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Issues with Weapon Mounted Lights

Written by: Greg Ellifritz   I spent all of last week attending Massad Ayoob and Marty Hayes’ Deadly Force Instructor class as a student.  We spent some time discussing the use of weapon mounted lights and the safety concerns associated with them.   It caused me to realize that I haven’t written about this topic […]

Posted on July 13, 2020 by Greg Ellifritz in Articles
Fenix, flashlight tactics, Marty Hayes, Massad Ayoob, police, Surefire, weapon mounted lights View Post

How to Help a Cop During a Life-Threatening Struggle

Written by: Greg Ellifritz   As we see more officers attacked by rioters and more police stations under siege, I’m getting this question more often.  If you want to help a cop under attack, this is how to do it.  And be sure to read PART TWO, how you can help a cop even if […]

Posted on July 12, 2020 by Greg Ellifritz in Reader Questions
ccw, police View Post

Weekend Knowledge Dump- July 10, 2020

Knowledge to make your life better. If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   Is Hollowpoint the Best Defensive Ammo for Concealed Carry? In most calibers, you should be carrying hollowpoint bullets for defensive purposes.  One can argue that solid bullets have advantages in .22, .25, .32, .38, […]

Posted on July 10, 2020 by Greg Ellifritz in Weekend Knowledge Dump
Active Self Protection, AR-15, Caleb Giddings, church shootings, forgotten weapons, GAT Daily, gunsmithing, Havok Journal, Integrated Skills Group, John Murphy, Karl Rehn, Mark Manson, Massad Ayoob, Paul Howe, plant medicine, police, psychology, PTSD, Recoil Magazine, red dot sights, revolvers, Rob Pincus, shooting drills, Swift Silent Deadly, The Discerning Shootist, The Revolver Guy, vehicle tactics, women View Post

Lessons Learned from a Home Invasion Attempt

 Written by: Greg Ellifritz I was working day shift police patrol when a call went out at about 9:00 a.m.  I was dispatched to a very large house in a nice neighborhood. The dispatcher said that the resident had called to report suspicious activity.  The resident said that she had heard someone banging on her […]

Posted on July 7, 2020 by Greg Ellifritz in Articles
crime prevention, home invasion, home security View Post

Your Tactical Training Scenario…Injured Hands

Written by: Greg Ellifritz   Take a quick look at this news article…. Phoenix police make arrest in priest murder A man broke into a church rectory and attacked the two priests who lived there with a tire iron.  The first priest ran to his bedroom and grabbed his revolver.  He tried to shoot the […]

Posted on July 6, 2020 by Greg Ellifritz in Tactical Training Scenarios
gun disarms, impact weapon View Post

Weekend Knowledge Dump- July 3, 2020

Knowledge to make your life better. If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   PCC Showdown: H&K SP5 vs Kalashnikov USA KP9 vs CMMG Banshee I get a lot of questions about pistol caliber carbines.  I’m really not the right one to ask, as I don’t own any […]

Posted on July 3, 2020 by Greg Ellifritz in Weekend Knowledge Dump
.32, abduction, Active Self Protection, appendix carry, Breach Bang Clear, Cecil Burch, chokes, civilian gunfighter, Close quarter shooting, Dave Spaulding, Doom and Bloom, forgotten weapons, gelatin tests, Hock Hochheim, hostage survival, John Lott, Ken Hackathorn, Lucky Gunner, medical skills, Organic Prepper, Pew Pew Tactical, police, Rangemaster, restraints, shooting drills, shotguns, Smith and Wesson, Steve Moses, Tinker Talks Guns, travel View Post

Surviving the Mob

  Violent protests, mob action, and rioting scenarios fill up your news feed.  Lots of folks are contacting me about mob violence issues.  Let’s look at some of the issues involved…   To date, the majority of mob violence events have occurred in very large public gatherings and at the sites of large political protests. […]

Posted on July 1, 2020 by Greg Ellifritz in Articles
awareness, crowd, escape, flash mobs, less lethal, retention shooting, self defense View Post

Some Commentary on Last Weekend’s Snubnose Revolver Class

Written by: Greg Ellifritz   On Saturday,  I taught my first open-enrollment class since February. That might have been the longest break I’ve had from teaching in more than a decade. My teaching skills are rusty. My voice is fried.   But the class went well. It was a snubnose revolver class that was full […]

Posted on June 29, 2020 by Greg Ellifritz in What's New
ccw, firearms training, revolvers, snubnose View Post

Weekend Knowledge Dump- June 26, 2020

Knowledge to make your life better. If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   The 3- E’s of Being Elusive (or Rude) High quality advice on managing unknown contacts (or creepers, as the article calls them).  My standard line in situations like those described is “I’m sorry.  I […]

Posted on June 26, 2020 by Greg Ellifritz in Weekend Knowledge Dump
.22 magnum, AK-47, appendix carry, AR-15, ccw, chokes, Civilian Carry Radio, Craig Douglas, firearms training, gelatin tests, identity theft, Kyle Defoor, laser sights, LouAnn Hamblin, Massad Ayoob, medical skills, optics, pets, police, scopes, Shivworks, shotguns, situational awareness, Steve Moses, Tatiana Whitlock, travel, vehicle attacks, vehicle tactics, women's carry View Post

Words of Wisdom

Written by: Greg Ellifritz I was recently re-reading Mark MacYoung’s  book “In the Name of Self Defense.”  It’s an amazing resource for anyone interested in better protecting himself..  I want to share a quote from the book:   “Until you: 1. Develop the ability to take a hit without having an emotional meltdown 2. Have […]

Posted on June 24, 2020 by Greg Ellifritz in Articles
concealed carry, fighting, Marc MacYoung, self defense View Post

New Website

Written by: Greg Ellifritz   Hey folks!  I just wanted to give you all a heads up on my latest writing venture.   I started a second blog. This one will provide daily links and commentary about travel in general and travel safety in particular. The blog is designed to support my current book and […]

Posted on June 23, 2020 by Greg Ellifritz in What's New
third world travel, travel View Post

Resistance to Violent Crime: What Does the Research Show?

Written by: Greg Ellifritz   Take a moment to imagine one of the following scenarios:   –   While stopped in traffic at an inner-city intersection, a man with a gun approaches you.  He begins striking your closed window with the weapon, demanding that you give him your car.  You fear that if you get out […]

Posted on June 22, 2020 by Greg Ellifritz in Articles
concealed carry, crime statistics, criminology, research, robbery, studies View Post

Weekend Knowledge Dump- June 19, 2020

Knowledge to make your life better. If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   Jeff Cooper on .40 handguns For those of you interested in the history or cartridge development.     Hidden History: The Carcano is the Rifle Used to Assassinate President John F. Kennedy A little […]

Posted on June 19, 2020 by Greg Ellifritz in Weekend Knowledge Dump
Active Self Protection, AK-47, ambush, American Partisan, ammunition, Caleb Giddings, crowd violence, Ed Lovette, Jeff Cooper, Larry Mudgett, Mark Sisson, Michael Bane, nutrition, Organic Prepper, Pat Rogers, Pew Pew Tactical, point shooting, police, Recoil Magazine, revolvers, riots, shooting drills, shotguns, survival, SWAT magazine, Swift Silent Deadly, The Revolver Guy, Varg Freeborn, vehicle tactics View Post

The Rayshard Brooks Shooting

Written by: Greg Ellifritz   Lots of folks have contacted me asking for my perspective on the recent police shooting of Rayshard Brooks.  For those of you unfamiliar with the incident, police received a 911 call about a man unconscious behind the wheel in the drive through lane of a Wendy’s restaurant.  A cop arrived, […]

Posted on June 18, 2020 by Greg Ellifritz in Articles, Reader Questions
police, police shootings, taser View Post

Weekend Knowledge Dump- June 12, 2020

Knowledge to make your life better. If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   A letter to the American public: Why you must decide what you want from cops Do you want the pit bull or the golden retriever? You can’t have both.  For more information about the […]

Posted on June 12, 2020 by Greg Ellifritz in Weekend Knowledge Dump
Active Self Protection, AR-15, Ben Stoeger, Caleb Giddings, ccw, crowd violence, firearms training, gelatin tests, Hock Hochheim, Jack Donovan, Lucky Gunner, Michael Bane, Mike Seeklander, open carry, Paul Martin, police, Primary and Secondary, psychology, range 365, Recoil Magazine, Recoil Offgrid, riots, shotguns, situational awareness, Steve Tarani, Swift Silent Deadly, terrorism, weapon mounted lights View Post

Image-Based Decisional Skills

Written by: Greg Ellifritz   My friends Brian and Shelley Hill from The Complete Combatant have recently introduced a new product that I think many of you will find incredibly valuable.  Image Based Decisional Drills comes as a kit which includes: 1 Water resistant carry bag 5 IBDD business cards to pass out 1 Instruction […]

Posted on June 9, 2020 by Greg Ellifritz in Gear Reviews
FPF Training, John Murphy, The Complete Combatant View Post

Weekend Knowledge Dump- June 5, 2020

Knowledge to make your life better. If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   Overview of gun laws by nation A lot of Americans think that no one can own guns in other countries.  It’s simply not true.  There are nearly 40 countries that have some type of […]

Posted on June 5, 2020 by Greg Ellifritz in Weekend Knowledge Dump
1911, ACLDN, active killer, Active Self Protection, active shooter, Caleb Giddings, concealed carry, CrossFit, crowd violence, exercise, firearms training, fitness, Karl Rehn, Kevin Davis, kidnapping, Lucky Gunner, Massad Ayoob, medical skills, Michael Bane, open carry, police, Practical Eschatology, psychology, revolvers, riots, Rob Pincus, shooting drills, shotguns, slings, sniper, Strategos, Tier Three Tactical, Tiger McKee, travel, William Aprill View Post

Playing with Fire

Written by: Greg Ellifritz   In a Weekend Knowledge Dump a couple of weeks ago I mentioned the fact that police officers have been increasingly under attack from flammable objects and incendiaries.  Police officers on riot duty are regularly getting pelted by Molotov Cocktails and other flaming devices.  Looking for a solution to such a […]

Posted on June 3, 2020 by Greg Ellifritz in Articles
crowd control, crowd violence, fire View Post

Busy With Riot Stuff…

Sorry, folks.   Writing output this week will be a little slower than usual.   With all the riots, I’m on mandatory overtime at work every day this week.  That doesn’t leave me much spare time to research and write.   I’ll get back to my normal four articles per week as soon as people […]

Posted on June 2, 2020 by Greg Ellifritz in What's New
View Post

Stockpiling Ammunition

Written by: Greg Ellifritz   With the recent COVID-19 pandemic and lots of civil unrest, I’m getting more and more people asking questions about stockpiling ammunition.  Online ammunition outlets have been sold out of popular products lately.  Ammo availability at local gun stores is starting to increase, but prices are high and many stores are […]

Posted on June 1, 2020 by Greg Ellifritz in Articles
ammunition, survival View Post
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