Milk Not Meat Feedback

 

Almost every week, I get encouraging responses to my weekly briefing. The responders are almost inevariably professionals or former professionals of some sort in the martial professions. I received the following from a highly respected handgun instructor this morning in response to today’s weekly briefing.

Thank you for your updates. Here is an example of a terribly unprepared church, I had a student in my basic handgun license class last week. He wanted to take it since he recently volunteered for his church security team. Although he had been a sheriff’s deputy 30 years ago, he's now in terrible health with extremely poor fitness.

When I gave him his range test, after taking 5 slow shots from 3 yards, he was so exhausted, he had to sit down and rest for 5 minutes before continuing. With great difficulty he finished the 50-round requirement.

He bemoaned the fact that last Sunday, no one else was available, so he alone was security for his large church. I was shocked to think this large church in my community was depending on him as their only security!

Thank you for your good work, and frequent exhortations for us.

Name of instructor withheld.

The Oklahoma handgun license course is not tactical training. It is a very basic firearms safety course. Students are only required to correctly answer eleven of the fifteen questions on the written safety exam. The fifty round course of fire only requires the applicant to put seventy percent of their rounds into a full sized target at ranges of three, seven and ten yards. And this requirement can be quite flexible depending upon the instructor. There are no time restrictions and the student is not required to draw their weapon or perform any actual tactical movements.

The fact that this security volunteer had to rest after taking five shots at three yards in a controlled, no stress environment speaks volumes. How could this person, no matter how well intentioned, be expected to be of any use in a real security event? In case of an actual security event the only effective tool at his disposal is his firearm and it is beyond credibility to expect that under extreme stress and physical exertion he could make the necessary pin point accurate shots necessary in a crowded church facility. And using the firearm would be necessary because he lacks the physical capability to employ any less than lethal force.

Unfortunately, probably half of the people we deal with serving on church security teams are not physically capable of handling any kind of an altercation and have had little if any real training firearms or otherwise. They are well intentioned and are to be given great credit for being willing to do something even if an effective response is probably beyond their capability when the need arises. The younger, physically fit men and in some cases women in these congregations who refuse to step up to protect themselves, their families and their flock should be ashamed.