I’m often surprised at how quickly buzzwords and soundbites make their way through the training world. I suspect this is simply a reflection of the way modern society as a whole operates, but when it comes to defensive training those sayings too often substitute for real thought. Take, for instance, the old phrase “it’s just
I have a friend who is an inspector for OSHA – the Occupational Safety & Health Administration. Say what you will about the silly OSHA regulations (and he has a lot to say about some of the stuff he’s required to enforce), but he does clean up some workplaces that any reasonable person would call
As the news is breaking about a spree killer event in Oregon on a College Campus, We know that many people will be asking questions about exactly what happened and why. Of course, it is far too early to try to be accurate about any of that. Hopefully, time will answer those questions for us.
One of the things I like to do for the readers on my personal blog is to occasionally dissect a defensive shooting incident, to analyze it so that we can learn what worked, what didn’t, and why. Being able to learn from others is, I think, a vital part of getting better at what we
According to CBS News, at approximately 3:00 PM Wednesday, September 23, 2015, 28 year old Jeremy McDole was shot and killed by police in Wilmington, Delaware. I don’t know if Jeremy McDole needed to be shot or if some other action could have been taken to take him safely into custody. I wasn’t there to
“You see what your knowledge tells you you’re seeing.” — James Burke, “The Day The Universe Changed” You may have heard about an incident in Texas this last week where a high school student brought a home-built digital clock to school to show his science teacher. His English teacher told him it looked like “a
Defensive handguns are life-saving tools. As a result, we treat the selection, maintenance and the training related to the defensive handgun with the respect they deserve. Failure to do so flies in the face of common sense and places you at risk of injury or death. People like you and I take defensive handguns seriously
Situational awareness was the topic of discussion on my recent trip to Denver, where I did some video work in the new PDN video studio. We recorded a new DVD about the bullpup rifle as a defensive tool and some new instructor development videos on teaching the bullpup rifle, as well as some videos to
Executive Director of Personal Defense Network Just hours after the breaking news and posting of Live Video from murderous shooting event in Roanoke, Virginia, it seems like everyone in the self-defense community has something to say about the event. Unfortunately, many of the posts and comments I’m seeing in social media are lamenting the lack
Recently, three Americans, seemingly unarmed, took action against a heavily armed terrorist on Paris-bound train. Their actions serve as a clear example of the type of response you may depend on when you find yourself in the midst of a lethal threat. The question is, “Are you up to the task?” Despite the fact that
