I was a college student in my senior year of undergraduate when 9/11 happened. There were no smart phones then, so I did not see the news of the incident pop up on an iPhone news feed. I did, however, receive a call from a friend who was already at work and saw it happen on the news. Turning on the television myself, I watched the second jet plow into the second tower, at which point, it was clear what was afoot.
We invaded Afghanistan, which I fully supported, as it was clear that the Taliban was harboring the terror network that committed the heinous act. Then, we invaded Iraq, a country that had a terrible dictator but had nothing to do with 9/11. This I was apposed to, as Iraq clearly had nothing to do with 9/11, and if the death of Saddam Hussein was a priority we should have done so in the first Gulf War.
The problem remains that the invasion of Iraq greatly detracted from the GWOT (global war on terror) that followed, at least in the collective American mindset. The invasion of Afghanistan, however, was clearly justified at first. The problem is, in typical government fashion, the invasion was premised wrongly from the start. Then-president Bush Jr. proclaimed that we would bring democracy to that region. Imagine. What a joke, then and now. Instead of keeping up such a pretense, we should have invaded, eradicated the Taliban for harboring terrorism, then left. Period. Afghanistan is not capable of “democracy” or any other form of government that is post-dark ages in ideology. Sound harsh? Grow up.
The problem is, after playing games for two decades and losing thousands of our own, and killing who-knows how many thousands of them, here we are. We have left that death trap of a country, and on the way out, we left thousands of our allies stranded, and a parting gift of billions of dollars-worth of weaponry for the Taliban and any other terror organizations they will now give refuge to. The dementia patient in the White House who wants to take away your guns is the same guy who just gave hundreds of thousands of rifles to the Taliban, and in turn to terror networks who will, I guarantee you, use them throughout the world to commit terror attacks. They left far more than just black rifles for the Taliban to distribute as well.
So, what does all this mean for Joe Sixpack here in the United States? Well, trust me, the capability of international terror networks to wage war on our homeland is now bolstered since The Stan is again free to harbor them. Who knows, the next attack might witness a massacre committed with one of our government’s own rifles. Don’t worry, the Democrats will blame you, a legal gun owner who believes in the 2nd Amendment, when it happens.
So, how should all of us regular Joe sixpacks, the little guys, react? Here are four thoughts for your consideration:
1. You are one your own, only you can protect yourself and your loved ones, and the police response will be on time only to draw a chalk line around your dead body. Avoid crowds and highly populated places as best you can, especially those in blue areas that trample the constitution and prohibit self-defense (and, in turn, foster terrorism, foreign or domestic).
2. If you live in a free state and have the means of carrying a handgun yet you leave your home unarmed, you’re dropping the ball. Abandon the asinine thought process of “I live in a safe neighborhood” or “it would never happen here.” Stay armed, alert, and vigilant.
3. Consider what you are carrying. While I love pocket pistols and small revolvers for the niche role that only such guns can fill, most of our waking hours, spent out and about in any of the free states, facilitates the carry of a real combat pistol. Carry a full-size or compact double-stack fighting pistol. In contemporary America the neighborhood crackhead who sticks you up with a switch blade, a perfect candidate for the J Frame in your pocket, is not the only danger. Gang assaults involving multiple adversaries, active killers, and certainly a growing threat of terrorism, should be considered.
4. Abandon the ongoing fascination with the truck gun, a rifle stored in the vehicle, as there is no time to retrieve it when the event actually happens. Also, running around an active killer or terrorist attack scene with a rifle in hand is a quick way to get killed, as has been witnessed multiple times. The solution to the problem remains surgical shooting with a handgun. Yes, I get it, you are confident with your AR15 and it is a lot more fun to shoot than your pistol because you can actually hit things with it. Well, you won’t have the AR with you, but you can have your pistol with you. Train with your pistol. There have been several incidents where pistol wielding self-defenders have killed rifle-wielding mass-killers, so let’s get over it. Ideal? No. Doable? You bet. Carry a real fighting handgun, and carry it all the time.
5. Rather than focus on the gear that would be great to have, like a rifle, but you simply won’t have if at ground zero, focus on the other gear that you can feasibly have. The handgun is, obviously, the fighting weapon here. However, beyond that, consider carrying a full trauma kit to treat severe bleeding. Carry more than just a tourniquet; have several tourniquets, as well as chest seals, hemostatic gauze, and pressure dressings. Such a loadout is carried easily with an EDC sling bag, a piece of gear that I am a proponent of, and these packs can even be armored with at least soft body armor. In most places it is not unusual for people to walk around with messenger bags or sling bags, so why not do so and enhance your capability, substantially.
We live in a scary world, although it has always been scary. Unfortunately, we now live among the softest and weakest generation in human history who would rather be taken care of by the nanny state than be free. There are still plenty of us, however, that believe in individual liberty and autonomy, and for us, understand that the only first responder on scene is yourself. Act accordingly. Train accordingly. Carry accordingly.
Reflex Handgun 