1). People are becoming weaker and more stupid...some become teachers, some become police. They do not stop being weak and stupid with their new positions. 2). Bad guys are still bad guys...some may be like the guys in item 1, and they get caught all the time...but not all guys are like what is described in item 1. 3). Your safety depends, and has always depended on you, your skill, your preparedness and your cleverness. Nobody is coming to save you. The best they will do is to take a flattering pic of your dead body for the report. 4). Rules are about controlling everyone in item 1 and 2, but as we see, they fail and will always fail. Your safety depends on you. If a rule interferes with item 3, ignore it. 5). Get good at understanding item 3 and carrying out item 4. Read more →

So I received many emails about the last piece. Here is more on the discussion. An NPE pistol MUST be DA, or have a heavy trigger, because an NPE pistol will be carried without a holster. NPE, by the way, stands for NON-PERMISSIVE ENVIRONMENT. I would never carry a striker fired pistol that way for reasons mentioned. Specifically, the deeper the jock strap...without something protecting that short light trigger, you will in fact at some point, touch the trigger while accessing. And if the "touch" is during a time of duress, you will shoot yourself. It is not a training is a life and circumstance issue. Do it if you wish, but you will one day remember what I wrote here. Thus a Glock 42, 43, Shield and any SIG based on the 320 trigger - including the P365, is a Social Compromise Pistol and NOT an Non Permissive Environment Pistol. I will clarify the three basic carry categories below. They are based on the environment you will carry in and the legal/social/physical repercussions if discovered. Standard... Read more →

Although the Glock (and its emulative systems such as the M&P and CZ P-10) tend to be the dominant pistols in the market, I am aware that not everyone selects or prefers it. I recently had a consulting contract where the shooters were using the SIG P226 (don't ask). And I have seen more and more police special units select that type of weapon, notably the CZ-75 and CZ P07. Is the DA pistol making a comeback? Maybe. Let's examine why that might be. And no...I am not going to sell all my Glocks. You are the weapon...your pistol is only a tool. And nobody says you can't have several tools. My first police semi-auto was a SIG P-226 way back in 1988. I shot Distinguished Expert with it and carried it for years. Later when the 3rd generation S&W was selected by the agency I worked with, I used that. It was like a rough Beretta 92. I took that weapon to Gunsite in 1990 and not only shot the top score in the class but won the shoot... Read more →

The shotgun, in any configuration is a "go and get it" weapon. It is not a reactive "fight right now" weapon like the hand gun. The fact that you went to retrieve a more powerful weapon precluded any other option in the fight. And often, in such an event, having extra ammunition is an asset. After all, you never know and you may need more than is currently in the weapon. Some guys opt for a weapon mounted "Side saddle". These are fine, but they do add extra weight and thickness to the weapon, which in some cases is not a good thing. One of the best assets of the 12 ga weapon is it is light and handy and fast. Making heavy and cumbersome and slow by adding more weight vis-a-vis ammunition, defeats the purpose of the weapon. When I carried an armory-made version of the Witness protection Shotgun in the Gang Unit, I wore belt-mounted ammo pouches or loops. But for a modern private citizen that has wisely chosen a Tac-14, or its highly improved cousin, The Stakeout,... Read more →


Discovery Of Dynamic Movement from Suarez International on Vimeo. A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away - in a gunfight with three LA Gangsters - we discovered the reality and advantages of dynamic movement in a gunfight. Twenty seven years later, here is the history, the lineage, and the study that took us to the leading edge of where we are today. Enjoy. Read more →

Recently at my forum, we had a discussion regarding an interview that had been done with none other than Wyatt Earp, back in the 1930s in the Saturday Evening Post. Earp said to his biographer - "The most important lesson I learned from those proficient gunfighters was the winner of a gunplay usually was the man who took his time." Apparently realizing that a statement like that would be taken out of context, he continued - "Perhaps I can best describe such time taking as going into action with the greatest speed of which a man’s muscles are capable, but mentally unflustered by an urge to hurry or the need for complicated nervous and muscular actions which trick-shooting involves. Mentally deliberate, but muscularly faster than thought, is what I mean." That last explanation is it right there...and still misunderstood to this day. The dichotomy of speed - or taking one's time quickly - is simply boiled down to "Being Deliberate". I recall my early days learning from some of the best police shooters of the day (in the sense of... Read more →

HOW TO BE A VICTIM AND NOT A SUSPECT In the past section we discussed the value in being categorized as a victim rather than a suspect. You don't have complete control over this, but you have a far greater degree of control over it than the "CCW Lawyers" would have you think. In order to show you how to become a victim, I will first show you how to become a suspect. Silly? No...just read. This is how you become a suspect, get listed as the primary suspect in the report, get arrested, booked and charged. Don't call 911. That should do it immediately. But lets say you did call 911 for the sake of the article. You were short and evasive with the 911 operator, creating an adversarial position from the start. Then when the officers arrived, you gave a ridiculously short, artificial, and dismissive statement, after which you demanded your lawyer. Congratulations Gary Goodguy, you are now the suspect in a homicide investigation. You will not be able to change that ever. The next steps of course... Read more →