Gunfighter Challenge
#fridayfundamentals
James Butler Hickok, better known as ‘Wild Bill’ Hickok, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wild_Bill_Hickok# was murdered on August 2, 1876. https://www.legendsofamerica.com/we-jackmccall/ He was one of the best known of the Old West gunfighters and his shooting prowess was well recognized. But what did being a ‘good shot’ exactly mean in those days?
The American Mercury, a now defunct magazine, published an article in October 1937 titled “The Myth of the Two-Gun Man.” In it was a first hand account of what the Old West gunfighters actually considered ‘good’ shooting. The account came from Luther North, a contemporary of Wild Bill’s, and it is a far cry from hip shooting and unsighted fire.
Frank was Luther’s brother Major Frank North, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_North another contemporary of Wild Bill’s. So the gunfighters’ test was six shots at 10 yards using the Primary Hand Only, untimed. To be considered ‘good,’ the gunman had to hit all six shots in a 5 inch square target. At least one of the six had to hit an unseen one inch square dead center of the target. That’s an interesting contrast to the mythology of the Wild West gunfight.
Put on a sheet of paper, it would look like this.
A PDF of the target is attached. This short challenge is easily shot at almost any indoor range. Try it out and see how your marksmanship compares to an Old West gunfighter like Wild Bill.
If you like my work, please join me on Patreon where I post more in-depth articles about shooting, marksmanship, and incident analysis.
Cold War Memories – The Effects of A Thermonuclear Attack
#throwbackthursday
Trigger Warning! This series of posts has nothing to do with self-defense, hand guns, or Personal Protection.
Some time while I was a teenager, one of the Chicargo newspapers ran a Sunday feature article about what a Soviet thermonuclear attack would have been like. This would have been the period of 1968-1972. The article talked about the effects on the city if a Soviet thermonuclear weapon exploded over the elevated train Loop downtown.
IIRC, the article used a 1 megaton warhead as the weapon. However the most likely candidate during that time period would have been a missile of the R-12/SS-4 type that precipitated the Cuban Missile Crisis https://www.russianspaceweb.com/cuban_missile_crisis.html . It had a maximum yield of 2.3 megatons.
The tactic of thermonuclear combat was to explode a weapon above a city as an airburst to maximize the destruction it caused. Even if the weapon’s fireball didn’t touch the ground, its heat would for a moment be hotter than the surface of the Sun. As a result, everything below the fireball would be vaporized. My memory of the article was that the entire downtown area would be turned into a crater 20 feet deep.
My research for this article uncovered a very informative website called Nuclear Secrecy by Professor Alex Wellerstein. An amazing part of the website is an interactive ability to input weapon and target parameters to generate a map of a weapon’s effects. https://nuclearsecrecy.com/nukemap/ All maps in this article are courtesy of Dr. Wellerstein’s website. Using this website provided even more accurate indicators of the destruction a weapon would have caused. The airburst altitude for the parameters chosen was 4,120 meters (13,596 feet).
The entire downtown area would have been turned into a crater not the 20 feet of my recollection but rather 122 meters (402 feet) deep. The crater would have a diameter of about one kilometer. The fireball would have a diameter of about 7/8ths of a mile. Inside the fireball, everything would have been vaporized. All Starbucks baristas and customers in the area of the fireball would have ceased to exist in a millionth of a second. No further crying about too many customers would occur after that millionth of a second.
Unfortunately, the high school I attended during this time period was inside the “Moderate blast damage radius” of a weapon. This means the building had a high probability of collapsing but almost certainly would have instantly started burning. All of us would have been injured and many killed immediately.
“Most buildings collapse, Injuries are universal, fatalities are widespread.”
Department of Defense
Fortunately, my neighborhood was only in the “Thermal radiation radius.” Most of the buildings were brick so might not have been knocked down. Someone standing near a window would have been torn to shreds by flying glass though. Anyone outside would have sustained 3rd degree burns over much of their body and died shortly thereafter.
Much of Crook County would have been impacted by the blast.
A bleaker picture emerged during my research. A 1990 Federal Emergency Management Agency document, the Nuclear Attack Planning Base, forecast more than just one weapon would have hit Chicargo. The city’s prominence as a population center and manufacturing base for the military-industrial complex at the time meant that most likely 12 weapons would have been targeted against the area. Probably most of Northern Illinois not only would have been destroyed but would have been completely wiped off the face of the planet. https://nuke.fas.org/guide/usa/napb-90/index.html
No more crying at Starbucks about too many customers there for several centuries at least.
Next post: The Army and the Fulda Gap.
The Tactical Professor’s Bus Odyssey
This is a short explanation of my bus journey back to Atlanta from the 2019 SHOT Show in Las Vegas. It’s mostly humorous and we had fun doing it. It was recorded at the Rangemaster 2019 Tactical Conference in New Orleans.
Tactical Professor Information Products
STOPP Presentation at Rangemaster Tactical Conference
https://tacticalprofessor.wordpress.com/2021/09/14/stopp-presentation-now-available/
https://www.payloadz.com/go?id=3381307
Books (all PDF)
- Thinking Clearly about Self-defense and Personal Protection https://www.payloadz.com/go?id=3377208
- Real Shootouts of the LAPD https://realshootoutsofthelapd.com/
- Serious Mistakes Gunowners Make http://seriousgunownermistakes.com
- Indoor Range Practice Sessions http://indoorrangepracticesessions.com
- Concealed Carry Skills and Drills http://concealedcarryskillsanddrills.com
- Advanced Pistol Practice http://bit.ly/advancedpistolpractice
- Shooting Your Black Rifle http://shootingyourblackrifle.com
- Package deal of Thinking Clearly about Self-defense and Personal Protection, Serious Mistakes, Indoor Sessions, Concealed Carry, and Shooting Your Black Rifle (50% off) https://store.payloadz.com/details/2644448-ebooks-sports-shooting-drills-package.html
The Law is what it is
I shared this on my personal Facebook timeline and from there dozens of other people have shared it.
Texas grand jury: No action against killer of church shooter
https://apnews.com/article/fort-worth-shootings-archive-texas-f38e8ef6437e96a9e60fb44662c71494
Several questions and comments have repeatedly been raised as a result.
- He should never have been charged.
- Why did it go to a Grand Jury?
- Why is this even an issue?
He wasn’t charged. The issue went to a Grand Jury because Texas requires homicides, and all potential felonies, to be presented to a Grand Jury.
Another issue to consider is that the incident occurred December 29, 2019. The Grand Jury returned a No-Bill yesterday, September 28, 2020, nine months later. Because all potential felonies have to go to a Grand Jury in Texas, they’re busy. Although in this case there was little doubt of the outcome, Mr. Wilson still had potential legal action hanging over his head for the better part of a year. It is likely that his family thought about this just as much as he did, perhaps more so.
The Law is what it is, not what we think it is, nor what we think it should be. Many people don’t understand the importance of that distinction.
Tactical Professor books are available from the menu at the top of the page.
Stifle yourself
As I sat there, I contemplated Werner’s Pentagon of Performance, particularly the ‘Stifle Yourself’ corner.
Several times the question came up about what ‘stifle yourself’ means in my Pentagon of Performance.
“Stifle yourself” was a catchphrase used by Archie Bunker in the series All in the Family.
What it means to me is to exercise a bit of conscious self-control. We’ve all experienced situations where we have verbal diarrhea, we allow ourselves to become excited when deep down we know it’s not in our best interest, or we do something that we know we’ll regret. Whenever we say to ourselves “I’ve got to do something [now]!,” it’s often a cue to stifle ourselves.
Numerous examples of where ‘Stifle Yourself’ are applicable to personal protection.
- Talking to the POlice
- Telling others about the extent of our preparations for the Apocalypse
- Rushing the shot
- Not practicing despite knowing our skills are weak
- Chasing criminals after they cease to be a threat
- Closing with predators when we could just as easily move in a different direction
- Intervening in matters that don’t directly affect you and your loved ones
- And many others
Numerous examples of where ‘Stifle Yourself’ are applicable to life in general.
- Buying more paper products than your family can use in a year
- Selling or buying assets when the market isn’t favorable
- Reposting memes about popular topics for the 1000th time
- Talking when we should be listening
- Offering unwanted advice
- Offering unwanted emotions
- And many others
Stifle yourself can apply to both action and inaction. Procrastination is a good example. Procrastinating is merely giving in to the desire to put something off that needs to be done. That desire to procrastinate (inaction) is something else that can be stifled.
Often fear is often at the root of actions and inactions that need to be stifled. Uncertainty is another. My friend and colleague Nick Hughes has a very pertinent question that is often worth spending a second to ask ourselves.
Am I doing [or not doing] this because I need to or because I want to [because it makes me feel better]?
Normalcy Day 2
I was not in much pain today so I went to Wal-Mart for a few things. They had ‘seasonal’ St. Patrick’s doughnuts so I bought one for dessert with my lunch. I like the combination of green and gold sprinkles; it makes me feel festive as a leprechaun.
DJ BoBo (a Swiss songwriter and performer that I follow) had a funny post on Instagram that I really liked so I’m passing it on. Auto translations are frequently comical.
I had a conversation with a lady today who was the only other person in K-Roget with a smile on her face. Some man had run down the aisle and snatched a roll of paper towels off the shelf just as she was going to get it. What he did made me think of “Do you understand fun?”
Let The Dream Come True.
BTW, DJ BoBo (the star in the center with the ponytail) was 47 when this video was made. That’s a man with a commitment to his athleticism.
We’ll get through this
The Assassin and I had White Pizza at Mellow Mushroom in Mayretta for lunch. It was good. The place wasn’t crowded with small disease vectors, i.e., children, which made our visit even more pleasant. A couple was sitting at the bar having drinks and a quiet conversation and a few other people were ordering calzones.
He and I talked about Personal Protection stuff, as we usually do. I showed him a new target I’ve designed and a Baseline Evaluation and Monitoring Course of Fire for new shooters I’m developing. Then I asked his input about the overlap and intersection between Steve Harris’ CAN/MAY/SHOULD/MUST paradigm, Ayoob’s Priorities of Survival; Mindset, Tactics, Skill, and Equipment, and my Making Good Decisions model.
After buying a new pair of jeans, I brought some pizza home for further feasting. Since I’m recovering from open double hernia surgery and was hurting a little, I took a couple of Tynols and then a nap.
When I got up, I decided to have a little more pizza. I don’t ordinarily drink beer but I like beer with pizza, so I broke out a Blue Moon. It was a very nice evening so I decided to finish my beer on the deck. Thanks to Daylight Savings Time, I was able to watch the sun dip below the treeline, which was pretty. The clouds were moving slowly, so I enjoyed watching them for a while. I also savored the sights and sounds of normalcy in the neighborhood. People were taking their walks, a neighbor was chipping some tree limbs he had cut down, a few cars drove by, and quite a few birds were chirping. As I sat there, I contemplated Werner’s Pentagon of Performance, particularly the ‘Stifle Yourself’ corner.
Then I came inside, fed the dogs, and let them out to run around for a bit. After they had finished their business, I let them back in and gave them each a small dog biscuit.
Since I hadn’t quite finished up my latest Patreon https://www.patreon.com/TacticalProfessor article, The Forgotten Teachings of John Boyd, I decided to knock that out and post it. It’s my second article this week about Boyd’s work, the first being A Tale of Two OODAs. Boyd’s scholarship is so superficially understood that I periodically have to address aspects of it. I decided to spend this month doing that since I have several weeks of convalescence ahead.
Being very averse to chaos and drama, I decided to write a short post here about my nice quiet day. Something other than the CV drivel that seems to be pervading every aspect of our lives right now might be pleasant for my subscribers and friends.
We’ll get through this. We live in the United States of America, the most wonderful place in the world and the best place that has ever existed on the Planet Earth. I give thanks every single day that I am so fortunate as to live here.
Making friends with other gun carriers
(second in a series)
DALE CARNEGIE’S SECRETS OF SUCCESS (nee The Golden Book) is a valuable resource for improving our relationships with other members of the gun carrying community. The hard copy I have is six pages long. I’ve kept it on my desk for over 20 years since I went through Dale Carnegie training. The book is available online as a free download.
https://www.dalecarnegie.com/en/resources/dale-carnegies-secrets-of-success
The first part of the book is a three page section called Principles from How to Win Friends and Influence People. It covers three topics.
- Become a Friendlier Person
- Win People to Your Way of Thinking
- Be A Leader
Each of the topics has a series of numbered bullet points that can guide our interactions with people. Here’s how we might apply those Principles in the situation of seeing someone whose way of carrying isn’t what we would ordinarily recommend.
Become a Friendlier Person
1. Don’t criticize, condemn or complain.
5. Smile.
2. Give honest, sincere appreciation.
- You’re carrying a gun – Excellent!
- Your holster has a safety strap.
6. Remember that a person’s name is to that person the sweetest and most important sound in any language.
- Introduce yourself
- Ask the other person’s first name if they don’t give it in return.
7. Be a good listener. Encourage others to talk about themselves.
- What kind of gun is that? (Regardless if you know what it is.)
- How long have you been carrying?
- Have you done any training?
Questions are powerful, much more powerful than criticism, condemnation, or complaints. By starting a friendly interaction with a person and then asking kindly questions, we have the opportunity to be guides to people who are less knowledgeable than ourselves. It puts us in the position to Win Friends to our community and influence them to Success. Our people skills are the single most powerful weapon in our arsenal.
We must, indeed, all hang together or, most assuredly, we shall all hang separately.
–Benjamin Franklin
Can we be a little less judgmental?
(First in a series)
There’s a picture of a woman carrying a pistol non-doctrinally (i.e., a lot of people are unhappy with the way she’s doing it) circulating on the Internet now. The pistol is in a holster attached to her yoga pants and despite being a small pistol, it’s pulling her pants down some on that side. I’m not going to post the picture because it’s unnecessary to my point. The picture has generated almost universal criticism, the following being typical.
The freedom to carry a gun is a great thing.
But you will never, EVER convince me that carrying a gun without training is smart decision. If you’re untrained[,] you do stupid things like this, which actually puts you and those around you in more danger than if you were unarmed.
Carry a gun. But don’t be an untrained fool about it.
My comment about the picture is:
At least she has a gun and her holster has a safety strap.
“Get some training” is a meme in the industry. Unfortunately, both the size and the availability of the training base are very small. This is true even if every NRA and State certified CCW instructor is included in the number. There’s also the issue in my mind of those who make statements like this but got their training from the government while in the pay of the government. That generates an ethical issue you can ponder some time.
Here’s an infographic about the availability of training to gunowners. The concept of ‘the training base’ is something that people who haven’t had to regularly conduct resource intensive training for a lot of people simply don’t understand. Once again, it’s the Tactical Professor with those pesky little numbery things again.
That tiny triangle where the three circles overlap is the real availability of ‘training’
And my estimate of training facilities is based on those capable of supporting at least NRA Basic Pistol not any kind of ‘meaningful’ training for carrying a weapon. Basic Pistol or its equivalent is as far as most facilities are prepared to go, for various reasons. I wouldn’t be surprised if the number where holster oriented training is allowed is less than 1,000. The good news is that the NRA Instructor base has grown to over 120,000 so we’re probably under 500 students per instructor now. Other good news is that the NRA Training Department has created a CCW course. However, that will take years to generate any significant number of CCW Certified Instructors.
Here’s my first question:
Did the person who took the picture approach the woman and offer to help her out with her knowledgebase, either personally or by referring her to someone who is a trainer?
As a community, we need to do a better job of the way we interact with beginners and novices instead of just being socially maladroit jackwagons and calling them fools.
More in the next installment.
BTW, my Concealed Carry Skills and Drills eBook would have been a nice reference to point her to or maybe even buy for her if the observer actually really cared about her welfare. Or was finger pointing, ego stroking, and shaming the real object of the exercise?
Tactical Professor books (all downloadable PDF files)
Serious Mistakes Gunowners Make http://seriousgunownermistakes.com
Indoor Range Practice Sessions http://indoorrangepracticesessions.com
Concealed Carry Skills and Drills http://concealedcarryskillsanddrills.com
Advanced Pistol Practice http://bit.ly/advancedpistolpractice
Shooting Your Black Rifle http://shootingyourblackrifle.com
Helicopter crash
Fifteen years ago today.
30 Marines, 1 Sailor killed in helicopter crash
“While we mourn the loss of these heroes, we will honor their sacrifice by continuing our mission to bring democracy to the people of Iraq,” said Marine Lt. Gen. John F. Sattler, commanding general, I Marine Expeditionary Force.
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