Knowledge to make your life better. If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.
Taming the 12 gauge: Shotgun Recoil Management
Some useful techniques if you are a dinosaur like me who still uses a scatter gun for home protection.
Gear check!
Something that many of my students (especially my cop students) fail to consider. Gear doesn’t last forever.
Defensive Handgun Maintenance Tips
Good tips for keeping your handgun running optimally.
Kitting up for War with David “Mad Duo” Merrill
An extremely informative podcast interviewing Dave Merrill about rifles, body armor, battle belts, helmets and other accessories that are useful in an urban battlefield. It’s rare that I agree with everything someone else says, but Dave is right on the money with all of his points.
The Friendly Fuzzy Puppy Echo Chamber
Dave has some more excellent advice in the article posted above:
“But thinking is hard. If you’re okay with holding shallow views, mindlessly regurgitating the thoughts of a social structure, or possibly obtaining extremist postures, stick that thumb back in your mouth and roll into that Friendly Fuzzy Puppy Echo Chamber. Everyone there will agree with you. The rest of the world is dumb, just ask the other people in the group–they’ll tell you.
However, if you want to genuinely strengthen your arguments and ideals and engage in some critical thinking, actively seek points of view different than your own. You’ll be a more well rounded and interesting person for it.”
Get to cover? A requiem for common sense.
“The fact is, your world is full of cover and concealment, and when it comes to teaching people the difference between the two, our industry actually does a pretty bad job; such a bad job that even industry professionals can’t quantify certain objects as cover even though they are demonstrably so. Why? Because there are different opinions on what qualifies as cover, and those opinions can be (and often are) driven by a reluctance to be wrong and an adherence to dogma from one camp or another. Some of it is also based on personal experience (or lack thereof) and that feeds into the previous statement as well.”
Gun Manuals
A searchable database of 1800 different firearms manuals with 2000 more being uploaded soon. H/T to Of Arms and the Law for finding the original link.
There’s no normal life, Wyatt, it’s just life. Get on with it. SUBTEXT: You are your own backup!
Powerful words from Dr. House:
“There is no, “normal,” life anymore. There is just, “life.” Each of us has to decide if we are going to be a slave to the criminal/terror threat, or if we are going to rise above it, and not compromise our quality of life. The equipment is only a small part of the equation. I’d rather be outfitted with a Speedo and a #2 Dixon Ticonderoga and be physically fit, that to be obese and bristling with weaponry. For me, I’m glad I have the experience and the training to be my own bodyguard. It makes living in our weird world, THAT much easier. I am glad that I am not one of the masses, who walk the Earth, completely unaware of the evil that lurks, just around the next corner.”
From the Archives: Managing Calluses
A great video from Mark Rippetoe about managing callouses. This will be exceptionally useful for all the CrossFitter and power lifters out there. If you want to be stronger, it’s tough to beat Mark’s Starting Strength program.
Testing Tourniquet Use in a Manikin Model: Two Improvised Techniques
Are you planning to rely on an improvised tourniquet to control arterial bleeding. Better think twice. Get a CAT or SOFT-T. If you aren’t up to speed on the issue, you need to read 5 myths about Tourniquets.
Winchester Silvertip JHP 10mm Auto Ammunition Test and Review
I am consistently unimpressed with the gelatin test results of defensive 10mm bullets. Most 9mm bullets perform much better without the heavy recoil, diminished capacity, or expense.
Someone is in your home. Can you shoot him? Should you?
Great advice from Grant Cunningham. For more on the same topic, check out Melody Lauer’s article.
“In reality, combat is not about accurate shooting, movement, tactics or techniques it’s about continuous problem solving under the stress and 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.”
Decisions about what you’re capable of
Claude analyzes a very interesting defensive shooting. Take the time to read this one. You may also want to read my piece about what to do when someone attacks your pet.
Why
“So why then? Why go to the trouble of strapping on two pounds of steel every day? Why educate myself on the laws of where I live and where I travel to make sure I’m in compliance? Why train to be able to employ my gun quickly and effectively?
The answer on its face seems simple, but is in fact a deeply personal and complicated process. However, it can be summed up in two words: what if. I understand that the world is a wild and unpredictable place. What if…what if today is the day that I need my gun? What if someone decides tonight, when I’m home and relaxing on my couch that they need my stuff more than I do? What if today is the day I’m walking the dog and some decides that they need to score, and they’re going to stick in a knife in someone to get that score. Most of all, I’m worried about what if something happened and someone gets hurt because I wasn’t able to act. My gun is a lot like a tourniquet, or CPR skills. If I don’t have those things, there are situations I can encounter where I’d have the training to help, but lack the correct tools.”
Part 5: The PERF-etrators
I’ve posted articles critiquing the new PERF policing guidelines in past knowledge dumps. Here is Massad Ayoob’s take on the topic. He puts everything in context with this quote:
“We don’t let cultists and faith healers determine medical treatment protocols. We shouldn’t let people who replace scientifically-determined reality with fantasized memes be the arbiters of justifiable protective use of force.”
Stock Up On Ammunition Now, Before Election-Based Panic Buying Begins
Unfortunately, this is probably good advice.
300 Blackout ballistic test, updated
Some excellent ballistic gel testing of a variety of .300 Blackout loads.
Compliance With These Armed Robbers Wasn’t Enough
This Active Self Protection video gives us three examples of when compliance turned out to be the wrong solution in the face of an armed criminal.
Are You Good Enough to Take a Head Shot When Everything is On the Line?
After last week’s terrorist attacks in Belgium, Jeff Gonzales asks if your training is good enough to prevail in the worst case scenario.
Shooting down Black Gun Ownership Myths: #2 I don’t Want to do Something Stupid
Last week I posted an article from Daddy’s Gun covering myths in the black community that keep people from purchasing firearms. Here is the second myth.
“Having a gun won’t make you do stupid things. You won’t instantly become that guy. If you do decide to strap explosives to something and shoot it real good, I’m calling you out. You were stupid long before you bought a gun.”
Everyone calm down about the cell phone gun
I’ve already been asked questions by a couple different people about the new “cell phone gun.” Here is a good take on the issue. I think Caleb is correct in his prediction.
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* Some of the above links (from Amazon.com) are affiliate links. If you purchase these items, I get a small percentage of the selling price.
