It is a shocking reality in our “free” society that, in those states where it is possible to get a concealed carry weapon (CCW) permit, only a small percentage of our citizens actually do so. With lib thugs, including the terrorist “Occupy” movement, growing ever more bold and brazenly violent, and headed into the presidential election with nothing less than leftist domination of our government at stake, you would be a fool to think violence cannot find you.
Even if what you face is common street crime, that crime will increase as our economy is pushed to its limits by Obama’s destructive financial policies. We can only print and spend so much money before that economic cliff everyone’s talking about becomes something we’ve just fallen over – and when society collapses, violence will skyrocket. You need only look to rioting in Greece and in similar scenarios to understand that.
The best technology yet developed for individual self-defense is the firearm. There is no disputing this. Couple your firearm with a knife, and you have a decent day-to-day package for fending off the worst violence you are likely to face, provided you obtain suitable training. This training is available nationwide, from companies like Insights and Progressive FORCE Concepts to local firearms and self-defense trainers.
But you can’t start if you don’t carry a gun in the first place.
For many of you, especially those in “non-permissive environments,” a large firearm is not practical. It cannot be effectively concealed without some discomfort, especially in very hot weather. This is where the pocket pistol comes into play. If you are not carrying a pocket pistol, and it is possible for you to legally do so, you are abdicating your responsibility for the safety of yourself and your family by refusing to equip yourself for day-to-day self-defense.
Pocket pistols can be of any caliber, from derringers in heavy full-sized loads, to automatics in .25 ACP, to revolvers in .22 and .22 Magnum. The caliber is not the determining factor; the size and weight of the gun overall is what matters. Obviously, the .22 Magnum is preferable to the .22 if you can manage it, but again, this is not the primary concern, as almost ALL pocket pistols are relatively “under powered.” You may find that different guns, in different calibers, work more or less well for you. The choice is one that hinges on the clothing style you wear, your body type, your size and weight, and of course the gun combined with these factors.
It should go without saying – but it doesn’t, for many – that if you carry a gun in your pocket, there must be nothing else in that pocket. You do not put keys, loose change, or other items in a pocket that also contains a weapon, be that weapon a gun or a folding knife clipped inside the pocket. There is too much potential for something to go wrong. Loose items could snag in or on the weapon, foul your draw, or otherwise hinder the deployment and use of the weapon. Choosing to carry a pocket pistol means devoting one of your pockets (typically your strong side front pocket, but not always) exclusively to space for that weapon.
Regardless of how you carry a pocket pistol, you must clean it periodically to remove the lint and grit that always build up inside a gun that is carried in this way. A holster helps to slow that buildup, but it does not prevent it completely, so even a gun carried in a pocket holster must be checked and cleaned on a regular basis. Most of the time you can clean out debris without hauling out a cleaning kit to do it. Simply running a twisted tissue down the barrel a few times, or swabbing out the cracks and crevices of the gun with a dry Q-tip, should be sufficient for routine lint removal.
There is a myth, promulgated by some within the firearms community, that any bullet below [place arbitrary caliber here] simply will not kill an assailant. Apparently, if one is shot with a .22 or, if lucky, an anemic .25 ACP round, one is to demand angrily of one’s assailant, “Is that all you got? That didn’t hurt, you pansy.”
The reality is that even a small-caliber bullet has measurable utility for self-defense. That’s a polite way of saying that, no matter how small the bullet, if it enters your body you’re going to be very upset – and the introduction of that piece of metal to your person is going to affect, probably quite radically, your behavior immediately after that round strikes you. Small cartridges like the .25 ACP are not known for their stopping power, no, but they are preferable to nothing and, arguably, have shock value equal to or greater than stabbing an opponent (especially because repeated gun shots can have a cumulative, traumatic effect to the nervous system).
This is where the limitations of pocket pistols become critical. The typical pocket pistol is a launching mechanism for multiple small-caliber projectiles. Your goal, when deploying and choosing your target, is to shoot your pocket pistol empty. You must fire and keep firing until you’re out of rounds or until your target is neutralized (until he stops aggressing). Target what is soft: the neck, the throat, the face, the eyes. You’ll be fighting someone who’s on top of you. Shoot until he stops. Shoot until he’s down.
The pocket pistol has been dismissed as next to useless – a “talisman” people carry because they want to carry a gun, but are unable or unwilling to carry a “real” weapon. While not nearly as effective as larger handguns, pocket pistols are serious self-defense tools. Used at extremely close range to target the body’s most vulnerable areas, they can neutralize or debilitate an assailant relatively quickly. This can stack the odds in your favor in the gamble that is self-defense. This is the definition of a force multiplier – technology – for self-defense.
