Gandhi the Satyagrahi
The Mahatma Gandhi is one of my personal heroes, and a hero to millions of others. Most people don’t know that he actually condoned violence in certain narrow circumstances.
Category: Active Violence Response
This category addresses the scourge of active violence and what we can do about it.
Escape from Upper Floors
Former ATFE Deputy Director Scott Sweetow points out that fire has always been used as a weapon, and it is increasingly a tool of active violence. In Mumbai, for example, most of the victims did not die from gunfire or …
ICSAVE: Saving Lives, One School at a Time
This article first appeared in the July, 2024 electronic edition of Dillon Precision’s Blue Press. ICSAVE, Integrated Community Solutions to Active Violence Events, is a genuinely not-for-profit non-profit (some “non-profits” aren’t, really) that educates the public, police, fire, and EMS how to minimize loss of life during mass casualty incidents.
Cold Zones Aren’t
In tactical medicine, we talk about the “hot zone, the warm zone, and the cold zone.” We make those distinctions to differentiate what kind of care we should be giving under which conditions. But its critical to realize that what’s cold and what’s hot changes rapidly in dynamic active violence events. There really is no such thing as a permanently cold zone.
For many years fire departments pushed back against any kind of tactical training. They had no problem running into burning buildings, but one bozo with a .22 anywhere in a 100 acre complex was “too dangerous.” This article gives the lie to the notion that EMS personnel can continue to operate without at least rudimentary tactical training.
Movement to Contact
This is about some very specific types of movement: specifically, those when contact with an armed adversary is anticipated or likely. While avoiding or breaking contact is preferred, there are times when neither of those are possible. Knowing proper movement techniques can keep you alive.
Isandhlwana and the Pulse Nightclub
This article I wrote, originally published on the now-defunct ILIVED website, explains concepts relating to maximum, max effective, and minimum effective range, as they pertain to assaults in confined areas when we vastly outnumber the assailant.
Bus Takedowns
Part 1 of our Tubular Target Trilogy A tubular target is a long and narrow, tunnel-like space we need to dominate, either to enforce the law, to rescue the helpless, or to just stay alive. Most of our tubular spaces …
Area Targets: A Tango’s Dream
“Point” and “area” targets are military concepts that are directly applicable to active violence and counterterrorism. You should know more than just the difference between them, which is not rocket science. You should know how to avoid having a target on your back, be it the point or area variety. Some of this article was excerpted from a password protected summary of a site security survey I conducted at a high school in Arizona.
Interview with Angela McQueen
Angela McQueen wrestled a gun out of a wannabe killer’s hands in her high school cafeteria, most likely saving many lives. On 04 Nov 2022, I had the honor and privilege of interviewing Ms. McQueen where the incident took place, at Mattoon High School in Mattoon, IL.
John S: Dragonslayer SRO
This homage to one of the most professional warrior protectors I know also elaborates on concepts and controversies of School Resource Officer (SRO) programs.
In Places They Don’t Talk About at Parties: Lessons from STEM School Highlands Ranch
The tragic shooting of 07 May 2019 has several lessons you should learn, paid for in blood. Here are some of them.
ASR Rifles and ASR Med Kits
Most people get guns for “GPs,” general purposes. But, like golf clubs, different guns have different niches in your battle plan. Before you get a gun (or another gun), you should have some idea what you plan to accomplish with …
The Lie: How Much Ammo Do You Need?
There is a misconception out there about the so-called “average” gunfight, that is often quoted as if it were Gospel. Sadly, many store clerks who perpetuate this lie, while selling new shooters guns that are hard to hold, hard to manipulate, and hard to hit with, actually believe The Lie.