Even amidst the constant discussion in the self-defense and “tactical” community regarding the looming threat of terrorism, I continue to urge focus on handgun skills as, inevitably, if the armed civilian finds himself/herself at ground zero, that is what you are far more likely to be armed with rather than a long gun.
Over the past several months I have run a number of articles on this threat that explain my best guess as to how this will most likely manifest (I strongly suspect a Mumbai/Paris style attack, but possibly in multiple cities at once) and I have even offered several shooting drills/exercises that aim to enhance your pistol skills for this problem.
As I have argued, despite the possibility of facing overwhelming numbers and firepower (possibly multiple rifle-armed assailants) you will, likely, only have your pistol on your person, unless unfortunate enough to be in a location where you are disarmed by leftist policy. You are extremely unlikely to have a rifle at your disposal. This is, of course, not at all the odds we would like to face, as rifle-armed assailants certainly demand a rifle response. Preferably, they demand a rifle response from an entire team of riflemen. As reality holds, sorry, you will have yourself, and your pistol, to respond with. While a lone pistolero is not going to smite a large cell of such attackers, make no mistake, the handgun can facilitate a forced escape for yourself and your loved ones from the situation. For more exploration on that topic, see my article, Looming Terrorism: A Survival Plan for the Armed Citizen.
Obviously, any shooter realizes that, if you did have the choice of weapon in such a dire situation, a long gun, any long gun, is dramatically superior to a pistol. It is this train of thought that has driven a movement over the past few years towards carrying small carbines in backpacks. How viable is this? Even if relegated to something so small that it can be carried inconspicuously in a backpack or sling bag, likely a PDW or AR Pistol of some type, it is dramatically superior to a handgun. Even if chambered in a pistol caliber, the PDW or AR Pistol type gun offers far more range/accuracy potential than does a pistol. So, the idea of a bag gun seems ideal for this current threat profile, does it not? Backpacks are completely normal in most public places and don’t draw any attention, so why not tote around a PDW or small carbine in a backpack when at the mall?
I am not particularly apposed to this idea under some circumstances, but I think it is flawed for most urban/suburban application in crowded, public places. I am more inclined to find it of use in rural environments where you may be far afield and want more firepower with you, as I find the notion of a “truck gun” more applicable to rural environs than urban as well.
Additionally, I am a true believer in the EDC sling bag, though I practice on-body carry, not bag carry, of the firearm. The bag, however, facilitates the carry of more medical gear, additional spare magazines, and other useful preparedness items, and I typically have this bag in the vehicle, if not on me, in many places.
However, actually having a gun in the bag now introduces complications. As it pertains to having some semblance of a small carbine in the bag, the complications grow. While a bag gun might serve a definite purpose for you, depending on your lifestyle and your environment, I would offer the following careful considerations:
Convenience: Will you Actually Have It Anyway?
The clear advantage of a concealed handgun, worn on person, is that it goes where you go unless you are disarmed by legalities in the specific environment. I am skeptical of the idea that an individual will routinely sling a pack when exiting the vehicle and entering any given public place. Carrying a pack is added weight and added hassle. I don’t take my EDC pack out of the vehicle and into every store or location I enter. I certainly would not be doing so with an even heavier and bigger pack that has a PDW or AR Pistol in it. So, while it is a cool concept, I think most people will hardly put it into consistent practice. If the pack will simply be left in the vehicle, what is the realistic probability of ever putting it to use if violence erupts? And, if we are at the point of using the bag gun as merely a truck gun, why not have a real rifle instead?
Theft/Unauthorized Access
Having a gun in a bag means that the bag must be, preferably, attached to your person at all times when in public or when around any other people. You cannot just put the bag down next to you, behind your chair, when in a restaurant or at the mall, if it has a gun in it. Unfortunately, theft is a constant issue in our society, as in most human societies, and you can’t leave a bag that has a lethal weapon in it unattended for even an instant. Similarly, if left in the vehicle, the bag can be stolen quite readily. The primary source of criminally acquired firearms in recent years comes from vehicle theft. Leaving a bag with a gun in it, inside a vehicle without being exceptionally well secured, is a good way to contribute to this problem.
Tactical Liability
If the situation comes to pass in which the bag-carried superior weapon were to be useful against long gun wielding terrorists, consider this:
As soon as you withdraw that gun from the bag there is a high possibility that you will look like the exact threat that you intend to use that long gun against……..a long gun wielding terrorist.
If a fellow concealed carrier where in the mall and in proximity to you, and he or she just witnessed two terrorists walk through the door with rifles, then sees you take a rifle out of your bag, what might that fellow good guy or gal think?
You are exponentially more likely to get burned down by a fellow armed citizen or a responding police officer if you have a long gun in your hands than if you are discreetly carrying, and even employing, a pistol. What are other concealed carriers or responding law enforcement looking for in such a situation? The same threat that you were carrying the bag gun for to begin with, that’s what. This is the issue that, in my strong opinion, makes the publicly carried defensive long gun far less feasible than many people think. Certainly, the accuracy and ballistic advantage it offers over your handgun is substantial, but I strongly suggest that the liability it directs towards you, immediately upon deployment, is paramount.
Final Thoughts
Again, I think having a bag gun setup may prove advantageous for some scenarios, but the exact scenario that drives one to consider it in the first place seem ill fitted for this solution. There is no denying the clear advantage such a gun provides for the actual shooting problem, but the potential liability is enormous.
A prepared individual should have a fighting rifle at the ready in the home, and, depending on the environment, possibly secured in a vehicle as well. However, even when considering such heightened threat scenarios like terrorism, violence that erupts unexpectedly in crowded places remains a handgun problem, and the armed citizen should train accordingly.
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