Concealed Carry and EDC

"EDC" (EveryDay Carry) is a popular concept with those who want to be prepared for life's challenges: both major and minor. For some, it means always having a pen and breath mints with them, while others see it as a daily survival kit. One group of people who came out of the ruins of the World Trade Center alive on 9/11 did so because one of their number had a light, as well as a pistol that was used to break through a piece of glass that they were trapped against.

For the civilian who carries a handgun, the EDC concept can be very useful. I propose that the following be part of the "EDC" of every CCW holder, in addition to the defensive handgun:

1. One extra reload in the form of a spare magazine, speedloader or Speed Strip. One of the most common causes of failure in an automatic pistol is a bad magazine. Additionally, a spare may be needed if the primary magazine is lost, either while in the holster (seat belts are notorious for ejecting magazines) or by the user accidentally ejecting the magazine in the middle of a violent encounter. A reload is also important if you ever have to fire your pistol. Many of us will have no idea how many shots we fired, or the actual number of shots will be more than we believe. In either case, you could end up waiting for the police with an empty or near-empty gun. This is a bad idea, whether in a high-crime area in the middle of the night, or near an attacker's home turf, where he and/or his friends, family or other "supporters" might show up after the incident.
   
   
2. A charged cell phone. The phone might prevent the incident in the first place, if a bad guy realizes that the police are on their way, or if you or someone else is recording the events. Obviously, a cell phone can be used by you or a bystander to call the police. If you call before things "go south," you might be on the phone with a dispatcher when an attack takes place, and the recorded call may help in verifying your telling of the events. In areas that have cell call tracing, the police may find you by tracking down the location of your phone. A cell phone can also be used to photograph and/or record the faces of witnesses, license plates, vehicles, shell casings, dropped weapons, and much more while you wait for police to arrive. A video may even include a narration to help make sense of the scene, such as: "This is the gray car that forced me into the ditch. Note the streak of red paint on the front fender from my car."
   
   
3. A flashlight (or two). The ways that a light may be useful on a daily basis are too numerable to list, but they include the strong possibility of helping avoid a conflict by highlighting a threat before it is close to you, by identifying an approaching person as a potential threat or a non-threat, or -- along with verbal commands -- by helping an approaching bad guy to decide that there are easier victims. A light may also help you to extricate yourself from a location before trouble happens, by helping you to find the jack in your unlighted trunk or by lighting your way back to an exit from a building. Get a bright, compact light and learn to use it with a pistol under the tutelage of a good instructor, and you'll wonder how you ever left home without it. The light doesn't have to be large. I carry an Inova X1 -- powered by one AA battery -- with a "Tiger Ring" (named for Tiger McKee). It's a rubber O-ring zip-tied to the side of the light, near the button end. My left index finger goes through the ring when it's in my hand. I can relax my fist or even open my hand without risk of losing the light, and I can gently swing it around to the back of my hand to get it completely out of the way.
   
   
4. A secondary or backup weapon. This last item may be a can of pepper spray, to give you a less lethal response to someone who is escalating into a serious threat but has not yet attacked you. It could be a cane -- with which you have received self-defense training. Some carry a second handgun. For many of us, it is a knife: either a fixed blade or a folder. Regardless of the tool chosen, you need to be trained in its use for it to be effective.

The EDC concept offers a civilian with a concealed handgun a systematic approach to dealing with a wide range of situations that they may encounter. At its best, the extra tools may help you to extricate yourself from a situation without having to resort to physical force.

Follow-up to the event I witnessed

The more I think about the incident, the happier I am that I didn't draw or approach the situation. It seems -- in retrospect -- to be almost a textbook no-win situation for the civilian who intervenes. I've imagined trying to defend intervention in court, and it scares me.

I described the event in a well-respected online forum, and the members there were overwhelmingly against intervention. One poster brought up the April, 1986 FBI shootout in Florida (often called the Miami Shootout). The reference is a good one. I remember reading about the cops standing off because they couldn't tell one side from the other, and most of the participants in the horrible gunfight that day were FBI agents.

It's also scary to replay in my head the actions of some of my neighbors. They got really close to the combatants, trying to stop the fight. Yes, it turned out OK, but they could have become victims in the blink of an eye.

What I wish I'd done:

1. Move to cover.
2. Call 9-1-1.
3. Record the fight on video (cellphone or other camera) and stay on with the dispatch.
4. Stay in a safe place. When the fight ended with the escape of one person, scoot for home and make follow-up call to the police.

My current cell phone does not have video capability, but I can now think of reasons to have it. I may be upgrading soon. Alternatively, point-and-shoot digital cameras with video capability are becoming smaller and smaller. It might be possible to add one to my EDC (EveryDay Carry) for not much money. I can think of plenty of reasons to have photo/video capability with me all the time.

No-win situation: witnessed a near murder in a front yard

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Scary incident on Monday, May 30th:

I was walking home from my mother-in-law's house, where I was helping out by changing out a hose bib. I had a "Jack Bauer bag" with me, with a few wrenches, a screwdriver, teflon tape, etc. Holstered in appendix position was a Kel-Tec P-11 in a Galco "USA" IWB holster, and I had a P-32 in my back pocket in an Uncle Mike's pocket holster.

As I rounded a corner about 1/2 block from home, I saw three young men in a front yard, in some kind of very animated discussion. Let's call them Yellow Shirt, Gray Shirt and Black Shirt. I was across the street and about 1-2 houses away.

Yellow Shirt turns to me and yells, "Sir, please call the police." At that point it got ugly, with a 2-on-1 fight that went into a side yard. I got on the phone and told police dispatch of a 2-on-1 assault, along with descriptions and the address.

Some neighbors were trying to intervene at this point, but I saw no good reason to get closer to a violent situation that I didn't understand.

I was backing off to a further distance when one of the two grabbed a garden hose, whipped it in a loop around YS' neck and began strangling him. This was the point where I felt an urge to intervene. I felt like I couldn't watch a murder take place in front of me. I was starting forward when one of the neighbors started hollering at the strangler and for some reason the two guys let go and backed off for a moment. YS took advantage of this and jumped into a car that was parked there and sped away. I was still on the phone with the dispatcher and gave the plate number and description.

Several neighbors had moved into the situation by this point, and the GS and BS were telling their side. I heard "...slice the fat off that <deleted>." yelled by one of them. I decided I was better off away from there and went home.

After reaching home, I called the dispatch to clarify one point, and to give my name and address. At that moment, two units flew down our street and whipped around the corner to the scene of the assault.

I think I did OK, in that I tried to be a good witness and stayed out of the situation. What spooks me is that a situation like the attempted strangulation looks like a no-win for a person like me. I had absolutely no idea what was going on, but there I was, tempted to pull a gun on the two guys strangling YS. 

More on this soon.

Jeff Cooper Resources (Further Reading)

Jeff Cooper's Commentaries, which appeared in the pages of Guns & Ammo magazine, are available at:

http://dvc.org.uk/jeff/

Jeff Cooper Legacy Foundation

http://jeffcooperfoundation.org/news/

Tribute to Jeff Cooper, on Father Frog's website:

http://www.frfrogspad.com/cooper.htm

Jeff Cooper Books

http://www.jeffcooperbooks.com/

Influences, Part I: Colonel John Dean "Jeff" Cooper and The Color Code

Jeff Cooper is a monumental figure in the realm of self-defense with a pistol. A lot of us looked to his writings back in the day when there were few voices giving advice to those interested in taking some responsibility for our own safety.

He didn't invent everything he taught, but he put it all together into a system that made a lot of sense. He also described his system in terms that could be understood and used by the rest of us. Some of the elements of his system included:

• Awareness and the Color Code
• Attitude and mental toughness
• Modern Technique of the Pistol
• The 1911 pistol in .45 ACP caliber

Even if you're not a dyed-in-the-wool "Cooper Trooper," there are ideas from the Colonel that can be incorporated into anyone's approach to self-defense. Perhaps the best of these is the Color Code.

The Color Code

The thing to remember about Col. Cooper's Color Code -- as I understand it -- is that it is an indication of the mental state of the individual and that individual's readiness to fight, not a measure of the threat level in the environment.There are four colors in the concept:

Condition White - Unaware and unprepared. If attacked, a person in Condition White is not ready to defend him or herself and will likely have no inkling of the attack until it's too late. Unfortunately, many people go through life in Condition White.

Condition Yellow - Relaxed alertness. A person in Condition Yellow is not looking for any specific threat, but is aware of what is going on in his or her surroundings. Good drivers spend their time on the road in Condition Yellow. They know what is going on all around their vehicle, and they are alert for accidents, road hazards, careless drivers, etc. Anyone who carries a firearm for self-defense should be in Yellow. This condition is not taxing or tiring, and it's possible to be in Yellow for 95% or more of your waking life. People familiar with the Color Code sometimes refer to, "Living in Condition Yellow."

Condition Orange - Heightened alertness, with a focus. Something isn't right or has caught the attention of the person, and is being examined as a potential threat. Perhaps it's someone in a coat on a hot day, or a car coming down a dark street with its lights off. At the same time, the general alertness and awareness of surroundings is maintained. It would not do to focus on someone blocking your path and miss his partner sneaking up from one side.

Condition Red - Ready to fight. A potential threat has been identified, and the defender is waiting on a "trigger" -- set during Condition Orange -- before taking action. It might be a potential threat's distance: "If he comes any closer with that knife, I'll shoot." It could be some other action: "If that hand comes out of his pocket with a weapon, I'll stop him." The defender may or may not have a weapon in hand at this moment.

What's in a name?

The name of this blog refers in part to the fact that most civilians who carry a handgun eventually try a "mousegun." Often used as a perjorative against firearms that a person considers too small or "weak" for the task, a mousegun is generally agreed to be a small handgun -- usually of a small caliber, such as .22, .25, .32 or .380 -- although the term is sometimes used to refer to other guns and calibers, such as small .38 Specials.

A mousegun's best feature is that it can be carried when a larger, more powerful handgun is left at home in the safe. It's shortcoming comes when we carry it instead of a more effective gun, just because it's light and convenient.

The title also refers to the mouse, an animal with some qualities that I admire. Quiet, unassuming and alert, a mouse avoids trouble whenever possible. The smart mouse, however, backs up awareness and avoidance with tools and training and can defend him or herself.

In this blog, I hope to offer an exploration of issues, hardware, and "software" related to concealed handgun carry, self-defense, and the shooting sports.