Episode 70 with Tony Simon

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Rob- Introduction- I’m Rob Morse and welcome to episode 70 of Self-Defense Gun Stories.  This podcast is for people who think they might want a firearm.. and those who already have one.  We’re joined this week by self-defense instructor Tony Simon.

Hi, Tony.  How have you been?  I heard you on Lock and Load Radio.

Tony- Hi, Rob.  I’ve been busy getting the word out about our tee shirts that we are selling to raise funds for The 2nd is For Everyone: Diversity Shoots, getting classes ready for students and writing a new curriculum for a Home Hardening class that I am going to teach.

Hi to our new listeners, and welcome back to our regular listeners. We report and analyze three examples of armed civilian defense.  We hope you use these reports as part of your exercise program.. to use your imagination today so you can defend the people you care about tomorrow.  Please leave us a message on our facebook page with your questions or comments.

Tony- Our first story took place last week in Memphis, Tennessee.

Rob- First story-  Are you armed at work in the afternoon?

You work in a convenience store.  A man comes in, grabs two beers, and heads to the door.  You shout for him to come to the counter and pay.  He shouts back that you can’t stop him.  He reaches for his waistband and tells you to stay where your are.  You think he has a gun.  He starts to turn toward you.  You draw and fire your sidearm.  The robber runs, but collapses outside.  You call police.  You know the drill.  The store has been robbed before.

Tony- This bad guy pretended that he had a gun to intimidate the victim. As Mas Ayoob says the attacker suffered a failure in his victim selection process. He got shot by an armed “victim”.

Tony- We here at the podcast always say that you need a plan when it comes to armed self defense. Once the bad guy has stated he intends to use deadly force, acts like he has a means to carry out that intent and advances on you as if he is going to harm you then you must use that plan without hesitation.

You must go with 100% effort to save your life. If he ends up not having a gun, like this thief, that is his fault that he got shot.The time it takes you to figure out if he was “serious” could cost you your life.

Tony- Like our first story, our second story also happened in Memphis, Tennessee

Rob- Second Story- Are you armed at home late at night?

You worked late and then ran some errands on the way home.  You live in a gated apartment complex.  You let yourself through the gate and drive to your parking place.  You get out of your car and grab your bags.  A man comes running at you out of the darkness.  He grabs your computer bag and your purse.  The strap is over your shoulder.  You hang on and scream for your boyfriend.  He comes running out of your apartment and tackles your attacker.  Your Ruger pistol falls out of your purse.  Now the three of you are scrambling to grab it.  You win, and shoot your attacker twice in the chest.  You and your boyfriend stand up and reach for your phones.

The police charged your attacker with aggravated assault and criminal attempted felony.  You go to the hospital for scrapes and cuts.

Tony- Security is a feeling, you must be aware of what is happening around you. Gated communities are not safe.  They may be less dangerous than a convenience store parking lot at 1 am but they are not safe.

On body carry is much better than carrying your firearm in your bag or purse. Your bag is the most likely target of the thief. When he grabs you by your bag he has all of the leverage and you end up holding onto the strap and getting dragged along for the ride.

Tony- I’ve followed people into secured office buildings and have had them hold the door open for me and give me directions to offices inside the building. Never assume you are completely safe because getting into your building requires a key fob.

Tony- Our third story happened last week in Lumberton, North Carolina.

Give Lloyd a listen at http://www.armedlutheran.us/

Rob- Third story- Are you armed at work very early in the morning?  

You’re working very late.  The front of your store is closed, and you’re sitting in the back of your store repairing your customer’s cell phones.  You hear a loud crash and the entire building shakes.  Five young men smashed their way into your store through the front windows and doors.  You grab your shotgun and walk out of the back of the store.  The robbers turn and run..except for one of them.  He keeps coming toward you.  You press the trigger and the thug drops to the ground.

You call police.  Unfortunately, the police take your shotgun as evidence.  Fortunately, you have another one.

Tony-  The victim was a 66 year old man and the attacker was a teen that had multiple partners breaking into his business.

Rob- Disparity of force.

Tony- Fighting off multiple attackers, alone, at night, isn’t something that comes easily. Especially if those attackers are determined to hurt you. Being able to operate your gun, move, hit multiple moving targets and keeping your gun loaded and in the fight isn’t something that you “figure out” during a fight. Taking defensive firearms training teaches you what you don’t know about armed self defense, your self, your firearm and your self-defense plan.

Rob- This man saved his own life, but his attackers could have overwhelmed him.

Tony- This was multiple people breaking in and attempting to steal as much as they can carry. If it came to a fight they were not going to “fight fair”. Criminals aren’t stupid.  They don’t want a fair fight. Neither should you, take the time to train to be a winner during a life or death confrontation.

Rob- So where do we learn?

Tony- Most ranges won’t allow you shoot at multiple targets, they won’t allow you to rapid fire, they won’t allow you to turn off the lights and they won’t allow you to move while you shoot. Going to a class on a range that is set up for this type of training is what we need to look for and where we learn these skills.

Rob- that sounds important.

Tony- It is, but first you have to know how to operate your firearm. One of the problems that I see most often in class and at the range is that some people don’t know how their gun operates on a instinctive level. You need to have intimate knowledge of the operation of your self defense firearm, that means taking it to the range and using it at least monthly not sitting it in the corner and letting it collect dust until you need it. One of my suggestions on how to get good operating your firearm is to take up a shooting sport ,at  a local range, using your self defense gun or the same type of gun as your self-defense gun. Shooting in a weekly event is fun. You will meet new people and learn to shoot under the stress of competition. Adding the stress in a non life threatening way allows you to see how you operate and learn what you need to work on.

Rob- The victim probably didn’t see the muzzle of his gun as he aimed it.

Tony- The victim most likely was looking at the threat not the front sight.  Once you have those basic skills at the unconscious level you will be better equipped to defend yourself.

Exit-  Rob- That wraps up this episode. Tony, thank you for helping me today.  Where can our listeners learn more about you?

Tony- Our listeners can find me at Simon Says Train on Facebook and also at SimonSaysTrain Instagram and the 2nd is For Everyone on Facebook. For a limited time we are selling a tee shirt to raise funds for our 2nd Amendment workshop, The 2nd is For Everyone: Diversity Shoot, on our website DiversityShoot.com stop by to see what we are about, make a donation or buy a shirt.

Rob- Our listeners can share their thoughts with us by leaving a message on the podcast facebook page.  

Tony-   If you liked this show, then you’ll like the other podcasts on the Self-defense radio network.  We share this podcast with you for free, and ask that you share it with a friend.  Please give us a rating on I-Tunes.

Rob- I’m Rob Morse.  We’ll be back next week with more Self-Defense Gun Stories.

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