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As I’ve mentioned before, the legally possessed firearm is a reactive tool that gives you the means to repel a lethal attack. It doesn’t, in and of itself, keep you safe — but what does, and how can you really stay safe when you’re away from home?

You may remember that last week I traveled to Indianapolis to attend the NRA Annual Meetings and Exhibits. I didn’t actually attend the Meetings, but rather I went to attend the Exhibits: the largest shooting related consumer tradeshow in the country. Specifically, I was there to sign copies of my book Defensive Revolver Fundamentals at the Armed Citizen’s Legal Defense Network booth.

Because of the distance from home I needed to fly to Indianapolis, and of course I stayed in a hotel while I was there. During the entire time from when I got to the airport until I checked into the hotel, I could not be armed with a gun. Just because I couldn’t have a gun, however, didn’t mean that I was a sitting duck that entire time!

Personal security is much more than weapons. Safety is sort of like an onion: it has layers that protect and reinforce each other, and the most inner layer is the one where reaction to a threat — the use of weapons — resides. The fact that I didn’t have that inner layer in no way affected the efficacy of the layers above; in fact, it made the outer layers even more important.

I often talk about:

Detection
Avoidance
De-escalation
Deterrence
Response
…as the building blocks of an effective defensive posture, and it’s really only at the Response phase do weapons (as we usually think of them) come into significant play. That’s also the only phase in which travel dramatically reduces your capabilities. That still leaves everything else!

Pre-planning is one way to boost the effectiveness of those other layers. For instance, the hotel I picked was connected to the convention center via a skybridge, eliminating the need to be on the streets in the early morning or late evening. I picked that hotel specifically for that feature, knowing that by using the skybridge I’d be reducing my exposure to street dwellers. I significantly enhanced my Avoidance layer just by thinking a little bit before I booked my trip.

If you’re planning a trip, remember that even if disarmed you still have a great degree of control over your own safety. You can be secure even if you can’t carry a gun, and in future articles I’ll share some of my tips for security away from home!

-=[ Grant ]=-