Knowledge to make your life better. If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.
The Way Of The Weasel
Massad Ayoob discusses and tests the idea of the surreptitious draw. I think more folks should be working this skill set.
Guest Shot: Hazardous Thought
“Combat is not about accurate shooting, movement, tactics or techniques. It’s about continuous problem solving under the duress of someone trying to cause YOUR death. It’s about one fast crisis-level decision after another on which tactic or technique to use — should I move, stay, shoot, reload, take cover, retreat, engage, are there non-hostiles in the area, am I justified in shooting, where are non-hostiles, where is the suspect? It’s about adaptation. These decisions will arrive in rapid fire and the truth is you will not move through observe, orient, decide and act as smoothly as water being poured from a pitcher.”
Those who say F#%K the Police Create Your Own Light
Within the last few weeks, I’ve seen a very large uptick in negativity and nastiness in my Facebook news feed. I don’t talk shit on other folks’ pages and try to stay as positive and helpful as possible. The algorithms must not like that, so they have been feeding me some serious hate lately.
This guy is a former Marine, cop, and firefighter who has a short podcast focusing on mental health issues for first responders. This episode is specifically about social media negativity.
If you are bothered by the contents of your news feed and wanting to respond with even more negativity, I’d urge you to listen to this one even if you aren’t a first responder.
Fair warning. Don’t listen if you are offended by salty language.
Why I am not a “Gun-Guy”
I identify with the author’s thoughts.
“So, if you are a “Gun-Guy,” God Bless you and the contributions you make to our craft. But, I encourage you to put down the calipers and ballistic precision chronograph for a second. Envision yourself as the weapons system and not just the guy that employs a firearm to solve all of his tactical problems. I encourage you to take a look at some of the other sections within AWS. Train for a month or so on armed and unarmed combatives, Tasers, pepper spray and edged weapons. You may find another defensive interest that will rival your love affair and passion for firearms.
Your fight is coming. Are you ready?”
Public Bathroom Breaks While Armed
Good ideas for those of you who have to use a public bathroom while carrying your pistol.
Cap & Ball Revolvers For Self-defense
An interesting thought exercise. What if you were limited to cap and ball weapons for home defense? Which pistol would you choose?
I WISH I KNEW THIS SOONER
Some important things to think about.
Your Next Purchase: The Best AK-47 Rifles on the Market Now!
Taking a look at some of the available AK-47 carbines on the market.
Superior LockedIn Grip
I train at an outdoor range with no shade in central Texas. We’be already had 37 days this year at least 105 degrees or hotter. If you spend any time at all outside, you will sweat. Shooters who don’t want sweaty hands to impede their performance put chalk on their hands. My friends Shelley and Brian Hill came up with this version of liquid chalk designed just for shooters. I’ve used it during my last two shooting sessions and I really like it!
Skills for the Bills: Prioritizing Your Development and Preparation
“It’s my sincere fear that most of us (your intrepid author included) spend too much time, money and effort on discussion, practice, training and equipment that’s not optimized for solving the likely problems we’ll face in a real crisis. At best, we could be the right man or woman for the job in a situation that’s so bafflingly unlikely to occur. At worst, we’re utterly and negligently wasting time that could’ve been spent on genuine life-saving skills.”
Taurus Defender 856 TORO Revolver Review
It seems like Taurus is working hard to improve the quality of some of their weapons. For another article about this particular model, read The Taurus 856 Defender TORO: A Little Bull.
Five Years After: A John Matherson Novel
What I’m reading…
You’ve probably heard about the famous EMP book called One Second After. This is the third sequel.
Concealed Math with Annette Evans
Excellent concealed carry considerations form Annette.
Smooth IS fast.
“Go slow, become smooth, push speed, refine technique. Shooting well is not complicated but it does take dedicated work. Put in the work and you will forever appreciate it.”
Everyday Awareness and Schrödinger’s Cat
Some higher order thinking on the topic of situational awareness. I recorded a podcast with the guys at Blackwing Shooting Center last weekend with my thoughts on the topic. I’ll share it with you when they publish it.
“Applied SA is like the quark of the mental world. It’s the thing all other things are built from. ASA happens when you use information that you’ve been gathering your entire life to apply to situations you encounter on a daily basis. It’s also important to note that awareness – when taken to its extreme – results in fixation. Fixation is extremely detrimental to your overall awareness. Think about it like concentrating on something close, versus taking a broad view.
Think about that for a second.
The more information you take in, the more capable you’ll be of making situations work to your advantage, but this requires being able to ‘focus’ quickly as information presents itself. Like a language, the more words you know, the easier it is to learn. You can make sense of the information you’re taking in. Applied Situational Awareness is like this: the more information you can process, the more informed your decisions are.
With that said, what we want to do is establish a baseline, and then look for things that don’t belong. Once we’ve established that, we can take a closer look at those things and start collecting information.”
Attacked by Man with Hammer
Frightening police performance. Remember, this is who may show up when you call 911. For more depressing law enforcement training news, read Government Gun Training.
Firearm instructors: Just be better!
One of the problems we see such poor police performance is the average police firearms instructor’s complete lack of ability.
Safariland Speedloader Comp III, Triple Speedloader Holder, and Speed Strips
I honestly think reloading a revolver in an armed citizen gunfight is the very definition of optimism. With that said, the Comp III is probably one of the fastest loaders on the market and is what I generally carry when I’m toting a wheelgun.
If you plan on carrying a revolver, try to pass the Arizona Post Revolver Qualification.
Ways To Conceal Carry
A comprehensive look at concealed carry options. For more depth check out my article on Concealed Carry Holsters and Accessories.
Adapting to Change
Massad Ayoob writes about the self defense adaptations he’s made over the last 60 years.
News Anchor Gets Into Argument After Fender Bender
Road rage is stupid, but it is currently endemic. Think about how you would handle this one. Keep in mind that this is an extremely low priority call for your local law enforcement agency. You might get a 20-30 minute police response if you are lucky.
Foundations of Patrol Rifle Marksmanship: Know Your Objective!
Thoughts on training priorities for those of you who utilize a carbine for self defense or police work.
Practical Paranoia and Preventable Death
The reality is that you probably aren’t going to die in a gunfight. Crime is somewhat geographically related. For more information on the topic, check out Urban Violent Crime & Legal Gun Ownership.
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.
