TWO Vlog 1176: War in Ukraine"
by Anna from Ukraine
Tul, where my ammunition is manufactured.
"Russian Soldiers KILL Their Commander . . . Then Mass Surrender ERUPTS"
by Business Basics
"The Funniest CIA Training Story You've Never Heard | John Kiriakou"
by Dalton Fischer Podcast
Jordan.
"Ex-CIA Officer Explains The Shadowy World of Private Armies | John Kiriakou"
by Dalton Fischer Podcast
Executive order 12333. U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.
GRS = Global Response Staff, a branch of the CIA. At least I hope that's who
they are talking about.
FBI Agent: "People Have NO IDEA How Serious This Is Going To Be..."
by SaharTV
"FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE" by Shawn Ryan
Document,
John "Tig" Tiegen - The Haunting Truth About Delta Force’s Actions in Benghazi |
SRS #235
by Shawn Ryan
An attack on ICE or on the guys that got killed?
From an email from the Patriot Post --
Sniper attack at Dallas ICE facility: At least three people were injured when a sniper
opened fire at the ICE Field Office in Dallas, Texas, this morning. When police searched
the nearby rooftops, they found the attacker dead with what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem released a statement on X
that there were multiple injuries and fatalities, although police statements have only
confirmed one fatality so far. An ICE spokesman told NBC News that two of the victims
have died and that a third is in the hospital. No ICE agents were harmed; the victims
were ICE detainees.
"Doctrine Smart Book" by U.S. Army
Yes, the intel books are listed.
"Something is Going Deeply WRONG in Russia" by Business Basics
Low birth rates. High death rates. High excess death rates (beyond what would
be expected for the given population).
"Good habits and skill beat luck every time."
-- Sheriff Jim Wilson
Sons of Liberty [One of the best intel organizations in history, and still active.]
The Dispatch
Strategy Page
"The Merge"
Breaking Defense
Intrigue
1440
29155
Global Recaps
Timber Sycamore
Ground News
*************************************************************************
*************************************************************************
***** ***** ***** Religion and Politics ***** ***** *****
“War is not the best engine for us to resort to;
nature has given us one in our commerce, which if properly managed,
will be a better instrument for obliging the interested nations of Europe
to treat us with justice.”
—Thomas Jefferson (1797)
"Refereeing the Debate over the 2021 National Firearms Survey
Critics of Prof. William English's survey sometimes miss the mark,
but also raise valid questions."
by David Kopel
In case you don't understand the Democrats.
Among Communists, no “kulak” is ever safe!”
“The dictatorship of the Communist Party is maintained by recourse to every form of violence.”
-- Leon Trotsky
"Here they come!" by John Farnam
From "American Hunter" October 2025 --
"The NRA Hunters' Leadership Forum website reported recently how Citibank's
apparent reversal of its punitive policy of discrimination against companies in
the firearms business was a big win for American hunters as well as all other
lawful gun owners in the nation." Page 22.
[I read elsewhere that J.P. Morgan had dropped all of it's anti-gun policies.
So the Trump administration is making progress. -- Jon Low]
---
The state of Victoria, Australia has outlawed machetes effective 1 September 2025.
Those refusing to turn in their long knives will face up to 2 years in prison and fines
or $47,000 (Australian dollars) or more. Page 23.
[The only reason for disarming the people is to make it easier for the government
to kill them. -- Jon Low]
---
From "American Rifleman" October 2025, Page 14. --
Please write to Bill Bachenberg, NRA President,
President@NRADirector.com
and tell him to
1) fire all the NRA operatives in Tennessee,
2) especially the lobbyists at the Tennessee State Capitol who are
backing anti-gun politicians and
3) those running the Friends of the NRA banquets into the ground and
4) apologize to the Tennessee Firearms Association for betraying them
and working against them.
---
Did you see the article on my relatives Jeffrey Low and Jordan Low and their company,
First Breach? Page 41. They are manufacturing ammunition and ammunition components
in Hagerstown, MD. Good Jewish boys, come to American to pursue the American dream;
life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Jordan is an Israeli veteran of the Golani Brigade.
Setting an example for the flaming liberal American Jews.
"Heroic middle schooler, 11, expelled after disarming student who came to school with gun"
by James Gordon
This is the reality of government schools. No heroes, only victims and criminals.
Urban police departments cannot recruit.
"Cop on Anti-Gun Governor's Detail Shoots Ex-Girlfriend" by Liberty Doll
Corrupt cops in New Jersey, how surprising. When I lived in New Jersey,
the state police had billboards on the interstates asking people to write to them
about their good experiences with the state troopers.
"Murder City Mayor:
Law Enforcement is a ‘Sickness’ He Intends to ‘Eradicate’ "
by John Boch
Excerpt:
"Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson declared that law enforcement is “a sickness”
that he intends to “eradicate.” The fiery, but mostly peaceful press conference also
saw the feckless mayor demand an end to jails and incarceration for those who
can’t manage to follow society’s laws and norms."
"Fired FBI Agent Peter Strzok LOSES Desperate Lawsuit!"
by Robert Gouveia Esq.
"Everything Is So Gay - Dumpster Fire" by Bridget Phetasy
"BREAKING:
Sean Duffy Announces New CDL Rules 'Effective Immediately,' Action Against CA"
by Forbes Breaking News
"The truth does not change according to our ability to stomach it."
-- Mary Flannery O'Connor
*************************************************************************
"History teaches us that history teaches us nothing." -- James Bachmann
"The purpose of war is not to die for your country.
The purpose of war is to ensure that the other guy dies for his country."
—George S. Patton, an American general in the second world war
“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
***************************** Begin Psychology ***********************
Parenting skills.
"How to be INDESTRUCTIBLE: the power of deidentification"
by Orion Taraban, Psy.D.
"The art of surrender: how to let go" by Orion Taraban, Psy.D.
"The look: speak with your eyes" by Orion Taraban, Psy.D.
Very specific. Leaking information. Below the level of awareness.
"All I want . . . : the problem with dating today" by Orion Taraban, Psy.D.
***************************** End Psychology ************************
"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
Commentary on Charlie Kirk.
My father told me to look at the women in a man's life,
the wife, the girlfriend, the business partners, etc. to judge
the man. It's very good advice.
---
Killers of Charlie Kirk financially supported by
U.S. State Department and United Nations.
Neville Roy Singham.
Don't act surprised. What did you think the Democrats were doing with
your tax dollars?
---
"FBI Finds DNA Match in Charlie's Assassin;
10X Surge in TPUSA Chapters Requests"
by Facts Matter with Roman Balmakov
Cultural and political impact.
---
---
Pasta alla Genovese
Can you imagine coming home to this after a hard day's work?
Semper Fidelis,
Jonathan D. Low
Email: Jon_Low@yahoo.com
Radio: KI4SDN
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