. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .The message of this page is directed to women. Men are welcome to read and send suggestions, but don't send me crap about how women can't do this or should do that. I'm not interested.
To the ladies:
There is a whole lot of bullshit in the gun world. When you're a woman, the bullshit to useful information ratio can be as high as 50%. Find resources you're comfortable with. Find instructors you're comfortable with. Remember that even if everyone says something, it's still not necessarily true. Learn, pay attention, remember the safety rules and experiment, then make up your own mind.
A lot of people will spit all kinds of statistics and scenarios at you in an attempt to scare you. The pro-gun people will try to convince you that you must have a gun for self-defense because society is going to hell in a hand-basket and you have to be ready to fend off the wolves. The anti-gun folks will claim that a gun is more likely to kill a child than a bad guy. Both sides use statistics to lie.
Here are a few simple statistics.
What it boils down to is that more people use guns to defend themselves from violent crime than are killed with guns.
End of numbers arguments.
Three simple things argue for self-defense training.
The police have no legal obligation to protect you. They will almost always do their best, but if they fail or screw up they're not liable.
5 minutes is a good 911 response time. Take out your watch. Time 5 minutes. How many unpleasant things could someone do to you in that amount of time?
You are the only one that is always right there with you. The police are not always there. Husbands or boyfriends aren't always there. You can't rely on strange bystanders to even be there much less intervene against a violent criminal. You are your best defense against attack. You are your own best weapon.
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Bullshit that Gun Guys tell women:
You can't shoot anything bigger than X.
Even Massad Ayoob, the guru of defensive shooting and concealed carry, spouted this kind of nonsense once upon a time. His book "In the Gravest Extreme" is useful in terms of general information. Just skip the chapter on "Women and Guns," it's not helpful and it may just piss you off.
Such and such stance is the best/ the only for a woman.
If you're hitting the target and you aren't hurting or endangering yourself or others, your stance is fine. Of course there is always room for improvement, but don't worry about it overmuch.
You need X grips.
Does it feel comfortable in your hands? Then it's a good grip/ gun for you.
You should start with/ shoot/ buy, one certain kind of gun.
Some say revolvers some say semi-autos. Some say tomato some say tomato. (sorry ) Some say .22 some say .45. Really, learn about the pros and cons of each, consider your circumstances and buy whatever gun you feel comfortable with.
Basically, many instructors and writers thinks that their way is the one-true-way and all other ways will lead to outer darkness and gnashing of teeth. (I think it has something to do with testosterone.) You will hear tons of glowing endorsements and fiery denunciations of every aspect of shooting from stance to brand to carry.
Use your own common sense, be willing to try different things and make up your own mind even if it goes contrary to the opinions of people you respect. Remember: it's your life and safety.
Images courtesy of Oleg Volk at www.a-human-right.com