Call me Ahab

posted by Caleb on Jun 10

Recently, my beloved state of Indiana has experienced some pretty dramatic flooding, as well as mass power outages and a loss of emergency services in several areas.  Thankfully, despite me repeatedly tempting fate with my giant trees in the backyard, my house has so far been spared any damage (knock on wood).

Oddly enough, during all the catastrophe, a co-worker and I were talking about (of course) why I own firearms.  The recent flooding, power outages and accompanying loss of emergency services in some areas serve as a stark example of why I choose to own firearms, as well as keep a decent supply of food on hand.  Yesterday, the word was that Indianapolis Metro PD was having to patrol some areas in Hummvees, because the water was so high that they couldn’t reach the affected areas in their regular patrol cars.

Now, to the credit of Hoosiers, we haven’t descended into looting and pillaging areas where the power is out and services are down; in fact there has been a very strong and concerted effort amongst residents to work together to make sure that everyone is cared for.  But imagine for a second that you’re in a bad neighborhood, the power’s out and flooding has made your area inaccessible to the police and fire departments.  You’re fine, you have food, fuel and a generator enough to last for a week or so, but some other people aren’t.  In this situation, you’re on your own.  If someone decides they want to take your food or your fuel, the police can’t get to you to do anything about it - is it any wonder that I’d want to have a firearm to defend myself and my family?

You’d probably argue that the above is a hypothetical scenario, and you’d be right.  But it’s not a far-fetched scenario either for a lot of people; it doesn’t take much for flooding to get to a point where cars “just don’t go” any more, and it’s certainly not a hypothetical situation for people who lived through the looting in the aftermath of Katrina.

My bottom line remains where it has always been, I keep firearms because I believe that I am personally responsible for my safety and the safety of my family - despite my LE/Military background, I don’t believe that it’s the police, military, or anyone’s job to help me when I’m up the creek.

posted by Caleb on May 23

Short post on this one - you know how some people keep a key hidden under a planter or something on the front porch in case they get locked out?

I don’t want to offend anyone, but that is a stupid damn idea.

Honestly, if you’re worried about getting locked out, get an electronic keypad for your garage door and carry a spare 9 volt with you in case the battery in that dies.

posted by Caleb on Aug 10

I wanted to tie up some loose ends I had left hanging out from the Home Security series. I’m aware that the subject of proper home security could fill several books, and there is no way possible that I could have covered everything in a three part series.

I did get some good emails and comments, and I want to address some of them here.

• What, no crossbows?

No, no crossbows. I actually thought about including bow and arrow weapons on the list of lethal projectile weapons; however I then looked up how much your average decent crossbow costs. If you really want a single shot weapon, just buy an H&R single shot shotgun for 90 bucks at Wal-Mart.

• What if I don’t have (or want) an alarm system?

Uh…get one? In all seriousness though, while it does cost money (ours is $35 a month for the service from Brinks) having an alarm system does have all the advantages mentioned in the series, as well as another that I didn’t mention. Having an alarm system will generally lower your homeowner’s insurance. I’m not in the business of shilling for Brinks, but to me the alarm is just like the fire extinguisher, or the .357 Magnum.

• I live in a suburb, and floodlights aren’t allowed by the homeowner’s association.

You can still get motion sensitive lights, just have them be regular intensity lights. They’re less likely to disturb the neighbors, and still create the desired effect, admittedly to a lesser extent, of illuminating any potential intruders. Or teenagers trying to sneak in past curfew.

• I own a condo/townhome, etc - my concern over excessive penetration extends to the neighbors as well.

The wiseass in me would say “don’t miss”, but there are options available. For handguns, you could go with the Glaser Safety Slug. I do not have personal experience with Glasers, but some people swear by them - of course, other people hate them. The choice in that regard is yours.

That’s about it for the loose ends - I’ll be happy to address an emails I get regarding the home security series right here on the blag.
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posted by Caleb on Aug 8

In the conclusion to the home defense series, I want to take a very brief look at the different tactical options that are available during a home invasion. In part 1, non-lethal and common sense ideas for home security were discussed, including trimming hedges, getting an alarm, and cutting back trees. Part 2 looked at the various weapons available to a homeowner, from less-lethal items such as pepper spray, all the way up to shotguns and rifles (sorry, no crossbows - ed.). Today, the previous two entries come together in the actual tactical situation of a home invasion.

Have a plan
This is the most important piece of advice regarding a potential intrusion into your home. You should have a plan, and all your family should know the plan and know their role. It should be noted that “having a plan” applies to a lot more than just home invasions, you should have a fire emergency plan, or if you live in an area with natural disasters, a plan for that as well.

Every person who reads this blog has a different living situation. Some of you are single. Some of you are married, some of you have kids. Your plan will probably not be the same as mine since our situations are different. What I’m doing is presenting my plan, as well as some guidelines and other thoughts.

Your most effective weapon
Isn’t a 12 gauge, it’s not an M4, it’s not a Ruger GP100. It’s your mind. While you can never be truly ready for a home invasion, you can certainly be more prepared than most. Unfortunately, to do so involves accepting an uncomfortable fact, which my wife rather eloquently stated yesterday: Just because you feel safe, doesn’t mean that you are safe. I knew I married her for a reason.

There exists what I believe to be an erroneous belief that in a moment of crisis, you will “know what to do” - I don’t buy that for a minute. In a moment of crisis, you brain will default to whatever training you’ve hardwired into it.

The situation
It’s 2am, and your home alarm system goes off. You ascertain that the alarm was triggered by the glassbreak sensor on the glass door. The alarm panel indicates that the door is now off it’s track. You silence the alarm (not cancel) so you can hear, and you hear someone banging around inside your house.

This is one of the reasons that I strongly recommend home alarm systems, as it makes it easy to identify if there is a legitimate intruder in your house. Additionally, if you’re unable to call 911 yourself, the alarm company will contact the police for you. However, if at all possible, I recommend that you call 911 personally. Generally speaking, the police are more likely to respond with rapidity if there is a real person saying “there’s someone in my house” than if Brinks calls and reports an alarm.

The plan
For me, the plan is exceedingly simple. Mrs. Ahab calls 911 and removes herself from the line of fire; our bedroom is set up in such a way that I can achieve semi-concealment and a stable firing platform with a clean line of sight at our door. The bedroom door is the “go-line”, if an intruder crosses that line they’re met with the commencement of hostilities on my part. Mrs. Ahab’s job is stay on the phone with the 911 operator until the police are outside our door.

Part of this is where mindset comes into play. We have made the decision that nothing in house is worth dying, or killing, for. We have no children, so there are no other people in the house whose safety we’re responsible. So, our mindset is “TVs, phones, and appliances can be replaced. Lives can’t.” The correlation to that is that we have made the decision before the fact that no one crosses the “line in the sand”. Again, it’s important to make this decision, and revisit it on a regular basis. In a crisis, your brain is going to go to “default mode”, and your rules of engagement must be hardwired in.

In a perfect situation, the alarm scares off the goblin, the police show up in a timely fashion, and then I fix my broken door. I am not willing to bet my life on a perfect situation.

• Note - if you don’t have an alarm system, the above applies if you can adequately ascertain that there is in fact an intruder. If you have to leave your bedroom to investigate (a risky proposition) the advice in the following section applies, from a tactical standpoint. If you must leave to investigate a noise, once the source of the noise is determined, get back to your safe area. Don’t go badguy hunting, get back to the safe room and call 911. Or clean up the glass and scold the cats.

Going mobile
I know what you’re thinking - it’s probably “I have children”. The unfortunate reality of this is that it requires you to leave the relative safety of your bedroom, and go mobile. Unfortunately, this is where things can go all squirrelly. Obviously, leaving your room changes your tactical position from that of a static defender to a more mobile operator. Ask anyone who has ever had to clear a house, or a boat, or any other kind of fixed structure. It is positively nerve wracking.

Your children must be aware of what to do if the alarm goes off. Our plan is for the children to remain in their rooms, doors locked, until I come and get them. Have a password set up so that your kids will know it’s you on the other side of the door. Under no circumstances should they open that door to anyone without the password.

Something that a lot of people don’t think about in this area is tool selection, say you’ve selected a 12 gauge shotgun as your home defense weapon, but you have a small child that needs to be carried back to your safe room. You can’t really carry a small child and keep your two handed weapon ready. If your children are all ambulatory, take the shotgun when you retrieve them. If not, leave the shotgun with your wife in the safe room and take a handgun.

If you’ve gone mobile, it’s also important that whomever is on the phone with 911 inform the operator that you’re mobile. Wouldn’t want to be swapping lead with cops. Similarly, once you’re back, inform the 911 operator that you’re back.

Let there be light
I like flashlights. I keep one by my bed, “just in case”. In case the power goes out, in case of a lot of things, a flashlight is handy. People will argue back and forth for days, months, years, about whether or not you should have a flashlight if you go mobile. I am decidedly “pro-flashlight”. If your home defense weapon is a two hander, such as a shotgun or a rifle, it makes sense to have the light mounted on that weapon. If your weapon is a pistol, I am conflicted about whether or not a weapon mounted light offers any advantages.

Here is one personal tidbit about light. Don’t go around turning on lights . In the middle of the night, your eyes are as adjusted to see in the dark as they’re going to be. You know the layout of your house better than any intruder, and that gives you a small advantage. Plus, if you’re carrying a flashlight, turning on lights defeats your ability to use your flashlight to blind/dazzle an intruder.

The main reason why I am “pro-flashlight” is target identification. Your ability to positively identify your target is extremely important, and I can’t stress positive target identification enough. Don’t shoot unless you’re sure of the target. Don’t shoot unless you’re sure of the target.

Worst case scenario
The worst case scenario in any home invasion is one where you have to pull the trigger. If you’ve set everything else up correctly, it means that somewhere one (or more) of your precautions has broken down, and now violence is your only option.

This is the primary situation where you mindset is most important. You have to made the decision to pull the trigger well beforehand. It’s not a cold-blooded decision, it’s not a decision to kill; it’s a decision that you will take whatever force is necessary to defend your life and the life of your family. You absolutely cannot decide what you will kill or die for in the heat of the moment - it must be made before the fact and constantly revisited, to the point where it truly is hardwired.

I am aware that the above statement could be misconstrued to sound rather bloodthirsty, however it’s nothing of the sort. I have personally witnessed people freeze up at the moment of critical action, simply because their mind had no default setting upon which to operate. They hadn’t made the decision before the fact, and were unprepared when the moment arrived. Again, it’s not a bloodthirsty sentiment. It’s a simple fact - you must be mentally prepared to take action.

Summary
Have a plan - if you have children, make sure they know the plan. There is no way I could address every tactical situation that could unfold during a home invasion; and I am aware that I have painted with a very broad brush.

What I cannot emphasize enough is that you must be mentally prepared. I am fully aware that subject of mental preparedness could encompass several dozen articles all by itself; nevermind the fact that each individual prepares themselves mentally in a completely different way. The ultimate point of this is that the old saying of “you fight like you train” is completely true. In the event of a crisis, your brain defaults to whatever training you have assimilated. Just as you train your ability with a firearm, you must train your mind for the moment of action.
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posted by Caleb on Aug 7

This is the second part in the Home Defense series, (part 1 is here) where we take a look at different home security devices, tactics, and methods.

In Part 1 we examined home security measures that didn’t involve firearms or other weapons; things like alarm systems, trimming hedges back, getting a dog, etc. Today we’re going to look at weapons, including non-firearm weapons. In part 3, we’ll take a very, very brief look at the tactics involved.

Weapons can be broken down into two broad categories, less-lethal and lethal. Obviously, your less-lethal weapons are going to be your various sprays, tasers, and cudgels. Your lethal weapons include all firearms; as well as swords, knives, etc.

Less-Lethal weapons
Some people don’t like guns, or for whatever reason they’re just adamantly opposed to keeping a firearm for home defense. While I disagree with that choice, choosing to not have a firearm in no way disqualifies you from your right to defend your life and property. It does complicate the issue, but it’s workable.

Less-Lethal weapons fall into three broad categories, as I mentioned above.

• Sprays - these are your garden variety anti-personnel sprays, such as OC spray, Mace (which is becoming increasingly difficult to find), etc. The most common is probably OC spray, which is more commonly referred to as pepper spray. For home defense, it is a less than ideal solution. Apply a little critical thinking - you’re going to spray an airborne irritant into an enclosed space at an intruder. Generally, airborne irritants and closed spaces aren’t a good mix for you. Give pepper spray a pass for inside the home. It is best used in external areas.
• Tasers/Stun guns - Again, two types of tasers and stun guns. The former (Tasers) are a specific device which launches two electrified darts into the target, and then runs a charge from the device through the wires into the target. The advantage of this is that it allows you to maintain some distance from a potential intruder. The disadvantage is that it also might not work that well. The other type of stun gun requires you to actually make physical contact with the target. Quite frankly, you’re better off with a baseball bat than a contact stun gun.
• Clubs, cudgels, and bats - Ah, blunt force weapons. Into this category falls the trusty Louisville Slugger secured under the bed, as well as all manner of collapsible (or otherwise) batons. Right off the bat, I would recommend tossing out collapsible batons as home defense weapons. The point of a collapsible baton is that it takes up less space on an officer’s belt - space is not really a concern here. My two recommendations for a home defense club would either be a baseball bat (preferably wood) or a side handle baton (tonfa). The advantage in the baseball bat is that it requires very little training to use effectively, and provides the user with a decent amount of reach. However, it is worthwhile to note that in close quarters it looses a lot of its effectiveness. It’s best used when you have the ability to take large swings at an intruder; you may not have the room to do that in your bedroom. In my opinion, the single best cudgel/blunt force weapon for home defense is the venerable side-handle baton, or tonfa. The tonfa provides an extension of your reach so that you don’t have to get as close to an intruder as you would with a stun gun, etc. It’s also extremely versatile, being quite effective at intermediate distance and extremely close quarters. The major disadvantage to a tonfa is that it requires a relatively significant amount of training to be utilized to its maximum potential.

When dealing with less-lethal weapons, my standard advice is to avoid anything that forces you to close to very short range with an intruder. If you can avoid hand to hand combat, doing so is a tactically sound decision. As such, I advocate weapons that have a high possibility of incapacitating an intruder while maximizing your ability to stay away from said intruder. My recommendation for a non-lethal alternative would be 1) Tonfa, 2) Louisville Slugger, 3) Taser. The contact stun guns and pepper sprays are just a bad idea.

Lethal Weapons (Edged)
Because of the variety of firearms, I’m going to break lethal weapons into two categories, edged and projectile. When it comes to using an edged weapon for home defense, I’m less than enthusiastic. Most knives do not give you the ability to maintain distance from an assailant, and have an even higher learning curve than the tonfa to use effectively.

• Knives - All knives, from pocket knives to machetes and everything in between fall into this category. Like I said, I don’t like knives for home defense. They’re less likely to cause an incapacitating blow than a good club, and are harder to use effectively. If you must choose a knife for home defense, my personal recommendation would be a machete, or similar long bladed knife. It maximizes distance and minimizes the learning curve necessary.
• Swords - Well, why not? Swords are better choices than knives in my mind, again allowing you to keep some distance from an intruder. The problem of course is that to be truly effective with a sword, you have to train a lot. Additionally, anything the size of a baseball bat is going to have the same complications as a bat, namely it will be difficult to effectively manipulate in close quarters. If you forced me to pick a sword for home defense, I would most likely choose a well made replica of a Roman Gladius. It would not be difficult to wield in close quarters, and is designed to stab and penetrate deeply; deep stab wounds are generally more likely to incapacitate an intruder than a slash wound. However, I wouldn’t pick a sword for home defense.
• Polearms - Spears? Really? Uh…don’t. Too long, unwieldy, and just bloody impractical. Despite the fact that charging an intruder with a spear seems like fun, there are just too many better options.

My general thoughts on edged weapons for home defense - don’t. They are harder to use well than a club or a gun, and less effective than a firearm.

Lethal Weapons (projectile)
Ah, the meat of the matter. Firearms sport several advantages over the other categories: they’re generally easier to learn how to use effectively than knives, they allow you to maintain distance from an intruder, and are more effective at producing incapacitation than non-lethal weapons or edged weapons. That is not to say that firearms are not without their disadvantages - namely among those is the possibility of a miss striking an innocent person, or a round that overpenetrates and strikes an innocent person. If you’re shooting indoors, you must be 100% sure of your target, and sure of what is behind and around your target.

• Handguns - Lots and lots of people keep a handgun for home security purposes. While a handgun is limited in stopping power (the ability to rapidly induce an end to hostilities) when compared to a rifle or shotgun, what it lacks in power it makes up for in maneuverability. Be it a revolver or semi-auto, the handgun’s greatest advantage is its compact size. The disadvantages are (again) the relative lack of power, and the fact that it is harder to aim and hit with a handgun under stress conditions than a rifle or shotgun. However, a handgun is very capable of penetrating several interior walls if you miss a target - again be 100% sure of your target and what’s beyond your target.
• Rifles - In the rifles category, you have rifle calibers (.223, 7.62×39, .30-30, etc) and then pistol caliber carbines, rifles which are chambered for pistol calibers. The rifle has significantly more power than most handguns, and thus is more likely to end hostilities in a rapid fashion. Additionally, rifles are easier to aim and hit with under stress firing situations. The major drawback of rifles is that they’re not nearly as compact as a pistol, which can create difficulty if you need to maneuver in a tight space. Again, over penetration is a concern.
• Shotguns - possible the most recommended long arm for home defense is the pump-action 12 gauge shotgun. It has achieved this lofty status via its proven reputation of being devastatingly effective at short range. I strongly recommend shotguns, as they share the advantages of rifles; and also reduce the possibility of over penetration, albeit not by much. If the recoil of a 12 gauge pump with buck/slugs is too stout, consider a semi-automatic 12 gauge, or a 20 gauge. There are several excellent 20 gauge slugs, as well as more than a couple of good buck loads. Also, don’t leave out your traditional side-by-side shotguns - they’re quite often very compact and easy to tote around. Their greatest disadvantage is their limited ammo capacity.

When it comes to firearms, I’m personally leery about recommending a major centerfire rifle for home defense. I generally steer people towards shotguns or handguns for defending hearth and home. If you do choose a firearm, one of the most important things you can do is practice with it. All trigger time is good time, but if you get to a self-defense or home defense class, that’s even better.

In summary, my recommendations for a home defense weapon would be 1) Shotgun, 2) Handgun, 3) Rifle, 4) Tonfa, 5) Baseball bat. In part 3, we’ll address the most important part of home security, which is mindset/tactics.
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posted by Caleb on Aug 3

Congratulations, new homeowner! You’ve just purchased your first home, you’re all moved in and unpacked, but now you’re concerned about security. Good for you. You, and you alone, are responsible for the safety and security of your home and family, and it is important to take steps to ensure their safety.

Today I want to focus on home-security measures that don’t involve firearms/other weapons. We’ll cover weapons on Monday. For the record, there is no “one perfect” home-security solution. You can use all the methods below, or just cherry pick the ones that work for you. The advice below is for people with or without guns.

The Outside
Before anyone can enter your house, they have to be on your property first. While you could lay claymores and tripwires to prevent people from trespassing on your lawn, I’m pretty sure the homeowners association would frown on that activity. It’s unfortunate, but there isn’t a whole lot you can do to prevent people from walking up to your house; but there are some decent measures.

Take a walk around the outside of your house. One of the things that you don’t want is for someone to be able to approach your house and have concealment the entire way. If you have large bushes that obstruct ground level windows, consider trimming those back to allow a clear view from the inside out. Another good idea is to install motion sensitive floodlights to illuminate poorly lit areas. It is possible to have these calibrated so that small animals won’t set them off; however you should check your local ordinances on the legality of said floodlights. The usual logic about having a good fence applies as well; like I said, it’s good to put obstacles in the path of an intruder.

One more thing to watch out for on the outside of your house applies if you’re the owner of a two story house. Generally, try to avoid having trees or other climbable objects that could give an intruder access to second floor windows - too many people secure everything on the ground level, but have a giant old tree that leads right up to a 2nd floor window.

Doors & Windows
These are the most obvious points of entry to your house, and special care should be taken to ensure that they’re secure. All ground level doors and windows should be alarmed; I recommend also alarming 2nd floor windows as well. Additionally, if you have a sliding glass door to your backyard, a glassbreak sensor tied into the alarm system is a must as well.

Lock your doors. Don’t just lock the handle, make sure you have a good deadbolt and a solid frame, and USE THEM. Having a bank vault door doesn’t do you any good if you don’t use it. Also, if you have the aforementioned sliding door; it doesn’t hurt to drop a 2×4 into the track to make sure it can’t be forced open. Doing so forces them to break the glass, which sets off the glassbreak sensor.

Alarm system
I recommend that every homeowner have an alarm system. I have it for the same reason that I have a gun in my house - having it and never needing it sure beats needing it and hot having it. An alarm is both an active and passive deterrent to a home invasion. Smash my window, kick my door in, and that sucker starts whooping up to raise the dead. That’s the active deterrence. The passive deterrence is that I have that little sign that says “brinks” in my front yard - while I don’t bet my life on it, a potential home invader could see it and think “I’ll go somewhere else”.

If you do decide to get an alarm, here are some guidelines. At the minimum, you’ll want all the ground level doors and windows to be alarmed. In addition to that, I recommend glassbreak sensors for glass doors/windows, as well as an internal motion detector. On the off-chance that someone gets into your house and doesn’t set off any of the alarms, the motion sensor is your “last line of defense”, unless you’ve mined the stairway or something.

Finally, it’s worth looking into the extra cost to have your alarm system run on a dedicated phone line. Have your primary line for voice calls, but set up your alarm on its own dedicated line.

Kingdom Animalia
According to my homeowners association, I can’t have trained attack leopards, or a moat that is filled with sharks with laser beams on their heads. However, I can have a dog. The trouble with a guard dog is that it has to be exceptionally well trained - I am not an expert on dogs, nor do I purport to be. If you’re thinking about getting a dog, there are plenty of excellent resources out there to help with your choice.

Fire
Burglars aren’t the only threat to home security. You’re statistically much more likely to have to deal with a home fire than a burglar. At the minimum, and I mean bare minimum, you should have smoke detectors in every room, and check them regularly. It’s also worthwhile to have at least two fire extinguishers. You should put one in the kitchen, and then place the other one where you see fit. The master bedroom isn’t a bad idea. For the kitchen fire extinguisher, ensure that it’s the type that can be used safely on oil/grease fires.

Little Things
Sometimes, it’s the little things that make a difference. Have a cell phone and a flashlight in your bedroom; if your phones are out you still need to call the police.

Make sure you have a plan - whether or not you have kids, you and any other occupants of your home need to know what to do in the event of an emergency. On Monday, when we discuss weapons, we’ll also take a look at tactics and different types of emergency plans.

It’s important to remember that you’re the only person responsible for the security of your home. Floodlights, a big dog, and an alarm don’t guarantee that the police will arrive in time to do you any good - when it really comes to do it; you are the first and best line of defense against an intruder.