Common Ground

I'm 44 and white. He's 68 and has a way better tan than me...

Yesterday Eric came into my store wanting to know how to use his 1911. He is a Vietnam Veteran who after leaving the Marines in 1982 hadn’t shot a firearm since. So the next day Eric and I went to the range and I worked with him, helping him learn to shoot. And learn about other factors that will help him shoot better including efficiency, recoil management and how a stock 1911 works for a left handed person… or doesn’t. He learned what he didn't know about shooting and that for his needs a different gun is a better choice.

Standing on the range together gave us chance to learn other things and discover the common ground we shared.That Eric wants the country he loves to be okay. The same as you and I want our country to be okay.

Our conversation was unedited. We covered all the topics with none of the social correctness or tiptoeing around so many worry about. It was just us two guys listening to and talking with each other.

We agreed on our common goal that the next generation should have a desire to work for “it”. What is “it”? Work for your money and earn your keep... Help others when you can and know when you can't... Respect life. Appreciate what we do have and while striving for more to not hate others for what they've accomplished.

This Marine and many more service people helped make my gun shop possible by preserving and defending our freedoms including being able to publish these thoughts and observations, like this post, with other people.

Freedom. Recognize it. Respect it. Protect it.

A month ago I was told by a young man that "Diversity isn't a color. It's a mind set".  I agree.

Ernie.

I Have No Interest In Showing My Hand

I am dismayed that anyone would oppose legislation that proposes keeping the personal information of gun permit holders private.

As a person licensed to carry a firearm, I choose to keep my gun concealed when in public. I do so for many reasons including the fact I don’t need anyone to know I have the firearm. Permit to carry holders are the good guys, who react to the actions of aggressors.

The element of surprise is an advantage. The first person to have that advantage is the bad guy who ambushes you. When facing a lethal threat one must act decisively and quickly. An action such as quickly moving laterally while drawing a weapon would require the aggressor to adjust to new circumstances. The intended victim has physically moved and presented a defensive tool of which the aggressor was most likely not aware.

This is not guaranteed to stop an attack, but is done to make the aggressor address new factors.

When in a fight for your life you are trying to “buy” microseconds in any way you can. That small, precious time frame is all you have to make important decisions.

The public will have minutes, hours, days, weeks and even months to decide if your actions were appropriate. That’s how armchair quarterbacking works.

Where is all this going you ask?

If I have spent time, effort and money to learn how to conceal my weapon for my own safety, why would I want others to be told that I have it?

I am a huge proponent of responsible gun ownership. My family and I responsibly train with guns. I also believe part of that responsibility is to do what I can to keep them out of the hands of bad guys. Whether I own one firearm or three large safes full of them, I do not believe it to be your business.

I would not walk down the street randomly telling people my address and the fact that I own firearms. Therefore I don’t want anyone else doing that for me.

The Gazette’s editorial board <a href="http://thegazette.com/subject/opinion/staff-editorial/concealed-weapons-permits-protect-the-publics-right-to-know-20150304">voiced concern</a> about a lack of transparent government if such documents were not available. I cannot fathom the concern about knowing this personal information.

I find it interesting there are those who want to “revisit” the Second Amendment or interpret it for anything other than its very simple meaning, “…shall not be infringed.”

How intrusive would you find it for the public to have access to your address because you attend church?

A firearm is an inanimate object that has no will or ability of its own. It is simply a tool that can be used for good or bad.

Firearms are responsibly used by 80 million people in this country. Firearms are used maliciously by evil people on occasion, but so are screwdrivers, hammers, knives, cars, hands, ropes, elbows and baseball bats.

When we see crimes committed with firearms, such weapons are usually illegally possessed by people who have already violated other laws.

Why should we tell such individuals where to illegally acquire more firearms while simultaneously putting law-abiding gun owners in danger?

(This article originally appeared in the Cedar Rapids Gazette on March 18, 2015 as guest editorial)

Reflections on "I Carry A Gun Every Day"

The article I wrote, published last Sunday, is now a week old.   The support from drop in’s at the store, phone calls, and most of all, emails, have moved me.    Emails have come to me from every corner of our country and six others.  The touching stories have made me reflect on why I do what I do.   Some only learn after they have been a victim.  Others learn from the videos and stories of violence happening to those around them.   Be the latter. Being proactive is always better.

The emails I’ve received have confirmed in me the good in people; in every state and in every corner of this world.   I am guilty myself of unconsciously writing off people that live in states with very different laws than those in Iowa.   It’s easy to forget that many laws are fought for at the local level.  The moving stories I’ve been told in the last week have make me reconsider.  Evil is everywhere; it is. 

There are also good people everywhere.    Single moms taking  steps to keep themselves and their families safe. Women whose spouses currently carry, writing me to say they "see the light," joining their spouses in the right to bear arms. Two sets of eyes, two rescue tools and two phones are always better than one.  I am so glad so many of them are empowering themselves. It all starts inside the head. Knowing that your life, and the lives of your loved ones, is precious and it doesn't make you a bad person to decide that you are willing to defend it. 

I've heard from doctors; one in Belgium, one in France.  A story of how you can train to keep yourself safe when law prevents carrying a firearm.   He and his daughters train in hand to hand self-defense and carry knives; also a great tool.    To be told that your words touched someone half a world away and helped reinforce to them why they train with a knife and hand-to-hand combat in a country where terrorists are fought with rifles is inspiring and sad.   Due to the time difference I got his email in the middle of the night; just six hours from catastrophe.     If he had posted my story in his hometown would he have been perceived as paranoid and frenetic?  Many trainers I know would tell you to master your gun skills and then master every other skill you could to try to ensure that you don't ever use that gun unless you have to.   This writer has no other option.

The emails from the East and West Coasts have been inspiring.  Living within the parameters of what is legally allowed is a challenge.   I remember Rob Pincus speaking to class about his experience training people that have different allocations of time, tools, range availability and even desire.  There are many that do not enjoy the freedoms that we have.  Even within our own country our freedoms vary greatly.

I do not have to justify what I do to anyone. I want to be educated and keep educating others on the strategies necessary to keep ourselves safe. The naysayers don't bother me at all. I can only help those who seek help.  It happens in my store, the classroom, and on the range.   And it’s clear that putting my thoughts to words has had a worldwide impact.   Those I know that choose to arm themselves and train don't do so out of bravado or some twisted vision of being a superhero. They simply value their life and the lives of those around them; truly believing they have made a commitment to come home to their family every day.

We see this happen with women's self-defense class.  A woman otherwise reserved would not hesitate to do any of that and more to protect her children. I meet people like this throughout my career. I simply asked them, would your children want to be an orphan? Are you not the keeper of their safety and their only mother?  It's not a guilt trip. It's simply getting them to see the logic that they are irreplaceable.   Getting them to see that their own life is worth defending is the first step.

There have been many events of violence in this country and others since my article was posted.  Some right here in our own state.   I don’t need affirmation to do what I do for a living.  These acts of violence have always happened and will keep happening but it may still not be enough for others to see the light.   That's okay. I'm not reaching out to people trying to change them. I'm reaching out to the people that are ready to make that change. I'm reaching out to the people that need to know that it's okay to value your life enough to defend it.   I don't personally know anyone filled with bravado that carries a gun. I only know people who choose to carry the right tools for bad situations.
It's not my cliché but it has been said many times before. "Good people sometimes have to do bad things to save themselves."  It's a lot easier to justify those bad things in the legal system than it is in your own head sometimes. Both are equally important.   Having a support group around you if you ever have to be that person is very important.   Mas Ayoob has changed the lives of many by speaking of the demons that rear their head after one has had to use deadly force to defend themselves.

This takes me back to all the emails I received from all across this country; states that many of us call "blue states.”  Cities that we consider "lost ". Well I for one am no longer going to think that way. Those very places are also filled with evil. Some I’ve received emails from are some of the most violent cities in this country.   There are many nationwide organizations designed to help those in a time of need; food, shelter, or other basic needs.    Many have reached out to me inquiring about a nationwide movement to communicate better about our choice to train, learn, and reach out to those who need help.  My technological talent is lacking but I’m dedicated to seeing that to fruition.  

I teach students to hear the words "your brain will keep you alive.”  Chris, who guides students in hands-on defensive techniques, has been training civilians and law enforcement for over 30 years.  His motto is “the will to survive is instinctive....the ability to survive is learned.”  Keep learning. Keep training.  And consider those that although they may live worlds apart, both literally and figuratively, that share the same mind set.   Sometimes those great divides are caused my laws... laws and borders is all.  And as for me?  I’m right here, ready to guide you an any way you need.

Ernie Traugh.