Self-Defense

Team Smith & Wesson’s Trevor Baucom: Go Big or Go Home!

May 14, 2013 By Tom Leave a Comment

If you’re thinking about getting into competitive shooting, you could always start small, maybe with a local club match. Of you could just go and enter the most challenging competition there is – the Bianchi Cup. That’s what Team Smith & Wesson’s Trevor Baucom did. Oh, and he did it from a wheelchair. You see, Trevor is a medically retired Chief Warrant Officer and Blackhawk Pilot who was paralyzed in a crash during a night assault mission in Afghanistan. Now, as a sponsored competitive shooter, he’s opening doors to the shooting sports for lots of folks.

We caught up with Team Smith & Wesson’s Trevor Baucom at SHOT Show 2013.

We had a lot of fun talking with Trevor Baucom. Here’s what we learned…

My Gun Culture: So Trevor, if we have our facts straight, you’re a relatively new addition to Team Smith & Wesson. Didn’t you join the team sometime in mid-2011?

Trevor Baucom: That’s right, I was formally introduced as a team member at the NRA Annual Meeting in 2011 in Pittsburgh.

MGC: Now for the interesting part – was your first major competition really the The 2011 Bianchi Cup National Championship?

Trevor: Well no, not really. Bianchi was my FIRST shooting competition PERIOD! I had shot plenty just playing around, but never anything in terms of serious competition. After a couple of months of training, Bianchi was the first match I ever shot!

MGC: Ummm, that’s kind of like learning how to read by picking up a copy of War and Peace isn’t it? For those who aren’t familiar, the Bianchi Cup is the most brutal test of handgun shooting skill.

Trevor: It’s all about accuracy. Meaning out to 50 yards with a handgun kind of accuracy.

MGC: So were you completely high on drugs to venture into competitive shooting this way?

Trevor: Nah… That was the first one and I kind of think “Go big or go home!” I had a blast and it was really fun.

MGC: So how did you do?

Trevor: Well, I didn’t come close to winning. Doug Koenig has nothing to fear from me! I’ll improve on it as I go. My goal is always to outdo myself every year. Hey I didn’t come in last place either…

MGC: How did the whole Smith & Wesson thing come about? Tell us about the chain of events that got you here.

Trevor: I had just gotten out of the hospital and was going to outpatient rehab. I was in and out of the rehab facility and I saw this car with GUNS-TV on the license plate and I thought “That’s pretty cool.” Then I saw a 2^nd Ranger Battalion license plate on the front of the car. And I did my first five years in the Army in the 1^st Ranger Battalion so I go out there one day and see a bunch of guys talking by that car. So I went over and asked who the Ranger was. The guy answered that it was actually his son, and it turned out the guy was Jim Scoutten, host of Shooting USA. Anyway, over the next week or so, we talked more and one thing led to another. He introduced me to the folks at Smith & Wesson and here we are.

MGC: Now you also shoot Steel Challenge right?

Trevor: Yes sir!

MGC: How’s that going for you?

Trevor: It’s a blast, I love Steel Challenge. I did the World Shoot the past couple of years. I’ve been improving my times year over year and did the Nationals this year.

MGC: We also heard that you’re starting into 3 Gun competition as well?

Trevor: I am. I am shooting the AR15.com match in July at Rock Castle. That’s going to be my first major 3 Gun match. Ithaca Gun Company has sponsored me. They don’t offer a semi-auto shotgun, so I have to shoot the Heavy Metal class. So I’m going hard core!

MGC: Let’s talk about your competition guns. For Bianchi and Steel Challenge what are you using?

Trevor: I’m shooting the Smith & Wesson M&P Pro Series with a 5 inch barrel. I’ve got a production version and an Open Class M&P that Apex Tactical has fixed up for me. For Steel Nationals, I’m going to shoot the new Smith & Wesson M&P Core. For 3 Gun I’ll be shooting a Smith & Wesson M&P AR, probably the 300 Whisper. So I’ll still be shooting the .30 caliber for Heavy Metal, but with a little less pop. Then I’ll use one of the Smith & Wesson M&P Core’s in .45 ACP for the pistol and of course an Ithaca Model 37 pump shotgun.

MGC: So with all that, you’ll leave Rock Castle with a nice, sore, shoulder…

Trevor: Nah, it’s alright. They hooked me up with a really nice recoil reducer. It has a strut inside that soaks up a lot of the recoil. I did a charity trap shoot with it a couple weeks ago and it was fine.

MGC: Let’s talk about hunting. You live in Tennessee right? Lot’s of hunting opportunities there, so what do you enjoy?

Trevor: There’s lot’s of hunting and fishing. I hunt deer, turkey, and HAVA (Honored American Veterans Afield) is working on getting me out for an elk hunt too.

MGC: So how was your deer season this year?

Trevor: I didn’t get out very much at all. But, my oldest son got his first deer. It ended up being a management buck, but it was bigger than the 10 pointer it was hanging next to in the freezer. So while it was a management buck, it was a big one. So that was the only one we got this year as we just didn’t get out enough. Turkey season is great because I don’t have to go anywhere. The farmer behind us has given us free rein to hunt 300 acres for Turkey. So as long as I don’t shoot his cows, I’m OK!

MGC: No worries, I’m sure the Bianchi Cup stuff has got your accuracy all set. So, since you’re an Army Ranger veteran and probably expert on this topic, you can settle a long-standing debate. My wife and I have been arguing over the best home-defense gun. I think it’s an MK19 Automatic Grenade Launcher, but she’s worried about the blast radius and collateral damage. What say you? Settle this for us, please.

Trevor: I got this. I coach soccer, and one of the soccer parents asked me about home-defense a couple of weeks ago. Her husband is deployed and there is a lot of construction where she lives, so there are lots of strangers coming and going at weird times. She went shopping for pistols and couldn’t figure out what she needed. I told her, look, we’ll get you a pump shotgun. First of all, the noise is going to scare the hell out of anybody. If someone tries to break in, take your boys into the bedroom, and if someone tries to come in, shoot them right in the junk! He’s not gonna mess with you any more! So that’s where I’m at. Load it with light bird shot – you don’t have to have anything heavy. It’s not gonna go through walls. If you hit him below the belt, he’s going to stop. And a pump shotgun has follow-up rounds if you need them. A shotgun is harder to miss with than a pistol and it’s not going to go through walls and such.

MGC: Remind me never to break into your house… So what’s your schedule for the year looking like?

Trevor: I’m competing about once a month on average. What I really love is doing HAVA shoots. I love going HAVA because you’ll get guys out there and see a 180 degree attitude change. We had a quadriplegic who hadn’t been able to get out. We set him up with a friend operating the stick because he can’t move anything. They had the sip and puff trigger where you blow into it and it shoots the gun. That guy went from not saying a word to anyone and moping to having a huge smile after the second round. He was happy, having fun, and talking to everybody. That’s why I love HAVA. You get the wives and kids out there. They teach everyone gun safety first and get them shooting. It’s a great organization.

We’d like to thank Trevor Baucom and Team Smith & Wesson for helping us get Trevor’s story out there. If you haven’t tried competitive shooting, you now have no excuse! No need to start with the Bianchi Cup though. You can leave that to Trevor.

Filed Under: People Tagged With: Bianchi Cup, Club Match, competitive shooting, home defense, hunting, interviews, military, Self-Defense, Shooting Competitions, SHOT Show, smith & wesson, Trevor, Trevor Baucom

An Elegant Ladies Gun Holster: The Looper Marilyn

May 13, 2013 By Tom Leave a Comment

Here’s a gun holster specifically for the ladies. It’s featured in my most recent book, The Insanely Practical Guide to Gun Holsters.

When you’re going to dress like a movie star, you ought to have a holster named after one.

The Marilyn is designed for access from the top, rather than the bottom like the Flashbang. So those long, flowy evening gowns are appropriate carry garments after all!

The Looper Marilyn uses both a strap and clip to mount to the bra.

It’s a little bit like a shoulder holster in that it rides underneath your arm. The difference is that it’s designed to be worn attached to the bra, but on the side. Access is through the collar, so The Marilyn is best when worn with scoop or v-neck tops or dresses. You need a little room in the collar to be able to quickly access your gun.

The Looper Marilyn mounts like this.

Like the Flashbang, the holster pocket is made from Kydex and relies on a pressure mount. Pull the gun outward to release it from the tension grip of the holster.

The Marilyn is available for a wide variety of .32, .380 ACP, 9mm, and .38 Special handguns. Think of models in the size range of the Beretta Nano, Kahr models, Ruger LC9 and LCP, Kimber Solo, Sig P238, Smith & Wesson Bodyguard, Smith & Wesson Shield and Walther PPK. Plenty of other models are available so check with Looper Brand for the latest list.

The Marilyn is a great option for longer dresses and sports bras. Whether going for a jog or a night on the town, The Marilyn will make you feel like a well-protected star.

Filed Under: Holster Reviews, Reviews Tagged With: concealed carry, Elegant Ladies, flashbang, Gun Holster, gun holsters, gun holsters for women, guns, holsters, Insanely Practical Guide to Gun Holsters, insanely practical guides, Ladies Guns, ladies holsters, looper brand, looper holsters, Self-Defense, Shoulder Holsters, the marilyn, Women Shooters

El Paso Saddlery Pocket Max Gun Holster

May 7, 2013 By Tom Leave a Comment

Here’s another fine holster featured in The Insanely Practical Guide to Gun Holsters…

El Paso makes an excellent pocket holster. Here’s why.

A pair of El Paso Pocket Max Holsters. Note the points that help the holster stay in your pocket during the draw.

The El Paso Pocket Max is constructed from horsehide, which tends to be stronger and more rigid than cowhide. It uses an inside-out construction so the rough side of the leather “grips” the interior of your pocket. This helps ensure that the holster stays in the pocket when you draw the gun. Not only is pulling a holstered gun out of your pocket less intimidating to most experience street thugs, it can be downright embarrassing. Talk about a total loss of street cred…

Another unique feature about the El Paso Pocket Max is the pointy leather tip at the very top edge of the holster. El Paso calls this the “grip tip” but that’s just a complex engineering term for “pointy thing.” The grip tip has an important purpose. It tends to catch on the inside fabric of your pocket when you pull the gun and holster upwards. This is a second feature (in addition to the roughed up surface) to help ensure that your holster stays in your pocket, where it belongs, as you draw your gun.

One last thing that we really like about the El Paso Pocket Max is the design of what you might call a stability flap. Note the “wing” that extends from underneath the barrel position. It’s made from a double layer of horsehide and helps to keep the gun in the proper upright position. This is particularly important for semi-auto pocket pistols where there is a lot of weight riding up high in the grip of the gun in the loaded magazine. With less sturdy pocket holster designs, this can allow your gun to torque, twist and turn while you’re going about your daily activities. Next thing you know, your pocket gun is completely upside down just when you need it most. The leather “wing” tends to keep things oriented in the proper direction — upright.

We highly recommend the Pocket Max. It’s functional, durable and reasonably priced for what you get.

The Insanely Practical Guide to Gun Holsters – Now available at Amazon.com

Filed Under: Holster Reviews, Reviews Tagged With: ccw, concealed carry, El Paso, el paso saddlery, Gun Holster, gun holsters, Guns And Holsters, holsters, Insanely Practical Guide to Gun Holsters, insanely practical guides, Pocket, pocket holster, Pocket Holsters, Self-Defense

You Don’t Have To Aim A Shotgun

May 6, 2013 By Tom 1 Comment

Fact or Fiction? You Don’t have to aim a shotgun!

Not many people know this, but shotguns were invented by actor Val Kilmer for use in the movie Tombstone. Kilmer needed a weapon capable of taking out a whole posse of Clantons and McLaurys – without much aiming. Hence the invention of a weapon capable of being fired from the hip, while giving the camera a sexy look.

A lot of people believe shotguns are great home defense guns, and easy to use, because you don’t really have to aim. If you just point one in the general direction and fire, it will clean house so to speak. Right?

Well, in The Terminator movie franchise, that’s how they work. In the real world, shotguns need a little more skill in order to be effective.

Just because a shotgun fires multiple projectiles – BB’s, pellets, buckshot or whatever you want to call them – that doesn’t mean that the shot spreads out like a giant cloud of locust intent on devouring a field of ripe Okinawan Purple Sweet Potatoes. It’s important to remember that the shot leaves the barrel of your shotgun in a “cloud” exactly the diameter of your barrel. That’s a pretty small cloud. To put it in absolute terms, the shot “cloud” leaving a 12 gauge shotgun measures just about ¾ of an inch in diameter.

While it’s true that shot projectiles spread out more the farther they travel from the barrel, they typically stay in a pretty tight pattern at realistic distances. That’s what that shotgun barrel does after all – keep the shot all together while it launches towards the target. If we’re talking self defense, a realistic distance is some fraction of the interior of your house – like across a room or down the hall.

Let’s take a quick look at a couple of range tests to see exactly how much the shot spreads out at realistic “inside your home” distances.

First, we’ll try buckshot. Buckshot loads contain a small number of very large pellets. In the first example, we’re using 00 (double ought) buckshot shells, which have 9 pellets that measure just about ⅓ inch in diameter. Typically, buckshot loads like this one will only create a “cloud” a few inches in diameter at short distances.

This 12 gauge buckshot load (9 pellets) was fired at the target from an “inside the home” distance of 18 feet.

If you choose to use shotshells with a smaller pellet size, the cloud of short will typically spread out a little bit faster. Even still, at short distances, we’re still talking a few inches.

Let’s take a look at Number 1 size shot pellets. Number 1 size pellets are about .16” in diameter, or about half the size of the 00 buckshot we tested. The Remington shotshells we tested contain about 125 of the Number 1 pellets per shell.

This Number 1 shot stayed in a pattern about 6″ in diameter at a distance of 18 feet.

Finally, we tried really small birdshot – Number 7 ½. These shells have pellets that are only 0.095” in diameter and these particular 7/8 ounce shells have about 306 pellets. As you can see, this very small shot spreads out even more, but still, at a distance of 18 feet, the pattern still falls within 8 inches with most of the density within a 3 inch circle.

The Number 7 1/2 shot spread out to 6 inches, but most of the pellets fit in a 3 inch circle.

The shotgun we used for these simple tests was a Mossberg JM Pro. It has a butt stock that’s just about 12” long. So if you held it like a club and tried to whack someone with it, you’d have to aim less than if you fired it.

The bottom line?

You still have to aim a shotgun.

Filed Under: Home Defense, Shooting Tips Tagged With: Aim, Ammo Tests, buckshot, Combat Shotgun, home defense, mossberg, Pellet, Riot Shotgun, Self-Defense, shooting tips, Shotgun, shotguns, shotshell, tips, Val Kilmer

Even A Fart Has Benefits: Dealing With Gun Control Arguments

April 24, 2013 By Tom Leave a Comment

Now that civil debate has gone the way of Sony Walkman cassette players, just remember this:

Even a fart has benefits.

In fact, it’s hard to imagine something that has no benefit whatsoever. Mosquitos? Yeah, they’re part of the food chain and they keep the OFF! Deep Woods people employed. Former Congressman Anthony Weiner? Why he singlehandedly made Twitter interesting for at least a month. And apparently he’s going to be the gift that keeps on giving now that he wants to run for Mayor of New York.

For the past several weeks, the hysteria over gun control has exceeded that of the first nine rows of floor seats at a Justin Bieber concert. And its only going to get worse as Congress has (at least temporarily) shelved Hypocrite of Epic Proportion Feinstein’s new gun and magazine ban legislation.

You’ll continue to hear “common sense” arguments, mostly from Piers Morgan, but also from some of the other Mouseketeers on NBC, CBS, ABC, FOX, and CNN.

What you won’t hear, however, is the other side of these “common sense” arguments. After all, someone smart and famous, like New Boy King Bloomberg once said something like “every action has a reaction.” Or maybe it was Bill Nye the Science Guy. In any case, things tend to have two sides. Arguments, decisions, discussions, 45 single records and of course, politicians.

In other words, every decision has pros and cons to consider. Drawbacks and benefits.

LIke a 45 record (for those of you younger folks, 45 records are kind of like harpsichords) every “common sense” gun control talking point has two sides.

Side A: If a gun control measure can save just one life, isn’t it worth it?

Side B: What if some measure saves one life, but results in thousands more being lost? Oh never mind, that’s not a “what if” question. Somewhere north of one million people per year use guns to protect themselves from a violent crime.

Side A: Guns killed (fill in the number of your choice) people last year!

Side B: Yeah, but most of them were bad. In fact, numerous studies find that upwards of 75% of gun related murder victims have previous criminal records. Perhaps that ought to be factored into the debate? You can also factor in the previous discussion point here. How many people were saved by using a gun last year?

Side A: Guns only have one purpose! To kill people!

Side B: Seriously? Well it’s good to know that police carry guns for the sole purpose of killing people! Obviously this is not the case. But just for discussion’s sake, let’s suppose that’s true. Isn’t it intellectually dishonest to assume that a gun’s only purpose if to kill innocent people? Do you not consider the scenario of a gun killing someone who is trying to kill an innocent person?

Side A: You want teachers to be able to carry a guns? What if one goes off???

Side B: Guess what? When teachers with concealed carry permits are disarmed at the front door, bad things DO happen. Can we have a rational discussion that considers evidence of “accidents” or concealed carry permitees suddenly going crazy versus documented uses that stop violent attacks?

We could go on all day about gun control arguments. The important thing is to insist on considering all sides of an issue before forming opinion, and especially policy.

Because everything has at least one benefit.

Even a fart.

Filed Under: Life, Politics Tagged With: Anthony Weiner, ccw, concealed carry, Fart, gun control, Gun Control Debate, Justin Bieber, politics, right to keep and bear arms, Second Amendment, Self-Defense, Sony Walkman Cassette Player, The Gun Control Debate, Walkman Cassette Player

Half-Cocked: Off-Body Concealed Carry…

April 3, 2013 By Tom Leave a Comment

Learn about all sorts of off-body concealed carry methods in our new book – The Insanely Practical Guide to Gun Holsters!

Filed Under: Half-Cocked Tagged With: Body, concealed carry, Concealed Carry Methods, Gun Holster, gun holsters, half-cocked, holsters, insanely practical guides, new products, off body concealed carry, Self-Defense

The Real Story Behind The Invention Of The Flashbang Holster…

March 5, 2013 By Tom 1 Comment

Filed Under: Half-Cocked Tagged With: buyers guide, cartoons, ccw, concealed carry, half-cocked, holsters, reviews, Self-Defense

The Insanely Practical Guide to Gun Holsters – How To Carry A Gun In Your Underwear And More!

March 4, 2013 By Tom 4 Comments

At long last, we’ve just published The Insanely Practical Guide to Gun Holsters! You can keep up to date with our forthcoming series of Insanely Practical Guides at InsanelyPracticalGuides.com.

Here’s the scoop on The Insanely Practical Guide to Gun Holsters:

The Insanely Practical Guide to Gun Holsters – Now available at Amazon.com

Let’s face it. Choosing the best way to carry a gun can be a daunting task. Whether you’re new to guns or have been shooting since you were a wee tot, this book can help you understand concealed carry methods, how to carry a gun safely, and the relative pros and cons of over 120 specific gun holster models. We’ll even teach you several ways to carry a gun in your underwear.

This book will help you make the right gun holster choice – saving you time and money – while offering a dose of humor while you learn.

“Leather sixgun holsters became popular when a series of low budget spaghetti western films are produced like The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly. Early design ideas are scrapped when it is determined that spaghetti does not ride well in leather holsters. And it makes many holsters soggy.”

Why do you need a book to choose and buy a gun holster? A few reasons really.

At last count, there are 4,187,237 different holsters on the market. Well, that might be an estimate, but there are a lot. If you had a dollar for each of those holsters, you could almost cover the Kardashians’ weekly clothing budget. So how do you choose the right holster with all those choices?
Hardly any stores carry a wide selection of holsters. Sure they might carry a couple of brands, but will they have a brand right for you and the model specific to your gun? It’s kind of like trying to find just the right shade of Morning Tropical Ocean Breeze Sunrise interior house paint at your local convenience store. It’s just not likely to happen. And that leaves you the option of having to search and buy from… the internet. And we all know that you can’t always believe everything you read on the internet. Well, except Youtube comments. Those are almost always true and thoughtful.
You can’t really try holsters out before you buy. Especially those underwear holsters. Gun store sales staff tend to get a little cranky when you start shedding clothes next to the ammunition aisle.
There are many different styles of concealed carry. Every day, innovative gun folks are inventing new ways to safely and discreetly carry guns. The variety of options is great, but how do you know which style of carry is right for you?

The editors at MyGunCulture.com have painstakingly documented all the holsters we’ve tried over the years and provided helpful commentary about pros and cons of different holster styles. In other words, we’ve tried just about everything. We’ve had great successes. We’ve experienced colossal failures. We’ve listened to so many gun show huckster sales pitches that the late Billy Mays would be impressed. And the result? The Insanely Practical Guide to Gun Holsters.

“Hugging Aunt Martha can be really weird if you’re not careful. If you carry the gun on one side of your body or the other, you can adjust your hugging style to be more angular. If you carry a gun on one side, and spare magazines on the other, then you have to quickly develop a serious case of Aphenphosmphobia. That’s fear of being touched, which should cover the bases for most hugging encounters.”

The Insanely Practical Guide to Gun Holsters topics Include:

A brief, entertaining and not entirely true history of holsters
Weighing concealment versus accessibility
Open or concealed carry? How to start a good bar fight.
Ladies only gun holster solutions
Belt carry gun holsters – inside, outside and underneath?
Body carry solutions. Undershirts, belly bands and harnesses.
Ankle holsters. You think your ankles were swollen before?
Pocket gun holsters. Don’t worry, we keep things PG rated.
You too can carry a gun in your underwear!
Stashing guns in your clothing. Pants, shirts and jackets.
Off premises parking. Ways to carry a gun not attached to your body.
Home, office and car holster options.
Magazine carriers and pouches. Ways to easily carry spares.

Loaded with pictures and the occasional comedic illustration, The Insanely Practical Guide to Gun Holsters will tell you just about everything you need to know regarding styles of carry and the pros and cons of dozens and dozens of gun holsters from numerous manufacturers.

“As famed concealed carry and armed combat instructor Mayor Michael Bloomberg likes to say, “beware the person who only has one gun, for they likely know how to use it.” Hang on a sec, we may have attributed that quote incorrectly. On second thought, Mayor Bloomberg might have said “beware the person who has a gun, for they scare me to death as I am a panty-waisted, elitist, wimp who relies on others to provide security for me while depriving you little people of your basic rights.” We’ll get that quote straight and report back later.”

Holsters are expensive. And important! The Insanely Practical Guide to Gun Holsters will help you make the right choice for your needs and lifestyle without breaking the bank.

Enjoy!

Remember to keep you with new guides at insanelypracticalguides.com!

Filed Under: Concealed Carry, General Tips, Shooting Tips Tagged With: buyers guide, Carry Gun, Carry Holster, concealed carry, Concealed Carry In The United States, Concealed Carry Methods, Guide To Gun, Gun Holster, gun holsters, gun safes, Holster Model, holsters, insanely practical guides, new products, Pocket Gun Holsters, reviews, Self-Defense

Half-Cocked: Obama Announces New Gun Control Plan In Hometown Chicago

January 1, 2013 By Tom 2 Comments

Filed Under: Half-Cocked Tagged With: assault weapons, cartoons, ccw, concealed carry, crime, gun control, half-cocked, obama, politics, Second Amendment, Self-Defense

A Heart Of Evil Obeys No Laws – Thoughts On Newtown

December 15, 2012 By Tom 2 Comments

Our hearts are broken over yesterday’s tragedy in Newtown, CT. Our prayers go out to the victims, families, staff, friends, and first responders. How a monster can target the most innocent among us is simply beyond sane comprehension.

In the wake of yesterday’s tragic events, Massad Ayoob posted an article entitled “Against Monsters.” It’s a reminder that societal evil has been, and will continue to be, a human problem. Go read it. Now. We’ll wait.

Monsters have always been, and always will be, among us. Anyone remember King Herod?

When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi. Matthew 2:16

The pinnacle of arrogance is to think that a problem so complex as human societal evil has a “simple” hardware solution. Evil is a problem of the heart. Not of laws, devices, or rules. The most egregious acts against humanity show little favoritism of tools when someone is committed to evil. Our recent history demonstrates morbid creativity by monsters. 9/11 (box cutters), Oklahoma City (garden fertilizer), Bath School (fire and bomb), Happy Land Social Club (gasoline). Just yesterday – yes, the exact same day as the Newtown massacre – a monster in the Henan Province of China slashed 22 children with a knife – one of dozens of identical incidents over the past three years.

As I said a moment ago, complex problems don’t have simple solutions. So the point here is that you have to decide whether to acknowledge that evil exists, and prepare, or to bury your head in the sand and hope that someone passes a “feel-good” law to provide some short-lived false sense of security.

Me? The jury came in a long time ago regarding the effectiveness of “feel-good” legislation. I choose to recognize that evil exists in the world and to prepare accordingly. The root source of monstrous acts is not going away. The monsters’ methods of implementation will vary, as they have since the beginning of time. While we all would like to apply a band-aid and pat ourselves on the back for “fixing it” that’s just a desperate fantasy.

Read. Study. Be alert. Prepare for the unexpected – even for the unimaginable.

Be safe out there people.

Filed Under: Crime, Life, Viewpoint Tagged With: crime, Monster, Newtown, politics, Self-Defense, Tragedy