Knowledge to make your life better. If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.
Ayoob Files: Furtive Movement: The Richard Palmer Case
“The rule is, “You don’t have to be right, but you do have to be reasonable.” You can be cleared four times over in a shooting and still be criminally charged. If you’re a cop criminally charged, we hope you belong to a union or fraternal organization.”
Read about the prosecutor’s actions in this case. If you are a police officer and are not attempting to change careers in this environment, I think you would fail your department’s psych test if you had to take it again today.
If you like Mas’ writing, you may also enjoy his take on cross draw holsters.
Lights in a House?
A valuable side-by-side comparison of many popular tactical flashlights in an indoor environment.
Get to the Gun – Practice Like a Pro | Episode #101
Mickey shares some efficient motor patterns to facilitate a faster draw and a dryfire drawing practice routine.
“You Should Be A Monster”
Even if you are not generally a Jordan Peterson fan, I think you should listen to this short montage from several of his lectures. The subject matter will really appeal to most of my readers.
5 Critical Elements Of A Handgun Training Program
“If you want to go to man camp and spend five days crawling on the ground, shooting thousands of rounds through your AR or AK, that’s fine. It’s great fun. Chalk that up to your vacation budget, NOT your handgun training budget.”
40 Best Tactical Blogs and Websites
I don’t know the metrics by which this list was created, but I’m happy to be in the top 10 “best” tactical blogs.
Defining Instructions by Attributes: Four User Groups
Take a look at the descriptions of these distinct gun owner groups. Into which do you best fit? Are you happy with that? Here’s the secret. You can change groups or improve yourself any time with enough practice and training.
The Astra Cub
No one has ever heard of this gun, but it was actually the first handgun I ever shot. My dad was a cop in the 1970s and early 1980s. He carried a .22 short Astra Cub in the glove compartment of his car for his EDC. When threat conditions were heightened, he’d upgrade to carrying his S&W model 60 snubby. The 1970s were a different world.
I remember a summer night when my mom was out shopping with my sister and my dad got called out to assist in a fugitive manhunt. A guy had shot a cop in a nearby jurisdiction and fled on foot into a cornfield. I was about seven years old and my dad didn’t want to leave me home alone. He took me to the manhunt. He was carrying his S&W snubby “big gun” and went into the tall stalks of corn to capture the bad guy. He left me sitting in the locked car with that Astra Cub in my lap. I knew all the local cops he worked with. My dad told me to shoot anyone who approached the car that I didn’t know.
Fortunately, my dad’s coworkers caught the bad guy with no problems. Seven-year old Greg didn’t have to shoot anyone. Looking back, I’m constantly stunned that conditions that would get a parent arrested for child abuse/neglect today were just everyday life 45 years ago.
Man Throws Rocks At Cop Car, Gets Shot
This is something you should think about, both as a police officer and as an armed citizen. How would you respond to someone throwing rocks at you or your vehicle.
Surviving a Suicide Bomber: Snowball in Hell Version
Mark Hatmaker gives his best advice for surviving a terrorist bomber.
Responsibility
One of the massive failures in modern day law enforcement. Cops are held accountable for their force decisions and actions in life threatening situations. But when they screw up, the bosses that hired the cop, determined the training the cop was going to get, trained the cop, and supervised the cop are never called to account for their failures.
You administrators hired this guy. You trained him. You supervise him to ensure he makes the best decision. When he fails, how is that failure not your responsibility?
Nationwide, police agencies can’t fill empty job slots. People won’t take the cop job because they know that their administrators won’t give them the proper tools and training to do the job and will throw them under the bus when they screw up because they weren’t given the training and support they need to make the right decisions. It’s only going to get worse in the future. My cop friends should be actively looking for other career options.
Episode 93- Unconventional Carry Positions w Hany
My purse shooting skills get discussed in the excellent exploration of alternate carry methods by Bryan and Hany. Here is the article on shooting through bags and purses that they referenced.
Seven Inconvenient Truths of Concealed Carry
The realities of carrying guns every day.
5-Point 1911 Safety Check: Is Your Gun Safe?
Some safety checks for you 1911 shooters.
The Good Old Gun Writers
Fun memories of some of the old time gun writers I enjoyed in my youth. If you recognize some of these names, read the book Pale Horse Coming from Stephen Hunter. In the fictional book, the protagonist hooks up with a band of old time gunfighters and gun writers to take down a corrupt prison. Charlie Askins, Jelly Bryce, Elmer Keith, Jack O’Conner, and Bill Jordan are turned into recognizable fictional characters and choose to take on one more mission before they die.
On the Psychology of Military Incompetence
What I’m reading…
I heard Jocko Willink recommend this book on a recent podcast. I’m betting there is a startling similarity between military and police incompetence.
Gear Review: Defender Tactical Universal Minishell Adapter for Mossberg Pump Shotguns
If you have a Mossberg 12 gauge, this is an inexpensive and innovative addition you may consider.
While we are talking about Mossbergs, you should also read The Problem With the Mossberg Bead. The bead front sight also causes similar problems in other brands of shotguns as well.
Skills Check: Two-Target Handgun Drill
A quick and easy multiple target practice drill to try at the range. If you want to practice your shotgun skills, try these two LAPD qualification courses.
How To Treat A Spider Bite: Damn You, Charlotte!
Having actually been bitten by a brown recluse spider on a backpacking trip, this article providing first aid tips for spider bites hits close to home. As a side note, I once attended a wilderness medicine conference where the topic of spider bites came up. The doc teaching the class said that the vast majority of the “spider bites” he sees in the ER are actually MRSA bacterial skin infections. He advised not to treat any wounds as “spider bites” unless the patient actually saw a spider on his/her skin at the time of the bite.
Time Before the Beep with Craig Douglas
This is a tremendously valuable podcast covering a topic that most self defenders fail to consider. Pre-engagement social and verbal fluency is not a strong point in many shooters’ arsenal of skills. I completely endorse Jon’s suggestion to be friendly, funny, and charming in verbal encounters with people whose intentions are not clear. That tactic has saved me many times both on duty in my cop job and off duty being approached by predators.
But as Craig says, you have to be able to “sell it.” It can’t be fake. I think more people should work on the skill sets Jon and Craig identify here.
The Sub Second Draw: Does it Matter?
In discussing what really matters in a gunfight, the drawing and getting a round off in less than a second is pretty low on my personal priority list. I agree with the author. Having a 1.5 second draw with good physical fighting skills and verbal acumen will yield better results in combat than the the “one-trick pony” who can draw and fire under a second.
And referencing Jon and Craig’s interview above, having social skills and an understanding of criminal psychology can buy you more time to make your draw. I’d rather see my students fluent in verbal banter and social skills than being able to get a sub-second draw.
CJNG, The Only Cartel To Have Had Its Own Arms Factory
Some facts for the folks who believe the media narrative that lax American gun laws are the primary way that the Mexican drug cartels get their weapons. The truth is that most of the cartel weapons have been stolen from the police/military, illegally imported from other corrupt Latin American countries, or made by the cartels themselves.
One of the most dangerous cartels has set up numerous gun manufacturing facilities. They are building their own AR-15 rifles and selling them on the street for over $5000 US dollars each.
Some of the above links (from Amazon.com) are affiliate links. If you purchase these items, I get a small percentage of the sale at no extra cost to you.
