Self defense is not gunfighting

And vice-versa, actually, but I’m more on the topic this morning of mentally separating the concept of self defense from the idea or thought of shooting. I had this exact conversation yesterday over the phone with a friend, who asked me why I carried a gun (to help defend myself), which was followed with “do you feel defenseless without your gun?” I mulled it over and said “no, I feel less prepared, but not defenseless.”

Self defense starts and ends with you, and the tools you pick to accompany Weapon Numero Uno (your brainparts) are added on after the fact. If you pick a gun and then build your self defense plan around that, you’re doing it backwards, simply because there will always be places that you can’t carry. Build your plan, then pick the right gear to go with that plan.  It’s like Tam said a while back, that if you avoid places where crime is statistically likely to happen at times when crime is statistically likely to occur, the odds of you ever needing to throw down on another person are pretty slim.

I don’t feel defenseless when I can’t legally carry somewhere, because self defense isn’t about the weapon I’ve picked – it’s about my awareness of my surroundings.