Again Yoda, there is a complete world of difference between a mobster putting a pistol point blank the side of a man's skull and pulling the trigger, especially considering the mob also used close friends and treachery to kill its own, and defending yourself from an aggressor. Mobsters didn't greet you with a pistol draw from high noon; they met you with a handshake, and killed you when you thought you were out to see your friend for coffee. They didn't choose it because it worked, they chose it because it was cheap and disposable.
Mossad, too, did not use silenced 22's in duels, or fights of any kind whatsoever. Again, it was cold blooded killing of someone who was not defending themselves, sometimes shooting people who did not even see it coming. They did not choose it for terminal ballistics, but rather, again, for disposability, size, and report.
I've shot steers in the head with a .22 rifle. I've snapped the necks of ducks in half with my old .22 rifle back years ago, with old iron sights at some considerable yardage. I've done my fair share with the old cartridge. Its because I've killed a lot with it, I don't trust it. The .22 is only effective in perfect, ambush style situations, where a man has the chance to call his shots perfectly. Its not that the .22 requires good shot placement, in order for it to work, it requires perfect shot placement for quick and effective kills. Steers shot in the head at the wrong angle will only wound them. Larger small game will continue to move wounded, if the shooter is careless enough not to place his shots correctly. Cheap and effective, but also requiring circumstances and shots that are far from the world of combat, at least on a level of consistency that is considered adequate.
I've seen people miss animals at 4 yards distance with a shotgun because they were not used to shooting that close, aimed with the sight, and shot under the animal. I've seen a man who could outshoot me in rifle on the range fail when a racoon at close range ran at him in a bid to escape, and he panicked. Nerve, pressure, time, range, all make a huge difference. I'm a better quick, in the field shooter than many that can outshoot me on a fair day at the range. I've seen people miss shots that they couldn't believe they could miss. Because of these things, I've considered the point of perfect shot placement, in close range, with limited time, and with stresses, to be a dangerous bet. If I can get a good pistolere to jerk a shot because of a 40 lbs. varmint on the farm, what might he do against a large human being assaulting him in a dark city street or parking lot?
You will hear from law enforcement and veterans about trained men breaking under stress. I've seen full grown men who are afraid to stomp on a rat. Even good shooters miss from time to time, as much as we don't like to talk about it. In a less than perfect world, with less than perfect people, and less than perfect shots, I simply won't endorse a caliber I know very well, and requires such close tolerances for shot placement to be effective.
I love my old .22's, both my High Standard pistol and old rifles, all of which I've done very well with. But with time, and the .22 shortage we all suffer, I've relegated all of them to target practice, and switched to pistol carbines for small game hunting for ethical reasons, and full size handguns for self defense for effectiveness. I love and respect the cartridge enough to know its limits.
