If you’ve read my blog for any time at all, you’ve probably guessed that I like old movies much better than I do most newer movies. The old movies featured people who could act, not computer generated special effects that marginally talented, but very pretty, young men and women could emote to. Given the cost and limitation of special effects in the predigital age, it was necessary to develop both the characters and the plots.
The title of this post comes from a line by Old Man Clanton, played by the versatile Walter Brennan in the 1946 classic My Darling Clementine. Brennan played the leader of the evil Clanton family and as bad guys so often seem to in the movies, he had some of the best lines. One of his sons had pulled his gun on Henry Fonda, but not killed him. Fonda left, Brennan slapped his son and said the quoted line.
Very pragmatic advice and I quote it for a reason. If you are in a situation where you need to draw a weapon for self defense, you better be prepared to use it. Brandishing a firearm at a person who is threatening you is useless. Which I think is what Old Man Clanton was getting at in a very, ah, direct manner.
Talking with a friend who recently became licensed, we were discussing what type of firearm he should buy for in home self defense. Various handguns were discussed and I suggested a shotgun as a viable alternative. My friend mentioned that oft repeated line about the sound of racking a round into the chamber scaring would be burglars away. That might be true, but you can’t count on it and if you rack a round into the chamber and don’t use it, all you’ve done is give the person threatening you a chance to grab a better weapon to use. Yours.
If a sound would scare intruders, I could make a bundle making a digital recording of a shotgun pump being racked. It doesn’t and I can’t.
I’ve seen more than a couple of people who have been shot, it’s not pretty, even if you survive. I don’t much like the idea of causing someone that much pain or even causing their death. Still, I like the idea of someone else causing me that much pain or even death even less. Hopefully, I’ll never be in either situation, but if I, my friend, or you, ever are, remember Old Man Clanton’s admonishment.
“When you pull a gun, kill a man.”
The updated version of that is “When you have to draw your firearm, you have to be prepared to stop the threat that prompted you to draw in the first place.” Killing that threat, whether it’s a human or animal predator, is a likely consequence of self defense. In a perfect world, we’d have a stops predators 100% of the time without killing them tool. We don’t live in perfect world, we live in the real world.
If you’ve read this far here are two posts from Xavier Thought’s on self defense.
The first on is Recognizing Threats. This is a follow up article to an earlier post titled Surving A Gunfight. Both are excellent reading and full of good advice. Xavier has put a lot of thought into this and makes some great points. I’ve read these more than once and they are thought provoking to put it mildly.
Go. Read. Learn. Survive.
My dad taught me something similar: "Don't clear leather unless you intend to pull the trigger!" followed closely by "If you pull a gun on me, you better damned well use it!"
I could spend hours on the subjects you've touched in your post. Not that I'm an expert, but I've been around enough to know that people are usually woefully unaware of how vulnerable they are. Even worse, most people walk into really bad situation oblivious of what's ahead, or allow easy observation through uncovered windows. Preference for home protection? Shotgun, with a really wide pattern. the shortest barrel allowed by law and of a gauge where the amount of buckshot pellets is substantial. The only other advice I'll add is to allow everyone that can handle it to shoot it. Spend an afternoon shooting at targets, so all concerned won't be shaken by the action of shooting, or aiming. My only experience with gunshots is through reality trauma shows. I've never seen anyone with a shotgun wound live, or avoid being severely maimed, which is the intent of self-protection. If you have to shoot, don't allow your attacker a second chance.
“When you pull a gun kill a man” That’s not bad advice in any situation! I remember a commentary on public broadcasting's News Hour program several years ago. A scholarly pundit was commenting on misguided posturing in American foreign/defense policy. In effect it does nothing but makes you look foolish and a bully. Oh! And just so you know, it gets a lot of good people killed for little return. The pundit quoted this line of dialogue. In my opinion it is a good model for foreign policy. Do not threaten with the gun, pull it and use it, but only when it is appropriate and necessary. And when you do it, do a thorough job of it.
Taking advice on the use of deadly force from a Hollywood script writer and then publishing your thoughts in agreement is beyond reason. You need to sell any guns you have to avoid having to stand before a judge confronted with your "kill a man" comments. You need to take down this opinion piece from the web for your benefit and stop giving out BAD advice on deadly force.
I'll get cracking on that right away, Anonymous. You, OTOH, can get to work on having the courage to sign your comments and your reading comprehension skills.