Some useful bits of information that Cooper provides is that one must train himself into a state of mind in which the sudden awareness of peril does not surprise him. "His response should be not "Oh my God, I'm in a fight!" but rather, "I thought this might happen and I know what to do about it."Read the whole thing, of course. If you haven't read To Ride, Shoot Straight, and Speak the Truth, by all means order it, read it and live the truths you'll find inside the two covers.
I often think how few people in our society would really know what to do if they were confronted with a mortal confrontation. Sadly, our mindset is now more like The New Feminized Majority in which soft power and discussions are slowly taking the place of the Combat Mind-set. Is this a good thing?
Author and host of the hit OUTDOOR CHANNEL show SHOOTING GALLERY spouts off...
Thursday, March 06, 2008
The Combat Mindset Redux
Dr. Helen talks eloquently on Col. Jeff Cooper's essay on the combat mindset:
I can't recall who originally said it, but the words: "When everything goes to hell, everyone will hide behind the one with the gun." say it best.
ReplyDeleteI'll add that in my own experience, "everyone" will also hide behind the one with the knife, raised fists, or any suitable defensive posture.
When I was 21 years old and my Dad was 50, I witnessed part of why his generation was known as "The Greatest Generation". He was confronted by a couple of ruffians that were at least half his age. He didn't hesitate to inform them that if they wanted trouble, they had it "right now". I sidled up to his right and by coincidence, his childhood best friend was there and he took the left position. There was an instantaneous stand-down by the agressor. My dad didn't let his guard down either. He kept an eye out for a return of the wise-_______s and return they did. Now, we were also joined by my Dad's friend and still another. Without communicating, his friend also was watching and he alerted a third friend. They proceeded to surround the now 3 agressors and physically removed them from the area. They didn't even need me. The issue was averted, but the level of aletness was still not lowereded, as there was still a parking lot, trip home, etc. That's the mindset that you're talking about.
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