In the past I have made the observation that some people play at personal defense. These may be the folks who keep buying gun after gun and not budgeting any money for professional training. These may also be the folks who see themselves as pseudo-soldiers who feel the need to wear all sorts of web gear and tactical outfits to play the role. Closely akin to these are the guys who are wanna-be snipers, like they are ready to go when the Pentagon calls them.

Frankly, there is nothing wrong with any of this. And there is nothing wrong with gun games. Look at all the fun that the cowboy-action shooters have. And they like to dress up, too. And there is an element of marksmanship involved in all of these endeavors. Where they are weakest is when one tries to claim a whole lot of real-world application in regards to personal defense. Consider this…

The one thing that just about all of us have in common is that we lack the time and the money to do as much training and practicing as we know that we really need to do. For this reason, when it comes to personal defense, we should be spending that time and money on training and practice that has a real-world application to the sort of threats that we may realistically encounter. Are we more likely to have to face an attack by an army of Chinese Communists, or are we more likely to have face a home invasion or walking in on a convenience store robbery?

The serious defensive shooter should evaluate the most likely threats that he will encounter in his everyday life and train and practice for dealing with those threats. The best way to do that is to get professional training from a reputable outfit and then practice what they are teaching you. Mastering the basics of a speedy draw, accurate shot placement, and defensive tactics, is more likely to save the average American’s life than is the ability to hit a metal plate at 1,000 yards.

Sadly, too many of these folks who play at self defense will tell you that they are skilled at all levels of personal defense – we’re talking really “bad news for bad guys” here. Unfortunately, many of those who finally attend a reputable training school can’t even demonstrate a mastery of basic defensive skills. In the old days we talked about guys like this being more deadly with a Smith-Corona than they were with a Smith & Wesson. Nowadays, they may just be Keyboard Kommandos doing the Internet Strut.

We are fortunate that there is so much good defensive training to be had out there today. When you get ready to spend your hard-earned money, make an effort to assure that the class you are signing up for will help you come away with skills that will keep you safe in your everyday life. You will also begin to learn to tell the difference between a serious defensive shooter and a Keyboard Kommando.

It’s your decision, are you going to develop skills that will protect you and your family, or are you just going to play shoot-em-up games?