Fundamentals

Well, it's been a long year of training so far! In the last year I've been attending some monthly classes from a local instructor on fundamentals, trained with instructors like Todd Green, shooting low-probability targets on the move, and on the other side, Larry Vickers in a private class, moving through the shoot house in a high-speed, high-stress environment. I've been teaching most weekends until the beginning of the year; I've had less free time with all I've been doing lately. The two things that I've spent the most time on all year are: accuracy and speed.

One thing that defensive pistol students all seem to eventually learn along their journey is that these two factors, speed and accuracy, determine the ultimate skill level of a shooter. Some shooters along their journey buy certain products to help with speed, or develop bad habits along the way that may be quasi-unsafe. Other shooters may develop incredible accuracy with poor stances or grips that don't translate to shooting while moving, or shooting while grappling, etc. The mark of a good student is the ability to master proper fundamentals that correlate with a defensive mindset, work well with what the body does naturally, are very safe, deadly accurate, and can eventually be maneuvered at high-speed.

Quality training CANNOT be replaced! Students who wish to resemble a "good" shooter MUST get quality training.

Here are some drills to test your skills. You should at MINIMUM be able to:

Draw from concealment, fire 5 rounds on a 3x5 card at 3 yards in 5 seconds.

Fire 5 rounds into a 3x5 at 10 yards with no time limit, but with zero misses. You should be able to do this 100% of the time.

Draw from concealment, fire 10 rounds into an 8" circle at 3 yards in 6 seconds.

Fire 5 rounds into an 8" circle at 25 yards with zero misses. No time limit.

Test yourself. If you can do these safely and easily, you should attend advanced courses and continue your training. If you "think you can do these easily, but have not done them, or something that resembles them in the last month" you should attend a basic fundamentals course. If you cannot complete these, you should also attend a basic fundamentals course.

Continue your training! Become the shooter that you wish you were!

My Transformation From Anti-Gun Feminist To Armed Feminist

By
Katherine von Tour
GOA Member
© 1999

Most people who support the Second Amendment have probably wondered at one time or another how to change the thinking of anti-gunners.

Since I was once a staunch gun-control proponent, including being a member of Handgun Control Incorporated (HCI) in the 1970's, but am today a fervent and virtually no-compromise Second Amendment supporter, perhaps the story of my mental shift will be of interest.

When I recall my mindset in the 1960's, when I was in college in Chicago, and in the early 1970's, when I was teaching grade-school in a private school in Pennsylvania, what I remember most is how completely convinced I was that government was the best and ultimate answer to all of society's ills -- war, poverty, crime and injustice.

I was a true Sixties liberal, who protested the Vietnam War, sported a "Question Authority" bumper sticker on my Volvo, who was a charter member of the National Organization for Women (NOW) and a charter subscriber to Ms Magazine.

I voted for George McGovern. I hung out with other earnest liberals, many of whom were also members of NOW. It wasn't that I believed government was perfect - far from it! - but I had blind faith that, with enough effort and money, it could be made so.

My idea of a perfect government was one which had a generous welfare program, free medical care for all, lots of benign and helpful social programs, and government-mandated fairness and equality for all.

I joined NOW because it promised to fight for equality under the law for women; it encouraged women to empower themselves, and to be independent. Since I was a single woman, these all sounded like a sensible ideas to me.

I joined HCI because it had convinced me that guns were a root cause of violence and crime, and that only criminals owned and used them.
The Liberal Years

I had grown up stationed with my family overseas, and had been sent to private boarding school in Honolulu, where my family is from, and then to Chatham Hall, a young ladies' "finishing school" in Virginia.

Most of my life had been protected and privileged; while my family didn't have a lot of money, we somehow gave the illusion that we did, since we lived overseas, complete with servants and first-class travel paid for by my father's company.

I had been raised, as my mother puts it, "to be a lady," and certainly "ladies" in our social circle weren't trained in self-defense, particularly self-defense involving firearms, which, in any case, were completely banned in the countries where we lived.

After graduating from Northwestern, and doing graduate work at Lehigh, I got a job teaching 6th grade at a private day school in Pennsylvania, where I stayed for 10 years, during which time I was an earnest and unwavering liberal.

It was during this time that I joined HCI and NOW, and crusaded loudly and vociferously against "violence," "intolerance" and "unfairness."
The "Bubble" Bursts

After ten years of teaching, I was still making very little money, and had burned out. I decided to move back to Hawaii, which was my home, and where my parents had retired after 25 years of being stationed overseas, and purchase a franchise of a skin-care and cosmetic business, whose products were sold through home shows.

I spent five ghastly years in Honolulu, struggling to run a business in a government climate which was as socialistic and larded with welfare and social programs as any I had previously worked towards; those five years were the undoing of my liberalism.

I tried in vain to recruit women who were on welfare to work to do home shows and make money by being independent, but I could in no way compete with the obscenely generous welfare benefits they were receiving for staying home and doing nothing, except in many cases growing pakalolo, (marijuana) which they had plenty of time to do, since all of their needs were more than being met by the state.

The Hawaii State Labor board delivered the final death blow to my business by declaring that all of the independent contractors who worked for my company - and whom I could hardly convince to work at all - were to be classified as "employees," and that I had to pay unemployment, workers' compensation and health care for them.

The government cared not a whit that there was no money in my company to fund this state-mandated largess. I was forced to close down the business, to file bankruptcy, and I moved back to the Mainland, my formerly liberal tail between my legs, a newly-hatched libertarian conservative.

I no longer saw government as the solution to social problems. It certainly hadn't solved mine, nor had it encouraged my trying to create jobs for the people of Hawaii, jobs which they didn't want to do because it was too much work, even though the Honolulu Star Bulletin was filled almost every week with whining letters from people complaining that there were no jobs to be had, and imploring the government to "create" more jobs.

With the fervor and passion I had previously reserved for trying to get the government to expand its powers and programs, I began to read the writings of conservative and libertarian authors -- Bastiat, Hayek, Thomas Sowell and others. I also plunged into the writings of the founders of America - Jefferson, Franklin, Madison, Paine, George Mason.

I started meeting people who had also been abused by government agencies - the police, Customs, DEA, IRS and others. I started hearing stories of people having property seized without due process, and of people calling 911 and not having the police not show up in time.

But the pivotal turning point for me was the Los Angeles riots.
Armed in L.A.; guns save lives

I was living in Orange County at the time, but had to go up to LA regularly on business. At that time there had been a rash of violent car-jackings, many of them committed against women who were driving alone.

A friend, who knew a great deal about guns and had grown up around them, told me that, because I was a woman living and driving alone, he wanted me to start carrying a pistol in my car.

He lent me a .38 Special, and showed me how to load, unload and fire it.

One day, just before the riots exploded, I was driving in downtown LA in a scary part of town. It was dusk. As I was stopped at a stop-light, with one car in front of me, two men who had been watching me began quickly and menacingly approaching my car from the sidewalk. One of them was carrying a tire iron.

I grabbed the pistol, which I had laid on the seat beside me, and held it up so they could see it.

The look in their eyes changed in an instant from threatening to fearful, and they immediately turned around and ran in the opposite direction. The light changed. I drove away.

No one was hurt, but a gun in my formerly liberal hand had, I believe, probably saved my life, or at least prevented me from likely injury.
L.A. Riots turn anti-gun advocates into pro-gun supporters

Within a week, the very street where this incident happened had erupted in rioting, looting and killing.

I watched on television as the Korean grocers defended their property with AK-47's and AR-15's, and thus prevented it from being torched and looted. The police couldn't stop the violence and killing.

I had friends who worked in the garment district in LA who barely made it out alive, and who told tales of pulling out pistols and having would-be attackers turn tail and run away.

Guns were saving lives and property.

As the riots threatened to spill over into Beverly Hills, myriad Hollywood types stormed gun stores to arm themselves, only to be told that there was a 15-day waiting period; radio talk shows boiled with people calling in and screaming about how unfair this was, and how the law was leaving them helpless.

Some of them even admitted that they had previously supported the waiting period, and that they were now furious that it had left them unarmed.
Coming full circle: From HCI to GOA

My transformation was complete. I joined the National Rifle Association (I didn't know about Gun Owners of America or Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership yet) and started reading their literature. I bought and read "Armed and Female" by Paxton Quigley - another ex-gun-control woman.

I fell in love with and married the friend who had lent me the .38 Special, and started learning in earnest about guns and how to use them. We joined GOA and JPFO.

And the National Organization for Women? Here's the thing that makes me crazy about an organization ostensibly dedicated to the empowerment of women - NOW is uncompromisingly and adamantly anti-gun, including urging all women to disarm themselves, and supporting legislation to force their disarmament.

The incongruity and hypocrisy of this stance is simply stunning. How can such an organization claim to be "for women?" In my experience as a single woman, there is nothing more effective than a gun for protection.

In my experience as a married woman, when my husband can't be there to pull out a firearm to protect us and our home, he has made sure that I can do so. What could be more empowering and independent and equalizing for a woman than that?

And what could be more threatening to women than women like Sarah Brady, Barbara Boxer, Diane Feinstein, Carolyn McCarthy and Barbra Streisand who, while beating the drum for "women's rights" are attempting to disarm women as well as men, and leave them at the mercy of criminals? I still believe fervently in the original NOW position supporting the empowerment of women.

And I believe that the most effective thing any woman can do to empower herself is to acquire and learn to use a gun, and to become vocal and aggressive in defending gun rights and the Second Amendment.

When I look back on my mindset when I supported gun control, I see that I was naïve, idealistic and swayed by irrational, baseless propaganda, especially the absurd myth that, by disarming law-abiding citizens, society will be made safer.

There is absolutely no hard evidence to support this. Criminals by definition disregard laws, especially gun control laws. In Australia, which has disarmed its population, it is reported that violent home invasions have increased in some areas by 44%. Rapes and murders have also increased substantially.

In being confronted by the reality that government cannot and will not guarantee my personal safety, I am infinitely thankful, both as a woman and an American, that the Bill of Rights still guarantees my right to defend myself with a gun. Any true feminist must support this position. Any woman who claims to be a feminist, but who supports disarmament of law-abiding citizens is simply a dangerous hypocrite.
Katherine von Tour is presently working on a book comprised of interviews of women who support the Second Amendment; she is looking for women who have personal stories about having used a gun for self-defense, or who simply believe in the right to own and use a firearm. Anyone wishing to be interviewed for this project can contact her through GOA.

Link

Suppressing the "Issues"

While suppressors have no immediate defensive usage in a typical civilian shooting, they're just plain ol' fun. Combine that with the fact that there is less noise, less perceived recoil and now a heavier, more stable firearm, a suppressor can become a good teaching tool for beginners.

This shooter is firing his eighth round out of a pistol, ever. He's standing on a slight hill, so one shoulder is slightly higher than the other, and his finger is on the trigger because he is actually firing. While smoking isn't recommended at the range, it does show how relaxed this brand-new shooter is. His first few rounds can be spent focusing on proper trigger-press, sight-alignment/sight-picture, proper grip and a good stance (minus the hill), rather than flinching from the noise and recoil and being "scared" of the gun.

This technique might be useful for a true beginner, and really only for about 10 rounds or so. Think of it as training wheels. They have to come off so you can start riding the bike the way it was designed.

Silencers are legal for civilians in most states (approximately 40 out of 50 states). The proper name (although they are interchangeable for purposes of the BATFE) is a suppressor, as the device suppresses noise and doesn't completely silence it. Having one does not make you a hit man, ninja assassin, James Bond or Jack Bauer. They do have legitimate uses (see above). Recently, I heard a famous firearms instructor advise keeping one on your home defense gun. The reason being that if you have kids/spouse in the house, you definitely need to be able to hear during or after shooting, because you may be yelling, "Where are you?" or "Come here." or something similar. While many fear their legal usage in a self-defense shooting because of the stigma attached to the object when it comes to a court case, the reality is that people are becoming more and more informed and open-minded when it comes to firearms in America.

Suppressors/silencers were initially taxed/restricted because authorities feared illegal poaching during the great depression. Many other weapons were added to this class of taxed and restricted weapons: Machine Guns, Short-Barreled Shotguns, Short-Barreled Rifles and bizarre hidden guns, like pen-guns called Any-Other Weapons or AOWs for short. The usual procedure to procure such weapons (which as I said are legal in about 40 out of 50 states) is to fill out a form in duplicate, get fingerprinted, get photographed, get a chief law enforcement officer's (sheriff's) signature, pay a $200 (or $5 for AOW or Short Barreled Shotgun) tax and then wait 3-9 months for approval before picking up the item.

As the 2nd amendment forbids the government from abridging the people's right to keep and bear arms, the form is not to "have" the weapon. It is legal for the government to tax the weapon, so they make you do all this fingerprinting, etc, as an application to pay the tax on the weapon. Kind of sneaky, but quasi-legal. These weapons, called class 3 guns on the internet, but in actuality called title 2 guns (class 3 is a license for a gun dealer to deal these weapons, it has nothing to do with individuals, title 2 is what the law calls these weapons) have only been used twice by their legal owners in committing a crime since these laws were passed in the 1930's. Both people who committed crimes were police officers.

Silencers are fun. They can be very useful as a training aid and even as a defensive aid in home defense. They may not cause you to yell, "Chloe! Re-task the number 4 satellite to my position" but, they can put a smile on your face at the range.

The Wall Drill

The "wall drill" is a simple drill for dry fire practice in which you bring the gun to full extension and stand with the muzzle an inch away from the wall. Practice your proper stance, grip, press-outs, etc... The wall will help you detect movement of the aligned sights as you press the trigger. It's quite helpful when you are focusing on fixing/improving your fundamentals, and I recommend reading about it here.

An Alternate Look at Handgun Stopping Power/Range Practices

An Alternate Look at Handgun Stopping Power

Here's a good article to read on stopping power from the Buckeye Firearms Association.

The major point to the study is this: If you're going to a battle, take a rifle or shotgun. If you're "caught" in a battle, you probably have a handgun. If you have a handgun, don't get caught with a "mouse gun", ie: .22lr, .25 auto, .32acp. After that, there is relatively little difference between what is effective on a target (assuming you don't have to shoot through an object like a car door).

For this reason, I often recommend new students shoot 9mm. There are several strengths of 9mm for new students:

*It's very cheap, which translates to the student shooting more rounds, more often

*It's easy to "manage" recoil

*It can be found in nearly any market

*It's rarely ever in short supply

*Many contemporary handguns have ridiculously high capacities with 9mm

* It's not a rare round, so there are excellent defensive ammo choices available

The most important of these is the first, the student's ability to shoot more rounds, more often. Shot placement is critical in a defensive context. If you cannot hit your target, it is pointless to keep pulling the trigger...especially when those rounds could end up hurting someone else standing nearby. If you cannot hit your target, you have no way to stop the bad guy from his/her intent to harm you. Additionally, thoughts and methodology on shots placed on a target have changed in recent years. I was recently discussing current SOPs (standard operating procedures) of a NSW (Naval Special Warfare) group regarding shot counts. Nearly every operator was angry at their unit's procedure of "double tap" to a target, stop and assess, and then either re-engage or transition to another target. Nearly all of them had immediately learned in combat what many other instructors currently teach: keep shooting until the target is no longer a threat. Don't assess until the bad guy quits fighting. While this may only be a "bad habit" in one unit or group, it is a bad habit that can be taught to students today.

When you are at the range, do you shoot "the bullseye" and then look to check out your shot? You are training yourself to do that in a fight. You'll probably fire, check the bad guy, fire, check the bad guy, and so on... Some people do "double taps" then assess, and so on...

A great range regimen for a new student would be:

*Do as much quality shooting as possible

-This is why I recommended the much cheaper 9mm.

*Change your shooting patterns

-Assess after one shot, or two, or five, or a random number, but mix it up.

* Challenge yourself with a wide variety of shooting "problems" which you have to find the solution to

-Shoot round, square, small large targets, one's with colors, realistic one's with faces, blank sheets of paper, shoot as fast as possible, shoot as slow as possible... It's very easy to get into a "rut" and pick the same targets each time you go shooting, even excellent shooters might shoot the same "dot torture drill", "F.A.S.T. drill", "Bill drill" etc... Don't get stuck in the same routine.

*Have fun

-Even if you practice on the range because you depend on a firearm to save your life, you must have fun with the practice. Having fun translates into a drive to continue practicing often, practicing often translates into being good at something.

According to this article, 9mm will fit the bill for defense. According to me (and current sale prices) it's cheap and you will get a lot of important "bang for your buck" (pun intended).

Diffusion

When considering an attack one must always consider diffusion. In SOME cases it may be possible to avoid, mitigate or deter a circumstance BEFORE it would even take place. In other cases it may be possible to diffuse a situation after it begins. Avoiding, mitigating, deterring and diffusing different scenarios are skills that should be practiced before making the decision to carry a firearm.

HOWEVER, sometimes there is never the option to diffuse a situation, and despite our best efforts to avoid crime, we end up facing a life or death scenario where someone else has chosen to end our life and there is no choice other than to stop them. Because of this it is important to practice the skills necessary to respond rapidly and appropriately to ANY type of scenario where we cannot employ our skills of diffusion.

"Those who beat their guns into plows will plow for those with guns."

-Thomas Jefferson