Doug M.
Member
The first thing to do and teach is awareness. Most people have the situational awareness of a rock. Many are even worse because their face is in their phone, or they wear earbuds (or even worse, the great big headsets). I don't even do that in the gym, and almost ever at home (which is the only place I go that is potentially secure enough for that).
Then - looking at and assessing the situation around you. Is there someone standing around store doorway when the armored trucks pulls up? It's probably someone waiting for their spouse to drive up and get them - but if you assume that, you're an idiot. Work from the position that it is a bad guy, and LEAVE. I have no interest in being around when the truck pulls up to Safeway with the cash, pharmacy delivery, etc. If I am walking the dog and see LE activity, I go a different direction.
One needs to know why one is justified in shooting. Remember that self-defense is preemptive. Observing things consistent with threat behavior is important. Placement is vital. The actual target areas on a human are as point out above, not what is shown on many targets. A horizontal line through the nipples (except on the really saggy) is the bottom; another through the armpits is the top, and basically straight down between the two at or slightly inside the armpits.
Keep yourself in good shape - the ability to perceive, move, and the like is often driven by physical condition. If you are disabled like my wife - plan around that. My eyes suck. I have worn glasses since I was 7. For a long time, with glasses or contacts, I could see well and shoot real well. Now, my eyes do not adjust quickly due to age and developing cataracts. (That surgery is in my future - just had an eye exam.) Day in, day out, I carry a G33 with XS Big Dot sights - I expect most threats to be close and sudden. If I leave town (my usual life is a short commute to/from work, maybe a stop at the PO or store), I carry something with a red dot. I need that to see and shoot at a reasonable speed according to my testing at the range.
A really good shot, young and well trained (shooting is a perishable skill, and accord to USMC research done for Force Recon and others of that ilk, after SEVEN DAYS the loss is obvious) should be able to keep all shots on an index card at 7 or more yards, shooting pretty fast. Someone real good can do that at 25. Not me. I can't see that far.
As a practical matter, if you can hit from the holster one (first) shot on the 3x5 at seven yards on demand, you should be in decent shape. Three shots as fast as you can from the holster should also be on that index card.
There is a lot more than goes into this stuff than simple marksmanship. Tactics matter. If you are getting good hits on demand with a .38 SWC at standard velocity, or good 9mm service ammo, you are probably of adequate skill.
Cops don't have a choice; they generally have to answer up on the call. If they are not taking a rifle to any call when there is a predictor of violence, their training and command personnel suck. Security guards are stuck with their route, but generally are armed only for self-defense.
The rest of us should be trying to be somewhere else when there seems to be excrement headed for the air circulation device.
Then - looking at and assessing the situation around you. Is there someone standing around store doorway when the armored trucks pulls up? It's probably someone waiting for their spouse to drive up and get them - but if you assume that, you're an idiot. Work from the position that it is a bad guy, and LEAVE. I have no interest in being around when the truck pulls up to Safeway with the cash, pharmacy delivery, etc. If I am walking the dog and see LE activity, I go a different direction.
One needs to know why one is justified in shooting. Remember that self-defense is preemptive. Observing things consistent with threat behavior is important. Placement is vital. The actual target areas on a human are as point out above, not what is shown on many targets. A horizontal line through the nipples (except on the really saggy) is the bottom; another through the armpits is the top, and basically straight down between the two at or slightly inside the armpits.
Keep yourself in good shape - the ability to perceive, move, and the like is often driven by physical condition. If you are disabled like my wife - plan around that. My eyes suck. I have worn glasses since I was 7. For a long time, with glasses or contacts, I could see well and shoot real well. Now, my eyes do not adjust quickly due to age and developing cataracts. (That surgery is in my future - just had an eye exam.) Day in, day out, I carry a G33 with XS Big Dot sights - I expect most threats to be close and sudden. If I leave town (my usual life is a short commute to/from work, maybe a stop at the PO or store), I carry something with a red dot. I need that to see and shoot at a reasonable speed according to my testing at the range.
A really good shot, young and well trained (shooting is a perishable skill, and accord to USMC research done for Force Recon and others of that ilk, after SEVEN DAYS the loss is obvious) should be able to keep all shots on an index card at 7 or more yards, shooting pretty fast. Someone real good can do that at 25. Not me. I can't see that far.
As a practical matter, if you can hit from the holster one (first) shot on the 3x5 at seven yards on demand, you should be in decent shape. Three shots as fast as you can from the holster should also be on that index card.
There is a lot more than goes into this stuff than simple marksmanship. Tactics matter. If you are getting good hits on demand with a .38 SWC at standard velocity, or good 9mm service ammo, you are probably of adequate skill.
Cops don't have a choice; they generally have to answer up on the call. If they are not taking a rifle to any call when there is a predictor of violence, their training and command personnel suck. Security guards are stuck with their route, but generally are armed only for self-defense.
The rest of us should be trying to be somewhere else when there seems to be excrement headed for the air circulation device.
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