Wendesday Wisdom: 12 November 2025

A weekly compilation of valuable information and insights for the citizen defender. These posts will contain links to my writing as well as posts that I believe are worth the time and trouble to read. They will cover the entire gamut of personal security, electronic security, self defense, firearms, equipment, and more 

Gary Reeder Does Elmer Keith

Elmer Keith’s influence on handgun design was substantial, his influence on handgun cartridge design truly revolutionary. The big-bore hunting handgun as we know it today -– whether a direct descendant of a Keith concept or a totally different gun made possible only after Keith knocked down the doors -– would not exist were it not for that one man’s pioneering efforts. There would be little or no big-game hunting with handguns, because no timid corporate CEO or board of directors would ever have had the courage to manufacture appropriate guns and ammo to prove the viability of the sport. Not without Elmer’s front sight pressed between their ribs. One strong man supplied the guts and the vision, and the world followed, which is the way things usually work in real life.

How Do I Hide This Thing?

After much soul-searching and careful consideration, you’ve made the decision that your life is worth defending whatever the cost. Toward that end, you’ve purchased a firearm and have decided to carry it with you wherever you go.

Musashi 

The Go Rin no Sho is an important and useful work for the martial artist or anyone engaged in conflict, but value it for what it is and recognize what it is not. It is not a moral or ethical guide. 'Kensei' gets translated as "sword saint" but Musashi was no saint-- he was a murdering bastard who, late in life when he felt death closing in, attempted to recreate himself, elevating his murders to duels and his insights to enlightenment.

Global Incident Maps

Maps with lots of information concerning Kidnapping for Ransom, Major Drug Interdictions, School Security Incidents, Self-Defense Use of Firearms, and many more with most being free.

USS Constitution -- A Look Inside "Old Ironsides"

"Sail ho!" I hear from above. The sea spray blurs my vision, but our masthead lookout is right. Two ships are on the horizon. One breaks off and races toward our position off the coast of Brazil. I see the British flag, and my stomach lurches in fear. It's too late to run, as we did in July 1812, escaping a British squadron of five ships off the coast of New Jersey. I nervously tug at the white-spotted and red cotton bandanna handkerchief around my neck. It is Dec. 29, 1812, and I am a sailor on the USS Constitution.

Gunshot Residue and Personal Carry Ammunition

In September 1997, after 8-1/2 years and four trials, Daniel Bias Jr. began a six-year prison sentence for murdering his wife. One of the key issues associated with the case was the presence or lack of gunshot residue on Lise Bias after the shooting. The defense attorney in Bias’s trial argued that Lise Bias died accidentally as she was pointing a pistol at her head: however, the prosecution argued that the lack of gunshot residue on Lise Bias's nightgown and head wound shows she could not have shot herself.

Why To Think. Not, "What to think."  

Thanks — I suspect — to social media, kids seem to believe that the way to win a debate is not through facts, but through emotion: that the winner of a debate or discussion is the one who is the most passionate about the subject at hand — the side that can scream the loudest, tug the most heartstrings, misbehave the most egregiously in the service of said subject.

Home Defense Shooting Drills

Part of my curriculum development work for the live fire drills was to go to the range and shoot the drills I planned to use in the KR Training Home Defense Course. I modified our old Home Defense Tactics course into the new Home Defense Tactics and Shooting Skills course. Instead of teaching home defense with inert plastic guns (often called “red guns” or “blue guns”) in a student’s home, I teach the same skills in the A-Zone classroom building with the inert guns and add an extra hour of live fire drills. 

Security Measures Categorized

Though many view an alarm as a serious security upgrade it is important to realize that it does not actually make your home more difficult to get into. An alarm is merely a detective security measure; that is, it makes your home more difficult to get into undetected. There are three categories of security measures: deterring, delaying, and detective. Alternatively these categories can be thought of as “before” (deterring), “during” (delaying), and “after” (detective) security measures, based on what stage of an attack with are intended to address.

Shooting Incident

To his credit, the captain finally realized that he wasn’t hitting anything he wanted to hit, got his head out of his ass, leveled his pistol on the suspect’s upper chest, focused on his front sight, and carefully (this time) fired four additional shots. This time, all four shots hit the suspect in the center of the chest. The dumbfounded suspect dropped his gun, wobbled for a few seconds, and then dropped to the ground. He was dead at the scene. The captain was unhurt.

Jeff Cooper's Commentaries – October 1993

 Anyone who knows anything about marksmanship knows that it is something one does not boast about. You may remember that Billy Dickson always attributed his long shot on the Indian to pure luck, and this was always called mere modesty on his part. Other examples will occur to you. However, if you would like a conspicuous case study of how it was done, consider the famous "Tinian shot" delivered during the occupation of Saipan and Tinian during the Pacific War.

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