Quality journalism…not

There is such a thing as “copycat” crimes and they are documented in a few sources, but even if there isn’t sufficient proof the media is largely to blame does it seem reasonable for them to take a more direct role in responsible journalism. Of course there is, but this is the U.S. media industry who by and large refuse to acknowledge any wrong doing. Instead, they are quick to defend their actions by claiming “journalism”. It is a far stretch to reference anything we see on TV these days as quality journalism, much less responsible journalism and with that being the case what should you do. I believe the media sensationalizes many of these crimes, which would not have the term “high profile” attached to them if it weren’t for their coverage. Coverage necessary to receive to keep ahead of fellow competing news sources in a nonstop bombardment of worthless information.

Transparency that kills

Can we claim the news coverage is really worthless? Honestly, not really and this is where the copycat theme comes into play. It is reasonable to expect the media to overlook the true issue due to the value it plays in supporting their narrative. Instead of reporting on the true source of the issue a fatal combination of despondency, depression, and mental illness they choose to focus on an inanimate object because it supports their narrative. It should be transparent, but many still fail to see the media in their true light.

Moving on to the next tragedy

Some simple protocols to follow would be to ignore the false narrative and focus on the location or situation. Copycat perpetrators will jump at the chance to ride the coat tails of another sensationalized event. In this case, you may want to avoid a movie theater or cinema until the news coverage has lost it’s relevancy. One thing you can count on is the ADHD nature of our country and the media knows it so they will be looking for the next big event or report to help ratings. The negative outcome from this protocol is the affect it may have on seemingly innocent establishments.

“Criminal empowerment zones”

However, are these establishments truly innocent? Just because you hang a “gun free” sign on your entrance and ban the carry of firearms for personal defense does not give you claim to innocence. You are guilty of restricting a fundamental right to life that everyone is entitled to and should exercise on a more regular basis. The whole situation has a one-two combination, the media sensationalize and the establishments create a target rich and defenseless environment. It is not hard to see the temptation by another coward to gain their “5 minutes” of fame and terror.

Vote with your feet

These days is is incumbent on the consumer to make smart choices on where they patronize. Who would have thought part of the choice involved whether your own safety was important or just lip service. You are responsible for your own safety, take it seriously and consider this when you are looking where to spend your money. It may not solve the problem directly, but is it really our problem to solve. Can we solve it indirectly by affecting the businesses, by forcing them to reconsider their “gun free” policy. It is hard to say, but like anything it will not happen overnight.

Avoidance is a solid tactic, it has stood the test of time and here it is equally applicable. Followed closely by an unapologetic approach to your own personal safety.

"The only safety for the conquered is to expect no safety." Virgil, Roman Poet

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The backup scenario

Having written an article already on the gateway gun for many new shooters I was still trying to figure out where it fits with the veteran shooters. My recent experiment focused on using it as a backup gun, which honestly was the second role I believed it could fulfill. After carrying it for about 2 weeks as a backup I have come to conclusion I would rather carry a spare magazine and here is why.

True low profile signature

First off, the Glock 43 I carried was in a weak side appendix holster. If you search the internet you might see a few videos of me working the draw stroke with this configuration. I honestly had nothing bad to say about this setup. My draw stroke par times were close to my other weapon systems so I didn’t see anything glaring there. What I really like about this setup was it allowed me to carry both my primary and backup inside my waistband, which to me keeps to our low profile configuration.

Round count roundup

Previously with my Glock 26 as my backup it was very difficult to do IWB so I ended up running strong side hip for the primary and weak side hip for the backup. It was a good setup, but not the easiest to conceal. Because both my primary and the Glock 43 were IWB it offered improved concealment options. What I didn’t like was how fast I went through the 6 round magazine. In our classes an important drill is breaking from the traditional two round defensive response. Giving students the opportunity to engage the target without a round count is hugely important for realistic applications. I could blaze through the smaller magazine quicker than I thought. Realizing I had no spare magazine for it made me wonder if this was the best choice. So, total round count for both systems was 23 rounds. My par time from last shot fired of my primary to first shot fired of my backup was consistent so I next looked at the alternative.

Spare magazines

I took a hard look at my reload with a full size spare magazine holding 17 rounds. While not as fast as the “New York Reload” it gave me 17 rounds, that is 11 rounds more than the backup system. Yes, I may find myself in a tough situation where I fire the 16 rounds in my primary. Honestly, the 17 round reload was slower than the 6 rounds drawstroke. However, one thing not originally part of my comments was my skill. Shooting the backup on my weak side wasn’t as fast or accurate as shooting my primary off my strong side. One could assume typical engagements at close range would negate the accuracy, but the speed is the one to keep in mind. If I was concerned the backup drawstroke was faster than the spare magazine reload, then I have to give the same attention to my speed on my strong side.

Multiple threats

I’m not opposed to carrying spare ammunition. If I were to carry a spare magazine it would be a full size 17 rounder, which begs the question why carry the backup? In this discovery mode I realized the spare magazine showed more versatility, aside from the combat reload, I had as an option the speed reload or tactical reload. Something I would not have with my backup’s magazine due to compatibility.  The possibility exist I would need to return fire after I run dry. The threat is not neutralized or additional threats come into the equation. It was upon looking at the multiple threat scenario I felt the backup might have a slight edge. If there were several threats all converging on my position and by several I mean like 3-5, I could easily see the backup being quick, but in the end the 17 round magazine and skill won out.

I have gone back to carrying a spare magazine rather than a second gun for now. 33 rounds is still 33 rounds.

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Injured Before the Fight

The last blog on Weak Side Shooting got some good conversation going. The purpose behind these blogs is to be informative and challenge your thinking. The basic question we have to ask at this point is were you carrying the pistol to support weak side shooting. A fair amount of the comments centered around an injury to their strong side before the fight; which prevented them from shooting strong side. The follow up question here is did you still carry on your strong side even though you know you cannot draw as effectively or did you switch to carrying on your weak side.

Think Your Way Through the Problem

Let’s assume a good majority of folks who found themselves injured before the fight opt to carry on their weak side. The biggest piece of advise I have is to practice, practice and practice some more. While it may seem simple on the surface the moment you ramp up with speed you will see all sorts of weird stuff happening, the biggest being awkwardness. There are very few true “ambidextrous” people out there, there are a lot who do well bi-laterally though. Much like shooting on your weak side, you really have to think your way through the drawstroke weak side.

Holster Positioning

Let’s talk positioning; I would recommend you attempt to mirror the method you carry strong side. If you carry on your hip strong side then keep it simple and do the same on your weak side. The primary reason behind this notion is an attempt to milk any sympathetic movements we can while working a technique we seldom practice. While the ultimate goal is concealed carry, begin by drawing from open carry. When you feel you have reached a proficient level that is safe now move to concealed. As you make progress something to keep in mind is your draw stroke must done one handed to clear the cover garment. Add that to your practice when appropriate, but keep in the back of your mind from the beginning.

Injured In the Fight

Next, we want to discuss the worse case; you are injured in the fight. You lost functionality of your strong side before you drew your pistol and now must perform the draw drawstroke from your weak side. Truthfully it will depend on your body type, mobility, the type of holster and location of the holster. You may find this motivation to start that fitness program if you cannot reach behind you to grab the pistol, but let’s assume you can for now. What you may discover is you have a crappy grip. You may have to acquire a “4 finger” grip initially as opposed to the “3 finger” you typically shoot with. If that is the case, press the slide against your hip in what we call the “hip check” to acquire the proper 3 finger firing grip and carry on. In our classes I discourage concealed carry with holsters that have additional forms of retention. If you select your holster correctly security should not be an issue and if you are carrying properly gun grabs should not occur because there is no indication you are carrying a gun to grab in the first place.

Another Holster Position

If you’re thinking that took a long time you are probably right. Coming across the front though may take slightly longer. If you carry strong side hip, you will have a bastard grip and about the only way to remedy that is by shoving the pistol into the holster backwards to acquire your proper firing grip. The alternative is to try to do so against your body which tends to produce some really suspect results. Once in the holster backwards acquire the proper firing grip and carry on. You can see a little reduction in time to target when the holster is at your appendix, but unless you have some crazy joints you are still left with acquiring the firing grip.

Now that you have practiced from open carry on your weak side, the next challenge is concealed.

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A waste of time

Yes, you can state your comments publicly to the ATF before the deadline. However, if you reviewed the 17 page notice you would realize they are going to do whatever the hell they want. Your input is just a means to provide an avenue for the pheasants to vent in a sense. That you somehow feel your comments will have an affect and change their minds. I hope everyone is listening to this next statement because it will be the most important one you hear until the next important statement I make. YOU CANNOT!!! You, we the collective will not change the mind of the ATF no matter how many people respond. Does that mean you do not respond, absolutely not! In fact, please do respond and please consider this before you do respond.

Focus on Congress

The only way we are going to prevent the future ban of ammunition is by changing the law. Right now, the law in question was enacted in 1986 by congress and the language of the law was directed at ammunition “designed” as an armor piercing round. The fact that some rifle ammunition will penetrate armor or steel does not make it an “armor piercing” round. I have used AP rounds on numerous occasions and they have their purpose for sure, but they are a specialty round built from the ground up to penetrate steel/armor. However, the ATF has taken to defining armor piercing on their own and that has the implications of future ammunition being banned that should alarm everyone.

The first step

Now, the title of this article is “Gun Confiscation by Proxy” and I bet you are wondering why. Because quite simply that is exactly what is happening and you better be paying attention. Whether this law or any other law truly becomes law, the mere mention of the ban has already affected everyone. It has already set in motion the gun confiscation wheels.  First off, you have availability. Yes, the M855 may permanently disappear from our world. If that happens, there will be a huge vacuum created that will not get filled. To have that many rounds overnight become illegal will put the whole world on it’s knees regarding availability in a manner of speaking.

Followed by this

The next outcome is the panic buying that will ensue for whatever is left over. The government knows this, they have architected similar strategies in the past. Anytime the government talks about a firearms ban, the first thing that happens if folks go out and purchase everything they can get their hands on. That will create a huge demand, which will then produce outrageous pricing. We have already started to see these practices. Companies who price gouge get a bad rap from the industry, but they are just taking advantage of an opportunity. You don’t have to like it, but it is part of being capitalist, understanding the law of supply and demand. You of course could protest by not buying, but I promise you someone will so then you are just left without ammunition in the end and you sure did show them.

The truth

All roads lead to gun confiscation by proxy. At a certain point when you play this out to it’s logical conclusion you will see how the government has created a fairly clever strategy to enforce gun confiscation. If you have no ammunition then they consider that a win. The important point to consider is if they are successful with this ban I promise you there will be more down the road. Think of this as just a test bed for their future plans and strategy. This is how they are dismantling our way of life, through seemingly insignificant steps that individually are not too distressing, but taken as a whole mean submission. Never forget that is the end game here; submission.

A call to action

Now, what can we do to really make a difference in our future. We must lobby to have the Congress of 2015 fix what the Congress of 1986 broke. Seriously folks, we need to have congress leading the charge here, they need to be the tip of the spear. While I still encourage folks to voice their displeasure to the ATF, I personally feel it is futile. What we should all do is make it very clear to our congress this is nothing more than confiscation and we must put a stop to it once and for all. We must also communicate this to the NRA, that we want them to articulate to congress how we want to see this ban thrown out. One other point to consider is what prompted this action in the first place? Why now? Has there been a significant number of deaths caused by rounds not designed as armor piercing? So far this year on our Texas roads there has been 275 deaths, I don’t see a lot of complaining from the government about all those innocent lives being lost on the roads. Yet, they are quick to snuff out your constitutional rights in an effort to gain control of the public.

Remember folks, the end game has always been the same and that is submission. This is just another form, they are attacking a constitutional right that helps to keep the government in check.

"When government fears the people, there is liberty. When the people fear the government, there is tyranny." Thomas Jefferson 3rd President of the United States

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You know it is coming

A lot of people commented how “dry fire has it’s place”. Yes, it does, but it is not the wonder drug for curing a bad shot disease. There are plenty of reasons why dry fire is good, but there are also some pretty bad ones as well. Stop for a moment to ask yourself why you don’t perform as well when you know there is a round in the chamber. I have watched several folks who go through some of our combination drills where we combine dry fire with live fire in a single evolution. They perform a prescribed number of dry fire repetitions to a prescribed number for live rounds. It is always curious when it comes time to fire the live rounds how the tempo all of a sudden slows down. That is one way of looking at it, or another way is the tempo when dry firing speeds up. Either way you look at it there’s a difference and the question is why? The answer: because you know that now you are firing a live round and there is a consequence attached to it, either you hit or miss. The hit generates praise; the miss promotes criticism.

Pick your poison

Now, some folks didn’t like my empty barbell analogy, which is too bad because in my opinion it perfectly explains the purpose behind dry fire: to rehearse movements without the external load. In this case, the consequence of a hit or miss. So, let’s look at it from another point of view. Have you ever watched a boxer work a heavy bag. It is always impressive to watch, you get a real sense for their speed and power. The heavy bag simulates an opponent in location and weight, but without defenses or offenses to worry about. Imagine that opponent employing defenses and then having to worry about their offense and the situation changes somewhat. Again, some may not like both analogies, but that doesn’t mean they are not a reality.

The talisman

Dry fire is a tool for the toolbox, but one comment we received summed it up well. A lot of instructors use dry fire as a crutch for being the end all be all to correcting shooting errors. Just dry fire more and you will be fine, you will get your hits or it will work itself out. The fact of the matter is dry fire at times does just the opposite: it reinforces the bad habits with several hundred more repetitions. It doesn’t matter if they are live fire or not, the body recognizes it as a rep and strengthening the neural pathways. So before you get all butt-hurt about slaying the sacred cow, recognize there is a very large gap between dry fire and the live fire component. Does it help, yes, does it hurt, yes. What I see all too often is folks who look at dry fire as their talisman -that secret or precious artifact that will bring good fortune to your shooting.

So, if all you have is, “dry fire has it’s place”, then you missed the whole point to the article. It does, but it’s also a big lie when it is purported to be the magic solution to your shooting problems.

"Obey the principles without being bound by them." Bruce Lee, Legend

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Combative Fundamentals

Before you sell the farm and buy every piece of tactical gear you DON’T need, try thinking about the basics, about the things you absolutely need and shouldn’t do without. It’s no secret things are getting worse, not better. I am have more conversations with folks who are considering “preparing for the worse and hoping for the best” and I can’t blame them one bit. We are facing some pretty dire straights right now and if you don’t want to accept it then you will probably be one of the bodies that gets stepped over when things go sideways.

Wake up call

Sounds pretty extreme some might say, but yet we have a clear and present danger knocking at our doors and the government is not doing a damn thing about it. We have senior military leaders long since removed who are relaying their views from the trenches, these people mean business. We have other world leaders who have recognized the danger and actually come forward to address. And yes we have a leader who “doesn’t have a strategy”. Why should that surprise you, he is the most inept president our country has ever seen, Sorry Jimmy Carter you have officially had your “that guy” status revoked (temporarily of course).

There are three things I feel the average person should strongly consider; equipment, training and mobilizing.

No match for a good blaster at your side

Rule number one of a gunfight is to have a gun. I believe that a modern day pistol is no longer enough, you need to have some form of long arm and preferably a rifle. Your pistol is primarily for immediate defensive of life, it buys you time to fight your way back to your rifle. No truer words have been uttered regarding the pistol/rifle relationship. Your pistol should be carried DAILY! You need to get comfortable carrying all the time, in all areas it is legal to carry. PRO TIP: if you cannot carry legally into an establishment you might want to seriously consider not going there. Why would the criminal/terrorist element go someplace where they could meet resistance? That means you will need the supporting equipment to carry daily, holsters, magazine pouches, sturdy belts and so on. I would also encourage you to have plenty of spare magazines and parts. Then stock up on ammunition, there is a point of diminishing returns so if you have to flee the area a huge stockpile isn’t as valuable as a box filled with several hundred rounds preloaded into various magazines. This should be your primary mission, because a gun is better than no gun.

Hollywood called, they want their gear back

Having all the gear is one thing, knowing how to use it is a completely separate issue. I have got to say this, just because you have a DD-214 and a portable tattoo machine doesn’t make you a tactical instructor. We are seeing so many douche bags surface and that is only making things harder for the average person to select quality training resources. My recommendation, go old school. Gunfighting techniques have evolved, but there is no substitute for fundamentals. All the multi-cam and facial hair is only covering up the fact they really don’t have anything to add to the equation. The best thing you can do is find someone who can create a positive learning experience, you know like where you actually learn something like the basics. It doesn’t matter how fast you can preform a magazine reload, what matters is what you do with the first 16 rounds in your magazine. I love drills that have you shooting 2 or 3 rounds then performing a reload. I get it, but why the hell would I shoot 2 or 3 rounds then force a reload. If you are going to be doing a reload it is because you have fired the full load out in rapid succession so if you are so worried about a reload you better be skilled enough to fire those first 16 rounds like a real gunfighter.

Phone tree, seriously

Then there is the lone wolf scenario, remember divided we fall. I feel like it is more than appropriate to get together with other like minded folks to discuss safety plans for the worse case situations. I mean we have school phone trees for a reason. Yes, I know not everyone is going to have the same mindset, but believe it or not more and more people are waking up and realizing they are on their own. There is nothing wrong with gathering for some BBQ and beers to dirt dive a few scenarios. Hell, what if you are out of town when a critical event occurs. It doesn’t have to be a terrorist event, it could be a natural diaster and I’ll bet you would like to know your family has a resource to go to if needed. As far as militias, I will reserve that topic for a later date, but suffice it to say things along our Texas border are extremely serious and those of you in the immediate vicinity need to take serious precautions.

It would bring me no greater joy than to be wrong, to have been the one who cried wolf. Time will tell, but what I do know and what I have said on multiple occasions is fortune favors the bold.

"I tell this story to illustrate the truth of the statement I heard long ago in the Army: Plans are worthless, but planning is everything. There is a very great distinction because when you are planning for an emergency you must start with this one thing: the very definition of "emergency" is that it is unexpected, therefore it is not going to happen the way you are planning." Dwight D. Eisenhower, Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces in Europe and our 34th President

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Safety for all

This is a lot harder to answer than you may think. The first thing you have to consider is the household frequented by small children or teenagers? If it is, even if they are not yours, so think of grandparents, then you will have to take security steps to ensure that inappropriate access is never granted. Not only do you have a moral obligation to ensure a safe environment, you have a legal one in many locations. It is not an easy decision, many folks have a defensive firearm at their home for safety, but the last thing you want is for that to be the cause of a terrible accident or tragedy because of unsafe habits or conditions.

Worse case scenario

Putting aside the “how” for now, let’s talk more about the “where”. Most people will tell me a bedroom for their defensive firearm, but the real question is what are you preparing for? I think a large percentage of incidents families are preparing for is a home invasion. Different from a burglary in that the owners in a burglary are typically not home. A home invasion is conducted specifically because the owners are home. When doing a quick look at some home invasions it is difficult to determine an accurate time for committing this crime, but one thing I did notice is a fair amount happen early to late evening when the family is still up and doing things.

One of one is none

So, will you have time to response to an attempted home invasion with a defensive firearm if it is all the way in the bedroom. Probably not, hell you may not even have time if it were right there by the door in a closet, but it does beg the question about location. One thing to consider is multiple locations for the safe storage of a defensive firearm. Perhaps, a bedroom and front door area location. If you have a split level type home you may also need consider placing one in an upstairs location. The thought of being upstairs when a home invasion occurs and not having access to any tools can be quite scary so think that through.

Defensive firearm defined

The real question is what is the condition of the defensive firearm in the locked storage container? Again, there are so many variables to consider, but one thing you need to realize is if you need to retrieve your defensive firearm it will take some time to defeat the lock. After all, that is why you are using a locked container, to deny access to unwanted individuals. On average it takes me 2-3 seconds to defeat the lock on mine so that needs to be factored in to your thought process. Now, the big question is do you store the defensive firearm with a round chambered and a loaded magazine or an empty chamber and a loaded magazine. Separating the magazine from the firearm in a locked container to me completely defeats the purpose. If you notice in the article I used the term “defensive firearm” if you decide to store the magazine separate, even in the same locked container it is just a firearm. Truthfully when the kids were younger to add a degree of safety we compromised a degree of readiness by going with an empty chamber.

There are no easy answers and you will have to give it some deep thought as to what are your intentions and do your actions best support your intentions. The last thing you want is to try and figure out when it counts.

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Save Their Own Butts

It should come as no surprise how this would work. The criminal element becomes aware the citizen population are armed. They think more about their own lives than committing a crime. It is working and a great example is the city of Detroit. In a time when the city was forced to significantly reduce the police departments budget how does one explain a decline in violent crime. It’s really not that hard to figure out, Detroit Police Chief James Craig went on record to encourage his residents to arm themselves. In a city of 700,000 patrolled by 3,000 sworn officers it’s the right thing to do. No doubt he was criticized. I won’t even bother going into some of them, but the central theme was either the average citizen is not qualified or defending against violence should be left to the police. He was even criticized for suggesting vigilantism. Wow, defending your own life is now being defined as vigilantism.

Leading By Example

The real question I want to pose is why has there been an increase in permit requests? It’s not like all of a sudden Detroit became a violent city. Something I think we can all agree on is how Detroit is either damn close if not the murder capital of the world. That couldn’t be the real reason. It has to be something else. The only thing that makes sense is a public figure, the police chief no less actually took a stand and did the right thing.

Best Intentions

Detroit Police Chief Craig truly cares for his residents. He recognizes despite the honorable service of all law enforcement officers there is the reality. They cannot be every where all the time. We have all heard the phrase, “when seconds counts the police are minutes away.” It really does put things into perspective. Unless the crime was committed in front of police there will be a response time involved. Even the fastest response time will still be minutes away. At some point you will have to take responsibility for your own personal safety and the safety of your family and loved ones. I have the utmost respect for his decision and believe it was a watershed moment for all of us.

Advocates of Self Protection

We are going to see some very troubled times ahead of us, it will get worse before it gets better. It will mean at times you will be on your own. There will be nobody to hold your hand, at the local, state and federal level. It has happened before and it is only a matter of time before it happens again. My hope is the courageous words from Chief Craig, “We’re advocates of self-protection. We want people to be safe” will echo across the country and more people will become self reliant when it comes to their self protection.

Personal responsibility includes personal safety. It’s a difficult choice, but it is the right choice.

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First off, things are incredibly fluid at this moment. Even the state really doesn’t have any idea of how they’re going to do this at this moment. It will take a while for everything to settle down for us to get a clear picture on what the concealed carry landscape will be. I would urge caution with regards to classes that are certifying you for concealed carry in the state of California until things are more firm.

We do have a concealed carry tactics class scheduled for this summer in Los Angeles. However, this class was suggested by several of our students from last year’s classes well before the Circuit Court ruling. This class is specifically designed around the mechanics and techniques for carrying concealed. We will cover general immediate defense of life scenarios, but we will not cover any of the legalities regardless of the state we happen to be teaching. Even in our home state of Texas, we elect not to certify for the concealed handgun licensing program. Instead, we focus again on mechanics and techniques for the art of carrying concealed.

It is our experience that the various concealed carry certification classes throughout the country very and content and competency. Which used to look at these formats as a legal understanding of your rights and the laws. While some certification processes have a shooting proficiency portion, it is not nor should it be looked at as training for concealed carry. While some of the shooting portions are more challenging even the most challenging are not a substitute for quality training.

We had attempted to offer this class in California a few times in the past, but it was hit with much resistance. People’s complaint was that they’ll never use the concealed carry tactics so why bother going to the class for the skill. In our opinion the skill is incredibly important regardless of whether or not you says a concealed handgun license. It was our intention to increase awareness and momentum towards carrying concealed and it starts with carrying concealed within your own home. While you may not legally be able to carry outside of your home concealed, there should be a reason why you could not carry concealed within your own home. It may seem like overkill to some, but if you consider the number of commendations that occur, it might make more sense. It was the springboard to getting more people involved in their own rights within the state.

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discipline and motivation. How discipline is longer-lasting and better for you then motivation or bravado

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