A Closer Look at Gun Security


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The local and national news programs seem to feature stories about shooting accidents (negligence) on a weekly basis. So often the lack of gun security is the reason these disasters occur. Gun security is not rocket science, it is common sense, yet many homes that have firearms do not follow basic steps to ensure proper safety. This lack of responsibility leads many people to call for national gun controls. We have (too many) gun control laws and policies.  We just need people to practice proper gun security without it having to be legislated.

Gun security can be as complicated or as simple as you want to make it. The gun security system that works best for you will depend on what type of firearms you own and the purpose of owning it.

For people that own firearms for hunting, gun security usually involves a gun safe. This is often due to the high cost of these firearms. The gun safes protect the firearms from moisture and theft as well as keeping them out of the reach of curious children.

A safe adds greatly to gun security because they are extremely heavy so they are difficult to walk off with, and the locking system stops casual theft. Some gun safes even have a separate area to lock and store ammunition, separate from the firearms. This is one of the key elements in gun security, having ammunition and firearms located in different secured containers.


Many gun collectors like to display their collections in glass cases. These cases often come with locks however they are not the best method when it comes to gun security because the cases can be easily broken into. Also, these cases are usually lightweight enough that thieves could carry them away.

Handguns present yet another issue.  Most of us, especially concealed carry practitioners, keep at least one handgun loaded for home security.  We need to keep these handguns secure, yet quickly accessible.  So in those instances, we typically keep them in a biometric handgun safe, or one that uses a short combination of button presses to keep them readily accessible when we're not carrying them.

When considering gun security for your home there are a number of factors to consider. You want to make sure that your firearm is not used against you in the case of a robbery. The easiest way to avoid this is to make sure that none of your firearms are left loaded, and that both the firearm and ammunition are locked in separate areas of your home.  The exception, of course, being the ready firearm mentioned above.  But the handgun safe containing that firearm should be well hidden and will not be obvious to the home invader. You also want to make sure that children that are living in your home or visiting your home do not have access to firearms.

Children are naturally curious, especially about weapons. Often times the shooting accidents (negligence) involve children that are playing with a loaded firearm. Children are going to push, pull and press on all areas of a gun, so they can easily take it off the safety, without knowing what they are doing. Also when playing with a gun, children naturally point and pull a trigger, which leads to disaster if the firearm is loaded. It is important to talk to your children about gun security and to also have them attend gun safety education courses.

The right to bear arms is one of the basic rights of Americans. As with all of our rights, this comes with the need for responsibility. Gun security is using common sense (our version of common sense, not that of the politicians or gun control groups) to ensure the safety of everyone living in and visiting the home that has firearms. Very simple steps can ensure gun safety in your home.



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The Failure of Self-Defense Products

I know I have written a number of times about the importance of practicing with your firearms, inspecting your gear, getting training, and making sure that your every-day-carry tools are functional.  But how many times do you think about your other self-defense tools for which testing and training are just not possible or practical?  If you live or work in an area where you feel the need for self-defense products, don't you want to be certain that the products work -- before you find yourself in a situation where you need them? Of course, you do. For this reason, you need to test them.

Now, obviously, you are not about to spray yourself in the face with pepper spray or taze yourself with a taser -- but you do need to test them to make certain that they work. In the end, as far as tasers go -- unless you are willing to taze yourself, you can only make sure that the batteries are operable by trying them out in another device. Make it a habit to put fresh batteries in -- or at the very least to test the batteries -- at least once a month.

You can spray pepper spray or mace to make sure that the sprayer operates correctly -- and that you know how to operate it. Make sure that you do this outside, and that you spray the mace or pepper spray onto a surface. You can sniff the surface -- carefully -- after spraying to make sure that the chemicals will actually do something to a would-be attacker. 


 Non-Lethal Self-Defense and Safety Products


Aside from this type of testing, the only other thing that you can do is to be prepared for your self-defense product to fail. If your taser didn't work, or the spray didn't work, what is your next course of action? Make sure that you have a plan in mind before it happens!

Have self-defense products that will not fail. For example, a police whistle is a good self-defense product. It will not fail, and it will alert other people to a problem, or to your location. It will often scare away an attacker as well. But having said that, I am a strong proponent of firearms for self-defense, and strongly encourage you to get a firearm, get trained, and know how to defend yourself with one.  Firearms are not as likely to fail, but they are a tool that you can use improperly if you are not trained and can fail more often do not inspect your gear and keep it in good working order.

It is also a good idea to learn some basic self-defense moves, in case your product fails. Consider taking a self-defense class in your area. Obviously, your first desire should be to prevent an attack. Your next desire should be to keep an attacker away from you, and your third option should be to strike back with physical moves if you are put in a situation, where there is no other choice.


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How To Teach New Shooters

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Getting new shooters interested in and comfortable with firearms doesn't need to be too difficult.  Some folks have grown up around guns but had never really spent a lot of time with them as an adult.  And yet others have never shot firearms at all and maybe grew up in families that did not like firearms. But regardless of experience levels, it is great to get new shooters out to go shooting and get them comfortable around firearms. Many new shooters do extremely well because they have not built up a lot of the bad habits that we old-timers have.  They just need some training in the fundamentals and safety, and then some hands-on coaching as to how to improve grip, trigger control, aim, and presentation.  I have found that many brand new shooters are like sponges - they are extremely open to and absorb what I am teaching them very quickly.

Today, many of my former students who I stay in touch with are crack shots and can handle a firearm with the best of them.  But I know that some people who, even though they just aren't comfortable around firearms, tend to warm up to them and actually enjoy the shooting sports if taught properly.  So here are some of the things I have learned along the way, not only teaching my wife and daughters to shoot but in teaching some of my brand new students as well:
  • Do not pressure the new shooter. This is not military boot camp; you will find that high-pressure tactics are counterproductive. Trying to pressure newcomers to do something they do not want to do or are not familiar with will only ensure that they will never accept it.
  • Have the appropriate safety gear. Having eye and ear protection ready and explaining their use will help allay any fears. Also, before the firearms are introduced, go over the four basic firearm safety rules:
    • Every gun is loaded, even if it is disassembled.
    • Never point your gun at anything you do not intend to destroy.
    • Keep your finger off the trigger until you are ready to fire.
    • Be aware of your target, what is behind it, and is between you and the target.
  • Start with a simple, small caliber firearm. Explain and show the basic operating principles of the firearm you use. For teaching long guns, I like either a .22 semi-auto like a Ruger 10/22, or a single shot break action .410. If I am teaching pistol use I prefer to start with a .22 or a .38 revolver. Make sure that if you start with a magazine fed firearm, you still have them try out a revolver to see what they are most comfortable with, and so that you can explain the differences between the two types of firearms.
  • Do not use humanoid targets until you start to get into defensive shooting. If it's an outdoor range and we are using long guns, clay pidgeons also work well.  They break in a satisfying way and are biodegradable.  I like to use simple bullseye targets for rifle shooting also.  For pistols, a regular target turned around with a paper plate stapled to the center gives a large non-threatening target.
  • Last but not least, go slow. Answer any questions simply without going into a long technological lecture. The point of the first few sessions is to allay fears and allow your newbie to become accustomed to shooting.
You will find, as I have, that if you make new shooters feel secure, allow them to go at their own pace and do not pressure them, people new to the shooting sports will rapidly begin to enjoy this activity. My wife and daughters took to shooting like naturals, and now they get better range scores than I do.


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Kids and Guns

As a firearm instructor, you might not believe how many times I hear from someone that they would like to own a gun, but their spouse will not allow it because they have kids in the house. On a grand scale, I understand and agree with the reasoning behind this feeling. It's a parent's job to keep their children safe, and no one wants to bring something into the home that is dangerous to their child.

However, while I agree with wanting to keep children safe from harm, I must disagree with the blanket thought that guns in the home are by themselves inherently dangerous. With proper education, storage, and supervision, firearms are no more dangerous than any other tool. I am not in the habit of making broad demands on how others should act. Generally, I teach options and tell the reasons for using each of those options. I can tell you how I deal with this issue of guns in my home with my child and hopefully give perspective to other parents who question guns in the home.

When I was growing up, there were guns in my home. My dad was a firearms enthusiast, and as such always had rifles and at least one handgun in the home. My father subscribed to the old school policy on kids and guns. Dad said, Boy, I've got a gun in that closet, and if I ever catch you playing with it, you'll wish you hadn't. Well, being the bright child I was, I figured that meant as long as I applied my gun handling skills I learned on TV to keep me from accidentally firing the gun, and I put it back EXACTLY as I found it, I could pose in the mirror in my gunfighter stance whenever I was alone in the house. Luckily I never fired the pistol into the mirror or myself. As I got older, dad did take me out shooting once or twice. We even went hunting once, but they never let me have my own gun so I always had that curiosity.





I imagine that even if there were no guns in my home and if my parents forbid me to even mention guns, I would find someone to let me see one (It happened just like that with a motorcycle, but since mom still doesn't know about that, we won't get into details). The above two examples are the first two of the three most common attitudes parents that I have spoken with have toward children and guns. I subscribe to the third.

In my house, we have a smart and independent little granddaughter who visits us several times a week. She thinks for herself and is not afraid to abandon what she has been told if she thinks she knows better. Plus, our son and daughter-in-law are gun owners as well. What I have to do first is keep her from being able to access the firearms if she chooses to disregard my gun rules, This is not foolproof. Kids have an uncanny ability to find what they are looking for. I am sure at some point in her life she will find the gun safe keys.

For the second step, we have taught her the NRA's Eddie Eagle gun safety rules. This strategy was to teach the child what to do if they find a gun. The rules are simple and effective. Eddie Eagle says if the child sees a gun they should: stop, don't touch, leave the area, and tell an adult. These rules are particularly important, as over 50% of American households have firearms. If she is visiting a friend's house, we do not want her to try to tell another child not to play with a gun, as that might cause that child to point the gun at our child in order to tease her. We want her safely away from an unsecured gun, not to act like she is in charge of it.

The last thing we do is take away her curiosity. My wife and I took her to the range, and she watched her nana shoot a pistol. I sat with our grandchild and explained to her about guns and answered all her questions. This did not work too well because even with hearing protection, my granddaughter thought the handguns were too loud. She did not want to be around them. We then got her a BB rifle. We let her shoot it when she asks to, but she doesn't really like it very much. Furthermore, we don't force her, but she knows if she wants to shoot, she can as long as she asks her nana, her parents, or I take her.

This works well for us. We keep the guns in a locked safe and the ammo locked in a separate room. We taught our children and grandchildren firearm safety rules, particularly what to do if they encounter a gun outside the home. Lastly, we took away her curiosity by exposing her to firearms and what they can do and allowing her the privilege to own her very own BB rifle that she can use when supervised. As she gets older, we plan on increasing her exposure to firearms, but at this point, we think she is only ready for the basics.

As the parent, you are the best judge of what your child is ready for. This is only a guideline for when your child asks about guns for the first time. For us, it was when my wife told me to look out the window, and our little granddaughter was in the backyard with a red rubber training pistol in one hand, a rubber training knife in the other, and yelling Pay attention! I am trying to give you a class! to the family dog. My wife told me I created a monster. It was pretty cute though and served to reinforce in my mind the responsibilities I have for being a positive role model. If I am unsafe in my attitude toward guns, I can be sure my kid will take notice.


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Know Your Target, and Know Your Skill Level

This video is an example of a hostage situation gone wrong in that the responding officers ended up killing the hostage as well as the suspect.  This is not about bashing the police.  I'm sure the officers are beside themselves with grief over this.  This is about a very important reminder of the fundamentals of defensive shooting that we should all be practicing and the responsibility that goes along with using our firearms in defensive situations.

As concealed carry practitioners, we may very well be the ones in this situation while waiting for the police to arrive.  Any time a hostage is involved, the situation can go south pretty darn fast, and we may not have the luxury of waiting for the police to arrive.

This video illustrates why training is so important.  Defensive shooting is a perishable skill, and we have to constantly train to stay sharp.

Reid Henrichs does an excellent job of breaking this incident down, so I'm not going to bore you with a lot of my own redundant further analysis or Monday morning quarterbacking the officer's tactics.  But I want to point out that I would like you to pay close attention to a few very important aspects of Reid's discussion: 1) knowing the target, 2) knowing what your teammates are doing, and 3) knowing your own skill level in executing those shots when the time comes.

My thoughts and prayers are certainly with the officers and the family of the victim.







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Who's At The Door?!

Awareness is especially important at night, and particularly when you have "visitors" coming to the door at odd hours.  Those hours that you relax from a hard day before you turn in for the night is not the time to let your guard down.  We live in an ever-changing and dangerous world, and the criminals are not taking a break or finding ways to let their victims off the hook.

As shown in the video below, a lone female coming to the door can be as innocent as someone needing your help, to a setup for an ambush and home invasion by armed thugs.  Take a look...





Some things that you can do to prevent this type of situation:
  • Beef up your entryway hardware.  Have good deadbolts, hinge guards, and bolt guards.
  • Always be thinking ahead.  Be that "Wargaming Sheepdog" who thinks about all the possibilities and then has already thought of how to deal with those possible scenarios.
  • Never open the door to unexpected strangers, especially late at night.  Look through the peep-hole and ask who they are and what they want.
  • Consider a door-bell style or porch mounted security camera that allows you to see them and ask who they are.  Turn the camera's record feature to "on."
  • Consider having pepper spray or even a firearm close by or preferably in hand.  At the very least, have a powerful tactical flashlight in hand.
  • If you have an alarm system, consider mounting a panic button near the entryways.  Most alarm entry keypads have a panic button built in.
  • There is no law stating that you have to answer the door.  Just don't answer.



Be aware, be cautious and think before opening your door at night, and have a plan for how to deal with a potential home invasion.


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Paintball Guns as a Training and Self Defense Tactic

Let me just say up front:  Colorado law gives me criminal and civil immunity from prosecution should I decide to use deadly force in the event of a home invasion.  In a home invasion scenario, I will take full advantage of the legal protections afforded to me by law.  The main objective of any self-defense method is to stop the attack, and my philosophy is to stop the attack and protect my family by the most effective means available to me at the time.  For me, that method of self-defense includes having ready firearms, being trained to use them, and then employ them where needed. 

But not all people are comfortable having firearms in their homes, and not everyone is comfortable shooting firearms.  That is fine.  The methods that are right for me are not necessarily the methods that are right for others, and I respect that.  I wrote an article a while back on "Principles versus Tactics" to explain that you have to decide what you are willing to do in a particular situation, then for you to decide how you will accomplish that.

It is also important that I maintain my training and proficiency in my primary self-defense tool as well as a variety of other self-defense methods that I may need to employ to stop an attack.  It is not always time or cost effective to schedule trips to the range to expend live ammunition.  There are a variety of training methods out there that I use, including dry firing with the LASR App System, and using non-lethal projectile shooting tools such as paintball to help build the muscle memory involved in firearms operation, and that allows you to actually practice tactics with moving targets in a safe environment.





There are many other self-defense and training tools out there, but in my testing, I have found one in particular that I am writing about today offers both a good training tool and a good home defense tool, especially for folks who just aren't comfortable with having firearms in their homes.


Paintball as a Training Tool:

When it comes to training for tactics, having the ability to shoot at moving targets, and in return being shot at by moving targets offers more realism into actual scenarios that you may encounter.  This is a type of training often referred to as "force on force" training and is more effective at helping you to learn tactics and gun handling skills under pressure than simply shooting at static targets.  The type of training tools to achieve the desired proficiency outcomes is an important aspect to consider, however.  Whereas airsoft tends to use guns that emulate actual weapons functionality, such as forcing you to perform magazine changes, they offer little, in comparison to paintball, in the "pain" incentive to force you to be more tactfully minded to prevent from being shot.  While I have found airsoft to be a great training tool for indoor close quarters training, paintball offers a more fast-paced alternative to outdoor and longer range scenarios.  Since the incentive "not to get shot" is higher with paintball, the "stress inoculation" component obtained provides a more realistic force on force training as well.






Paintball as a Group Bonding Tool:

Putting on my prepper hat for a moment: Being able to train with your family, members of a team that you are prepping with, or even just the people you work with has its benefits also.  Paintball fields seem to be popping up all over the place.  Here in Colorado, "woodsball" is a very popular activity, as we have our beautiful mountains and forests in which to play games, and those areas offer a wide variety of terrains and scenarios.  Grab your bio-degradable paintball ammo and head for the hills!  Paintball has become very popular for families and groups to include as part of a camping trip, as well as for groups of co-workers to plan team-building events. 


Paintball as a Home Defense Tool:

In my recent testing, I have been quite impressed with the types of non-lethal self-defense paintball ammunition on the market today.  In addition to regular paintballs, you can also purchase pepper balls that contain pepper spray, hard rubber balls, PVC nylon balls, and even glass balls containing iron dust for use in paintball guns as a self-defense tool.  In my testing with various materials used as targets, I have seen the PVC Riot Balls, for example, cause enough damage on multiple thicknesses of heavy cardboard and drywall to be very plausible as a self-defense method.  I am awaiting a shipment from Bulls Breaker Balls in South Africa so that I can test their latest product, but my research so far indicates that that product has promise as a self-defense ammunition as well.







Paintball Gun Recommendations:

Hands down, the Tippmann A5 is my personal recommendation.  The Tippmann A5 is sort of the "Ruger 10/22" of the paintball gun world in that accessories, modifications, air supply variations, upgrades, and spare parts are so plentiful and widely marketed, that this gun can be personalized very easily.  This gun is extremely easy to work on and maintain, and there are a plethora of YouTube videos out there to give you advice and instruction.  I also prefer the Tippmann A5 simply because of the "Cyclone" feed system that has shown to be extremely reliable, and saves the expense of having to buy an add-on electric hopper, or some other feeding system, ta make the gun run consistently and reliably.  The Tippmann A5 also uses the larger 20+ oz CO2 and 3,000psi High-Pressure Air (HPA) supplies, which allows for larger capacities and more shots.  Reusable CO2 canisters are relatively inexpensive to purchase and fill, and fairly easy to find refill stations.  HPA refill equipment is becoming more readily available and inexpensive, and HPA is said to actually be better on paintball gun internals and more consistently shooting in a variety of environmental conditions (temperatures) than CO2.

My home-defense Tippmann A5 is modified with a buttstock, red dot sight, Vortex magazine conversion kit, and Flatline Barrel.  The magazine conversion is inexpensive and was very simple to install.  Instead of a hopper that is now in the way, I have the ability to load 20-round magazines with a variety of ammunition types.  I have the red dot sight set up for very close engagements, zeroed for 21 feet, a typical distance of encounter within my home.  I have the velocity set at around 300fps, which is enough velocity to be effective, but yet low enough to help prolong the life of the gun internal valves and o-rings.  The CO2 supply is a 24oz external cylinder that is screwed in, but not fully, so as to prevent leakages, but still be on the gun so that it can be quickly screwed in the remaining turn or two to fully charge the gun when needed.  The ready condition of this gun also includes a fully loaded magazine in the gun and four spare fully loaded magazines nearby. 





For those of you who prefer more of a "handgun" type of platform, there are two front-runners out there.  The Tippmann TiPX, and the Tiberius T8.1.  In fact, the Tippmann TiPX is used as the manufacturing model for the SALT Supply Pepper Gun, as those models are actually manufactured by Tippmann, and then sold as a self-defense weapon.  Both the Tippmann and Tiberius are .68 caliber paintball guns, an important factor when choosing a caliber for your paintball ammunition.  68 caliber is the most readily available when choosing actual self-defense rounds, and it has more capability as a self-defense caliber (in my humble opinion) than the smaller paintball calibers.  Both also use the smaller 12-gram CO2 cartridge for the air supply.  These cartridges are very inexpensive to buy in large quantities but have very limited capacity when shooting.  I recommend the handgun platform as a backup, but not as a primary defense tool.





My personal preference (for the handgun platform) is the Tiberius T8.1.  The main reason I chose the Tiberius model is because the CO2 cartridge and the paintball rounds are both contained within the magazine.  That means that will very magazine reload, you are getting a fresh CO2 canister as well as more ammunition.  These paintball pistols only fire 10 or so rounds per paintballs CO2 cartridge, so being able to quickly reload both ammunition and CO2 quickly is extremely important in a self-defense scenario.  I also chose the Tiberius model because it comes ready to go out of the box with the ability to load and shoot the new "First Strike" shaped paintball rounds, which come in both paint and solid self-defense rounds.










A Word on Airguns/Airsoft for Self Defense:

Airsoft guns are NOT self-defense tools.  Period.  They may offer a half-second distraction so that you can flee and go find another weapon, but they will not stop an attack.  There is a chance that brandishing that airsoft gun will give the bad guys pause, but they will soon see that orange tip and know that you do not have the ability to do them any harm at that particular moment. Other air guns, such as pellet guns, may have the ability to cause minor injury or a momentary distraction, but again (in my humble opinion), pellet guns just are not made to be self-defense tools.  There are varying opinions about that out there, certainly, the video below explains some ideas on the subject.







Wrapping It All UP!

I believe in firearms as the most effective defensive measure in the event of a home invasion. Period!  Violent criminals only understand one thing: Force.  Speed, surprise, violence of action, and a determination to win will help you prevail against evil.  I always have a firearm at the ready at various places in my home and am ready to employ the firearms as a defensive measure all the time, but I also have non-lethal tools such as pepper spray and paintball guns that I see as viable options in home defense scenarios.  

Not everyone is comfortable with having firearms in their homes and would like a non-lethal measure to stop or at least slow down an attack.  Paintball guns offer a viable self-defense alternative, in my opinion.  There are a variety of inexpensive and reliable paintball guns out there, including the Tippmann A5 and Tiberius T8.1 guns, that can easily be adapted and customized for home defense use.  But whatever tool or tactic you choose, you must be familiar with the operation and maintenance of that tool, be familiar with its capabilities, and above all practice using them in order to be effective.



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Shameless commercial plug - I am an NRA Recruiter and get a commission for signing up new NRA members.  But here's the deal:  Our 2nd Amendment Rights Count On It...

We need your help!  There is no doubt that the 2018 legislative session in the state of Colorado and the nation is going to be tough on gun rights.  There is still yet a lot of work to do to save our rights and our future as gun owners.  The new gun-friendly administration has been elected, but they are under fire and being attacked by those not friendly to our rights as citizens to defend ourselves.  In fact, those wishing to take back power have even promised groups such as the "Brady Bunch" that they are will work on new gun control measures behind the scenes now and enact them once they are in power.  And unfortunately, their newly emboldened base consists of some of the most anti-gun, anti-self-defense people in history. 

But we have a strong ally:  The hard work and dedication of the professionals at the National Rifle Association will ensure that we can take the fight against draconian and excessive gun control measures to those who don't want us to defend ourselves.  Watch this SHORT VIDEO about the NRA to learn more...  Then JOIN, as we move forward in 2018 to ensure that all of us enjoy our RIGHTS for responsible gun ownership, self-defense.







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The Second Amendment is second in importance only to the First!!!  Indeed, it's the Second Amendment that allows the general population to defend all the rest of them from any attempt at tyranny.

"While the people have property, arms in their hands, and only a spark of noble spirit, the most corrupt Congress must be mad to form any project of tyranny."

Rev. Nicholas Collin, Fayetteville Gazette (N.C.), October 12, 1789




The following is a quote from James Madison sixteen (16) months before he introduced the 2nd Amendment to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1789.


"Besides the advantage of being armed, which the Americans possess over the people of almost every other nation, the existence of subordinate governments, to which the people are attached and by which the militia officers are appointed, forms a barrier against the enterprises of ambition, more insurmountable than any which a simple government of any form can admit of."

James Madison, The Federalist No. 48, February 1, 1788







My Philosophy

I believe that our Second Amendment rights afford us as law-abiding citizens the ability to own firearms, and we should be able to use the tools that we see fit to protect ourselves, our families, and our property.  The immortal and often debated meaning of the words of the Second Amendment "A well-regulated militia..." was intended to mean that all citizens have the right and responsibility to bear arms in protection of self, family, and country.  "Well regulated" at the time, meant well trained and disciplined.  We believe that the meaning and spirit of those words are just as relevant today.  Our citizens should be well trained, but "...the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed." 

"The Gonz" is a Fort Collins-based political and gun rights activist, NRA Certified Firearms Instructor, and Law Enforcement AR-15/M-16/M-4A1 Armorer, and NRA Recruiter specializing in fostering gun rights and firearms safety.  We emphasize firearms safety and are strong advocates of a law-abiding citizen's right to own firearms for self-defense, hunting, and sporting purposes.  If you live in the Northern Colorado area, please ask how I can help you with all your firearms training needs.  By joining the NRA today, you are helping me to muster the vital resources needed to ensure that these rights are here for our children and future generations to come.






Say “Gun Lobby” One More Time…

I DARE you!  I DOUBLE DARE you!  Seems I always hear the same old worn out talking points from the usual gun-control suspects about how our lawmakers are in bed with the so-called “Gun Lobby.”  Every time someone opposes the new gun control legislation, the gun control crowd is all up in arms (pun intended) about how the “Gun Lobby” is controlling everything.  When the NRA or one of the other gun rights groups gives money to support a pro-Second Amendment candidate’s campaign, it is always the corrupt “Gun Lobby” that is the root of all this evil.  The people spewing this nonsense somehow think that the “Gun Lobby” ONLY supports and is beholding to big business and manufacturers.  Or maybe they think the “Gun Lobby” is in the pocket of some cabal with no regard for the fact that actual people just want to protect and enjoy their rights.  Basically, when the people in gun grabber land don’t get their way, it’s resistance to the evil “Gun Lobby” that becomes their battle cry. 





 “OMG!  The ‘Gun Lobby’ just gave $500 thousand dollars to Senator Smith’s campaign.”

“This is outrageous!  The ‘Gun Lobby’ gave $200 thousand dollars to help defeat our latest gun control measure.”

“Congressman Carson is in bed with the ‘Gun Lobby.’  That is so corrupt that he would take money from a special interest!”

“The ‘Gun Lobby’ is raising millions of dollars to oppose ‘common sense’ gun regulations.”

“This is sad!  The ‘Gun Lobby’ is responsible for the mass shooting that just occurred…”


Evidently, these people don’t realize that the Second Amendment is an enumerated individual right in the U.S. Constitution.  Nor do they realize that these gun rights groups are huge and active because of their large citizen memberships.

I apologize that I can’t write this post in crayon so that those who don’t get it can understand.  But this so-called “Gun Lobby” of which the gun control crowd speaks, The National Rifle Association, Gun Owners of America, National Association for Gun Rights, Rocky Mountain Gun Owners, and a whole host of others, is made up of over five million American Citizens!  That’s right!  We The People are members and make up the body of this so-called “Gun Lobby.”  We are members of these organizations because we are up against very rich and powerful people who oppose gun rights, and we know that the only way that we can win is to join together in a unified voice, and leverage the political and legal clout of these gun rights organizations to help preserve our RIGHTS. 





We pay dues and give donations to these organizations with the full expectation that they will use their muscle on our behalf to help elect pro-Second Amendment candidates, and strongly oppose draconian gun control measures.  So if you are going to claim that the so-called “Gun Lobby” is giving money to these efforts, then my response is: “You’re darn right they are!”  They are doing exactly what We The People, We The Members, and We The CITIZENS are paying them to do.  They are doing their JOB!

Oh, and by the way, the “Gun Lobby” does not cause any of these mass shootings for which the “Gun Lobby” seems to get the blame.  Those are done by sick and broken INDIVIDUALS.  And it’s funny: practically none of these mass murderers are ever NRA members.  Imagine that!

Not that any in the gun control culture will acknowledge these truths, or admit to their own hypocrisy.




Acceptable Accuracy - Next Level Training

Bullseye discipline shooting and defensive shooting are very different with regards to the dynamics involved (obviously), but also in what is referred to as acceptable accuracy.  As Mike mentions in the video, putting holes in a small group on paper targets for a score is a lot different than putting effective rounds into a bad guy to stop a threat.   This video provides a pretty good discussion of the difference between bullseye accuracy and defensive (combat) accuracy.  The idea is to stop the threat.  More hits to an acceptable level of accuracy within an acceptable are (i.e. "center mass") creates more likelihood of incapacitating a threat.

I have worked with defensive shooting instructors who espouse the "other" theory of defensive shooting, that of putting all defensive shots into nearly the same place.  The idea of that philosophy is to create a larger wound cavity in a single place, and a single vital organ.  And then there are others who believe that shooting at a faster cadence, placing more rounds on the target with the highest delivery speed that will allow for accuracy, will be more effective in stopping a threat.  In other words: Putting all shots into as close to a single hole as possible, versus spreading more shots out over a critical area.



 Armor Concepts


But I personally adhere to and teach the philosophy of combat accuracy with a greater shooting cadence versus the idea of trying to put defensive shots all in the same hole. Getting a lot of shots off faster, but still having the marksmanship to put them all in the acceptable accuracy zones (in my humble opinion) will increase the likelihood of putting rounds into vital areas and stop the threat.

Whichever you decide to use, remember to practice, practice practice.  Practice both and see which one works for you.  Remember: In a crisis situation, you will never rise to super-star performance.  You will always fall back to your level of training.