Monthly Archives: April 2014

Gear Check – Packs

By Woodsbum

To continue our series about gear discussed during our “Gear Check” Meetup, I am going to write a bit about packs. Packs are one of those things that can be hard to nail down and find a good one that fits, has just the right amount of space, and doesn’t break your bank.

Many people are very into the military surplus packs like the ALICE or ILBE. These can be great bushcraft packs and are made to withstand some heavy duty use. They are designed to make it through combat, so they should be able to handle the occasional dirt stain or rain shower. They do have their drawbacks, however.

Medium ALICE Pack and Frame

While I was in the military, I spent about 3 years living out of an ALICE pack. The pack is great, but definitely has its flaws. Let’s discuss the good first. They are one of the toughest pieces of gear I have had the pleasure of using. If the frame gets messed up, it can easily be bent back into shape and lashed back together with 550 cord or an improvised rivet or two can be used until a better fix can be engineered. They seem to have just enough room for a couple day’s worth of gear. Long weekend trips, day hikes, or even packing out meat quarters while hunting fit right within this pack’s limits. For weeks on end or long trips, however, this pack is a bit lacking. There just isn’t enough room. There are large ALICE packs that offer more room, but the frame constraints are the same. Shoulder and waist straps on this are not made for larger people. They are designed for average sized individuals. The shoulder pads are too short without some redesign and modification as are the hip belt and pad. I am not talking about being overweight, either. These straps just don’t fit larger people.

If you are not interested in a frame, the better military surplus pack is the ILBE.

ILBE

These packs have pockets everywhere, carry about as much as the ALICE (granted that you are not strapping on sleeping bags and Isomats) and even have some straps that make carrying an axe very easy. If you are thinking “prepper” style or fashion, this is military surplus and therefore screams, “Motivated and military” so it might not be the right style or fashion for you. The nicest thing about it is the fact that the straps and fit are comfortable for small to large sized people without any major modifications.

These are also a great pack, but are fairly difficult to come up with most of the time. This is the Swedish M39 rucksack.

Swedish M39

The problem comes down to trying to find one it good condition. They are old and have not usually been treated too well during their life. The nice things about this pack are the axe loop on the side, the large flap that keeps rain and such out and allows you to carry a coat or something under it, and the fact that it is nicely framed with a lightweight design. You will have to do some metalwork on the frame to widen the hip area. It was designed for people with a 26-30 inch waist (guessing while cursing the fit). But once you widen out the bottom portion of the frame, they fit really well and are quite comfortable. Unless you are the size of Skeletor don’t expect to be able to use the leather waist belt. Just figure on either making a longer one or not using a waist belt at all.

There is a post to what I built out of an old French pack. Projects like this are quite viable and allow you to make what you want. I highly recommend doing something like this if you are handy.

Last but not least is to mention all the Swiss, German, Polish, Swedish, French, etc., canvas rucksacks that are available on the market. Most are WWII surplus and are great options if you care to explore them. The ones I mentioned above are the most common “bushcrafter packs” that people get and modify to their needs. If you can grab one that suits your needs, grab it and get out to use it!

Other options are much more expensive, however. You can pick up something from Frost River or Duluth Trading Post. Their packs are INCREDIBLE, but the price point is also INCREDIBLE. That being the case, don’t look while eating. You will choke, so be warned. Of these two, I prefer the Isle Royale by Frost River. The shape, size, construction, etc., seem to be more suited to my particular needs. Although I have not purchased one yet, this is on my short list after I finish up my custom knife purchases.

There are also many options that are not “traditional” canvas type rucksacks. So many that it really doesn’t warrant listing them. The main thing to think about while picking your pack is this: get something that will withstand the rigors of bushcrafting, fits you nicely, and holds all your kit. If any of these criteria are not met, you really should just pass on the pack and move to the next one. The most common criteria that they don’t meet is “withstanding the rigors of bushcrafting.” Bushcrafting requires more durable equipment due to the many tools (axes, Scotish augers, knives, saws, etc.) that you carry with you. Most backpackers don’t take as many sharp objects with them like a bushcrafter will.

Well, it is time to do some searching and testing of some different packs to find what you like. Don’t be intimidated no matter how scared you get. Just get what you like and what fits you. Most other things can be modified with some ingenuity and a sewing kit.

Have some fun and get dirty!!!!

Oregon Firearms Academy Low Light / Night Fire Class

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by GunGuy

I had the opportunity to take a Low Light / Night Fire Class at the Oregon Firearms Academy this past November. The instructors in the class were utmost professionals, knowledgeable and easy to talk to. For those of you who are planning on taking this class in the future keep in mind that Oregon in late November is cold. The staff at OFA were kind enough to have a fire going outside and a covered heated area to keep away the frost. The temps hovered in the 20’s and once the sun went down the temps dropped into the teens and the cold took a toll on all of us.

We started the class at 11 am with about 45 minutes of class room instruction going over safety, differences in hand held and weapon mounted flashlights, techniques and then moved out to the range. Once on the range we went over how to use the flashlights in conjunction with our firearms and strong hand shooting with and with out barriers in place. The daylight live fire prepared us for the low light and night fire portion and we worked out any kinks before the night fire commenced.

During the class we covered shooting in low light, partially lit like a parking lot, complete darkness, strobe lights if there were cops or emergency vehicles around and they popped a couple of smoke grenades at the end to show you how it would be in a fire or disaster situation. There was a strong emphasis on holding the flashlight with the support hand, firing two shots with your strong hand and then moving in one direction after turning the light off. The most important thing was to move after you use the flashlight, even if it was accidental, because the bad guys would shoot at the light.

At one point after it got dark the OFA staff had us do a side by side of all of the hand held flash lights and my $25 Led Lenser V2 flashlight was just a little less bright than everybody’s more expensive lights. I like the idea of running flashlights that run on readily available AAA’s and not on CR123a’s. The downside of AA and AAA flashlights is that if you put alkaline batteries in them they might leak. So you have to check the batteries on a semi regular basis. Alternatively my weapon mounted Streamlight TLR-1 used CR123a’s and was brighter than the hand held so the choice is yours. The instructors commented on having a weapon mounted light and a handheld if you are military and or a law enforcement officer. If you are a civilian two hand held flashlights would be your best bet because if you drop one, you have an extra. This point was reinforced as I dropped mine at one point during the class and I couldn’t see anything in the dark. Luckily the guy next to me had an extra and hooked me up.

Here is a quick run down of what I took away from the class.

Fighting is a cave man thing. Too much technology can be a hindrance.
Keep your equipment simple. Complicating things under stress will mess you up.
OFA staff recommended weapon mounted lights in the 200-1000 lumens range for rifle and in the 200-300 lumens range for handgun.
Use the light in short bursts. After you use your light on purpose or accident you have to move.
A light is for illumination. Don’t illuminate with the gun. Have a hand carry as well.
Lights can also be a liability. The tell everyone around you where you are.
When using a flashlight and you use a lanyard have it around your hand but not around your wrist. Having it around your wrist allows someone to pull you off balance if they grab the light.
A Tiger ring for the flashlight allows more freedom of movement for your hands but it isn’t for everyone.
Night sights are not a necessity. You can use spillage from your light to light up your pistol sights.
Tritium half life is 12 years and Tritium night sights will give off adequate light for 5-7 years depending on your eyesight.
Lasers are a mixed bag, some rely on it too much. They focus on the target and not on their sights.
Using strobe flashlights makes it difficult to see peoples hands and disorients the other person and yourself. Supposedly strobe lights are good against dogs.
The bright led flashlights beams dissipated in fog, rain and smog where the incandescent lights cut through a little better.
A concern for weapon mounted lights is if they get stuck and don’t turn off the bad guys will shoot at the light.
In a house the higher lumens will reflect off picture frames, mirrors, white wall. Low lux flooding beams can be more useful in this situation than high lux because they do not splash back as much.
Have a red or green filtered light to look at things up close, such as your targets, so you don’t lose your night vision. If you use the white light it will take 20-45 minutes to regain full night vision.
Don’t take shortcuts with your arms, you can shoot yourself, the middle of your chest is home base. Don’t cheat and have your hand behind the back of the gun.

Ontario RAT 5 After Action Report

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by GunGuy

I took the Ontario Rat 5 with me to a bushcraft class about a month ago. The knife made short work of splitting pieces of wood in half using another larger piece of wood as a hammer. While using the RAT 5 for fine work such as making notches in branches in order to set traps and making frames it was lacking. The RAT 5 had a flat grind which did not allow me to perform fine woodworking easily. My lady had a Mora knife which had a Scandi /Double Bevel edge and she had a much better time performing the exercises during the class. Her experience with the Mora knife allowed her to make cuts in the wood easily. In the end it all came down to the type of grind a knife had when we were practicing our wood cuts.

The RAT 5 and Mora knives held up very well after 5 hours of wood carving. Both are carbon steel blades. I added Black Magic grip tape to the top and bottom of the RAT 5 knife in order to give it a better grip. I left the Mora knife as is because of it’s fine rubber grip. In an ideal camping / survival / bushcraft situation I would have both but if I were to consider just carrying one knife I would go with the Mora knife. I have some pics of the knives, wood carvings and knife edge types below.

SAR Tracking Course

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by Woodsbum

One fine, Western Washington day I was talked into taking a SAR tracking class. It was at the end of January, wet, cold and duck season had just ended so I was available. At first, I was afraid of getting into another one of those classes where everyone tries to “one up” the next person with regard to their experience or knowledge. Many classes I have been to end up being that way, so with some definite apprehension I paid the money and took the drive to the first day of class.

The first day was nothing more than an evening PowerPoint presentation. We met each other and got to know our instructor a little bit. Our class was taught by Fernando Moreira. He was originally from Portugal, did some time in the military there, and while in the USA came to realize that the skill that he had developed throughout his life was actually something that he could made money from. He has some great stories and is a fountain of knowledge.

Our second day started pretty early. We met at Sauvie Island, OR to head out and get dirty.

: Tracking class, 1st day

This portion of the class involved tracking movement with many of the footprints erased. We had to use only one track to determine where the direction of travel would place the next track. It was a great drill to truly see how disks released, debris fields pointed to the next track, and how weight distribution on the foot was visible during direction changes, etc. Whomever created this “game” was really on to something for it really got us all on “track” (sorry for the pun) for the rest of the training day.

: Examining the ground

We then moved on to other terrain and worked on various techniques to help us stay on trail. Fernando was like a magician.

: Fernado spotting things that no one else could see….. yet!

He had us do several other drills and finally had us following each other over varied terrain. By the end of the day, we were becoming fascinated by the smallest thing out of place. We were becoming transformed into trackers. Believe it or not, this was worth at least 15 minutes of examination.

: Human track.

Here is some transfer as my “prey” stepped on the log and jumped over.

: Sand transfer

After all this, the rest of the class drove to a second location to work on night tracking. This was my son’ birthday weekend, so I had to skip out on this training so that I could be with him. From what I hear, it was incredible training and I definitely missed out.

Our next day started as early as our Saturday did. We were lucky that we got to begin with a warm fire and coffee. The class then moved quickly out to the woods to see how tracks looked in a less forgiving environment. Here is what Fernando called “top sign.” If you look, you can see that the fern branches have been disturbed and are “loaded.” Also, a couple of the leaves are broken. These are the types of things that Fernando pointed out and had us follow.

Some loaded fern branches and top sign.

This is a great picture of transfer, bruising and a broken stick all due to our “prey” walking through.

Leaf bruising, some transfer, and a broken stick.

All being said, it was a great class and worth every penny I spent for it. If you get a chance to attend one of Fernando’s classes, jump all over it. Even with no experience, you will learn to be more track aware and be able to perform basic tracking functions. If you are more advanced, it will help hone your skills all the more. The instruction, my fellow students, and even the weather for January was great. What more could I have asked for?

Fernando Moreira.

Street robberies and you – The Basics

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Original Post by BurnedOutLEO on AR15.com Here

While many say it is better to be lucky than good, no one is lucky every time. In this post I am going to attempt to provide some insight into street encounters. Other may have different viewpoints. I am not here to argue. I will say some of the comments I have seen posted in the threads about this sort of matter make me realize that while some ARFCOMMERS are clearly street veterans others are not. This is really for those who are not.

Background

First, my info. I worked in the street of one of America’s most violent, dangerous cities for 15 years. I usually worked in the worst part of that city. I spent 15 years in patrol. I liked patrol. It was wild. Most of the time I worked in areas covered in ghetto. By that I mean large housing projects combined with run down slum housing. I have worked all shifts. Later I became an investigator including a robbery investigator. I have spent countless hours in interrogation rooms talking to hold up men. I know them. I am still an investigator but have quit playing the Robbery game because my family was starting to forget what I looked like.

The Enemy

Some may object to me calling hold up men “the enemy”. You can call them whatever you like. I can assure you however they are as deadly an enemy as you will find anywhere but the battlefield. Even many soldiers probably lack the viciousness and utter disregard for life most hold up men possess.

No one wakes up in the morning one day and decides to become an armed robber. It is a gradual process that requires some experience and desensitizing. Before a man will pick up a gun and threaten to kill people who have done him no harm in order to get their usually meager possessions he has to get comfortable with some things.

He has to get used to seeing others as objects for him to exploit. He has to accept he may be killed while robbing. He has to accept the felony conviction for Robbery will haunt him all his life. He has to accept he may need to kill a completely innocent person to get away with his crime.

This is a process that starts with stealing candy at the corner store as a child. It progresses through bigger property crimes that may also involve violence. But one day G gets tired of selling his stolen property for nothing and decides it would be better to steal cash. Cut out all that tiresome sales stuff.

Keep in mind many petty thieves, auto burglars, residential and commercial burglars, paper thieves, and hustlers will get to that point and decide not to become armed robbers. Most will. It is a special group of outliers who decide threatening to kill people for a few dollars is the way to go.

Once a man starts armed robbing he has crossed a line most won’t. Don’t forget that when you are looking these bastards in the eye. Their decision to kill you is already made. Your life means nothing to him. Only his does. His sole motivation for not killing you is he doesn’t want a murder case. He has already accepted he may pick one up though.

We hunt hold up men around the clock once they are identified. We send teams of fire breathing fence jumper/door kickers to find them. We will bring their mother to the office and convince her she is going to jail if we don’t have Junior in our office in an hour. We have her call her son crying hysterically for him to turn himself in before she is arrested and held without bond as a material witness and her home seized for harboring him. Most of the time they won’t. Fuck their own momma.

We will hit all Juniors friends and family’s houses. We make it so no one will harbor him. He is so hot no one will let him in their house or even talk on the phone with him. We put money on him so he knows he is right to be betrayed and set up. We do this because of one thing.

That thing is they WILL kill someone if they keep robbing. That is why the city is willing to pay all the overtime. They don’t want the murders. Think about that when you see Junior coming. The more robberies he does the closer he is to killing someone. Maybe you.

The guys who hit you on the street are gang members. They are Gangster Disciples, Vice Lords, Crips, Sureonos, many others. They do not see themselves as part of society. The street is all they know. They don’t expect to live long or stay out of prison. They take a delight in your fear and suffering. They are warped individuals for the most part. They can be extremely dangerous.

One time we were locking up a hold up man and having a conversation about how they target their victims. I was saying they pick easy ones, another guy was saying they preferred easy ones but would take anybody.

I pointed out a uniform Officer there was an NFL size guy to that hold up man. Frankly the dude was a monster. I asked hold up man if he would rob him. He said “If I needed the money”.

You

Chances are good you are a law abiding person except for maybe a little light weed smoking and maybe driving a little drunk every once in a while. Most of your life you have been taught to be nice and don’t point guns at people. You are the exact opposite of your enemy who was taught just the opposite. Remember a lot of street life is like prison life. Who’s the man is everything. Violence is the currency of the street.

You do not possess total disregard for the lives of others and do not want to kill anyone. You are concerned about the ramifications of shooting someone. Your family, your possessions and finances on the line. Your enemy has none of these concerns.

The laws that keep you from carrying your gun in bars or where ever mean nothing to your enemy. Your reluctance to shoot someone works to is advantage. His greater experience in street violence and the element of surprise is on his side.

Everyone should call their local FBI office and get a copy of Law Enforcement Officers Killed and Assaulted. When it first came out it was ground breaking because it demonstrated to academics and other elites what street police knew all along. What did it show in interviews with cop killers? Nice guys finish dead. That’s right. Most of those offenders commented that the Officer they killed set himself up to be killed because of reluctance to use force early in the encounter.

You can probably find it on line now. A lot of the victim Officers were a lot like a lot of other people, normal people. They were the opposite of their enemy.

Am I advocating becoming the enemy? No. I am saying the person who is robbing you has certain traits, attitudes, and background. That is all.

Dynamics of Encounters

Hold up men target victims on the street in an impulsive, opportunistic manner. They see someone and make a quick judgment call on whether to rob them. The time between when you are targeted and they are on you isn’t long. Therefore, situational awareness is everything.

If you see G coming you are in good shape. If you don’t you will be the victim who says “He came out of nowhere”. No he didn’t. There are many tricks to watching out but simply watching your back is the main thing. Watch your back. If you do it enough it becomes second nature and you won’t even realize you are doing it.

Watching out is great but unfortunately many self defense courses stop there. You have parked you car in a well lit area, are aware of your surroundings, and looky here, here comes three guys across the parking lot and they start to kind of fan out.

When you lock eyes with G the very first thing you need to do it indicate you have a weapon. It doesn’t matter if you do or not. If you are a woman put your gun hand in your purse and keep it there. If you are a man fan your shirt or coat tail with your gun hand. Make it clear to dude you are mentally prepared to draw and making sure your gun is clear. This will many times result in an about face by dude. It is the single best robbery avoidance tactic IMHO.

Not long ago I was walking down the sidewalk in my town to go get my car. I was holding a folding chair in my gun hand. A car slow rolled past me with 4 heads in it. The guys in the back seat turned around as they went by looking at me. They went a little farther and U turned in the street.

Here they come back. As they started to slow down I looked at them with as contemptuous a look as I could muster and switched the chair to my left hand and flicked my shirt tail with my right hand. They just drove on mad dogging me.

In another case I was at a Christmas party and walked a girl to her car about 3 am. As we said our good-byes two guys were walking across the parking lot. One went behind a dumpster. I though he was peeing. He came out from behind the dumpster with a bottle.

As they got closer I stepped clear of that girl and unzipped my jacket at those two guys. When I did the guy threw down the bottle and they walked by cussing at me. If someone challenges you after you indicate you are armed say “I don’t have a gun”. Then they will know you do.

Here is an opposite story. A girl my brother knows was walking her dog when a guy approached her. She was polite. Mistake. He talked to her about the dog and said she had pretty hair and reached out and touched her hair. She did not slap his hand down or aggressively object. Mistake. He asked her if her dog bit and she said “No”. At that time he slapped the shit out of her, drug her into a wooded area, and raped her.

The answer in the street is always “No”. Can I ask you something? No. Do you have a cigarette? No. Can you tell me what time it is? No. The answer is always “No”. Don’t be nice. Stop the encounter as soon as it starts.

When to draw

Despite warnings I often see on the Net I have yet to encounter an instance in which a hold up man called the police to report his intended victim threatened to shoot him. Thugs do not want to come into contact with the police. They may already be wanted or realize chances are good they have been identified in a recent robbery. Or what ever. They are not going to call the police if you draw on them.

Supposed two guys are approaching you in a parking lot and do the classic fan out maneuver. You indicate you have a weapon by clearing your gun hand and fanning your jacket at them. They are not discouraged. DRAW!

I am not saying you should pull your gun out, assume a Weaver stance, and scream “That’s close enough motherfuckers!” What I am saying is draw your gun and hold it beside your leg as you start to move to cover. I am very fond of telephone poles. Anything will do though. They will see this. They will remember they have to be somewhere else. They will not call the police.

Then you can just put your gun back in the holster and go back to whatever you were doing like nothing happened. Why? Because nothing did happen. A happening is when shots are fired.

Do not hesitate to draw. If you are somewhere you are supposed to be and someone appears who is not supposed to be there like a closed business show him the end of your gun. Could it be Mother Teresa looking for her lost cat behind your closed business? No it is some motherfucker up to no good. He won’t call the police to report he was prowling a location when a guy ran him off.

When to shoot

The time to shoot is immediately upon seeing his weapon. You are not a police man who has to try to arrest the guy. No need to scream at him. No exposure while you yell for him to drop the gun.

In deer hunting the experienced hunter takes the first good shot. May not be the perfect shot but it never is. Novices pass up a doable shot waiting for a better shot and then the deer is gone. Take the first good shot you are offered. Hopefully your alertness and hostile cues will prevent you ever having to fire. But once you see his weapon, shoot.

If a guy is coming at you with a gun in his hand shoot him. Shoot him right then. If you don’t shoot first you may not shoot at all. I have known more than one person who was shot and received life changing injuries and also shot their attacker. Their only regret was not shooting sooner. Like Bill Jordan said “Nothing disturbs your enemy’s aim like a slug delivered to the belt buckle area”.

Guns and weapons

The handgun is the best weapon you can carry easily. I understand it is not always possible to have one due to laws, restrictions, whatever. I am not telling anyone to disregard laws about carrying weapons. Each person has to decide for themselves what they are comfortable with. I will say there is no substitute for a pistol when you need one.

Also if you can not be trusted with a pistol after a few drinks you can’t be trusted with a pistol period. Booze is liquid bad judgment no doubt but it shouldn’t make you into a damn moron. If you are a moron sober I don’t know what to tell you.

Types of guns and ammo are always debated and probably always will be. I have seen people shot with all common calibers. My conclusion is if you hit someone between the collar bone and the tip of their ribs three times with anything, they are handled. Bigger is better but something is better than nothing. Get your front sight on his shirt and stay on him as long as he is standing with whatever gun you have.

Just have a gun with sure fire ammo. Draw early and fire immediately upon seeing his weapon. That course of action is about all you can do to up your odds of ending things favorably. Guns like the Ruger LC9, SIG 239, Glock 26/27 are examples of guns small enough to carry but with enough power and capacity to be useful. Do not be afraid to use a French Lebelle if that is the only gun you have. A gun is a gun. I like a Glock 19.

Training

We all want the best training. It can be expensive if you are having to pay for it and it can be hard to find the time to do it. There is a whole lot of BS out there. What can you do? First, pistol handling is not rocket surgery. If you will learn the basics and practice on your own you can be fine. Smooth draw, quick pairs, reload. If you know those things well you can be OK.

I know a young man who shot down two hold up men in 2010 at very close range while he and his GF were walking home from the store. He in Wyatt Earp like fashion ignored the fire coming from the gunman and killed him and wounded his accomplice. He nor his GF were injured. He like many was willing to give them the money until he picked up on nonverbal cues that because of his GF they were not quite satisfied with the money. He had a Glock 27.

He had only the most basic of training in gun handling but did do some draws and some dry fire a couple times a week and live fired maybe once a month. That basic skill combined with knowing what to do was enough. He shot at the first possible moment despite having let the guys get the drop on them. When the gunman turned his head because a car drove by that was the opening. A split second is a long time sometimes.

Work on some one hand shooting at close range. That is a skill not as popular as it once was and you want to use two hands when you can. Often you can find yourself doing something with your off hand though so be able to shoot with one hand out to 5 yards or so.

After

If it comes to pass you are forced to shoot someone do not feel bad. When the police come just tell them a guy threatened you with deadly force and you were forced to fire. I know there are bad police out there in some parts of the country who don’t support self defense. I can’t help you with that.

Do not talk to them until you have your attorney present. Now most young guys don’t have an attorney on retainer and you may have no idea who to call. That is OK. You will figure it out but in the mean time don’t talk about what happened other than to say you were forced to fire. You don’t have to be an asshole just remember wait for your attorney.

Hopefully you will not give a statement for a couple days. Remember if you are put in jail that doesn’t mean you are charged. Most places can hold you 48 or 72 hours on a felony before charging you or letting you go. Breath deep and get an attorney.

Expect to never get your gun back. You may get it back one day but maybe not. Do not buy expensive guns for the street. Buy yourself a nice sporting gun if you want a nice gun. Keep your street guns basic. The factory Model 10 Smith and the GI 45 have done a lot of work over the years and aren’t fancy.

Worlds

We all live in different worlds. My world is filled with felons and gang members. Violence is common place. No one would be surprised if one of their friends called and said they shot a hold up man at a place of business or parking lot. In the past when I made calls the fact that the guy who is beating his GF is also on parole for 2nd degree murder flavored my world.

You may live in a smaller, less violent place where shootings seldom occur and it would be a rare to shoot a hold up man. I envy you and will be moving to a place like your town as soon as I can.

But be advised no matter where you are a hold up man is going to be about the same. Whether he is a home boy or a guy who just exited the interstate into your town and needs some quick money. He is going to have a vicious streak and no regard for your life. Treat him like he treats you.

Giving them the money, doing what they say, all that may work but there is no guarantee. If you have never read Jeff Cooper’s book The Principles of Personal Defense I suggest you order a copy immediately. It is a short book but summarizes a lot of important things.

Last year we had a trial here regarding an armed robbery that occurred. Three or four guys took a young couple from a parking garage near a college out by some railroad tracks where they raped, shot, and beat them. Their lives will never be the same.

The lesser thugs all turned on the trigger man at trial. The trigger man’s statement in the paper was after all that had happened he felt like he was a victim. Think about that. That is the mindset you are up against.