A familiar situation plays out time and time again in my Krav Maga school. A man or woman has grown up in an urban setting and has little or no exposure to handguns. Further, ignorant people spread fear about handguns throughout this person’s life and voila, we’ve got a student who’s terrified of a handgun.
It’s important to understand that handguns and other inert objects have no will or volition of their own. Handguns don’t just go off – ambushing innocent people who happen to wander by. So, often, it falls to me or one of my able instructors to set the record straight.
Why bother? Well, if you’re training a handgun defense, once the handgun is acquired, it’s best to know how to use it. Seriously.
The laughable truth is, there are really only two things I typically do to assuage the fear that comes from ignorance of handguns.
- First, I go over the handgun safety rules: (a) the gun is always loaded until you check it yourself, (b) never put your finger on the trigger until you are ready to fire the handgun, (c) never point the handgun at anything you don’t want to destroy, and (d) know your target and what’s downrange. I then ask every person I speak with a question, if you follow these rules, can you have an accident with a handgun? No. Case closed.
- Second, for demonstration purposes, I present a Glock handgun, I illustrate how to check the condition of the weapon. Then I take the gun apart. I do this three times – apart and together, three times. Then, I ask my student to dismantle the handgun and reassemble it.
That’s it. If there’s interest beyond that point, I typically take my student shooting.
Boom!
Converted!
Enlightened!
Empowered!
Information trumps ignorance every single time folks.
…walk in peace (and carry a handgun)!
