Author: hsoi

On a home defense tool – part 2

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If you have not read the first part of On a home defense tool, you should read that first so the following has context and makes more sense.

The following comes from John Holschen. The words and such are John’s, I’ve merely reformatted for HTML.

I’d like to share a few thoughts considering defensive long guns for your consideration.

I’ll start out by saying that a shotgun is my last choice to procure for employment as a defensive long gun. This is because:

  1. It is heavy.
  2. It’s manual of arms is relatively complex.
  3. It’s recoil is more difficult to manage for quick follow up shots (as might be required for multiple threats).
  4. It’s ammunition supply is relatively limited (this is not a critical factor in a typical home defense situation but it could become one in case of large scale civil disturbance).

Many people believe these drawbacks are offset due to various factors (which I believe are largely misconceptions), such as:

  1. “You don’t have to aim a shotgun just point it in the direction of the bad guy and pull the trigger.” (This is often an allusion to the fact that an untrained person will be using the shotgun.)
    • Reality – At the “across the room” distances likely to be found in most houses the shot column has not opened up significantly (especially with “Buck” sized shot.) Therefore you must aim.
    • Reality — Due to numbers 2 and 3 above, the shotgun actually requires more training for many/most people to shoot well when compared to a rifle.
    • Reality — The very people that would benefit most from additional training (those with small stature and/or less upper body strength) don’t want to train much with a shotgun because of the recoil and the weight.
  2. “Just the sound/appearance of a shotgun with dissuade attackers.”
    • Reality — In many situations it will not be tactically feasible to demonstrate either the sound or appearance of your weapon prior to using it.
    • Reality — Many/most bad guys aren’t switched-on enough for the type of gun you are using to even register with them.
    • And ultimately — I’m not willing to potentially decrease my effectiveness to potentially increase my bluffing power.
  3. “The shotgun is the most versatile defensive/survival weapon.”
    • Reality — Yes it is versatile; if by that you mean you could use it to hunt birds and up to deer sized game animals with the right loads. However, I suggest that people make an honest assessment of how likely it is that they will need to hunt birds with their primary defensive weapon. Also please keep in mind that versatility does have trade-offs as mentioned above. (I won’t even discuss gas rounds, bean-bag rounds, bird-bombs, Taser rounds, etc., other than to say that private citizens show not even consider these as factors in choosing their primary defensive weaponry).
  4. “The shotgun is less likely to over penetrate.”
    • Reality — A 5.56 mm rifle, with the proper ammunition, penetrates less through typical household construction than does 00 Buck.

I started by stating that the shotgun was my last choice to procure as a defensive weapon for my use. IT is even lower on my list of desired weapons for my wife and (adult) daughters to use. So what do I recommend for a defensive long gun? I suppose it will come as no surprise to most of you that my suggestions are:

  1. A semi-auto rifle (read AR)
  2. A semi-auto rifle (read AR)
  3. A semi-auto rifle (read AR)

If I absolutely could not have a semi-auto rifle I would rather have a pump-action rifle (or a lever action rifle) than a shotgun.

Just my (somewhat informed) opinions.

Again, let me state that these are merely opinions. However, they are informed opinions from people with solid backgrounds to shape those opinions. In the end, pick what is right for your situation and context, get training, practice, and be prepared.

 

Continue to Part 3.

Intolerance and Obama.

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Wow. (h/t to Rob)

But this level of massive intolerance doesn’t really surprise me. I’ve found those that scream about tolerance to be some of the most intolerant. Their definition of “tolerance” means that you tolerate what they want you to tolerate. Their definition of “open-mindedness” means you agree with what they agree with. Their definition of “good” is what they deem to be good. If you’re not with them, you are against them.

I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again.

Freedom is something we must give to others if we wish it for ourselves.

If you want tolerance, you must first be tolerant. If you want people to be open-minded to your opinions and ideas, you must first be open-minded to theirs. If you want good in the world, you must first accept what others consider good.

Another tip? Try to not be so hateful, especially towards those you feel “deserve” some scorn or hate. A little love, a little forgiveness, a little true understanding, a little humility… they go a long way.

On Wrists and Recoil

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Ahab has a piece on grip and recoil management. This has been one of the things I’ve been focusing on heavily in my practice. I can tell you without question it makes a huge difference. You go around enough and you find various suggestions on just how tightly to grip, and you should certainly try them all. I have, and I’ve found that nothing gives me greater recoil management and faster follow-up shots than griping hard.

I wanted to add a few things on wrists and grip.

  1. Whenever you grab your gun, always grip it hard. The biggest place to work on this is during dry-fire practice. We might slack on the grip because in dry-fire there is no recoil to manage. But by always gripping hard every time you grip your gun you 1. build up the grip strength, 2. get your body in the habit of “grip gun, grip hard” so that it’s just natural to grip hard. If you get in the habit of gripping weak, you may grip weak when you least want to.
  2. Make sure you engage all of your fingers, especially your pinky. How do we hold something delicate, like a champagne flute? with pinky extended. How do we hold something we need to keep a hold of, like swinging a hammer? with our full hand and all our fingers. Try it right now. Ball your fingers in a fist and clench. Now really concentrate on adding your pinky into that clench and you’ll likely find yourself gripping just a bit harder.
  3. On that notion, an interesting concept from my empty-hand martial arts study is the notion of “ki finger” (or maybe also called “ki grip” or “ki finger grip”). Watch the video embedded in that post. How that looks like your strong/shooting hand, eh? Believe it or not, you can actually exercise a great deal of your grip strength from your last 3 fingers and can almost ignore your index finger freeing it to do other things, such as work a trigger. The upshot here, when you’re thinking about your grip, experiment with focusing your grip on just your last 3 fingers (middle, ring, pinky) and grip hard with just them. It may or may not work for you, but it’s worth experimenting with.
  4. Always work to improve your grip. This doesn’t mean just when you grip the gun but any time you grip anything. This may not be gripping something hard, but at least ensuring a good grip. For instance, if you carry your groceries in sacks with handles, don’t let the handles droop to the end of your fingertrips — have a fully closed grip. If your grip is starting to fail, of course don’t sacrifice your groceries, but try to hold onto things as long as you can. Your muscles will work long after your brain says to stop, so hang on a bit longer to increase the muscle strength and endurance. If you want, throw in some wrist curls with the groceries too. 🙂
  5. Use it or lose it. If you want to develop the wrist strength, you must continually do so. To perhaps work on it today then not again for weeks isn’t going to develop anything except a poor work ethic. If you work on it for a while then give it up, you will likely lose some of the developed strength and endurance because now your muscles lack that increased workload. Our bodies like to maintain a state of “only what it needs” (efficency), so if it doesn’t need phonebook tearing wrist strength it won’t maintain that on its own. You must work to maintain it.
  6. As for specific exercises, there are many things you can do. Google is your friend.

The Real Story on So-Called “Assault Weapons”

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You generally have more success to argue based on facts than emotion. So, let’s lay out the facts on these so-called “assault weapons.”

Brady Campaign, yes they are merely like hunting rifles. Go look at the actual mechanics of the action. Compare and contrast, look at actual firearms… we’ll wait.

And it’s not (just) about hunting. Maybe it’s about keeping my children safe.

(h/t to Ahab)

The S.P.E.A.R. Tactic

/ hsoi

While my primary martial arts studies may be in the realm of a traditional empty-hand martial art, I certainly study and regard a wild body of fighting skills. Modern combatives are especially interesting to me, and one system I’m working to learn more about is Tony Blauer’s S.P.E.A.R. System™.

Mr. Blauer’s got a reprint of a nice introductory article to the S.P.E.A.R. concept on his website. Give it a read.

Unintended consequences?

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I have found it interesting that, ever since The chOsen One took office and has been addressing The Financial Crisis in America™, the Dow Jones has responded by dropping to new lows every day. He signs something, the Dow responds with a big drop. And yesterday the Dow dropped below 7000. Change you can believe in. 

Robb Allen mentions how individuals are responding to the new tax situation. I can’t say I blame people… you work hard, then someone takes the fruit of your labor and flushes it down the toilet. But I guess forking over your hard earned money so people can just piss it away is patriotic now right?

At my previous job I worked with a group of Canadians. I asked them how it was living with socialized medicine, and sure it was there but it was hardly ideal. I recall one of my co-workers telling me how her grandmother spent 3 days on a gurney in a hallway because there weren’t enough rooms. 

I also recall my then-boss telling me how the year prior he had paid 52% of his income to taxes. He said it wouldn’t have bugged him so much if it was 49%, but to be able to say that he has to fork over more than half his income to taxes? That was very defeating on morale.

So way to go, folks. This is the change you wanted… let me know how it’s working out for you. It’s sure not working for me.

 

Updated: Larry Kudlow over at CNBC chimes in on this failure. (h/t to Rob).

It’s good to live in Texas

/ hsoi

A new study was released, Freedom in the 50 States: An Index of Personal and Economic Freedom by William P. Ruger & Jason Sorens, from the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. (h/t to Volokh).

Texas came in 5th overall. Not bad for this freedom-loving soul. Certainly one reason I love to live here and have little desire to leave Texas is because freedoms are pretty good here. There’s room for improvement and of course there are threats to freedom every day… but you just gotta keep vigilant.

On abortion and freedom

/ hsoi

I was reading this article this morning that motivated me to finally write on this matter. But it’s a matter that’s been on my mind for some time. I’m not writing on this being a moral or religious issue for me, but rather an issue of freedom.

You see, I used to believe in being “pro-choice,” and in some regards I still do. There is no eliminating abortion from society, so keeping it safe is better than letting it go illegal. Of course, perhaps if it was illegal it might stave things off, but look at how our “War Against Drugs” is working and you’ll realize that being illegal doesn’t really stop things and instead can create a whole host of other problems. But whereas someone consuming drugs ultimately only affects themselves, abortion does directly affect someone else: that unborn child, even if at the time of the abortion it’s little more than a clump of cells. And thus, I still have a lot of inner debate about the issue. There’s moral conflicts, Libertarian conflicts, legal issues, ideal issues, practical issues….

But one thing I can see clearly is infringement upon freedom: this so-called “Freedom of Choice Act”. I fail to see where there’s any freedom of choice. If a doctor is forced to give an abortion on-demand, where is there any freedom of choice for that doctor? If a hospital is forced to provide services that go against their moral and religious backing (many hospitals have religious affiliation) and if they refuse to provide abortion services they lose Federal money and thus can no longer operate and serve the greater community… where is the freedom of choice in that, not only for the hospital but for the larger community now without a hospital? If you as a taxpayer now must fund an activity you find wrong, because you cannot choose to not pay your taxes nor how your tax money is spent, where is the freedom of choice in that?

Freedom is something we must give to others if we wish it for ourselves.

To take freedom from one to allow freedom for another, that is not true freedom. To force one against their moral grain for the benefit of another, that is not true freedom. To force one to subsidize another, that is not freedom. To use the force of law to inflict your beliefs upon the entire nation, that is not freedom. To grow the power of government, to allow it more control over my body, my conscience, my life, that is not freedom.

Folks, if you really want freedom of choice, make sure that what you work for will truly provide that. No, it won’t be easy, no it won’t be something quick to come up with, and yes we must come to accept that the choices of some may not be the same choices we would make for ourselves but those choices are theirs to make and they will receive the consequences (good or bad) of their choices. Freedom does require you to think and act self-less-ly, not selfishly. If you really want to live in world where you are free to choose in whatever you think, say, or do, make sure your efforts ensure others — especially those that stand in opposition to you — remain free as well. Anything less is not true freedom.

Keepin’ on

/ hsoi

I’ve always found Xavier’s blog to be filled with good stuff… one of the better blogs overall out there.

Yesterday he writes about “On Keeping On Keeping On” and I have to agree with him. One reason I became an NRA Certified Instructor was to help people learn about firearms. I changed, I know others can too. It’s difficult to preach change to a large group and expect change to happen, but working one-on-one with folks you can speak directly to their needs, address their concerns. I won’t lie, I don’t bullshit; honesty is the only way to go about things. I’ll do my best to avoid politics, but there’s inheriently a political component to this. Still, by going one-on-one you can gauge the audience and tailor the message best (e.g. you can avoid politics unless asked; if they’re for sport, you can go that route; if they’re for self-defense you can go that route; etc.). If at the end of it all they’re not going to “see it my way” that’s ok… at least if they were willing to engage in the conversation, and that’s something. That they were willing to let a seed be sown, even if it doesn’t sprout today, maybe it will sometime later.

We cannot hold a grudge. We cannot let our anger be our driving force, especially if it closes us off. Not only does that make us look bad, but it won’t help bring new people into the fold. Think about it. If a sheep sees an angry dog bearing big teeth, it doesn’t matter if that angry dog is a wolf or a sheepdog — it’s still a big predator with teeth that the sheep is going to be afraid of and avoid. So you sheepdogs, think about how to win the trust of those sheep. How to better present yourself, how to better and honestly gain their trust and realize that we’re The Good Guys. And perhaps, just perhaps, be able to teach those sheep how to show some teeth as well.

25 Albums That Rocked My World

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So here we are, with another Interent meme.

“Think of 25 albums, CDs, LPs (if you’re over 40) that had such a profound effect on you they changed your life. Dug into your soul. Music that brought you to life when you heard it. Royally affected you, kicked you in the ass, literally socked you in the gut, is what I mean. Optional: when you finish, tag a bunch of others, including me. Make sure you copy and paste this part so they know the drill. Get the idea now? Good. Tag, you’re it!”

Yes, the list is numbered, but only to keep track and provide easy reference. This is truly in no particular order.

  1. Twisted Sister: “Stay Hungry” – the first album (LP) that I ever had. Was a Christmas present from my little sister.
  2. Anthrax: “I’m The Man” – high school buddy of mine played it for me and it started my journey into heavier metal.
  3. Nirvana: “Nevermind” – I remember when this album came into the college radio station. We put on the first single, “Smells Like Teen Spirit”, and all thought it was pretty jammin’. We had no idea at the time how revolutionary it would be, but I guess we did our part by playing the hell out of it.
  4. Gary Moore: “Still Got The Blues” – One of the most amazing blues guitar players ever. Period. The first time I heard the song, “Still Got The Blues” I was floored at how Gary could truly make a guitar sound like it was crying. Amazing.
  5. Saigon Kick: “S/T” – One of the few albums I think is strong end-to-end.
  6. Corrosion of Conformity: “In The Arms of God” — A masterpiece. Gives me chills when I listen to it.
  7. Corrosion of Conformity: “Deliverance” — Second only to “In The Arms of God”. It was no big loss, fly on albatross.
  8. ZZ Top: “Eliminator” — Listened to this tape in my Walkman every morning while delivering papers on my paper route.
  9. Dark Angel: “Leaves Scars” — One of the fastest and most complex albums I’ve ever heard. From song arrangements to the lyrics. Heck, you need a dictionary to understand the lyrics.
  10. Johnny Cash: “American V: A Hundred Highways” — It just resonates with me. It’s moved me to tears.
  11. Led Zeppelin: “S/T” — One amazing blues album. Powerful, both Page’s guitar and Plant’s vocals.
  12. Monster Magnet: “Superjudge” — One of the best from the mind of Dave Wyndorf. I’m suckin’ up more karma than I need, so have a supernova on me!
  13. AC/DC: “Highway to Hell” — Everyone goes on about “Back in Black”, which is a good album, but I think Highway is stronger, more raw.
  14. Slayer: “God Hates Us All” — While “Reign in Blood” is a seminal work, “God Hates Us All” is just angry and errily prophetic.
  15. Ted Nugent: “Out of Control” — Yes, a “best of” double-album, but such a great profiling of the Motor City Madman’s career. This is pure attitude, soul, and rock-and-roll swagger.
  16. Ozzy Osbourne: “Blizzard of Ozz” — For some it was Eddie Van Halen. For others, myself included, it was Randy Rhodes. He made me want to play guitar.
  17. Suicidal Tendencies: “Lights, Camera, Revolution” — No, you can’t bring me down. When this album came out, how it coincided with what was going on in my life….
  18. Sepultura: “Arise” — I worked in college radio at the time and was fortunate to gain a lot of exposure to Sepultura then. I wore a leather biker jacket at the time, and liked the band so much that I got a guy to airbrush the “tribal S” on the shoulder/sleeve of the jacket. At the time, that was the closest I’d get to a tattoo.
  19. Pantera: “Vulgar Display of Power” — The groove, the power. Walk on home, boy.
  20. Motörhead: “Iron Fist” — It’s Motörhead. ’nuff said.
  21. Little Caesar: “Influence” — Down and dirty (cliché alert!) rock and roll. “So Damn Tired” isn’t on this album, but man… what a great song. Ron Young has such an amazing voice.
  22. Lenny Kravitz: “5” — Incredible talent. This album has songs that remind me of 3 important women in my life: my daughter, my wife, and my mother.
  23. Judas Priest: “Painkiller” — From the opening drum riff through to the end of the album, this is what metal is all about.
  24. Harry Connick, Jr.: “Blue Light Red Light” — I love singing the songs on this album. “We Are In Love” is great for that too.
  25. The soundtrack from the movie “Grease” — I think this is what introduced me, as a kid, to do-wap and other 50’s era music. I still love singing “Those Magic Changes” and “Tears On My Pillow”.
  26. dead horse: “Peaceful Death and Pretty Flowers” — There’s no one like dead horse. When I was listening to them in Virginia, I didn’t know they were from Texas. When I moved to Texas (dead horse was from Houston) and wear their t-shirt out in public, it moves other people like no other band I’ve experienced. Not everyone knows about them, but all who do, well… we’re after the same thing.
  27. The Coup de Grace: “S/T” — I flew to NYC on my birthday just to see these guys. Again, college radio daze and I promoted these guys all I could. Partied with the band after the show. Nicest bunch of guys. Daylight is dawning for me.

So it’s more than 25… eh.