Getting Trampled at the Rodeo

I live in a small town in Utah and this past weekend was the annual rodeo. Growing up outside of Washington, DC (in Northern, Virginia) didn’t give me a chance to attend too many rodeos so I jumped at the chance to go and the wife obliged.

We watched the cowboys rope calves and ride the broncos but the best part of the night, by far, is what is called the “cash cow.” Now I want you to picture this:

They make an announcement over the loudspeaker to have all 5-9 year olds gather at one end of the arena. They say they’re going to release a calf and the kids are supposed to chase the calf, which has $1 bills taped all over it.

Well, sure enough…

The kids gather and they release the calf and it runs away from all of the kids. But then it turns around and starts heading towards this massive line of about 50 kids. The calf doesn’t stop and begins to plow through the kids sending them flying.

At first, it’s the most hilarious thing I’ve ever seen, but then the calf gets angry and kicks a little girl in the stomach and the cowboys have to jump over the fence and protect these kids from the angry calf that is running them over.

Thankfully, none of the kids were seriously injured and everyone was okay, and it is still the funniest thing I’ve ever seen. I’d love to know how that brainstorming session went for the guys who came up with this idea. “Hey Bill, I’ve got a brilliant idea, let’s tape money to a 200 pound calf and have 5 year olds chase it. What could go wrong?”

The point of telling you about the craziness of the rodeo is that it’s nice to live in a place where lawyers and uptight people haven’t taken over. I remember as soon as I saw the calf running over kids, I thought to myself, “this would never happen in Northern Virginia, too many lawyers.”

It’s also nice to live in a place where people value their safety and a large majority of them carry guns. I guess what I’m really trying to say is that I get a lot of emails from people who complain about where they live, especially folks living in California.

I realize if you’ve got a job or kids in school that it’s not so simple to just pick up and relocate. However, one day your kids will be out of school, you’ll find a new job or you’ll retire. When this time comes I encourage you to get out of the cities (especially major cities) and find yourself a nice small town where people share your values.

More importantly, when the major economic collapse occurs (sometime before 2025) you don’t want to be surrounded by a huge population, the majority of whom will be unprepared and end up looting and rioting.

So maybe this week, even if it’s just for the fun of it, you should start looking for the small town you wish to live in one day, where people will compliment you on carrying a gun, instead of acting horrified.

A Home Invasion Lesson

Are you prepared to handle a home invasion?

The truth is, many people aren’t, and luckily, the gentleman you’re about to hear from didn’t have to find out the hard way. Here’s the email he sent me: (We’ll call him “C” as he asked me not to reveal his name.)

“Jason, here is a story for you about being prepared but not being ready for a home invader. The other night while going to sleep my family and I were startled by a bunch of loud noises coming from our main level, these were no ordinary noises and sounded like someone was already in the house or coming thru a window.

Thus I jump up grab my FN 9mm and head downstairs. Luckily, there was no home invader and it was my dog with his collar stuck on his cage, he was trying to get loose and in the process his cage and food/water bowl were being kicked around and making all the noise.

Now to get to the point, I was prepared by having a weapon, but I was not ready because it was locked, unloaded, and sitting in its case in the closet.

The process of me getting the case out of the closet, key, unlocking the lock, and loading a magazine (yes the magazine was full with bullets ready to go) probably added 10-20 seconds to me being ready to defend my family. If this was a real home invader he may have made it upstairs and my weapon rendered useless as it was not ready fast enough.

With 3 children aged 15,13, and 5, and a wife who was not too happy that a gun was in the house, I thought this to be best solution for storing the gun. She wanted me to keep it in the attic!!

Well after this realistic scare, I will be getting a Glock 19 (I fumbled with my safety a little while heading down the stairs so no more of that) and a wall safe within 2-3 feet of my side of the bed so the gun is locked, loaded, ready, and within easy reach.

I also now have a wife that is totally on board with having the gun and even a backup for her just in case I don't come back up the stairs!

I also have a few concerns and would like your feedback.

I keep the gun upstairs in the bedroom. There are two worst-case scenarios that could happen to our family:

1. A home invasion occurs when I am not home, no one has access to the gun. I keep the lock key with me. Although I believe my teenagers/wife can use it properly in time of need (I have taken them to the range), I still get concerned that my teenagers (both boys) may want to show it off to friends and I don't want an accident. My dad had a couple of guns and I showed them once or twice to friends, I made sure they were unloaded/safe but I still did it. Should I give the safe codes/access to the rest of the family? What is your opinion?

(Answer from Jason) The only people who have the combos to my guns are my wife and I. When it comes to kids, it all depends on their maturity level and I can’t give you that answer. It’s up to each parent to decide when their children are responsible to have the combos to the safes. And again, I have no idea when that will be. It may be 15, 18, or never. 

2. I used to live in Miami where home invasions happened a lot and at all times of the day. Luckily, I live where they happen infrequently.  But, if I am sitting on the couch watching a game and a couple of thugs kick in my front door, I have no access to my gun upstairs. What is your suggestion with keeping a gun on the main level or every level of the house?

(Answer from Jason) First, I highly recommended getting a rapid-access safe. I like the Gun Vault line of safes. You need to be able to access your gun in 3 seconds or less. Personally, I keep a gun on every level of my house and each one is in a rapid access safe. As you pointed out, if somebody breaks in and your gun is two floors away from you then it won’t do you much good.

The bottom line is, “C” was very lucky it wasn’t a home intruder. I’ve had many students tell me horrible home invasion stories, which is why they ended up in one of my courses.

Also, I highly recommend doing a “dry run home invasion scenario.” For instance, while lying in bed tonight, pretend you hear your door getting kicked in. How quickly can you access your gun and your flashlight? Is there anything you realize such as your nightstand is too far away or you need a different flashlight?

I’ve done these scenarios many times and they’re well worth it, so if you don’t do it tonight, please do it this week.

Why He’s Facing Up to 10 Years in Prison

This past week, several people forwarded me the story about the Washington state man who is facing up to 10 years in prison for shooting a thief who was stealing his car. In case you didn’t see the story, here’s a quick recap…

One morning, a gentleman starts his car in his driveway because he’s getting ready to take his wife to work. He runs back into the house to get something and leaves his car running in the driveway as many of us have done before. 

When he comes back out of his house he sees a thief driving off with his car. He chases the car down the street and fires one round from his 9mm handgun at the thief. In a one in a million shot that he probably couldn’t do again, he hits the thief in the back of the head and kills him.

As I just mentioned, the car’s owner who took the shot has been charged with manslaughter and is facing up to 10 years in prison.

I hate hearing about these stories because although the car owner thought he might have been doing the right thing, he clearly has no idea what his state’s law is when it comes to the use of deadly force.

And understanding the use of deadly force is obviously one the first things you should do if you ever carry concealed. The fact is, when it comes to deadly force, Washington state law says you (the person) must be in immediate and imminent physical danger.

In other words…

Like the majority of states in this nation, you can use deadly force to protect life but not property. Clearly, when the owner of the car was chasing after his stolen vehicle he was not in any physical danger caused by the car thief and he should have immediately called the police instead of firing a round from his gun.

I do feel sorry for the car’s owner because I am sure he is a good family man and all around good person. But if I was called to be an expert witness in this case I would have to say this was a bad shooting and the shot should never have been taken.

That’s why if there is even the smallest amount of doubt in your mind as to what the deadly force laws are in your state, you should look them up right now. Simply Google “Virginia deadly force law” (or whatever state you live in) and one of the top choices should be the government website for your state.

Read over the deadly force law and if you don’t understand it, ask around or pay a lawyer for an hour of their time. As much as I dislike lawyers, if you have to spend $300 bucks so you feel comfortable with your understanding of the law, it would be money well spent in my opinion.

By the way, the owner of the car has set up a legal defense fund and is fighting his charges and it will be interesting to see the outcome of the case. But I pray all of us will study our state laws so we never have to find ourselves in his position.