Another Fool With an Opinion

"If she was pointing that gun at me I could take it from her in a heart beat."

On March 5, I congratulated friend Deborah Courtney for getting front page ink in The Orange County Register.

One Ian Fitz-Gibbon wrote to the OCR reporter:

After reading your article on Deborah I just had to laugh. She’s another fool with a gun. Does she walk around with a gun in her purse? LOL My guess is that if she had that gun when she was raped she would either be dead or be wondering why she bought it in the first place. A criminal won’t wait for her to reach into her purse or run out to her car to retrieve a gun. It’s also my guess that if she was pointing that gun at me I could take it from her in a heart beat. Being smart……..or not doing something stupid will do more for a person’s protection and security than carrying a gun. The most important thing in self-defense is what’s in your head, not what’s in your hand!

Regards,
Ian Fitz-Gibbon

Mr. Fitz-Gibbon apparently considers himself an authority on defensive tactics.

He’s evidently more educated on the matter than Florida State University criminologist Gary Kleck, whose surveys indicate up to 2.5 million defensive gun uses each year by Americans.

He’s obviously done more thorough research than economist John Lott [scroll down to bottom of right column to download CV], whose exhaustive analyses of statistics from all 3,054 counties in the United States from 1977 to 1994 confirm the title of his aptly named More Guns, Less Crime.

“Murder rates decline when either more women or more men carry concealed handguns, but a gun represents a much larger change in a woman's ability to defend herself than it does for a man. An additional woman carrying a concealed handgun reduces the murder rate for women by about 3 to 4 times more than an additional man carrying a concealed handgun reduces the murder rate for men,” Lott concludes.

But we must assume that Mr. Fitz-Gibbon has amassed and analyzed superior empirical evidence.

He’s clearly reported on more case studies than Robert Waters, whose The Best Defense provides chilling, real life examples of ordinary people repelling brutal criminals with firearms. And “being smart”—just like Ian Fitz-Gibbon—would no doubt assure superior outcomes for those people chronicled in KeepAndBearArms.com’s “Operation Self Defense,” each of whom was, evidently, “just another fool with a gun.”

“My guess is that if she had that gun when she was raped she would either be dead or be wondering why she bought it in the first place. A criminal won’t wait for her to reach into her purse or run out to her car to retrieve a gun,” Fitz-Gibbon smirks.

Unfortunately, your guess is wrong, Mr. Fitz-Gibbon. Without going into the details of her ordeal, her assailant trapped her. She knew he was coming for her before the actual physical assault, and would have had time to retrieve a concealed firearm if she’d had one.

“It’s also my guess that if she was pointing that gun at me I could take it from her in a heart beat,” he claims.

Really?

Do you have any idea how many shots a trained shooter can squeeze off “in a heartbeat” Mr. Fitz-Gibbon?

Here's a concession: Back when I was young and immortal, I was pretty heavily into martial arts. I used to do a demonstration, and, when I established the conditions (that is, having someone point a toy gun at me when I was standing within three feet of them, with instructions to shoot if I made a false move), I could—without fail—disable their gun hand and strike a simulated crippling blow. But it wasn’t real—there was no danger. And importantly, I controlled the situation.

What makes you think you would control the situation and be allowed to get within striking distance? I guess you must be a greater authority on such matters than Col. Jeff Cooper, so a trained shooter who has mastered the mental discipline of applying his Color Code would be no match against your awesome prowess.

Your point is not that you could surprise and ambush a targeted victim—hell, anyone could do that. You claim you can disarm someone who is trained and equipped, and who has you in their sights!

I could arrange a demonstration, if you like, Mr. Fitz-Gibbon. I’m sure I could assemble an audience that would love to see you exhibit how what’s in your head will overcome what’s in a trained shooter’s hand. I can probably even arrange for you to place bets on your ability to prevail against, say, my 10-year-old, someone who is elderly, and maybe even a disabled shooter. We’ll even videotape it, and post it on the Internet. And don't worry, we'll only use props. Care to prove your words?

How did you dismiss Deborah? Oh, yeah, "LOL!"

You should be careful about laughing at people, Mr. Fitz-Gibbon, especially when you're obviously in over your head—it makes you come across as just another fool with an opinion.

AFTERWORD FROM TJ JOHNSTON

Ian: being Deborah's trainer, I want to respond to your comments.

Deborah's rape was typical in that the assailant didn't jump out of the bushes and attack her. That media stereotype is so far from reality. Rapists set up their victims. And when they do, the potential victim has a series of options, which are greatly expanded if they have access to a firearm.

In Deborah's case, the assailant locked her in her personal office and then carefully walked around the rest of the building, closing windows and locking the front door. If she had her Glock in her office, he would have found a nasty confrontation when he returned to attack her.

You sound very courageous, in that you feel you could disarm somebody very easily. Candidly, it is possible. I teach those techniques and it requires much disciplined practice, considerable confidence, speed and precision to do it safely. With the hammer cocked, most handguns will fire with only minimal pressure on the trigger, and the movement that action requires is much less than the movement to reach out and take the gun away. If the person with the firearm maintains his/her distance, the person encroaching WILL BE SHOT.

Most importantly, as the statistics from John Lott, Gary Kleck, and a host of other criminologists show, the mere presence of a firearm deters most criminals, usually without the gun being discharged. No one wants to get shot, and criminals are not brave people. They run away.

The facts are clear and irrefutable. In her situation, if Deborah had been armed, she wouldn't have been raped.

And I would challenge you to take a loaded handgun away from her. Knowing her current attitude and aptitude, I am confident that you would have at least one more hole in you than before the attempt.

Regards,

TJ Johnston

www.allsafedefense.com