What should a free man do?

When push comes to shove

Take a good listen and look at this video of a gay man being taunted by Somali Muslims in Minneapolis.  But what's wrong with this picture, other than the obvious fact that Muslim yoots feel enabled and protected enough that they literally chase down a public street someone they hate, because he defies the constraints of their religion... merely by living his life the way he wants to live it.  I think there was supposed to be a question mark in there somewhere, don't you?

The gay guy ~ let's call him Bruce ~ literally laughs the entire episode off, saying over his shoulder that's he's not afraid. Believe me, he was scared. If he wasn't, then he's just stupid.

Whatever his mental state at the time, the point is that he walked on, willing to take shit from those maggots without a word of protest. 

Bullshit!  In most jurisdictions the little song and dance perpetrated by those Muslim ass-hats is called Breach of Peace.  It's a crime.  A crime for which those Muscreants can be arrested. And prosecuted. And punished.

One more thing wrong with this picture appears about 59 seconds in, as what turns out to be a security officer walks by.  Initially I thought he was a cop and had committed a gross error in not at least admonishing the gang. Believing this, I sent a brief but curt email to the Chief of Police in Minneapolis... aaaaand an apology when I realized I was wrong.  Ouch.

Anyway, the security guard there had no legal duty to act ~ even if the Somalis were beating poor Bruce to death, he could have stood there watching and no action could be taken against him ~ unless Bruce was beaten to death on property the guard was paid to protect.  In that case, there could have been civil charges of Inadequate Security a/o Inadequate Supervision made against the officer a/o the company he represented. 

Still, the guard could have made a citizen's arrest of any participants in the crime he was witnessing, the dirtbags he observed as being most guilty of the charge of Breach of Peace. But he didn't.  Why?

• Because he didn't know he can. 
• Because he knows he can when on duty but thinks that authority is limited to on-the-job activity.
• Because he doesn't know the elements of proof of the crimes committed in his presence. 
• Because he believes he will be fired if he does anything other than observe and report.
• Because he doesn't care. 
• Because he doesn't have any fuckin' idea that an innocent, harmless gay man being pursued, taunted and assaulted by a gang of loud, pissy, arrogant Muslim thugs is in deep shit.
• Any or all of the above.

As a private citizen who just happened to be dressed at the time as a security guard, he could have asked the gang what they were up to or asked Bruce if he was okay, if he wanted the police to be called. Asking questions like that while in a security uniform, or while dressed as Wyatt-fuckin'-Earp for that matter, does not necessarily constitute an act committed under the color of authority.  The guard had a right to be where he was at the time.  The fact that he was an armed guard in full uniform does not mean he purposely represented himself to be a police officer.  If he asks a question or offers a benign statement such as, I think you need to knock that shit off right now, and the thugs do so because they think he's a cop, then there is no legal harm done.

But you and me and any civilian who observed the taunting and rock-throwing, a clear breach of peace and possibly an assault, could have done a citizen's arrest as well. Just so you know.

Check here for some good, basic advice on making a citizen's arrest. And, here is some more info.

Of course the situation was just some "kids" teasing a some gay fella. This time.  This is what could have happened, and, I predict, will happen with more andmore frequency here in the US, as it's becoming commonplace in the EU ~ Muslim yoots taking out their hateful aggression on targets of opportunity. (Undaunted note: I have no knowledge as to the religion of the attackers in the video depicted at the link in this paragraph.)

Here is another example of Muslim thugs thinking they can threaten and assault people who are clearly within their constitutional rights to peaceably assemble.  Cops told the Christian guy he could shoot some video at the festival, no restrictions according to US law.  But... Muslim guards said they had no right to even be in the area.  Michigan law requires that security agencies be licensed and that each guard be licensed through their employing security company. I don't know what happened when the video stopped rolling but the local cops should have questioned the guards and demanded to see their individual licenses, company license, and all training records. They might have been able to plainly see or even conjure up some probable cause whereby they could see if any of the festival guards were carrying weapons, such as firearms, and determined if they were properly licensed and insured. These thugs were clearly outside the boundaries of legal security work and the state of Michigan needs to shut them down, pronto.

To the thin blue line: Being kind to strangers from other lands is not a suicide pact.  You guys need to be alert for this kind of mayhem and maybe kick a little ass when it shows its ugly ahead around you.  If you don't, we will be compelled to act in our own defense.  We're not going to turn the other cheek.  When shit like this happens, when our safety and lives are threatened, then we are the first responders, not you.

Okay, another thought and then I gotta take off; if you're going to fight back, the most effective way is probably Krav Maga.  Take a look here to find instructors near you.  

More coming this evening: How to push back when they shove.

Okay, where were we? Ah, yes... shoving back.

When you're in a potentially dangerous conversation, you need to be on defense, but fully ready to strike preemptively as well. Here's how you do that:

In any chat that might go south remember not to stand there with your feet close together or your legs crossed like you gotta take a leak. You should be in a subtle fighters stance, your feet spread about 12" apart, right foot dropped back so the toes are about even with the left heel.  Reverse that if you're left handed.

When you're talking with someone who appears to be friendly or neutral, keep your hands about waist level, palms up, moving slightly with no sudden motions.  If possible, try to stay outside the reach of his or her legs so it will be harder to strike you with fist/foot.  If the person moves inside that safe zone, be careful.  It mightbe preparatory to an attack.  When they step or slither close enough to touch you in a way that you consider to be threatening, raise your hands to just below your chest level, palms down but facing the person, as though you're getting ready to push them away.  Continue to speak but more loudly so the aggressor and bystanders can hear what's going on, with your hands moving calmly and slowly back and forth, up and down as you speak.  You're letting the guy get used to seeing your hands moving so if you have to strike, it won't be a sudden move but will flow from arms and hands already in motion and not seen as a threat. Yet.  In that middle position your hands can also come up quickly to block punches and begin to grapple and break holds.

By the way, during the chat you're having with this person, be as careful as you want to be in terms of provoking him or her. 

When some dipshit behaves in a manner that makes you, an entirely reasonable person, believe you're about to be attacked, then raise your hands up into a boxer position, about neck-level, but don't clench your fists. Continue to try to talk to the person through your up-raised hands. Speak more loudly than before so there's no doubt as to what you're saying, unless of course you only want the bad guy to hear what you're saying. Hands in that up position, with palms facing out, tend to show a defensive intent, rather than the offensive pose indicated by clenched fists. But, lucky you, it's still possible to slap the shit out of someone with an open hand.

Here is a good demonstration of the neutral stance and a fighting stance. Although it doesn't exactly fit what I just wrote above, it helps you get the idea. In the conversational setting we're discussing, you wouldn't bend your knees until you're about to slap or punch or block incoming blows.

I won't discuss punches or fighting now.  I've written a little bit on that at other posts here and you're free to search those posts out if you'd like. If you're serious, I believe it would be better for you to check out the Krav Maga link above and go from there. If you can't do that, then check out the many other Krav Maga demonstration training video clips shown here again.  You can google Krav Maga and come up with several free video training courses.  That's the nice thing about Israeli Krav Maga; they don't care if you come to their gym to learn it for a fee, they just want you to learn it ~ though taking the training with a qualified instructor is best. 

A few thoughts on slappin' the shit out of someone; when they've got it comin', of course.

Your hands are up in the I'm-a-reasonable-person-and-I-believe-that-asshole-right-in-front-of-me-is -going-to-assault-me defensive position. Keeping your hands moving as you're talking, step forward quickly and drive your strong hand up and into his throat, squeezing a little as you make contact. Keep pushing out with your hand, don't bend your elbow, as your feet drive forward. The guy will be off balance and with that you can push him down to the ground, kinda like what the Las Vegas police sergeant does in this clip. Notice the right hand of the sergeant.  Masterful. That stupid white-boy got his ass beat by a tactically smarter man and then hauled off to jail, no doubt.  If you do that to ssomeone, your choices then are to run away or get on top of him and try to restrain him which might look like you're beating the shit out of him.  You should be yelling for the cops the whole time. Perhaps you can tell him you're placing him under citizen's arrest and will be detaining him until the police arrive.  Good luck with that one.

Another basic move is to just slap the bad guy across the nose.  Hard. His hands are low enough so you can strike, so swing whichever open hand is best for you right across his or her face, striking the nose from the side.  Hit hard and the nose will start bleeding.  Most people will stop to assess the damage and to wonder aloud Did you see what that mother-fucker just did? Oh. My. God. 

While he's doing that, you get the hell outta Dodge. And then call the cops, if someone hasn't already.

As always, these thoughts are just that: things that I've come to know through my training and experience that I choose to share with you.  I'm not saying you should do any of these things. Ever. What you do is entirely your decision and you bear the consequences for your actions.

I do know this: I'm not going to let anybody of any religion push me or anyone else around the way the Muslims did in the Minnesota and Michigan clips. I have no idea as to the religious persuasion of the stomp-killers.

These fuckers want jihad?  They can have it

The Stoning of Soraya M.

I want you to check out this movie trailer.   

 

Make plans on seeing the movie yourself, with those you know and love.

Spread the word among your circle of friends.  It doesn't matter if you're a man or a woman. 

Honor killings must be stopped. Awareness is the first step.  Be part of the solution.

 

Make it an outing for your club, your youth group, your Sunday school class.

Beginning 26 June 2009.

Spread the word, unerschrocken.  Be there.

Be that guy

Take a look at the story here about Muslims shooting up a party.  It may not have been sudden jihad syndrome, but it can be instructive as to how many young Muslim men might feel about following the infidel rules, obeying the kufir law.

More evidence of this type of brutality can be seen in this video.

Take a look at this article about Muslim crime and prison recruitment. 

About the four Babtists-turned-Muslim arrested after getting hosed by the FBI, NYPD Chief Ray Kelly says here they were not connected to other terrorist groups.  Sorry, Chief; you're wrong.  The nose-on-your-face nexus, the elephant-in-the-room connection is... Islam.

Do young men of other religions commit horrible crimes?  Sure.  My point is that, if you look at what's happening in Europe, young Muslim men are more and more becoming wickedly violent... at the slightest provocation. There are no other religions displaying and even encouraging what appears to be a sense of untouchability as they vent their whimsical rage at any and all who don't and won't believe as they do.

More mayhem in Europe.  More blatant, in-your-face disobedience here.  More recruitment into state-side versions of these once sand-bound savage tribes.

What're you going to do, cupcake?

Let's look at the shot-up party scenario.  From a purely defensive standpoint, as soon as the bullets start buh-zinging through the walls and windows, drop to the floor.  Take your drink with you on the way down, don't worry about setting it on a coaster or the napkin your lovely hostess gave you.  Once on the floor, crawl on your belly toward the center of the structure if the gunfire is coming from more than one direction, and away from the gunfire if shots are only coming in one way. 

Why, Undaunted?  Because you want as much stuff as possible between you and the shooters. 

Why, Undaunted? Stuff stops bullets before they get to you.

Stuff: walls, coffee tables, comfy chairs, fridges, footstools, books on shelves, shelves, carpets, magazine racks, clothes hanging on the back of the door or strewn accross your messy kid-brother's bedroom, shoes tossed on the floor, pipes, stashes, your TV, towels and sheets in the hallway closet, bedframes and matresses and pillows, dressers full of socks and undies.  Etcetera. Etcetera. Etcetera.

If it's a drive-by shooting,  it won't last long; probably just long enough for the shooters to empty a couple magagines into the house and then scat before the cops show up or fire is returned by any of the party-goers. More on that later.

If the shooters don't drive away after what seems to be enough time for them to empty a couple mags into your posse, (30 seconds, give or take?) but they continue to reload and fire into the house, stay put. Stay down. They may be trying the classic hammer/anvil tactic: initial shooters, the hammer, force you into more waiting shooters in the alley, the anvil. And you get crushed in the hail of bullets.

Stay down and stay calm.  Tell the screamers to shut up because they're just part of the problem. If you're not going to counter-attack, you need to know what the shooters are going to do next.  Will you hear them dismount their vehicles, shouting taunts and continuing to fire as they get closer and closer to you?  Will they yell instructions back and forth? Hey, Smitty; run down the side of the house and shoot into it on the way back to Abdul in the alley. The rest o' you knuckleheads follow me in as soon as he's in back.

How you gonna hear all that with all the screamin' goin' on? 

And how're your people gonna hear you when you tell 'em what to do.  Cuz you're that guy. The one who didn't panic, the one who saved the day.

Molotov cocktails: they'll ignite and burn for a few minutes where the accelerant landed  before the fire begins to spread on the floor.  If the accelerant lands on fabric like furniture and curtains, they'll burn more quickly. Pull down burning curtains if you can do so without getting shot, and flip a coffee table over on them, or a rubber-backed area rug, or a pan full of those teentsy little Vienna Sausages.  That might smother the fire.  If you haven't spilled your drink yet, maybe a little gin and tonic will help extinguish the blaze.  Hey, you never know. 

Flip burning furniture and push it toward the outer walls. There, it will be away from you because you're holing up near the center, remember?  Too, fire-fighters will be able to get to fires burning at the outer walls easier than fires burning further back into the structure.  Stay down in a crawl position while you're doing this.

Probably the best thing to do is to sit tight and wait for the cops to arrive.  But, you might not have that option. The world's not fair.

If you're in this situation and the only one who brought a firearm, and it looks like the shooters are going to try to enter the structure and finish off as many infidels as possible, you need to find a spot with some cover from which you can see the main entry points at the same time. Good luck with that.  If you can't find that spot, then find the one that covers the one most likely entry point.

Cops coming in to save the day will make all sorts of loud announcements that they're on the way in.  They will most likely not come through the door shooting wildly and screaming that all you kufirs are gonna die right now.  So, in this situation, if you hear the shooting subside and then loud pronouncements such as, Police, we're coming in.  Don't shoot.  Put your weapons on the floor... it might be okay to do it. That would be my guess.

If, however, you hear a lull in the shooting and then a rumble of footsteps on your front porch just before the screen door is crashed through by someone screaming about chopping off your head and then eating your infidel heart raw, you'll probably need to shoot that motherfucker.

Since you don't know how many are behind him, put two in his chest and two in the chest of anyone behind him and two in the chest of anyone behind him.  That empties that silly revolver you bought down the street, right?  You should have bought a better gun.

And, of course anyone you shoot you shot only after coming to a reasonable conclusion that they presented a clear and present danger to your health/life a/o the health/life of those around you. Right? Right.

If you did buy a better gun, and the hi-caps to go with it, then put at least 4 in the wheel-house of the first guy, and then 4 into the guy following him, un so weiter.  Do a quick combat reload and see who's still coming and who wants more.  I don't know.  This might not work.  You may be outnumbered and outgunned and get your ass shot up and bleed out before anybody comes to help.  You do the legal and moral math and make your own decision.  Then plan and train and mentally prepare.

If you got shooters coming through the front and back doors, then the guy first through the main entry point will probably be the leader.  You need to put his lights out ASAP so all the others can see.  Maybe, just maybe, that will be enough to turn the others away, when they see their hero bite it.  I don't know, but it's better, seems to me, than curling into a ball and begging them not to cap your weezy ass too bad.

I'm tempted to write on how to counter-attack but I think I'll leave that alone, at least for now. No battles were ever won on defense.  Somebody had to attack sometime in order to take the ground and kill the enemy so somebody could win.  But this scenario seems like the kind where you hold your ground until the cavalry arrives... and pray to God they don't shoot you by mistake when they do.

How do you not get your shit blown away by the cops?  Very simple: do what they say, when they say it.  It's okay for you to explain very loudly and clearly to them as they approach and give you commands that you're a friendly, but it's not okay for you to not obey them.

In every horrible situation there's at least the potential for one person to be that guy ~  the one who knew what to do, or figured out something and gave it his best shot ~ or hers.  That guy we all talk about.  Sometimes, like on Flight 93, there are several of those guys. 

Whatever occurs, you can be that guy.  Even if it means all you did was calmly call the right people at the right time so all the good-guys in the world could show up and save the day.

Be that guy, underschrocken.

Know the law in your jurisdiction and, if you decide to act, be sure you act within the limits of that law. 

Hush, little baby; don't say a word

As if there isn't enough bad news to go around, we get the icky news that Muslim women are joining the jihad in greater numbers ~ we can read here about a woman who had a 5-year old child with her when she detonated her bomb.  On purpose.  Evidently she tugged the child along with her.  So, looks like this bitch really had no regard whatsoever for human life of any age, gender, or so-called religion.   I guess the child was hers, but no matter who the child belonged to, this is just another facet of the savagery that is too often Islam.

By their books and their preachers they are told to kill infidels, and that there are no innocents except those who embrace and live Islam. That makes it open season on anyone who isn't Muslim... or Muslim enough.

To add MOGAS to that fire, read here about how The One is letting terrorist-trained Somalis into the US, with no regard at all for their potential for indiscriminate murder and mayhem~ as though the training they got at summer terror camp was in basket-weaving and badminton.

But it really isn't necessary to import terrorists, is it? There are several thousand of 'em inside our walls already, as you can see here ~ men and women. And, as we see here, they're training their kids to be killers.  If you think they're just doing that in Iraq, you're... misguided. And you can't afford to be misguided and ignorant about this any longer.

So, what might a woman wearing a bomb look like? We're going to assume she's covered head to foot with what looks like a shroud, maybe even wearing something that looks like an abaya.  But I'm not sayin' all bombers are Muslim, or that all Muslims are bombers.  I'm just sayin'.

Let's imagine you're out minding your own bidness and you see a woman you've never seen before, so you have no frame of reference as to what might be unusual about her in a way that makes her suspicious.  Things that might catch your attention:  She's walking slowly, looking over her shoulder now and then, maybe muttering something as she shuffles along that sounds like, Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji'un (Verily we belong to Allah and truly to him shall we return).  This is a common Muslim prayer said by those who know they're nearing death.  A bit far-fetched, but maybe she's got a compass of some sort and seems overly concerned with facing toward Mecca so she can pray her last prayer towards the Kaaba.  Maybe she's carrying a backpack that looks a bit too bulky/heavy to be holding normal, day-to-day stuff ~ maybe there are oily stains on it that could be residue from the manufacture and placement of the IED in the pack.  Maybe you'll notice what appear to be wires going from the pack or her bag/bundle to her hand ~ not elastic cords: wires or cables that appear to be capable of carrying an electrical charge.  Maybe she's got a small metal/plastic device in her hand that doesn't look like a cell phone or such device and it has a wire going up her sleeve or toward her waist.

In the case of the woman in the above-linked story, the woman stood out only because she began nudging her way through the crowd, which had been waiting patiently for the food that the police were handing out.

So much for the compassion of Islam, huh?

Okay, now; let's say you're out, still minding your own bidness, when you notice a woman you have seen before.  Now you have a frame of reference by which you can spot differences in her dress a/o demeanor.  Maybe she's now suspicious because you notice she's suddenly very pregnant, when she wasn't just the day before.  Of course, this condition would be easier to spot if she was wearing western clothing ~ which is why she probably won't be wearing a halter-top and daisy-dukes.  Maybe you've seen her walking around in the past and she's always seemed calm ~ though moving with purpose between A and B ~ but now she's walking much more slowly, looking around as she moves along her way as if she's trying to find someone. She might be looking for police or security or her handler, the one who'll remotely detonate the bomb she's wearing.  Perhaps her head hangs a bit, maybe she mutters something to herself as she walks, La ilaha illa-Allah (there is no god but Allah), another common near-death prayer for Muslims. Maybe she's carrying a backpack you've never seen her with before.

For either of these situations, whether you've seen her befor or not, there needs to be more than just one indicator to trigger your suspicions. Just  one indicator is probably not enough.

So, what to do.  As I've written previously here and here, it's probably best to move away from the bomber, to cover, while letting other people in the area know what you see so they can move to cover or get down, just like you.

Advice to shoot homicide bombers in the head comes from the IACP, the International Association of Chiefs of Police.  Other advice spun from their work suggests that, since most people aren't going to practice that much and the stress during an actual incident will be sky-high compared to any training session, even the most confident shooter stands a good chance of missing the head.  That leaves a pissed-off bomber, seems to me.

You should never try any of these moves if law enforcement officers are on scene and actively involved in the scenario.

You need to decide now if you'll shoot a bomber if the necessity arises. You won't have time to go through all the moral angles then.  Whatever you decide's alright with me. If you decide you'll shoot in a situation like that, then you need to practice head shots. A lot.  Know your gun ~ where it hits at different distances and with what ammo. If you're confident that you can take out a bomber with a head-shot, remember it'll probably be best to shoot for the area of the nasal cavity or the ear canal or the brain stem.  This one sorta brings the whole concept together.  Actually the easiest target to remember and get to might turn out to be an old sniper stand-by: the eye. Put the muzzle of your gun against whichever bad-guy eye you can and put a couple rounds into his brain. Game over.

You should never try any of these moves if law enforcement officers are on scene and actively involved in the scenario.

There is a lot of professional opinion that you'll have to be within contact distance ~ near enough to the bad-guy to touch him with the muzzle of your gun ~ to get off a for-sure shot.  I agree. So, if you're within contact distance of a person you reasonably suspect has a bomb he's about to detonate and you've decided in advance that you'll shoot in such a scenario and you've trained and are prepared, then quickly but calmly draw your weapon and put at least two bullets into the head/brain area depicted above. 

You should never try any of these moves if law enforcement officers are on scene and actively involved in the scenario.

If you're not in contact distance, you still have options... if you decide. It's a normal reaction to put your hands out to break your fall when you suddenly find yourself being pushed or dragged to the ground, so there's no reason to think a terrorist wouldn't do the same thing.  With that in mind, you might have a couple seconds to tackle and shoot a bomber. If you're not within contact distance of the bad-guy but are within lunging distance ~ less than 6' ~ an apt option might be to tackle the bomber with your weak arm around his neck, like steer-rasslin' cowboys do, and simultaneously put your gun muzzle against one of his eyes and then quickly put two rounds in his head.  If the bomber isn't looking your way, you might be able to quietly rush ~ maybe from even as far away as Tueller Drill distance... 21'  ~ and get him on the ground long enough to put a couple in his head. You've got about 2 seconds, 3 max, to pull this one off, if you want to give it a try. 

You should never try any of these moves if law enforcement officers are on scene and actively involved in the scenario.

Can you get exploded along with him even if you do get off your two rounds?  Sure.  Can you shoot yourself with a bullet that passes through him, into you? Absolutely. Hey, you wanna live forever? Juuuust kidding.

Prepare mentally. If you see a situation develop that to you looks reasonably like a guy or girl about to blow people up, AND THERE ARE NO COPS IN THE AREA TO DO ANYTHING, then... carry out your decision, whatever it was.

Though the Bobbies in this story ended up shooting an innocent man, their tactics were about the only thing they could do given the information known to them at the time: they grabbed the guy and threw him to the ground, pinning his arms and legs ~ and then they shot him multiple times in the head.  Some preliminary info here and here on what were the totality of circumstances on the scene that morning.  And, more detail here on the subsequent findings of the British court. His death is a tragedy, but the court found that no prosecution of the officers involved was warranted based on the evidence available.

You do the legal and moral research and make up your mind as to what you'll do in a bomber situation. And, if the totality of circumstances lead you to believe you're looking at someone about to detonate a bomb he or she is wearing or clearly has direct control over and you decide to tackle and shoot, I hope it turns out well for you. Sincerely.

But remember:

You should never try any of these moves if law enforcement officers are on scene and actively involved in the scenario.

Another fine kettle of fish

There's new information viz the Columbine shooters, which you can read about here, if you haven't yet.  And how come you haven't read up on that yet?  Huh?

Anyway, in that article psychologist Peter Langman writes, It is hard to prevent murder when killers do not care if they live or die. It is like trying to stop a suicide bomber.

The attack Harris and Klebold pulled off was well-planned over a period of more than a year, and Harris, who conceived the attacks, was more than just troubled. He was, psychologists now say, a cold-blooded, predatory psychopath — a smart, charming liar with "a preposterously grand superiority complex, a revulsion for authority and an excruciating need for control, according to Dave Cullen, author of Columbine.

What's the difference between the Columbine killers and the Mumbai shooters? One group was trained and sponsored by the government of Pakistan and so was better trained. And there are more Columbine killers and Mumbai shooters practicing all over the world tonight ~ gunnin' for you, butter-cup.

Okay, now read this excerpt from an article I found while researching this post:

British Columbia Psychologist Robert Hare has done some ground breaking research into the study of psychopaths and has found that psychopaths tend to under utilize regions of the brain that integrate memories and emotions. These findings helped support long held theories that the destructive nature of psychopaths was neurobiological in nature. Aside from the neurobiological aspects of psychopathic behaviour: The psychopath knows right from wrong; they are quite often charming, glib and impulsive individuals. They often brag about grandiose life ambitions, but often lack the skills or the discipline to achieve their goals. Psychopaths are easily bored and crave immediate gratification. It has been found that psychopaths, quite often, have very high intelligence quotients. When caught in a lie, the psychopath will shift blame, or switch topics with no apparent embarrassment. They do not form deep or meaningful relationships, and often end up hurting people who get close to them. While they are intellectually aware of society's rules, they feel no guilt when they break them.

While many of the aspects described above fit the profile of the Super Predator, there are some important differences. The super predator” is almost completely without ambition, they are often of below average intelligence, and they do not recognize -intellectually or otherwise- any rules of society. While psychopaths and the super-predator both share the inability to feel emotion, the psychopath can feign it to achieve a result, the super predator seems completely incapable of even that. More interestingly, the super predator is remarkably candid. They will more often than not, admit not only to their crimes, but also as to the why, and as to the fact that they did nothing wrong and would do it again.

Psychopathy does not always manifest itself in criminality. In fact, a psychopath could be a highly functioning and highly successful individual in society. In contrast, the super predator lacks the intelligence or the masking capabilities of the psychopath to achieve success outside of the criminal world. (Bennett et al, 1996, p. 29) The super predator is not psychotic. Psychotics are largely out of touch with reality. They suffer from delusions, hallucinations, or other disordered states. They are often found not guilty of crimes they commit by reason of insanity. (Kahlia, 1996). Today, especially in the inner cities, children between 5 to 9 years of age are often left to their own devices. They spend much of their time hanging out on the streets or soaking up violent television programs and violent rap music; they have easy access to guns and drugs, and can be extremely dangerous. By the year 2005 they will be teenagers, a group that tends to be, in the view of Northeastern University criminologist James Alan Fox, temporary sociopaths... impulsive and immature.''

There are currently 39 million children under 10 in the U.S., more than at any time since the 1950s. This is the calm before the crime storm, says Fox. So long as we fool ourselves in thinking that we're winning the war against crime, we may be blind sided by this bloodbath of teenage violence that is lurking in the future. Nearly all the factors that contribute to youth crime -single-parent households, child abuse, deteriorating inner-city schools - are getting worse. At the same time, government is becoming less, not more, interested in spending money to help break the cycle of poverty and crime.  

Okay, that's all you need for now.  It's a good essay, the remainder of which can be read here.

In case you're not up-to-speed on ciminal justice stuff, John DiIulio coined the phrase Super Predator some years back and wrote here of his scientific, wild-ass guesses on the subject.

And, coming full-circle back to Harris and Klebold, catch this one last piece here on how they and Cho at VaTech, though they all had "issues", could not have been identified as people sure or even likely to commit the slaughter they indeed did commit ~ and no one can ever predict future slaughterers. The best any expert can really give us is a... scientific, wild-ass guess.

So, are we going to stand anymore around bitching about which side of the psycho-argument is most true ~ or holds the most danger if all of them are true?  I don't know.  You don't know.  None of the sky-pilots who thought up this psycho-stuff know for sure either. 

God knows, and he ain't talkin'.

The deal is this, whether you understand it or accept it or like it.  Or not. 

You can comfort yourself by noting that the homicide rate is down over the last several years ~ but that's because medical science is saving many more, Hmmm, these gates really are pearly after all people and making them into, I got my ass beat/stabbed/shot and almost died until the Doc saved me Agg Assault victims.  What does that mean? Murders are down because doctors are able to save more almost-victims but the result is that charges of Aggravated Assault, the crime just below Murder in most jurisdictions, has increased as much as five-fold in some areas.

You can comfort yourself by believing that since W is now back in Texas, the world will like and respect us again and those nasty terrorists will back off and just blow themselves up accidentally since they're all just poor, dusty knuckle-heads anyway.

You can comfort yourself with delusional hope that a suave community organizer has the brains and the balls to take on some of the worst bad-guys and savages since the Barbary Coast pirates and Hitler.  

And you can place your remaining feeble faith in stupid people who end up being cops, like this insipid POS, who, as you can see here, has clearly put her religious beliefs ahead of the safety of her fellow officers and the citizens of the fine city of Philadelphia.  How is a hijab a threat to other officers and citizens?  Some bad actor come up from behind and grabs our little princess by her tightly-emplaced scarf and then commences to quickly choke her til her knees give out and she goes down. As she's losing consciousness, because she is not a warrior her main concern will be that her head not be uncovered lest she dishonor her god, so she'll reach up to loosen the tension growing 'round her windpipe and carotid artery ~ while the bad-guy, who's doing this easily with one hand because this so-called cop is such a cup-cake, reaches down and takes her duty pistol.

And extra mags. 

Which he can then use against the real cops and any loose-change citizens in the AO.

So where am I going with this?  Here:

You don't know where they are.  You don't know who they are or where they go to church, and many of them do.  You don't know when or where they will attack so you don't know if you'll be in the AO when they do.  The only thing you do know is that you can be prepared no matter who, what, where, when, why... and how.  I've talked about this in the last few posts here and in many not so recent posts you can search out and find in just a few minutes.

Only you can care enough to be aware of suspicious circumstances and people around you.  Only you can report these observations to the proper authority.  Only you can decide if you want to prepare yourself with force of legally-carried arms and ammunition and the training that can turn you into a warrior.  Only you can protect you. But they're not just after you.  They're after all those folks around you as well.

The cops can't do it all, can't be everywhere all the time.  They didn't drive in to work today just so they could wait around the corner from your house and beat the shit out of anybody who pisses you off.  Can you believe that?

A police officer who is becoming a friend wrote this to me a few days back, viz the Binghamton, NY situation:

... In the age of the active shooter, they must be taken down as soon as possible. We can't do the old surround and wait him out anymore. I couldn't bear to know that brother officers lay dying, I would have done something more than watch.

Having gone to a two-day training course on the active shooter last year, I can tell you it was some of the most realistic training I have ever had... it was thrilling and terrifying at the same time.

These events do require skill and coordination.  It was physically grueling.  I'm in good shape for my age but many have let themselves slide after getting the job. There are no requirements or incentives to stay in shape, which is a shame, because it drags down the agency and presents health risks for the individual officers.

See?  They're going to give it their best shot.  Most of them, anyway. So, encourage the ones who are obviously warriors.  They are the bad-ass boys with the bad-ass toys.  We need more cops with nick-names/call-signs like Chainsaw, or Trouble and none called Pudge or Old Shoe.  So, don't be shy about reporting the ones who are lazy, incompetent pension-chasers.  Attend city or county counsel meetings to see if you can move the "leaders" to pay for more great training for your warriors ~ as opposed to putting down really pretty paving-stones in front of city hall, like they just did where I live.

Another attack's coming.  The cops are preparing. Training.  Staying alert.

You need to get and stay prepared, too, unerschrocken.  Suck it up.

More feckless PC "leaders"

As the dust settles from the Binghamton shooting, I found this story to be quite interesting. Notice how the prosecutor and medical examiners, all city or county employees, immediately begin to set the stage for the wrongful death lawsuits that families of the slain will surely bring against the town of Binghamton. 

The cops on scene had no way of knowing how badly anyone was hurt inside that building and for some lawyer to say they aaaaall would have died anyway is pure bullshit.  No ME in a cold morgue can say how long someone will fight for life.

I worked a homicide back in '85 where a 100#, healthy Korean woman was stabbed seventeen times by an angry ex-lover.  The crime scene was horribly bloody and initially we thought she had fought her attacker. Evidence showed later that the blood spatters and patterns all over that bedroom were from her twisting and writhing there on the floor, fighting desperately for her life.  Medics who made it to the scene and tried to stabilize her there said they'd never seen so small a person fight so hard for her life with so little blood left in her body. They felt they could have saved her had they arrived sooner.

It was the sworn duty of those Binghamton cops to protect the people who were in danger inside that building, not stand around opining that everyone inside was already dead, so why bother going inside.  In my opinion, this is another case of political correctness getting someone, a lot of someones, killed. 

I am sure those cops would have stormed that building and bravely taken that shooter down... if they'd been lead from the front by their Chief who, by his own words, arrived on scene less than three minutes after the initial 911 call.  And then did nothing.

He didn't know how many people were inside. 

He didn't know how many were wounded or the seriousness of those wounds. 

He didn't know how many shooters there were nor what weapons they had or had used.

But it was most certainly his job to go in and find out to keep the loss of innocent life to an absolute minimum by way of proactive, aggressive police work. But I think something was there in the back of his mind that scared him into waiting when he should have lead courageously.

But, Undaunted, they were all dead inside.  There was no point in him and his troops going on active shooter response.

I'll say it again: he didn't know they were all dead.

Following a soon-explained nexus, here we can read about how PC crap may have had something to do with the deaths of three Pittsburg cops.  How so?

Paraphrasing the story: With one AK47 and two pistols, the shooter kept police hiding behind cover for four hours while their brother officers were left bleeding to death nearby, on-scene police leadership unwilling to try to reach them.  More than 100 rounds were fired by the SWAT teams and the shooter.

WTF?  One AK47 and two pistols?  Just how many freakin' automatic weapons and pistols did the cops have?  And with all those cops there, only 100 rounds were fired?

What. The. Fuck. Is. That?

Every cop there with a pair should have fired at least 100 rounds into the house where this POS was hiding.  As he kept his head down so's not to get it shot off, a couple cops could have run up and grabbed their comrades and dragged them to safety and waiting medical aid.  You know why PPD could have done it and should have done it?  Because that's what our soldiers do every day. When there are wounded who need evac, some of the guys lay down suppressive fire, lots of bullets fired all at once and for an extended period of time,  while a couple others in the squad rush out and drag the wounded warrior out of the line of fire.

Why didn't this get done here? 

First, there may have been officer safety concerns: they didn't want any cops to be shot by friendly fire as they rescued the wounded.  So they did nothing.  But the rescuers could have ducked a little as they approached and then dragged out those now-dead officers.

Second; because PD leadership is afraid of the media singing that tired old song about bad-ass, aggressive, over-reacting cops and how they shot the shit out of a perfectly peaceful neighborhood in order to arrest one measly misunderstood yoot who'd just had a bad day and lost his job. So, because of cowardly, PC leadership, three more fine police officers died. 

Get it?

As if that's not sad enough, we can all see here that VaTech doesn't get it yet.  Nobody brings to pass peace by studying non-violence nor by setting up some dopey Center for Peace Studies and Violence Prevention anywhere there are humans. 

I got a clue for you, Mr. Mark McNamee: human bad-guys only understand one thing and that's aggressive, brutal force.  They will always try to use it on those they see as easy prey... unless that prey is demonstrably capable and willing to use aggressive, brutal force to preempt any attack, a/o to play catch-up for any attack that a bad-guy might get lucky enough to pull off successfully.

"It was an opportunity for something new and different and hopeful to emerge," said provost Mark McNamee.  Why didn't you just say, I'm a pussy and anyone can come and kick my ass any time they want and terrorize and hurt my family and any student at VaTech because I'm such a coward, I'll just let you do it.

There.  I said it for him.

The aforementioned nexus?

Cops are great.  God bless them and protect them.  But for different reasons, they can't or won't always respond in a way that saves the most lives. Too many people in leadership positions in this country have no appreciation for the fact that we're at war ~ against terrorists and gang-bangers, losers and loners ~ and all the rest of the riff-raff.  They think we're all just learning to adjust to new challenges in inter-personal relationships and the way to peace and safety is to take one more class, get one more line on the old resume' showing you're staying ahead of the power curve on the subject of abnormal psychology.

Bullshit.

You want peace?  You gotta beat a little ass now and then.  Period.

So, since it's not going to get any better, you need to take responsibility for your own safety and that of those you love.

You.

And to cop leadership: man up.  We're tired of your lame-ass excuses.

Upstate Shooter Update

Some preliminary and follow-up observations about the 4-3-09 shootings in Binghamton, NY.

Schools near the scene were put on lock-down but apartment buildings in the same area were evacuated.  WTF: apartment dwellers are somehow less intrinsically valuable than students? 

It was the same scenario whether one was stuck in Algebra or watching Frazier re-runs: there was a guy with a gun in a building surrounded by cops.  To keep the kids in the building because they might wander over to the scene and be hurt is one thing.  But to assume no apartment residents would stroll over to see what was going on and also might be hurt  is absurd. 

Better that the cops have a radio/TV announcement telling people there was danger close and they needed to stay inside than to have cops go through buildings telling people to leave, which is what they did as far as reports inform us.  One patrol car could have gone through the area broadcasting a warning to stay inside with doors and windows locked until the area was declared clear of danger.

But, no.  Evidently cops were sent to evacuate people from surrounding residences.

This is inadvisable in a number of ways.

• If there are armed attackers, the best place for unarmed civilians who are not located in the same building as the attackers is probably behind locked doors.  If the shooters move toward the building you're in, it would be best to get out of Dodge before they get there.
• If there are armed attackers, the best thing for cops to be doing is moving aggressively against those attackers to minimize the death and destruction they might cause. 
• If there are armed attackers at one location, there is no reason to believe that is the only site at which an attack will be launched.  Rather than going through apartment buildings and neighborhoods telling people to leave their homes and flee for their lives, those cops should have been at least on stand-by; fully armed and equiped and on the way to other likely targets in the city.
• Mumbai had multiple attackers at multiple locations.  Given that attack, there is no reason to think any attack in any town of any size will be just one guy who's pissed off because he lost his job. 
• Any Chief of Police who trains and deploys his troops as though that's true needs to be fired.

Period.

I watched the coverage of the incident.  There were emergency lights flashing from all sorts of vehicles.  But if a building's not burning down at the moment, the firemen can direct traffic while cops deploy to potential secondary targets.  Like schools.  And malls. 

The most annoying thing about the coverage was, to me, the apparent obsession the news-reader had with the fact that the cops took two people out of the building in flex-cuffs, as opposed to steel hand-cuffs.  She mentioned more than once the training she'd "seen and received" from SWAT guys and how all that training didn't suggest to her why those two guys were taken out in flex-cuffs.  I guess she wasn't paying attention or was busy applying her own "enlightened" perspective to the training... so she missed that part.  She sounded like a fool. But that's what CNN is all about.

My guys and I used to carry at least two sets of steel cuffs on our gun-belts and three or four flex-cuffs between our pants belt and our gun-belt.  Why?  Because sometimes we needed all the restraints we could carry.

I'll write more on this later but I just want you to be brave.  A dozen or so people were killed today and some of them wouldn't have perished if they'd been brave. 

In Israel, civiliams are taught to attack shooters like the one in NY today.  Attack the shooter.  Swarm him though you are unarmed... or risk being that sitting duck about which we all hear.

That's what I'd do if I was unarmed.  You decide what you're going to do when the time comes. And don't think it won't.

Now, some more information which I've gathered from public sources, the same ones you all have, and some observations and questions that spin naturally from them.

Chief of Police Joseph Zikuski said cops arrived on scene two minutes after the initial 911 call and he arrived on scene one minute after that, and that there were no shots fired after his arrival. 

The shooter fired 98 rounds in around a minute.  That means you have to know ahead of time what you're going to do, since this guy did and so will the guy(s) you're up against.  You have to have some idea how you're going to respond given the building a/o terrain you're in/on.  You need to know where exits are if that's what you'll be heading for and where the hallways lead in case you decide/plan to head courageously for the sound of the guns when you hear them. 

He used two semi-automatic pistols and carried a bag in which was lots of ammo.  He probably had several magazines fully loaded and ready to go in that bag ~ that's how he got so many shots off so quickly.  But he had to have practiced shooting and reloading in order to have done what he did so effectively.  So, are you going to practice?  Are you going to have a proper pistol and several loaded magazines ready to go when it comes time for you to respond to a shooter like this? If that's what you decide to do.  BTW, if you're maybe thinking of getting a pistol, you'd better get off the pot, buster.  I stopped at a large local sporting goods store this afternoon and saw their handgun racks were about 60%... empty.  People are stocking up on guns and ammo.

I'm just sayin'...

He wore SBA.  Soft Body Armor.  It's not called a bullet-proof vest because nothing is bullet-proof. This shows even more the depth of his preparation.  To you this means that, if you decide to respond to an active shooter and you decide to shoot him and he doesn't fall after you've put several adequate-sized bullets into his torso, you're going to have to shoot him in the head.  If that's what you decide.

"...took the SWAT team several hours to clear the place due to the information that kept kept coming in about possibly the shooter may still be in the building..."

SOP since Columbine has been for the first two or three cops on the scene of an "active shooter" to team up and go in the building to stop the shooter.  Waiting for SWAT to show up is not how things are done anymore.  Training for active shooter response has become a number one budget item for many if not most of the law enforcement agencies in this country and around the world.  There are no indications from anywhere that support the early report that there were hostages in the building.  Because I know, I can tell you there isn't a hostage situation until some bad guy puts a weapon to some good guy's head and says, Nobody moves or this guy gets it right in the melon. Until that time, there are too many unknowns and unknowables to have fully-armed cops waiting behind patrol cars. My guess is that the cops thought the silence meant the shooter was gathering people as hostages a/o barricading himself somewhere.  Okay.  If that's what they knew he was doing then letting him settle down is a wise thing to do ~ then try to talk him out without anyone (else) being hurt.   But they didn't know.  Because they were outside. For all they knew, there were bodies piling up inside as Voong and an accomplice or two shot people with silenced HK 45s and then chopped off their heads.  Silence can mean many things.  IMHO, as soon as he arrived at the American Civic Association building, the Chief should have gathered the cops who had gotten there just before him and, leading from the front, advanced into the building to locate, engage and destroy the threat.  Why didn't he?  I don't know. 

The Chief said that along with his guys, he had the assistance of the "full force" of the Broome County Sheriff's Department, and the NY State Police, and that they, along with the INS, ATF and the US Marshal's Service "were at my side, start to end."

My guess is that all those troops were not literally to his immediate left, right and rear ~ though the tactical leadership of those groups certainly should have been right there in his hip pocket.  But what I'd like to know for sure is: exactly where were all these extra troops deployed?

• Were all BPD officers at the scene? 
• Where were the 2d shift BPD officers? 
• Where was BPD 3rd Shift? 
• Where did BCSO deputies deploy and what was their task?
• Where were the Feds deployed and what were they tasked with?

These things are important to you now because we're seeing more and more of these incidents and the next one could involve you or someone you love.  So, to the extent possible, you need to prepare.  One of the things you need to do to prepare is to have some sort of idea what your local PD plans to do in a situation like this.  Will they let you in on their secrets if you ask them to share? No.  And they shouldn't.  But they should have this sort of general plan:

• An active  shooter at any location will be responded to with an appropriate level of force, both in terms of the numbers of police officers, and the weapons and tactics used to control and defeat the threat.
• But, at the same time this is happening, an adequate number of officers with appropriate weapons and tactical know-how will deploy to the area of other high-value targets in town and be prepared to respond in force should the initial incident be a decoy, designed to draw critical resources to a minor incident and away from what is intended to be the main attack location. 

Plainly said: Don't send all your guys to a house where one guy is shooting at his neighbors with a .22 when he could be doing it merely to draw all the cops to his area while his bigger, badder buddies attack the middle school on the other side of town.

You need to know if your Chief of Police or Sheriff has this sort of contingency plan.  Why?  Because if they don't and you work or spend significant time at one of those attractive targets, or love someone who does, then you'd like to be able to do something other than weep and scream in fear a/o sorrow as your world a/o theirs is changed forever. Too, it may not be a bad idea for cop leadership to let bag-guys know that running a diversion on one side of town while they terrorize the other just ain 't gonna work.

Part of being prepared is to try reasonably to be sure others are prepared, too.  Especially those who are paid and sworn to protect you. Pray for 'em.  But hold 'em accountable.

In no particular order

A couple days ago I saddled up and was motoring hither and yon looking for bullets ~ a brand new Hornady round about which I'd read.  I went to four different stores and each one had a dearth of bullets, whether for pistol or rifle.  Almost all the self-defense ammo was gone. 

This is not good, sez I. 

Curious as to the lack, I did a bit of research and... well, you can read about it here. 

People are nervous.  And I can't say I blame 'em.  But fear not, unerschrocken.  Be the decider. Prepare. Train. Train some more.

Live courageously and die with honor when it's your time.

Meanwhile, stock up on ammo as best you can.  If you haven't picked a caliber yet, I'd say go with 9mm because it's the most popular and easiest to find ~ when you can find it.

I just heard yesterday about the four Oakland PD Officers and had my thoughts stirred by the Unerschrocken Romanian. The most current story can be read here. I heard from a friend that there were some dirt-bags who taunted OPD detectives as they processed the crime scenes.  Too, I saw something about some clowns who were protesting the death of the shooter, chanting crap about how OPD was committing genocide. A word to each and every one of those pitiful morons:

Shutthefuckup.

While I don't run with scissors, reading the story linked to above caused me to run smack-dab into this question: how much did Community Policing have to do with the deaths of these brave officers? 

Ron Dellums is the sagacious mayor who pushed CP down the throats of the department.  Ron is a flaming liberal ~ I can smell the smoke from here.  Liberals, exxxpecially the flaming ones, hate cops.  According to the liberal mind-set, cops are always wrong.  Ergo, the cops needed to get with the CP program in order to change themselves because they were doing something, probably everything... wrong.

This is CP: cops are taken from patrol cars and put on foot and bike patrols so they can assimilate with the locals better ~ so the officers can get to know about the plight of the man on the street and therefore not be so quick to knock heads with him.  

As if the man on the street doesn't need to modify his attitude.

  As if some men and women on the street don't need 

a good wall-to-wall counseling session.

While there are certain statistics that indicate that some types of crime drop when CP is used in some areas, it is never effective when the main purpose is to teach cops a lesson.  It is so often bad policy because it compels cops to be extra nice to the populace but requires absolutely nothing in return from the citizens.  Citizens can't be forced to be nicer, only the police.  But when forced to become cup-cakes, some cops may inadvertently drop their defenses too low and turn down their level of awareness to danger, and it ends up like this; four funerals.

Am I suggesting cops should be mean and intemperate?  Nope.  I worked foot-patrol for a long time, often with no back-up near, and got letters of commendation for being Sergeant Nice Guy.  But lawyers and liberals these days are forcing cops to be too nice and to not be the ass-kicking warriors they were born to be and we need them to be. And, that pacifism is killing our society. 

The civilians who will be impressed by cops who play the PC game are not the civilians who need to be impressed by police power.  There are plenty of bad actors out there who hate softness in themselves and in others and will mercilessly attack any weakness they see in an enemy.  That's you to some of them. 

So, if bad-guys see a police force devolve from an aggressive, proactive, fearless team into a flock of  sensitive, "enlightened" community organizers, they're going to strike. And blood will flow.

As for the slain OPD officers, I'm not criticizing them at all.  I pray God's strength and healing for their loved ones. If there is blame to be laid, and there always is, in this case it's very likely the PC ass-hats who decided their cops needed to be street evangelists and gregarious, glad-handing hucksters instead of daring knights and fierce gladiators and intrepid warriors.

Bad-guys need to know that if they step out of line, they are going to get their asses beat or shot to pieces. Or both. Period.

The type of ass-holes who taunt and kill cops and who march in support of those who do, need to see this every single day of their pathetic lives: bad-ass patrol cars loaded with bad-ass shotguns and rifles and thousands of rounds of ammo, driven aggressively by tough, fearless, well-trained, well-armed cops who have no qualms whatsoever about slapping the shit out of any mother-fucker stupid enough to break any law, especially laws that are on the books in order to protect innocents. And these cops need to be lead by warriors who when complained to will reply: Hey, you fucked up, dirt-bag.  You shouldn't have broken the law and you shouldn't have fucked with my guys.

So, how does all this effect you?  Well, it probably won't touch you at all.  Ever.  But with 80% of the violent crimes being committed from sea to shining sea by violent street gangs and the fact that no police departments are going to follow the advice I offered above, bad-guys will continue to thrive as cops continue to do their honorable best under the restraints given them by their liberal leaders.  Add to that the very real possibility of Mumbai-style terrorist attacks here in the US and then tell me everything'll be okay.

Maybe. Read here  for another reason why I'm skeptical. 

You need to be either very lucky or very prepared.  God help you be both.  But you're not tough just because you say so.

There's no such thing as tough.  You're either trained or untrained. 

Now, which are you?

I've written much here that you may choose to use, if you'd like. Surf around the site and see what you like.  See where the links take you and decide if the posts here are worth exploring in more depth and acting on.  Again: your choice, not mine.

Something I haven't mentioned before is a great book: On Combat ~ The Psychology and Physiology of Deadly Conflict in War and in Peace.  If you want to fight back, legally, then you need to be well and fully armed.  This book will help. This blog will help.  So will this one.

But ultimately it all comes down to what a free man is willing to do so he is not made a slave by his enemies.

So, what're you gonna do?

Get your shit in one bag

Often a military term generally meaning, Stop foolin' around; get only the gear you need, put it in one bag, and let's go.  If someone says your shit is in one bag but there is no bag around, you're being complimented.

Reading up on recent news, we see here that heroin is being smuggled into the UK by Asian terrorists.  I wonder if they mean Korean gangsters... gongk-pae.  Probably not, eh?  The new DHS Chief says here she needs help on the Mexican border because drug cartels have all kinds of machine guns. 

What DHS needs is a warrior to run the operation; certainly not the over-weight management maven, Janet Napolitano, up with whom we must now put.  This is the kind of leadership we need at DHS. 

So, with all that going on, the FBI Director warns here of attacks against the US, and other information suggests the targets might include shopping malls in Southern California. But don't worry about it, the threat's in that other Southern California.

Okay; what's the nexus, the thread that connects all these stories?  How 'bout this:

We're in mounting danger from mad Mexicans who are connected to the same terrs who are running dope to the Brits and shooting up perfectly good cricket teams.  The personnel, equipment, and infrastructure necessary to smuggle tons of drugs, weapons, and bad-guys up from various unfriendly groups in South and Central American hell-holes, through Mexico and into the US, has been up and running for decades.  Islamist terrorists have long-standing operational agreements with Latin American drug cartels and have trained there for years.  Where there are drugs, there are guns.  Where there are lots of drugs, there are lots of automatic weapons and people not shy about using them to get their way.  It would be exceedingly easy to pull off a Mumbai-style raid here, or several simultaneously, because DHS can't do it alone, partly because it has such pussies for leaders.

And if I haven't convinced you that this is a big mess, the Seattle Times article here tells us that The One has now figured out, by way of his band of "experts", exactly what I just told you in this little old blog... and would have sooner except that my draft of this post just up and disa-freakin'-peared a couple days ago.

So we come back to the question often asked here: What are you going to do? I'm not telling anyone to engage in vigilantism but no one can tell us not to be alert and prepared, to make decisions about what we'll do before dangerous situations force us to do so ~ and to have the proper gear necessary to carry out our plan, whether to flee or to fight.

You save you.

We're talking about a really bad scenario here ~ something a  lot like the Mumbai raid ~ bad guys with lots of guns, moving toward pre-determined targets while shooting at targets of opportunity along the way.

If you're going to fight back, take a look here for some insight into carrying concealed weapons.  If your jurisdiction doesn't permit concealed carry or possession of any weapons in certain areas and you decide to break that law, take a look here  at Maine's Affirmative Defenses/Competing Harms law to see what you might need to know if you end up in court.  Carrying a concealed weapon is legal where I come from but you need to know all laws in your state and municipality that pertain to weapons and justifiable homicide. Then you decide if it's worth the risk to you. I've already made up my mind.

As part of your plan, if you decide to put one together, perhaps it would be a good idea to get to know some of your local cops. Since terrorist attacks are most likely to begin during daylight hours, I'd get to know some first-shifters... first.  Let them know who you are, over time.  Buy them a cup of coffee or a bottle of G2.  A clue: don't buy coffee for a cop and bring it to him or her.  Offer to pay for coffee they can see being prepared by a barista, or pour themselves.  Else, they'll wonder if you're slipping them a Mickey. Don't offer them a drink if the bottle doesn't have an unbroken seal on the cap.  They won't take it, at least they shouldn't, if the seal's not intact.  After some sincere small talk, maybe it would work to say something like, That Mumbai stuff ~ that was the shit. I've been studying terrorist tactics, even some when I was in the military (if you were actually in the military and really studied terrorist tactics), and if that kind of action goes down here and you see me in the AO, just remember I'm a friendly.  That way, if they see you on-scene of an attack, they might not just shoo you on down the road.

On the other hand, it may be best to say nothing and if you happen to be there when something happens, just hope you don't get mistaken for a bad-guy.

Ya pays yer money ~ ya takes yer chances.

If you're seeing bad-guys who look like they're staging a Mumbai-style attack, the first thing you should do is get on the horn: Call 911.  If it were me, I'd have an ear-piece and both hands free, and the call would go pretty much like this:

My name is Undaunted. Be quiet and listen up. I'm reporting multiple armed men in the parking lot on the north side of the SouthWest Mall in Easton. I say again: multiple armed men in the north parking lot of the SouthWest Mall in Easton.  There are about 10 men, moving together in two-man teams, all wearing dark clothes, carrying what appear to be military-type assault weapons, and back-packs. I am in the same parking lot wearing tan chinos and a Detroit Redwings jersey.  I say again: There are about 10 men, moving together in two-man teams, all wearing dark clothes, carrying what appear to be military-type assault weapons, and back-packs.  I am going to engage them with my pistol and shotgun, trying to keep them out of the mall and busy till the cops arrive on scene.

That's the part where the Operator starts to get antsy, maybe even nasty, to ask questions, and he or she will almost certainly tell you and me to seek cover and wait for the police.  Understand that the Operator has no authority to tell you to do anything.  The cops get to do that when they show up. And of course you should do exactly what they order.

I'd tell the Operator to be still, to let the battle be recorded on tape, and I'll feed her intel as the fight develops.  And I'd commence to shoot at the approaching bad-guys, trying to take down the ones closest to the mall entry doors first, obviously.  If it appeared they were wearing body armor, I'd shoot low and try to knock them to the ground. Too, the groin is an excellent area as far as painful target areas are concerned. I'm just sayin'...

If shooting's what you decide to do, don't be worried about what the face of the bad-guy looks like, whether there's evil or good in his eyes.  You only need to be worried about what's in his or her hands. So, be looking, focusing, and aiming at the area of his chest ~ above his waist, below his neck ~ where his hands will be when he's holding/aiming a weapon.  Practice that at the range too.

While terrs rehearse their attacks, they can't really practice what they'll feel when they actually come under hostile fire.  Maybe, just maybe, the shots you take at them will be enough to slow them down and force them to seek cover.  Maybe you'll kill one or two, or create such confusion that they'll stall to regroup. That gives cops more time to arrive and deploy.  Every shot terrs fire prior to reaching their target is one less bullet they can shoot into an innocent... if they get to that target.  One man or woman laying down accurate fire could be enough to stop the entire attack. Who knows? If they're carrying IEDs and think their attack has been thwarted, they might just pull the pin on themselves right there where you have them stalled.

Boom!

Duck.

Remember to be telling the Operator what's going on as best you can. If he or she won't shut-up in telling you to take cover and wait for the police, don't hang up ~ keep the circuit open and keep communicating.

I've written on other tactics here in the past. You should surf around the place and take a good look at those posts as well.

Here are some thoughts on what to put in your bag:

• A 9mm DAO pistol with hi-capacity magazines, lots of 'em
  •  You can carry many more 9mm rounds on you than any other "man-stopping" round out there
• Good lock-blade folding knife
  •  Learn to open it with one hand, either and both, and never leave home without it
• Ammunition  
• Small but sturdy and bright flashlight
  •  Button switches on the tube end, with a halogen bulb
  • Don't turn it on and follow the beam around ~ use the momentary switch to light dark areas for just enough time for you to spot danger and react
  • You decide where you hold it: away from your body or centered with your shooting hand... the risk is about equal
• Ammunition
• Flexcuffs, also known as 24" Heavy Duty Commercial Electric Ties
  •  Even when bad-guys are down and look dead, you still need to secure 'em
  • Cuffs should be pre-strung; like this.
• Ammunition
• A hand towel for keeping things from making too much noise in your bag, and to wipe sweat and blood
• Ammunition
• Ear plugs, or better yet, electronic earmuffs like these babies  
• Ammunition
• A small monocular... maybe 
• Ammunition
• Extra fully-charged cell phone battery
• Ammunition
• One small, sealed bottle of water, not necessarily to drink, to wash junk out of your eyes
• Ammunition
• Battle dressings, not a FAK, and you need at least two of these
  • QuikClot   
  • Emergency Trauma Bandage  
  • You don't need an FAK because you're not there to be a medic. You are there to prevent the death of innocents by taking out bad-guys, which will clear the way for the EMTs.
  • If you come across a wounded innocent who needs quick treatment to stop rapid loss of blood, use your battle dressing, calm and encourage them... and then move on. Don't park there waiting for them to get better or die. 
  • Coming across a wounded terr, well, I'd secure him with flexcuffs  and let him bleed out and die. It's his fault, not mine.

And, you can't put your gear into better bags than... Maxpedition Versipaks. IMHO.  And remember this: if you get a bag like this for this purpose, it's not a purse, whether you're a man or woman. The only thing that should go in the bag is the combat items discussed here, those meant for that specific purpose.  If you're going to carry keys, they should be kept in one exterior pocket and kept there alone.  Practice locating and deploying everything you carry in the bag with your eyes closed.

Hey, if you're not trained in shooting and tactics by the military or police, have you been to Front Site Training Institute? How about Lethal Force Institute, Valhalla Training Center, or Thunder Ranch? If not, you need to get your shit in one bag and go. 

ASAP.

If you can't for any reason  make it to any of the many fine firearms training schools here in the US but you feel a moral obligation to get involved in a scenario such as depicted here if one should develop in front of you, take the time to check out the videos on combat shooting shown below.  Follow each subject through by sequence if taught by the same instructor, and don't be shy about viewing different teachers who teach the same subject, as you do your own search. When you find a tactic a/o teacher that fits your ability and equipment situation, practice and practice and practice as much as you can using the videos here.

Basics of CQB. He's doing pushups to induce muscular stress, which occurs in battle and must be anticipated and handled properly.

 Jeff Cooper's Defensive Pistolcraft. One of the best instructors. Evah. Follow the entire series of videos. Then do it again.

Combative pistol.  Not familiar with this guy, but it l0oks like he has his shit in one bag. 

Close-range gunfighting.  See what you might need to learn or refresh and get it done. 

After-action drills, necessary no matter what you're hunting.

Tactical carbine. For those of the .223 and .308 persuasion.

Something to remember if you don't have a firearm as an attack is developing before your very eyes: a vehicle can be a deadly weapon.  If you're unarmed in one of these scenarios and decide to try to stop the attack, do this:

• Lean toward the center of the vehicle, lowering your profile through the front windshield
• Keep one hand on the steering wheel as you peek up over the dashboard, keeping an eye on your target
• Steer toward him/her/them at about 20-30 MPH
• Drive over them, not into them
• If you hit a wall with them on your bumper you may have to stay ducked, as they may be able to fire at you in that position

This tactic is not just me being mean. An extra-curricular course police officers can go to is the Street Survival Seminar. Many cops have been to the course, all should go.  In the first book Caliber Press published, The Tactical Edge, this exact tactic is suggested for a situation such as discussed here. You can't go to the seminar or buy the books unless you're a sworn police officer so about all you can do to confirm what I've said is to check this out.

Another thought: take up paintballing.  You can rent or buy the gear new or on craigslist.  Practice approach, target acquisition and shooting on the move in that setting... it can be very helpful. And fun.

More later.

Okay, it's later now.

When you're practicing on your own at the local shooting range, remember while you're reloading to keep your eyes off your gun and on your target/threat area ~ learn to reload without looking at your gun.  As you're firing multiple rounds to the point of an empty mag, let the magazines drop to the floor or ground, don't stop to reach down and pick up your empty mags. Look here if you want to know why.  In brief, they did in a gunfight what they formed as a habit on the CHP shooting range: they picked up their empty brass and speed loaders and put them in their pockets before moving to the next set of targets.  Here are the rules:

• Bring enough ammo in enough mags
• When you fire dry and the slide  locks to the rear, let the mag drop as you're bringing up a fresh one to slide into the mag port
• Don't take your eyes off the target/threat area while you're reloading

Listen up: I can't speak for you. I can't decide for you. I can't and I won't. I know the deep and true moral obligation in my soul that drives me to be who and what I am. Me. Myself. I don't know you, and I probably never will. I know why I have decided certain things and what I will and will not do in life and death situations. I write  so those of you who haven't had the benefit of all the really good training I have will be somewhat equipped to stand in the face of barbaric enemies and, if nothing else, die like free men and women. At best, I hope some of you will make that timeless, selfless, personal decision to, wherever and whenever you are, man up and train up so you are equipped in body, mind, and soul to defeat the enemies of freedom. Or die trying.

The time and date of our individual appointments with God are set on His calendar, not ours.  We only get to choose whether we die on our knees or on our feet... and I believe He will honor our choice.

Wherever you are on this planet tonight, in God's hand whether you believe it or not: Be strong.  Be courageous. Do not mistake fear for wisdom.

Cowards die a thousand deaths. The valiant die but once.

Die once, unerschrocken.

Feiglinge sterben eintausend Todesfälle. Der tapfere Geschmack des Todes aber einmal.

Sterben Sie einmal, unerschrocken

In rememberance

I was perusing JihadWatch this morning and came across a post that stirred me in a number of ways for the rest of the day.  So, here is sad news about the murder of a brave young man...

   

   Philadelphia Police Officer John Pawlowski

John was brave because he did a job most people can't do.  I don't know how much PPD paid him but it wasn't enough.  No brave cop gets paid enough. He was murdered today by a young man who evidently took great pleasure in doing so.  Officer Pawlowski was a warrior in the eternal struggle of good against evil and today the good-guys lost what I'm sure was a good man. I pray God comfort his family and friends.

You are warriors in that same kind of battle ~ you can be if you so choose.  It's not as focused and constant as what John faced and what his brother and sister officers face every day, but it is most certainly a battle between good and evil.

Here's something we can learn from the incident, how it was handled on-scene. I'm not criticizing for the sake of putting down any of the officers who were there. But because something like this can happen any time and any place to any person, it's best to get the After Action Review done and out to those who might need it. 

You.

Situation: Three legally armed Unerschrocken are at the mall, minding their own business, when they see a fight between two young men who are dressed in gang colors. No weapons are visible on the gangsters so the three Unerschrocken move toward the tussle to try to settle it down a bit, since there are many innocent shoppers passing by and absolutely no cops in the vicinity.

As soon as the Unerschrocken tell them to break it up, the gangsters stop fighting each other and attack them. So the Unerschrocken defend themselves without drawing weapons and they're struggling on the floor but they forget to look for the second man ~ or the third man ~ or the fourth.  These are gangsters after all; they travel in packs.  So what happens is a homey of the guys wrestlin' with the Unerschrocken on the floor comes around the corner and sees this action, reaches into his coat pocket and gets real close, too close, and commences to fire on our buds.

Unerschrocken; based on the information available to us now, this is most likely what happened in Philly this morning.  The bad-guy walks up to three cops who are struggling with another bad-guy or two and caps one of the good-guys.

If you find yourself in a similar situation; you have choices as always:

• Turn and run away from the fight because you don't want to get hurt, not necessarily a wrong choice, morally or otherwisw 
• Stand and watch ~ muttering just loud enough for your girlfriend to hear: If he did that to me, I'd fuck him up ~ taking video on your cell-phone so you can post it later on YouTube and get your 15 minutes 
• Call the cops and hope they show up in time ~ and maybe give them a description of the killers, if you even bothered to pay attention
• Your suggestions? Anyone?

Maybe this is an option you'll want to consider if you're ever in that situation and your two friends are the ones struggling with the gangsters on the mall floor and you are legally armed with a concealed handgun:

• Position yourself so you can stay out of the fight, unless one of your friends is about to be seriously injured or killed and you choose to act in that case
• But be in a spot where you can feel how the fight is going at your feet, maybe reach down with your non-shooting hand to feel what's going on while still keeping your eyes searching for approaching threats
  • See Comments below for more detail
• Tell people ~ don't ask ~ to call the cops and EMTs
• And see and react to any approaching threat ~ with a reasonable amount of force, even legal deadly force if necessary

The proper reaction to bad-guy friends coming 'round the corner to save his homey? Consider this:

• You have a reasonable belief that they are about to inflict great bodily harm on you or kill you a/o your friends
• Loudly warn your friends what's coming as you put your hand on your weapon and prepare to draw it
• As you're looking at the approaching, threatening bad-guys, loudly announce to them something like this: STOP STOP STOP!
• If they don't stop, draw your handgun to the low ready; toward them with the muzzle pointed at the floor about 5' in front of you, finger indexed, not on the trigger
• If seeing your gun doesn't make them stop, say loudly: HANDS UP HANDS UP HANDS UP!
• If they stop and put hands up, tell them loudly: GET ON THE GROUND GET ON THE GROUND GET ON THE GROUND! NOW NOW NOW!

If they do as you command, tell them loudly to stay where they are because the police are on the way right now.  But be aware they may have more friends in the crowd who could try to interfere in some way. Be careful.

If they don't stop, won't put up their hands, and won't get on the ground and you still have a reasonable belief that they are going to hurt you seriously or kill you and/or your friends still wrestling there on the ground, well... I know what I'd do.  I'd put four in the chest of the closest bad-guy, then four in the chest of the second-closest guy and so on, with a combat reload in there if necessary. You do what you decide to at that time.

Any suggestions?

Remember: if you decide to shoot, you may face a judge or jury who was not there at the time and might not understand how scared you were, might not accept your version of reasonable.