These days, especially after a mass shooting, everyone is talking about guns. Where do bad guys get them? How should bad guys be stopped? There are way too many questions about the guns. It’s not about the guns. You know that. But these questions beg another question: Are you ready if the day ever comes?
You see, you need to be physically ready; that is, you need to have the gear you will use to defend yourself or others. It might be a gun, or it might be something else. I believe a gun is the best option. If you have a pistol, that’s great. If you can fight with a rifle, that is even better. Having the right tools is just one step in being able to effectively fight back.
Another component in your ability to fight back is having the right training. You need to be able to effectively use the tools you have chosen. That requires training, which should be followed up by practice. Lots of practice. Meaningful practice. We are no longer “plinking.” We are training to stay alive in the face of an incredibly serious threat. Consider getting more training than you have now. In fact, if it is at all possible, make arrangements to get more training than you have now. Then practice what you have learned.
The final element to all this is likely the most important. Do you have a willingness to fight? Col. Dave Grossman describes the difference between people thusly: “If you have no capacity for violence, then you are a healthy productive citizen, a sheep. If you have a capacity for violence and no empathy for your fellow citizens, then you have defined an aggressive sociopath, a wolf. But what if you have a capacity for violence, and a deep love for your fellow citizens? What do you have then? You have a sheepdog, a warrior, someone who is walking the hero’s path. Someone who can walk into the heart of darkness, into the universal human phobia, and walk out unscathed.”
We who have chosen to carry a gun for self-defense have accepted a great responsibility, but that responsibility begins with a willingness to use violence in the protection of self and others. You MUST be able to act with the same or greater level of violence than your attacker and you must know the laws surrounding self-defense to ensure that, as a “good guy,” you are doing the right thing.
This is no small thing. It requires some serious introspection. You must ask yourself, “Am I ready for this?” If the time comes, have you prepared your body, your mind and your gear for the few seconds of terrifying dynamic action into which you will be thrust? If the answer is no, well, then, don’t carry a gun, because you most likely will not be mentally prepared to use it effectively if you are forced to.
And I say this without judgment. There is no shame in not being willing to risk your life for others. You have no moral obligation to act. This is an intensely personal decision. But as you make such a decision, think about this: The root word of “gunfight” is “fight.”
The first decision you need to make on your self-defense journey is to determine if you are willing to fight.
What are you prepared to do?
Now, go learn how to do it.
