by Richard Smith | Director, SAFTD
Ever hear the expression “A fool with a tool is still a fool”? Not to call anyone a fool, but if you think your gun is the best protection you have, you are fooling yourself. Your gun is one tool in your defensive toolbox, and it is the last one you should reach for. Odds are if you find yourself in a situation where you need that gun, a lot of other opportunities for avoidance have been missed.
The Second Amendment Foundation Training Division has several defensive focused courses. One underlying theme is understanding when to draw and ways to avoid getting to that point. It is important to know how to effectively use your gun in a defensive situation but it is even more important to understand ways to avoid being in a situation where you need your gun. Unfortunately, your gun is not a magic talisman that will protect you from the evils in this world. Carrying a gun also doesn’t make you invincible.
Your first consideration before you tuck a gun into a holster and walk out of the house the first time, and this may seem at odds with some of what you just read, is are you prepared to use it if you have to? If the answer is “Maybe,” put it back in the safe until you are sure. Under stress, in an emergency is not the time to ask yourself if you can shoot. Hesitation can get you hurt, or killed. The phrase “if you have to” is what makes this important. If you are in a situation where you are in imminent danger of serious injury or death, it may be your only choice. But let’s look at what lead up to that and see where you can avoid the need to use your gun.
Situational Awareness, being aware of who and what is around you is key to your safety. See someone that doesn’t seem to belong or that is paying too much attention to you? Put some distance between you and avoid them. Some common tactics include people working in teams where one distracts you so the other can get to you. Don’t fall for it. If someone you don’t know tries to approach you, put up your support hand in the palm out STOP posture and tell them to stop, walk away. Be very aware of who else is close especially if that person trying to enter your space glances away; that is probably where the other one will come from. How do you maintain your Situational Awareness? Don’t let distractions pull your focus. That text can wait until you are in a safe place; you don’t really need music to walk or run; that phone call can wait, too. If you are walking around an obstruction or turning a blind corner, give yourself some distance. Don’t walk so close to the building that you come around a corner and walk straight into the arms of a mugger. Think about where you are going. If you are going someplace you think you will need your gun, why are you going there?
Being a “Good Samaritan” can get you in a lot of trouble. Every instructor knows stories about people who intervened, with good intentions, in a situation that wasn’t what it seemed to be. You pull into a convenience store parking lot, look through the window and see someone pointing a gun at the clerk. Could it be a robbery? Maybe! Could it be a police officer? Maybe! How can you tell? You can’t. Be smart, leave the scene and call the police as soon as you safely can. This may seem harsh, but you are alive to be a good witness and you aren’t in jail for interfering with a police officer. Intervening with a couple can get you killed. Statistics show us that one of the scariest scenarios of law enforcement is a domestic dispute. One spouse may be hitting the other, but if you step in, it is possible both will turn on you. Again, leave the scene, call the police; be a good witness.
Have some basic defensive techniques in your toolbox that you can use to buy time to run away. Pepper spray can be very effective if you know how to use it and are not spraying into the wind. Personal Alarms can be hung on a belt loop or handbag and make a lot of noise. Understand the risks of a direct physical encounter; you will most likely be injured. But if you have to, having a few quick simple strikes that are well practiced can buy you time. Your goal is to get away, not to take down your attacker. Sometimes even looking like you are ready to fight back is enough to deter them, but you can’t count on that.
You’ve done everything right, and it all went wrong anyway. You are in a violent or seriously threatening situation. Now you can draw your gun, right? Wrong! Where are you? How many people are around? Every situation is different, and you need to factor everything in to your decision in a moment. If you are in a crowded area, or between houses, there is a very high risk of missing and shooting an innocent bystander. If you fire, and miss, you are still at risk from the attacker(s) and possibly in legal trouble for shooting in a public area.
Train to defend yourself, but train to be aware also. The best dangerous encounter is the one you don’t have. There are no guarantees, with or without a gun, but you can improve your chances by avoiding high risk areas, being Situationally Aware, and knowing defensive techniques that can buy time for you to run away.
For more information about defensive training, including purposes, dates and locations, visit the Second Amendment Foundation Training Division website at: saftd.org.
