The question that has been on my mind is whether being a veteran really makes me better prepared to defend myself against an attacker here in the civilian world. Well, that is riddled with variables on the individual in question, the type of attack, and a host of other critical things we must analyse and be mindful of. Society has created a standard to respect the military and all individuals wearing a uniform without knowing why. "Thank you for your service" has become about as meaningless and half-hearted as a cashier asking if you how you are doing and if you found everything you were looking for. It is societies new saying to run through the motions on.

When it comes to making a selection for what kind of target you are going to use, there are alot of questions you need to ask yourself. What am I using the target for? Am I using it for diagnosing a weak fundamental? Am I just taking my family out plinking? am I testing my abilities? The purpose of your range time should be considered in order to decide what target is right for that day at the range.

I can't tell you how many times I have heard people say this to justify their crappy pistol or caliber choice. You know, so they can admit defeat but try to bring you down with them by trying to get you to think you are all in the same crappy situation. This doesn't fly for me for several reasons, and I hope a little logic will cause you to agree.

Selecting a good carry ammo should not be about just getting something that will be enough for some tasks, but something that will cover virtually all tasks necessary during a defensive armed engagement. There are several things to consider when looking for a good ammo, and I am going to go through these subjects one at a time. I will attempt to be brief and concise. I classify ammo selection as being a fine art that requires alot of thought and critical thinking, which unfortunately is not trending in the gun culture of today. I hope this article encourages the masses to reconsider just taking someones word and recommendation. Instead, I think it would be healthier for everyone for all of us to do our own research and decide for ourselves what is an appropriate ammunition.

Since the Beretta M9 was adopted by the US military, there have been doubts and questions about the reliability and validity of the Beretta 92 series design as being a true combat pistol. After about 3 decades of service in the military, it has been replaced with a polymer framed pistol, the Sig P230. Since the development of the 92 series pistols, polymer pistols started to hit the civilian and law enforcement in force. Eventually, people started to see alloy and metal framed pistols like the Beretta 92 series to be outdated compared to the lighter and less complicated polymer framed pistols. But is this claim really valid? Well, let me give my impressions on this design and share what I know as far as the claims and how they match up to my experiences with this design.

Despite the mindsets of certain people out there, defending yourself in low light is not as simple as having a light. There are some challenges you have to get used to and practice to overcome. Having a light on your person means very little, just like having a gun makes you just as capable of defending yourself as owning pots and pans makes you a world class gourmet chef.

Shooting is one of the hardest skills to pick up and perfect due to the physical, mechanical, and technological variables. Your fitness, your mental state, your firearm(barrel length and construction), and your ammunition will all have an effect on your performance. Not to mention that the climate and environment will all play a role as well. There are alot of things that go into shooting, but the hardest thing for people to get right is being able to exercise great discipline and learn to control their mind and body in order to shoot consistently well. For almost all shooters, this is a lifelong struggle no matter how much better they get. A good shooter always strives to be better than they were yesterday rather than just trying to be better than the person next to them.

Fighting in a low light setting is one of the most demanding things you can do, let alone with a firearm. It requires alot of things to be done right and for you to be very proficient. This means that you must practice and constantly challenge yourself. If there is anything I have learned in my time of fighting in low light and training in low light, it is that there is no one thing that is universally applicable. Darkness will complicate everything and adding in having to use and be mindful of other gear, in addition to your gun, adds to the complexity. There are a few basic things that are necessary and vital to effectively fighting at night, and I want to go over them briefly.

Pistols that come out of Turkey are one of my newest lusts and interests. There are several reasons for this and I look forward to revealing these reasons. Also, I would like to look at the pistols I have had experience with and explain why I feel they are worthy candidates for a spot in your safe.

When .40 caliber first came out, it was apparently the coolest thing since sliced bread. It was powerful, offered a new type of effectiveness on a human threat that could not be matched well by other calibers, and Law Enforcement was jumping to it all over the place. Lately, people have started abandoning the caliber in favor of the 9mm for perceived improvements in bullet performance and technology. I will refrain from talking about caliber and getting into the debate on performance and such. My focus here will be whether the .40 caliber is a suitable round for combat or if the world got it right with the 9mm.