7.4 - Ok I will just say what I believe folks need!!

Some folks want to give me a rough time about not just coming out and saying what types of guns I think you need to have. Well there is a reason for this. I want folks to increase their knowledge on the subject by researching things, trying things out and taking responsibility for their choices. Remember a big part of all these conversations if you taking responsibility for you! Ok, here we go......

Well here we are, what do you need for planning when talking about guns! Guess what? You need training! Yeah not what you thought I would write. Here is a link to NRA certified instructors. I happen to be one and think the program gives you a very good BASIC foundation of knowledge. Especially for someone with no or very limited experience with firearms. Of course like anything else, the quality of instruction varies by instructor. 

http://www.nrainstructors.org/Search.aspx 

Follow the link and you can find something in your area. They offer classes from basic pistol, to home defense and even reloading ammo. Again quality may very depending on the instructor. 

Let's cut to point of all this. When we are discussing planning for emergencies and the subject of guns comes up we are only thinking of one reason off the tops of our heads. Protecting the family. Now maybe some of us live in areas where this is not the first concern. Your nearest neighbor is down the road there, about three miles or so, as the crow flies. Groovy, for the rest of us we got people living a stones throw or closer who are the reason we lock our doors at night. Hence protection is the first reason we can think of for owning a firearm. Heck I got a dude across the street I thought I was going to have to shoot a few years back during a normal day. He is on the short list if everything goes to hell!! 

Let's be realistic here, the world is full of bad people, idiots and during some situations people will do things they might not have done during a regular day. We need to take this reality in to consideration when planning for emergencies. To not take this into consideration....... well if you choose not to that is your decision.......

So, what do you need? You need the right tool for the right task. We have already talked about that in other post. Just like in our post about fire starting or other subjects let's try to give ourselves the greatest amount of options with each choice we make when it comes to firearms. 

Before we go any further, I am not going to suggest anything I do not do myself. Unlike some folks I will not sit at the keyboard and suggest things, firearms or otherwise, I do not rely on myself for my own family. 

Revolvers

He is a good place to start. We all need something in the home we can get to if something is happening right now. Revolvers fit this need. They can be left loaded almost indefinitely, their a few moving parts on them and they are simple to use. 

You can easily conceal a revolver and they are easy to transport if you have to leave. In a really bad situation even the worst marksman just has to put the barrel against the bad guy and jerk the hell out of the trigger. A good thing about revolvers is they are not meant to have a bunch of fancy gadgets strapped to them and have no duehickys to confuse anyone in the house on how the operate. Every home should at least have one. Kept in a pistol box, somewhere the kids can't reach.

This would be my baseline for home defense, emergency situations, bugging in (staying home) and bugging out (leaving home). Yes we have one in our house. No I am not telling you where it is. Yes it is in a pistol box. Yes it is where the kids can't get to it. 

Side note on kids and guns. I have two grown children who were around guns all the time but had no idea. It wasn't until recently I told my 20 something son where I kept the guns when he was little. He admitted they knew I had guns but he and his sister had no idea where they were at. Sooooo do not give me an BS about guns are too dangerous to have in the home. The danger comes from having parents who do not know how to handle firearms....................

Pistols 

Next on the list of options are pistols, these are the most common to see. Most people do not own revolvers now days. Modern pistols allow you to carry much more ammunition then a revolver. Why would you want a pistol compared to a revolver? For the reason I just wrote. More is better if you are involved in a self defense situation with firearms! What? Having more rounds increases your chances of stopping the attacker and gaining control of the situation. Also, unlike hollywood shows people do not allows stop when they are shot once and believe this or not, you might miss!!! I know shocking!! 

As we talked about before I personal feel the M-9 or 92f is one of the best pistols for people with little experience or training. WHAT? WHY? Easy one to answer. You have to take the weapon off safe and the first round is double action. What this means is even in the fractions of a second these two things take you have time to decide not to fire a round. They also make it difficult for the firearm to fire when you do not want it to. 

I realize this can get expensive once you start investing in these tools. Every adult in your home should have a pistol. These are tools you keep in the safe for a really bad day. If you carry them otherwise make sure you have the appropriate licenses for your area. 

I wish I could hear they yells when people read this next part!!! My next choice would be a Glock. (oh how the moans and screams feed my soul) Something in 9mm. They are simple, lightweight and have been proven to work. My downside to them is they do not have a safety most people would understand and the whole having to pull the trigger to disassemble the pistol bugs the hell out me each time!! You can adjust the grips and other parts to fit the needs of the user and you can even put all kinds of extra stuff on them if you want. 

  

Try not to get caught up in all the hype of strapping on flashlights, laser beams and super cool sights to your pistols. Sure those things help if you train with them enough. Most of us will not train enough, because we have to work, go to soccer, etc etc, for all these cool add ons to really be of any use to us. 

Whatever you buy try to keep it simple and train with what you buy. It would take me a minute or two to figure out this pistol if I picked it up. Some pistols come with all kinds of levers and buttons I have a hard time figuring out what they are all for! If you have experience with a certain type of pistol stick with those. Remember during a bad day you only rise to the lowest level of your training. Do not set yourself up for failure!

Moving out a bit, increasing the range some, increasing the ability of the tool and giving the user more options we have to move to the shotgun.

If you have no idea about firearms, have a small budget and want a simple yet proven tool to add to your toolbox the Winchester 870 shotgun can not be beat. (if you are yelling about a different type, shhh) These shotguns have been around a long time. They have been used by the military, police, hunters, farmers and grandmothers everywhere. You can defend the family and put meat on the table with this tool. If you can not afford anything else, afford one of these. Every home should have at least one shotgun. Shotguns do not need to have a lot of fancy gadgets on them, they can be fired by anyone in the home, after some very basic training and the types of rounds they can fire are impressive.

Unlike other firearms shotguns have the ability to fire more than one projectile at a time. This means you get a bigger pattern coming out of the barrel and increase your odds of hitting something at the range the rounds are designed for. On the left of the above photo is bird shot, used exactly for what it is called. You can drop birds to put on the table. The rounds on the right can be used for hunting, I have never done it, and for defense. What is called double odd buck "00", will put a hurting on anyone hit within range. A slug round, far right, is only a single round coming out of the barrel but packs a devastating punch. Slugs can go through the door of your house, walls, cars and can really screw up a vehicle engine if they are fired into an engine. (don't ask how I know the last one) Loading a shotgun with buckshot and slugs is a standard loading for self defense.

You can even fire Less Then Lethal rounds just like law enforcement uses. Giving you an option you do not have with other firearms. With a shotgun you can also fire other 'exotic' rounds.

 
Flechette rounds are mostly used for anti personal uses.

"Dragon Breath" rounds fire well, fire out of the barrels. Before you get all excited about the exotic rounds you can fire CHECK THE LOCAL LAWS! In California almost all of the exotic rounds are illegal!

I can tell you first hand the exotic "salt rock" round works really good! Especially when deployed against dumbass kids trespassing. My leg and ass burned soooooo bad I stood crying in the yard while my buddies mom used a hose to get the rocks out. I think she could of got them out faster picking them out but I think she was teaching use a lesson or two.

Even if all you can afford is a single shot 12 gauge you would do good to purchase one. The shotgun is really a kind of all purpose emergency planning tool. Yes they kick. With a little training you can still get everyone in the family to use one. And just to be fair, my shoulder hurts also after a dozen or so rounds.

Long guns, rifles or carbines. Anything you can use to reach out over a hundred yards and hit a target.   They can be the humble bolt action rifle or a lever action as in the picture above. These are just another tool which gives the user a different set of abilities.

With one of these you can put food on the table and defend yourself if need be. The sight of a rifle now days has kind of taken over the place of shotgun for the intimidation factor. Not long ago a shotgun racking was enough to make people run, now days the sight of rifle will make people panic! This could be an asset or cause you more problems than you need.

These fellas were able to defend themselves and their property during a riot. Side Note: having seen these guys first hand I can tell you it was intimidating. They also caught flak during and after the riot because they had the rifles........ welcome to California. Take note those rifles are not the scary black ones but just as effective.

Most of us are never going to be in a situation where we have to kit up like this just to make a run to Starbucks. They need for most of us to purchase these rifles has more to do with training than need. I know lots of folks who were trained on the M-16 or AR-15 platform and are comfortable with the system. Remember stay with what you know if you can.

Of course some people like the "this is cool" effect of having a tool like the military or police have and there is nothing wrong with this. If the tool works for those groups of people why would you not want to use what they have proven to work?

Just do not get caught up thinking because you can carry the gear and dress like the military or police, you have the skill level they have with the tools. Ladies do not get mad, here is a "tacti-cool" fella for you.

It would suck to have to feed this fella during an emergency............... just saying.

Remember, Keep It Simple Stupid, KISS. You do not need to run out and buy the latest gear or the newest gun. You need the kit and tools for the problem you are dealing with or could have to deal with in reality.

The humble M-16A2 and it's grandchildren are all the rage in the news. Every gun fearing person sees them as an enemy of peace, love and happiness. They are just a tool and just like every other tool they have a purpose. Long guns are just that, guns which allow you to send rounds further. You can feed the family and defend yourself with one. They are not as easy to use in confine spaces, buildings, homes or cars. This is why you see shorter versions. You might not want this to be your first line of home defense for this reason. They are hard to use effectively inside of the house. These tools are for use at longer ranges and primarily for hunting. Deer and such do not like to let people walk right up to them and shoot them with a pistol or stab them with a knife. Every home should have at least one rifle. Be it a AR-15 type rifle or a bolt action hunting rifle each person old enough should have a rifle.

Do not think you are doing the "gun thing" wrong if you do not look like this guy. Honestly, he has too much crap on that rifle. You can plan, prepare and utilize firearms as tools without having to break the bank or scaring the family. As with everything we discuss here, tailor your planning to your needs not what someone else is doing. Each of us is unique and we have our own situations. To rap this up, it became longer then I thought it would, here is what you should consider having for emergency planning.

Revolver - home defense, easy to conceal, simple to use. At least one.
Pistol - home defense, primary side arm. At least one, preferable one per adult in home.
Shotgun - home defense, hunting. At least one.
Rifle - home defense, hunting. At least one, preferable one per adult in the home.

Something to think about...........

As Always,

Stay Safe! 

Riots, mass attacks and no law enforcement.....

We talked about civil disturbances awhile back. When we did the post focused on what could be called "run of the mill" disturbances. You know after a sports team wins a game (never understood that) or a single event happens which causes a one time event. Here is a link to the earlier post. review it if you have time.

http://broadheads.blogspot.com/2014/11/civil-disturbance.html 

The earlier post focused on just leaving the area for the most part. Why? Because this is the easiest and simplest action to take in order to ensure you make it home. When the original post was written things seemed to be a bit different then they are now. Recently people have had to deal with situations which are not spontaneous or unorganized.

We are not going to dive into the right or wrong aspect of anything which is going on with this post. Those discussions can take place elsewhere. What we are going to look at is what is going on. Social media is being used by people to organize what they call protest but more and more are likely to turn into acts of violence. We need to have a plan if we are caught up in the violence. Hopefully anyone reading this would not be one of the people committing the violence! Yet we do need to understand we can become caught up in the violence.

Let's just get to the point, most of the violence going on in the U.S. right now, is driven by politics. Folks on both sides are worked up and they just keep having issues. Problem is people are in a place right now they feel their side is justified in committing violence against the other side. (notice I ain't picking a side? Not the point of this!) Only in a few occasions can we really say violence is justified and a disagreement on politics is not one of them!!!! 

Recently people have been planning ahead of time on causing issues during a protest. There are even cases of people using social media in what can only be described as "mob rule" to quickly organize protest and violence. An event takes place recently and people are swarming to protest. Take this incident in California. (I am not judging the Officer one way or the other. This is just an example of what has happen and seems to be happening more.)

http://www.ocweekly.com/news/hundreds-protest-in-anaheim-neighborhood-where-off-duty-lapd-cop-fired-gun-near-teens-7922168 

With in hours a mob formed at the Officers home! Not at City Hall or somewhere else you might expect these kinds of demonstrations to form. This happened in a residential neighborhood. These "protestors" thought it was within their rights to take over the neighborhood. They set up public announcement systems, gave speeches, spray painted slogans on people's houses and destroyed other people's personal property. Why? Because when the village grabs torches and pitchforks they find safety in numbers. Especially if the mob tells them they are justified in what they are doing. 

Imagine you are sitting at home and suddenly the mob shows up at your house because your neighbor has supposedly done something the mob disagrees with. Think it can not happen? It did in this neighborhood.

Officers had to surround the house in this neighborhood after the "protesters" decided it was a good idea to seek revenge by throwing rocks through the homes windows and vandalizing the cars parked in front of the home. Sad part is they had the wrong house at first and vandalized the home of a person not involved in the original situation. 

Organizers had to tell the mob they had the wrong house.......... 

This fella set up a PA system and started pumping the mob up. When he was asked about the wrong house being targeted and the violence he was not really too upset about innocent people having property damage or their rights violated. To him the actions were not what they were supposedly there for but he seemed to be okey dokey with what happen......

This incident is just a small scale example which seems to be taking place nation wide. Giving rise to the odds of one of us being caught up in a situation like this through no action of our own. 

When the mob rules you must be prepared for a situation where the police are not going to be in position to help you. Why? Because in most cases the police are outnumbered. Recently the police have been officially and unofficially told to allow the protest to take place. The reasons for which are better addressed else where. The point is you have to take charge of yourself and those you care about. 

In the U.S. we have a special ability to gather and protest what we dislike. No really my fellow Americans in other countries people can not assembly as we can here........ Nothing wrong with joining a protest, march or gathering to voice your ideas with like minded folks. 

When people start expressing the need to turn to violence you might want to start thinking about distancing yourself from the event. Do not allow yourself to become part of the mob! Remember the people you see as the "enemy" have rights also. Those stores people break into are owned by people who have rights. People traveling have a right to not be stopped. At no point do you have a right to attack others because they do not believe or see the world the same way you do! NO! You can not call them a name and then use that as an excuse to attack them, regardless of how much you dislike them. Period! 

We want others to treat us the way we would like to be treated. Remember they have rights and every action has a reaction. 

When the situation has deteriorated to this the time to go has already passed and you are behind the power curve. 

When something like this happens you know it is time to go. 

If you wait till this part...... well we need to discuss your decision making skills. No matter how fun, exciting or exhilarating you find the situation just leave if any violence begins or Law Enforcement says it is time to go. 

And if these........ (can't say anything nice about them) show up it is a really good idea to leave. Why? They are the embodiment of mob mentality and a crystal clear indication the event is going to turn violent. Why? Because that is the only reason these (insert insult) are there. Here is an example of what we are discussing. The report covers the violence, lack of police response and the need of folks to look after themselves.

Here is another incident.

Why do I think it is important to show some of these videos? Because we should look at what is happening with the best aids we can. Nothing better than seeing with your own eyes what is going on.

We could spend a lot of time talking about the effects of mob mentality but that would take to long on here. Let's move past just not being there or leaving at the first sign of trouble. The next thing we should consider is the 'pack mentality' of a mob or any predatory animal.

What? Are you calling these protesters predatory animals?

Yes. Look at their behavior, not the cause they claim to be supporting. Look how they act, maneuver and attack the prey. You do not see to many stand up fist fights going on do you? You do see people attacking others from behind the cover of the mob, from the back and ambushing their victims. The same way animals attack their prey. Never seen a lion just walk up to a gazelle and kill it. No they attack from a position of advantage. They attack from ambush. They attack in groups.

Watch they way these wild dogs attack these hyena. They use the cover of the mob. They attack from behind. They try to ambush their prey from the sides.

Now watch the videos of the violent protesters. Drop all the other labels you might want to put on the people involved, nobody is talking about who is right or wrong. We are discussing behavior of the group or the behavior of the mob.

People will chase you if you give them your back. This behavior is somehow embedded in our wiring. Somewhere in our brains lay the ideas the animals still use to survive. Given the right circumstances we let these instincts take over.

Notice in this picture how everyone chasing this guy is angling to attack him from behind? No? Draw some lines to the prey and you can see where each of the predators are planning on attacking. In most cases turning your back to an attacker, group or mob is a bad idea! Everyone wants to increase their odds of surviving the attack, even the attacker. The predator tries to attack from the most advantage position. Attacking from the rear or sides gives the attacker the best position to attack from because the preys weapons (hands, feet, claws, teeth) are pointed away from the predator. Attacking in a group spreads out the chances of one predator being injured.

Now watch the video again. This time take a moment to see how the hyena are attacking, we will wait..................... 🙂🙂🙂............ Ok now think how the hyena counter the attacks. You might want to watch the video again. No you should watch the video again, I insist. But this time pay close attention to the tactics used by the hyena to survive. Remember these creatures are not playing, they are not passing out what they consider "justice", they are engaged in a life and death struggle. The same as you are when cornered like these creatures. Think not? You could easily be killed, maimed or sustain permanent injuries in one of these encounters.

What was the first thing the hyena did? They got out of the ambush zone. They fled while trying not to give their backs to their attackers. Notice the dogs came at them every time they had a shot at the hyenas backs. If you are caught in this type of situation movement and not giving your back to the attackers is vitally important to you making it home. When confronted with the preys weapons the predators hesitate and give the hyenas time to move.

Using the terrain is the next thing you see the hyenas utilize. They find some piece of terrain which protects them from an attack coming from behind them. The bush also helps to funnel the dogs to the front, where the hyenas can use their tools.

Notice the hyenas use the bush and go back to back. This cuts down greatly on the area one hyena has to protect. See how they are working together to defend each other. Even given their limited numbers they have taken a tactical superior position to that of their attackers. They in effect have 360 degree coverage even if each of them is only physically having to watch what 30 degrees? Limiting the area they have to watch makes it much easier for them to defend against a numerical superior force. The funneling effect makes it difficult for the attackers to use their larger numbers to attack from multiple angles at the same time.

Why don't the dogs just charge and overwhelm the hyena? Because the dogs realize the hyena will hurt them! They realize there is a chance they could die if they just charge in. Nobody wants to be the one who is hurt or killed when the situation is not just fun and games. You must understand you have to be willing to use violence to defend yourself. When the hyena bite they are not doing it to scare away their attackers. If they could they would hurt, disable, maim or kill their attackers with each bite and the dogs know it. If you are ever in a position like this you have to make the predators understand they will be hurt, disabled, maimed or killed if they attack you! Yes you have to be mentally prepared to kill another person. Only by giving off this 'vibe' will the attackers realize this is not a game. Here is the video again so you do not have to scroll back up if you want to view it again. I suggest you do.

Notice how the dogs try to get the hyenas to come away from their position? Notice how the hyena do not? If you can find a tactical superior position do not get caught up in fighting someone. Do not allow emotions or ego to cause you to give the position up. This what the predators want you to do. They do not want to risk injury, your position gives you to many advantages and they want you to move to a position where they have the advantage. Do not let your ego cause you to give up the position or your emotions to overwhelm you to not be able to do what you need to survie!

See how the dogs become...... I am not sure they feel the same emotions but.... the only word I can think of is bored. They realize they are not going to have an easy victory here. Slowly they start to focus on something else. Which leads to the pack walking away.

The hyenas leave when the threat is a safe distance away. Let me say that again. THE HYENA LEAVE when the threat is a safe distance away. You do not see the hyena trying to run out and regain their manhood by attacking the dogs. You do not see them yapping at the dogs. One of them turns and starts putting space between her/himself and the predators. The video ends before we see the second one go. If it is time to go take all of your group with you at one time.

I did not intend to make this entire post about a group of dogs attacking two hyena yet when I was looking for videos to express the points I am trying to make this one seemed to fit the bill perfectly. There are more actions you can take, more situations or variables which can come into play during an encounter. I wanted to focus on just these ideas with this post.

First thing, do not put yourself in this situation to begin with.
Second, be willing to leave if things start to go south.
Third, if you are caught up and singled out as a target do not turn into helpless prey. Move away while trying to protect your back, turning and running encourages the predator.
Fourth, utilize terrain to slow down, disrupt, protect your back/flanks and to funnel your opposition to your weapons or tools.
Fifth, be willing to hurt others to defend yourself. This does not mean be a loud shit talker. This means let them know by your stance, vibe and actions there will be a price to pay for attacking you.
Sixth, only give up a tactical superior position when the situation has changed to a point where it is safe to do so.
Last one..... DO NOT LET YOUR EGO CAUSE YOU TO CHASE THE PREDATORS ONCE THEY ARE LEAVING!! This means either physically try to chase them or verbally chase them. Do not reengage the predators once they have decided something else is more worth their efforts or more interesting.

More and more often violence is taking place at rallies or gatherings of any kind. Going blindly into the crowd and just having a good time might lead you to being a unwilling victim to someone else's idea of justified violence. I am not saying you shouldn't take part in these gatherings. What I am saying is have situational awareness, be mentally prepared if something happens, take action when you need to and be able to keep your emotions in check to allow you the ability to make positive decisions in the situation you find yourself. Fellas, when things go south check your fucking ego and do what you need to get home!!!

As Aways,

Stay Safe!