Purses and bags – are they really a good place to carry a gun?

Lots of people do it, but what are the downsides? “Off-body carry” (OBC) is a catch-all term for carrying a gun in something that is not attached to your person. We usually think of OBC as being in a purse (female-centric), but that’s not always the case; many men, I’ve found, carry their personal […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On July 20, 2014

Staying Safe While Traveling, Part 9: avoiding the stupid

There’s a saying, usually attributed to master trainer John Farnam, about staying safe: “don’t go to stupid places, hang around with stupid people, or do stupid things.” That’s valid at home, but even more so when traveling! Everyone has a different reason for traveling: for some, it’s to see new sights; for others, it’s to […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On June 5, 2014

Staying Safe While Traveling, Part 8: are you fit to go?

Your physical fitness is as much a part of your travel security as any weapon that you might have! I know that I may be touching the “third rail” of self defense with this post, but as someone who struggles with personal fitness myself I think I’m in a good position to point this […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On June 3, 2014

Staying Safe While Traveling, Part 7: knowledge and attitude are weapons, too

Why the picture of Sir Francis Bacon? Because he once said “ipsa scientia potestas est” (“knowledge itself is power”), which is particularly fitting when we’re talking about travel safety. People tend to fixate on the things they can (or can’t) carry with them whilst traveling. A better approach might be to spend some of that energy and […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On May 29, 2014

Staying Safe While Traveling, Part 6: simplicity as self defense

The Amish, as you probably know, revel in simplicity. They find advantages in not being weighed down with possessions, and there is a lesson for us there too. In the discussion about tools, you’ll notice that I recommended very few. Why? Because there is a defensive advantage in not being weighed down! Pretend, for […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On May 27, 2014

Staying safe while traveling, Part 5: some more tools to help you stay safe on the road!

Even away from your gun you’re never really unarmed. There are tools you can carry which can help you stay safer, as long as you understand their uses and limitations. In Part 1 of this series I talked about the building blocks of personal safety: Detection, Avoidance, De-escalation, Deterrence, and Response — and how […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On May 22, 2014

Staying safe while traveling, Part 4: which defensive tools can you take with you?

How do you arm yourself when you can’t be armed? The inspiration behind this series was traveling to places where I couldn’t have a handgun on my person. Even if I were to go someplace that recognized one of the concealed handgun licenses I possess, I can’t carry a firearm in the airports at either […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On May 20, 2014

Staying safe while traveling, Part 2: your concept of safety is important!

This isn’t rocket science: it doesn’t do you much good to plan for your safety on the road if you don’t really know what safety is! In this article I share a concept of safety that, I think, will put this whole series into better perspective for you. I’ve just returned (quite literally) from a […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On May 13, 2014

How do you stay safe when traveling? Part 1 of a series

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 […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On May 6, 2014

How can YOU enhance your physical security?

As I’ve said countless times, both in print and in classes, your personal safety isn’t just about buying a gun. Here’s some discussion on how to look at security in a more holistic manner. I’m a “gun guy”. I don’t think I really started out to be one, but over the years it’s worked out […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On May 1, 2014

Do you know how to respond to a mass murder attempt?

The recent attacks at Fort Hood and on the Jewish community in Kansas remind us that irrational attacks happen. How can you respond if you find yourself in one of these situations? Attacks on large targets, meaning areas where many people congregate, are meant (or hoped) to result in mass casualties. The attacker(s) most […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On April 15, 2014

How can you really use situational awareness to be safer?

Most people who talk about situational awareness don’t really understand what it’s about or how to use it to their advantage. Here are some reasons why that’s the case, and a resource for learning the proper role of situational awareness in your total self defense plan. A few years back I wrote a very controversial […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On March 25, 2014

What is the most useful self defense tool you can carry? How about…the humble flashlight!

Is there something you can carry which can actually help keep you safe, to help identify and prevent trouble before it happens? The flashlight can, which is why I believe everyone who is interested in personal safety and preparedness should carry one. While I spend a lot of time talking about firearms and shooting, I’ve […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On March 18, 2014

The most under-used word in the field of defensive shooting: ‘context’.

If you’re not training in context, then you don’t really know what you’re training for. How is that a wise use of your time, effort, and money? One of the subjects I cover in my defensive shooting classes is the idea of training in context — that is, training in relation to your expected use. […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On March 13, 2014

Linking up with your family after an incident: an important part of your safety and defensive planning!

The link-up or meeting plan is a staple of disaster preparedness. Did you know it’s a great tool for defensive situations, like a mass attack in a mall, as well? There’s been an incident, and you’ve survived. How are you going to determine whether the rest of your family did, and how are you going […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On March 11, 2014

What is the first, most important thing you need to have for self-defense?

Whether we’re talking self defense or the larger concept of self preservation, there is one thing that stands above all others in its importance. You can’t buy it, though there are people who will try to sell it to you! I came to the self defense arena through the firearms world. That wasn’t intentional, […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On March 4, 2014

Preparing for violence means learning about how it happens and how we look at it.

What is your schema, your way of looking at violence? Your point of view determines how you prepare, so working on your point of view may be as important as anything in your defensive preparations. William Aprill is a mental health professional who has made it his business to study how and why […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On February 18, 2014

How to deal with unwanted contact: the “fishing expedition”

The aggressive panhandler. The obnoxious drunk. The guy supposedly asking for directions. Each of these common encounters holds the potential for personal harm, and your CCW isn’t necessarily the appropriate tool to address them!

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On February 13, 2014

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

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

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

Task fixation in critical incidents.

One of the concepts that we talk about in most of my classes is that of task fixation: the diversion of attention to a particular sub-activity during an attack. We discuss this specifically relating to looking at the gun while reloading. The concept is clearly illustrated in this video of a very dynamic simulation during […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On November 28, 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

Book Review: “Personal Defense for Women” by Gila Hayes.

Personal Defense for Women: Practical Advice for Self Protection by Gila Hayes It is only now that society is beginning to recognize what those of us who’ve been married for decades know all too well: men and women are different. ‘Equal’, as it happens, does not mean ‘the same’, and we are slowly coming to […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On December 30, 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

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