the primary target
Retrieved: 07/26/2014

In my usual CCW shooting scenario, I make the decision that "deadly force" is required, and then I pull the gun and shoot. My state's laws don't require that I then threaten the assailant, or negotiate, or philosophize about how many rounds I might have left to fire.

Also, several decades ago when I took the state course for an armed security license, the instructors really hammered "pull it and shoot", saying that almost half of all policemen shot in the line of duty were shot with their own guns. Police might have a reason for pulling a gun without shooting it; we, operating as legal representatives of a property owner, didn't. Any time the gun was out of its holster was an opportunity for someone to take it away from you. I checked online, and it looks like the incidence of policemen being shot with their own guns is way down from 1983. Looks like that "weapon retention" training might have paid off...

Anyway, I sometimes watch movies with my wife. She's not a gunhead, but she's tactically aware... and she just loves those cinematic moments where the good guy and bad guy are threatening each other with guns, and another person (usually another bad guy) pops into the scene... and almost every time, the good guy will swing his attention and gun over to the new threat. Tactical complications generally ensue.

My wife will be chanting "shoot! shoot! shoot! IDIOT! I told you so!" or "shoot the primary target!"

Her reasoning being, "shoot the bad guy the gun is already pointed at, THEN move to the next target."

I knew there was more than one reason we've been married for 33 years...

Today's thought: just because I focused on one threat doesn't mean he doesn't have accomplices nearby. Yes, I SHOULD put all my attention on what I am doing; I am using "deadly force", and it deserves all the attention I have. But the whole thing shouldn't take more than a few seconds, and then I should be looking for the NEXT target, if any.