"Why doesn't somebody pull out a .45 and, bang, settle it?"

-Mr. Lee to Mr. Braithewaite from the movie Enter the Dragon, 1973

Throughout history we have seen instructors exploiting the mystique of martial arts. Some are genuinely mesmerized and enchanted with the use of historic weaponary and are simply, and affectionately, trying to pass on whet they have come to love. In certain cases however some are trying to create an image of usefulness and functionality that would never match up with reality. In many instances these same persons are anti gun. Is most probably due to ignorance and propaganda. This is entirely inconsistent. I can only surmise that if these same persons were alive at the time of the Samurai they would have supported a “sword ban” but in their schools would have been alright with teaching the use of bear skins and stone knives.

Historically, the use of farm implements as weapons was always seen as genius. They were developed out of necessity. But the individuals who developed the ideas of using what was available would probably look cross-eyed at those who use their ancient tools of desperation today when modern weapons are more efficient and readily available. Other historic weapons, however expedient, do not have a functional place in modern defense. Some may be illegal to own or carry or simply not functional in our modern urban environments. Here we will focus on the use of a firearm in an urban or domestic environment as opposed to concealed carry or duty use.

#1. Pics: Samurai sword, sjambok, staff

These weapons may be illegal to carry and impractical in hallways, small rooms and moving through doorways.

Anyone training in the martial arts for self defense will come to an understanding that empty hand and ancient weapon skill will not solve all their problems. That's the entry point into firearms training. It's important to make a full throttle commitment into this area of training. There is a lot to know.

Preliminaries

Those who would use a firearm for self defense need to realize a few things. A firearms can only be used to defend yourself in a lethal force encounter or against the threat of great bodily injury. So consistent with that fact you never shoot to kill. You shoot to stay alive. If a person is not a threat they cannot be shot. You can never shoot a fleeing assailant. If they are running away they no longer pose a threat. If you chase them and shoot them it was you who created and escalated "that" situation which is separate from the initial attack. A person may be holding a baseball bat with blood dripping of the end of it but if they are not facing you they are not a direct threat. If they turn around then by a reasonable mans standard they become a direct threat. Every situation is different however and subject to legal interpretation so it's important to work through these situations in advance and not attempt to make decisions in the face of danger.

We are trying to solve violent problems as efficiently as possible. So If you are justified in pulling out a weapon out be prepared to use it. Brandishing the weapon in and of itself is an act of escalation. Someone can use lethal force against you just for brandishing and make the case they felt threatened with lethal force just because you pulled the weapon out. If you orient the weapon at someone they are justified in defending themselves (see rule number 2). Never fire warning shots. Discharging the weapon can be grounds enough for a person shooting you in self defense sighting the fact that, since you fired your weapon, they felt in fear for their life. Also you are accountable for the effects of firing your weapon. Those rounds have to go somewhere. Pulling out a weapon is like squeezing all the toothpaste out of the tube. You can never get it back in and it usually makes a big mess. So you need to be justified and ethical when it comes to firearms for self defense.


#2. Pics: Baseball bat facing You (shoot) and turned around (no shoot).

Pics: Holding a knife facing you (shoot)

Pics: Gun in waistband (no shoot) Gun in hand (shoot).

Shoot/No Shoot scenarios should be worked out in advance. They are always subject to legal interpretation and you can do everything right and still be prosecuted depending on the legal framework of lethal force in any given municipality. The use of firearms is serious business. But they can be safely and methodically integrated into your spectrum of defense options if you get proper training and then develop that training into functional technique. I started my firearms training back in January of 2000. In order to integrate this into the training at The CSPT my staff and I had to develop this material. We would spend countless hours each week on the range. We shot at paper and reactive targets. We practiced at various distances and while moving and shooting from behind cover. I was going through ten thousand rounds a month for close to two years. This due to both a desire to develop and functionalize technique and an affinity for firearms training. For the most part five hundred to one thousand rounds a month is the norm.

Firearms Safety Rules:

Safety is the single most important consideration when it comes to firearms. If you know and apply the rules full time you will lower the probability for unintended death or injury when handling firearms. This is the low hanging fruit that is first picked off the tree before you get to the bulk of the material. The rules of safety have been modified over the years and in their current incarnation they are the clearest and most succinct they've ever been.

1. All guns are always loaded.

That used to be "treat all guns as if the were loaded". This is ambiguous in that it doesn't bring the concept down to the lowest common denominator. That all guns are always loaded unless you've physically checked the weapon yourself. Even if an experienced weapon handler inspects the weapon in front of you. As you receive the weapon from him you must re-inspect it (physical manipulation and visual inspection of the weapon) even at the cost of his pride.

2. Never put your finger on the trigger until you've made a conscious decision to kill or destroy.

That used to be "don't put your finger on the trigger until you're ready to shoot”. This doesn't appropriately layout the consequences of not doing so. Again, if I hear a noise in my home at 2:00am I may be ready to shoot BUT I haven't made a conscious decision to kill or destroy.

3. Never point your weapon at anything you're not will to kill or destroy.

That used to be “keep your weapon pointed in a safe direction”. Again, it doesn't drive home the consequences of not doing so. It also does not clearly and succinctly articulate what should constantly be at the forefront of your mind, namely that mishandling can cause death or destruction.

4. Know your target and what's beyond it.

Historically that was "know your target". Often times "and what's beyond it" was left out.

Misconception: Laser sights make you more accurate. This is wrong. Lasers are a tool. They can come out of alignment after the weapon is discharged. Proper use of the front sight and body alignment (indexing) makes you more accurate. Lasers can be useful when a teams of operators are working together as the lasers reveal the weapon muzzle orientation of the team members.

Choosing a Weapon

Some might say that it doesn't matter if the cat's black or white as long as it catches mice. This is an area of serious misunderstanding for most would be gun owners and even many with sizable gun collections. When it comes to self defense you can only shoot the weapon that "you" can shoot well. With this in view there are a number of factors that follow. Weapon size is the first consideration. Full (Duty) size, compact or sub compact. You have to shoot each size to see what works best for you. Just because someone recommends a full size brand X doesn't mean it will work for you. Next is caliber. Again, you can only wok with the caliber you can shoot well. I feel that 9 mm is a good universal caliber for everyone but quite often you'll hear arguments regarding it's stopping power. This is misguided. A larger caliber might hit harder but if you can't shoot it well what's the point. And just to clarify, stopping power is almost always predicated on shot placement, not caliber. A pellet in the eye has more stopping power than a .45 through the palm. Even the brand of weapon has to be considered as some designs may not suit certain individuals. Things like grip safeties and adjustable sights may be less than desirable. Gun maintenance should be considered as well. A Glock, for example, is a weapon that is easily field stripped, cleaned and reassembled.


#3 Pics: Red training guns: Glock model 22, model 17 and model 26.

Training for Practical Application

Most lethal force encounters are going to happen in close quarters. Training to shoot in a sighted ready (weaver or isosceles) at distances beyond 25 feet should make up only about 25 percent of your training. During long range shooting you should be training to use your front sight while shooting and moving to cover. Your front sight probably won't come into play in a lethal force encounter but training to use it properly will develop good body indexing as you orient the weapon and fire. You should also be training to roll out from behind cover to asses the situation and counter fire.


#4. Pics: Weaver stance. Iso Stance.

Each have their benefits but each stance must be well understood. The weaver (or even a modified Weaver) is most related to the MMA or Counter Assault Tactics stance you would normally fight with. This makes it must more user friendly and integrates best with the overall matrix. The Isosceles is a stable shooting platform but provides a good center of mass target for your opponent. Most law enforcement who adopt this stance realize they will be wearing protective body armor.

Misconception: Body armor (bullet proof vests) stop you from getting injured. False! They have the ability to stop rounds from penetrating depending on the design and level of protection. You still feel the force of the round. Depending on distance and the round this could feel like a punch or it could feel like getting hit with a sledge hammer. Body armor contains a pouch or compartment for secondary protection, known as a trauma plate, to offer even greater protection at center mass.

Misconception: A shotgun is more powerful so it should be used as a primary home defense weapon. Wrong. The rule of thumb is that a long gun is a stationary weapon and a handgun is a mobile weapon. A handgun allows for more practical incidentals like opening doors, fighting with your free hand, use of light without orienting your weapon at everything you illuminate (assuming a weapon mounted light) while still maintaining full weapon functionality.

The bulk of your firearms training should be done at medium and close ranges ideally spending most of your range time firing from ten feet all the way down to one foot. This is where lethal force encounters occur. Not across football fields or hill tops. At ten feet you should be training your body indexing by firing in the close ready position. This position allows for full visual recognition of your environment. When the weapon is pushed out into a sighted ready you can no longer see what's happening at your extreme sides and below you. If it becomes a no shoot situation get the weapon out of your face and return to a close ready so you can see again. You should be training to shoot and move to cover and potentially transition back to a sighted ready to CQB ready.


Close ready search position and close ready firing/cover position


Pics: CQB ready – CQB with light and alternative CQB with light.

The Close Ready is a very practical position. It can be used for fighting, searching, giving commands and more.

The CQB position

The CQB position is the position that marries firearms to close quarter martial arts fighting. From this position you can shoot accurately into center mass, move and shoot while maintaining accuracy, use your support hand to fight or control an opponent, use light, defend against a bladed or impact weapon and defend your weapon from being grabbed. The CQB position is almost identical to a boxing position in MMA. Treating the use of firearms as an extension of your martial arts is the best way to integrate it. It's not another language. It's just a new set of words. It fits right in with everything else when done correctly. It is far more functional to have an MMA platform and add firearms to it than to start with firearms and add MMA. That’s because with MMA you are learning to fight and feel the full force of an opponent capabilities immediately whereas with firearms, quite often and the term is pejorative, you are learning to “shoot”. Well, when a gun comes out in self defense, it’s gonna be a “fight”.


The CQB position is easily trained in the classroom and integrates smoothly into boxing, grappling and counter knife training. In the classroom you can also train body alignment (indexing) in a mirror with a red gun to ensure proper muzzle orientation.


The CQB position is universal and can also be used when deploying OC Spray.

Presentation

When conducting an interview you don’t necessarily want to orient your weapon at the person you encounter. You can use an “interview stance” and still be ready to present the weapon and fire. An interview position is what you might use when you encounter a potential hostile and you are questioning them. You feel uncertain about the situation but you haven’t made a decision to kill or destroy. You are ready to transition to an offensive position rapidly however. Good form is imperative. You don’t want to present the weapon in a sweeping motion from the floor to target as you will cover things and individuals you may not want to kill or destroy. Instead you will pass through all the positions correctly as you make your presentation. You will go from an interview position to a CQB to a close ready to a sighted ready as you move. You will do the movements in reverse as well. This creates a smooth presentation and return to interview or holster.


Cover and concealment: The difference between the two is huge. Cover means something that will stop bullets from hitting you. This could be a brick wall (depending on the caliber shot at you) or an engine block of a car. Concealment is something that hides you from sight. Concealment would still allow bullets to hit you but makes you a harder target because you are not in plain sight. Cover can act as concealment but concealment can never act as cover.

Give yourself at least arms length behind cover to protect from ricochets and flying debris. From behind cover you put your visual focus on your from sight and roll out putting your sight on the target as you do. In this manner you establish proper visual focus before engaging the target. don't continue to roll out of the same spot over and over. You'll simply create a target focus for your opponent.

Where to shoot: It is widely accepted that training yourself to shoot into the center of your opponents mass is the best way to blend reaction speed and stopping power. Center of mass shooting means shooting into the area between the shoulders horizontally and between the adams apple and the belly button vertically. The idea is that by shooting into this area you have a high probability of hitting the spinal column, the lungs and the heart which tend to stop human beings from continuing to fight. Other targets like the head and pelvic girdle will come in later phases of firearms development. Center of mass is the staple target area of all defensive shooting.


Classroom Training Vs Range Training

Most people equate firearms training with the gun going bang. Training on the range with lethal fire is of extreme importance. But classroom training is of equal importance. In the classroom you can work through safety, handling, movement, weapon manipulations, marksmanship, tactics, malfunctions and more. One of the most important things you can work out in the classroom is the moral and legal implications of using a firearm. Scenario based training is of extreme importance as well. Shoot and no shoot, capture, verbal commands, calling the police while keeping an opponent covered ,what to say while making the call to 911, understanding what to do when the police arrive and more. Any tactics you may come to depend on must be clearly taught, understood and functionalized in the classroom before moving to live fire on the range.

One example of scenario based material that is often neglected and needs to be worked in the classroom is the call to 911 after shooting or capturing an intruder. In the extremely unfortunate event that you had to shoot an intruder you would immediately call 911. You need to be clear and succinct on the phone. This will be a high adrenal stress time and you cant think this out during body alarm condition. Here is an example of what you might train to say:

“I need an ambulance right away to (your address). “

“I shot an intruder in my home and he needs medical attention immediatly.”

“He is wearing (describe attire).”

“I am wearing (describe attire).”

“I’m holding him at gunpoint and I’m putting the phone down but I’m not hanging up.”

The methodology here is that you want to express your concern for the individual who has been shot by asking for medical attention right away. You then give information that helps the police know who is who when they arrive. When they do arrive don’t have a weapon in your hand. Be prepared to put it down and step away from it before they come in. All they know is someone has been shot. If they come in and see you with a gun you will be the bad guy to them, descriptions over the phone not withstanding.

For Consideration: You should never gratuitously put yourself in a dangerous situation. Understanding your legal consequences and the moral and ethical implications of using lethal force against an intruder in your home who threatens you, your loved ones or the innocent with death or great bodily injury is the first consideration. The legalities can vary by state and municipality.

High quality, professional, reasonably priced firearms training is available to anyone. If your considering integrating firearms into your training you should do your research and find a qualified instructor. Proper training and the diligent development of that training is of extreme value.

There are moral and legal implications to using lethal force. Continue to seek out all relevant information.