Halloween is coming up! Will your kids be safe?

Some of my fondest childhood memories are of trick-or-treating. Here’s how to make sure your kids remember Halloween as a happy time too! I was a grade-schooler on a farm outside of a small town in the late 1960s, and back then Halloween was a wonderful holiday. We could run all over the town […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On October 28, 2014

What is the big deal with mindset?

Many trainers in the defensive shooting world talk about teaching “mindset” to their students. What is that? Can it even be taught? Some instructors post lists of what you’ll learn in their courses, and one of the items you’ll often see listed is “mindset”: the mental state of being willing to defend yourself using lethal […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On September 25, 2014

How do you know what to prepare for?

Figuring out how to keep you and your family safe can seem overwhelming, but knowing what you face is a good way to gain the clarity you need to act. Today let’s look at some of the kinds of information might be valuable to you in your quest for personal safety! Part of the planning […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On August 26, 2014

Some last-minute holiday blogging: be safe at Christmas!

I know that everyone is probably more interested in getting their shopping done than reading a blog this week, so I’m not going to lay anything heavy on you today. (I’m also not going to bother writing a blog on Wednesday, when I suspect most people are opening presents, attending services, or visiting relatives.) A […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On December 23, 2013

How should you protect yourself from the knockout game attack?

Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving holiday! (Be honest, now: how many of you are taking advantage of Black Friday/Cyber Monday deals to get yourself something at a gun or outdoor store? Thought so!) Over the last week or so quite a number of people have written to ask me about the “knockout game” which […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On December 2, 2013

Book Review: Concealed Carry For Women by Gila Hayes

I recently received (courtesy of the author) a copy of the new book “Concealed Carry For Women” by Gila Hayes. (In the interest of full disclosure, I assisted Gila with some pictures for this book and there is at least one picture of me inside. I’ve also known her for many years and consider her […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On September 11, 2013

Why are we so resistant to learning from our mistakes?

Last week I became aware of a YouTube video of a fellow shooting himself in the leg after making ready during a match. He starts the video off by proclaiming that it wasn’t his fault – it was his gun which malfunctioned and was in the hands of the maker’s service department for analysis of […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On July 1, 2013

How’s your situational awareness right now? It may not matter.

I have a quick homework assignment for you. Watch the first minute-and-a-half or so of this video (you can watch the rest later, but now we have work to do!) You see what your knowledge tells you you’re seeing. You apply whatever base comprehension you have to explain or make sense of whatever it is […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On May 22, 2013

Regarding the Boston Marathon bomb attack: ramifications and defenses.

I’m still mentally processing the information coming out of Boston about the attack at the Marathon. There’s so much to say, and so much that could happen as a result of this horrendous act, that I can’t possibly do it all justice. So, if you’ll forgive me this rather informal bullet-point treatment of the subject: […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On April 17, 2013

Reactions to a recent article: coming to terms with not being armed all the time.

Most of the interaction we have here happen in the comments, but some folks prefer to send emails expressing their thoughts. Some of them are interesting enough to talk about. On the recent topic of not carrying all the time (which I should have called “everyone does, but very few will admit to it”), I got […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On April 8, 2013

On not being armed: the discussion continues.

Monday’s post precipitated a number of comments; here, on Facebook, and in my email box. Some of them were complimentary, some weren’t, while others were in the middle somewhere. Many, I think, missed the point of the discussion. Allow me to illustrate with a question. If there is a place where you cannot have your […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On April 3, 2013

Do you carry a gun all of the time? I don’t, and you can’t if you want to have a life. Get used to it.

Every so often I’ll get together with other people who are in the business of defensive shooting training. Invariably they are shocked – sometimes to incredulity – when I tell them that no, I’m not carrying a gun (whether I am or not – I just like to see the look on their faces) and no, […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On April 1, 2013

The myth of situational awareness, illustrated.

This story has been making the rounds over the last few days, and some people in the training business have been using it as an example of why situational awareness is So Very, Very Important: “if this guy hadn’t been texting and been aware of his surroundings, he’d be alive today!” Bull twaddle. Frankly, I […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On December 12, 2012

Ramifications are everywhere. Especially in being prepared.

The storm that hit the NE part of our country was more devastating than I expected – and I expected it to be severe. The original projected pressure of 939mb turned out to be very close to the actual 940mb recorded – the lowest ever for the eastern seaboard. When I saw that forecast pressure […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On October 31, 2012

Managing scarcity – it’s an important part of safety, because you can’t have or do everything.

As I write this the storm formerly known as Hurricane Sandy is bearing down on the East Coast. The remnants of Sandy are merging with a winter storm, sucking frigid air from Canada, and coalescing to form what’s being called a “superstorm”. The forecast is for extremely high winds, double-digit inches of rain, feet of […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On October 29, 2012

Over-react much? Comical training responses to the Aurora theater attack.

Over at the Schneier On Security blog, Bruce Schneier talks about the concept of risk in relation to the Aurora movie theater attack. I found his analysis interesting, inasmuch as gunnies everywhere are talking about how they’d respond to such an event — and how they’re changing their preparations, “just in case.” Some of the blogs, […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On August 8, 2012

You’ll never look at a shopping bag the same way again: a look at a common trick.

I’m not creative enough to be a criminal. Whenever I study their behavior, the ways that they invent to bilk or attack the innocent, I’m often impressed with their originality – and occasionally just a tad frightened that I didn’t anticipate the tactic. This is one of those instances. On Greg Ellifritz’s blog this week […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On June 20, 2012

Safety rules. Again. Until everyone gets them.

From a new-to-me blogger comes the story that a woman in South Carolina was ‘accidentally’ shot by an off-duty sheriff’s deputy during a class to get her concealed weapons permit. The deputy was the instructor. What’s interesting to me are the blogger’s comments: Jeff Cooper’s rules, he says, “are not flexible”. Oh, really? I’ll refer […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On February 27, 2012

When are we going to give up on this “Rule One” nonsense?

The incident of a recently graduated Navy Seal shooting himself in the head has been widely discussed in the gun world. The most common refrain (and darned near the only one I’m hearing, proving Patton’s Dictum) is that he just didn’t pay enough attention to “Rule One.” Nonsense. Go read my original article on that […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On January 9, 2012

The snakepit of groupthink, or: don’t let other people do your thinking for you.

Every so often I’ll have a spare moment and just happen to be sitting near the computer. It’s at those times that I visit one of the gun forums (fora?) just to see what’s up with the world. More precisely, what’s up in some very small portion of the world, one which is usually severely […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On July 13, 2011

Stuff happens. Don’t let it happen to you, and think beyond just shooting.

In light of the incredible earthquake in Japan last night, I’d like to instead remind everyone that self protection and personal security isn’t always about the gun. Sometimes, it’s about the first aid kit. Sometimes, it’s about the shortwave radio. Sometimes, it’s about the camp stove. Sometimes, it’s about the water purifier. Sometimes, it’s about the […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On March 11, 2011

A slightly different perspective on personal safety: first aid skills are a necessity.

I’m sorta ‘into’ guns. If you’re reading this, I suspect you are as well. Because of this interest it’s tempting to focus on the gun part of safety preparations to the exclusion of everything else. No, I’m not talking about knives or canes or even empty hand skills, but rather the more mundane stuff like […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On February 28, 2011

Probabilities and perspective: what about protection from wild animals?

I hope everyone had a great Christmas weekend! Despite the holiday (or perhaps because of it), I got a lot of email this weekend. One of them asked a question that comes up every so often, and my answer to it has changed over the years. The question is usually something akin to “I’d like […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On December 27, 2010

The annual ritual: make a lead test part of your yearly checkup!

I have a physical exam every year, complete with blood panel. When they take my blood, I always ask specifically for a lead test to show how much of that stuff has gotten into my bloodstream. Last week the doctor did my blood draws, and today I learn the results. I expect my lead levels […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On April 14, 2010

Draw fast. Holster slow. That’s how to not shoot yourself.

Tam alerts us to a ND that happened at a Todd Green class. In his commendable reporting of the incident, Todd says “Never be in a rush to holster your pistol. We all know it, we say it, we teach it. Not all of us do it.” So true. As instructors it’s easy for us […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On February 1, 2010

A violent reaction: despite what some might say, violence is a valid and necessary tool.

I kept tabs on the concealed carry reciprocity bill that failed to clear the Senate this week, and the debates brought to mind comments I heard years ago regarding concealed carry proponents: “intelligent people have no need for violence.” “We need to reduce the violence in this world, not increase it.” This reveals a fundamental […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On July 23, 2009

A book you need: Meditations On Violence by Rory Miller.

Gila Hayes over at the Armed Citizens’ Legal Defense Network recently reviewed a book that I had to buy: “Meditations on Violence: A Comparison of Martial Arts Training & Real World Violence” by Rory Miller. Miller’s treatise is about violent criminal behavior – how it happens, why it happens, and what does and doesn’t work […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On April 27, 2009

Risk assessment, or lack thereof: why aren’t you carrying?

I meet many people who possess concealed handgun licenses, but don’t carry on a regular basis – let alone every day. The explanation is usually something along the lines of “I carry when I’m in a bad area” or “if I’m going into a situation where I’m more likely to need it, I’ll take my […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On February 25, 2009

Is that gun loaded? Why are you checking to see if it is?

In the comments to last week’s post regarding safety rules, someone asked why checking the condition of a firearm is never listed in any rules. It seems logical enough – why not check the condition of a gun when you pick it up? I’d like you to think about that for a minute – really […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On February 18, 2009

On the Virginia Tech massacre.

At first, I wasn’t going to comment on the sad crime perpetrated on the campus of Virginia Tech this week. I figured that everyone, everywhere, was going to do so (with varying degrees of erudition and insight.) I decided there wasn’t anything I could add. Until… Listening to the news on the radio, I heard […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On April 18, 2007

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