Massad Ayoob's Blog, page 31

CHRISTMAS GIFT SUGGESTION

Reading matter is always a good gift, and today you can give audio books for those in your life who don’t have time to sit down and turn pages. In Atlanta recently I got to meet novelist Liz Lazarus.  I had read one of her mysteries and now have all three under my belt, the latest […]

DISPARITY OF FORCE

Half a century of teaching judicious use of deadly force has taught me that the single most misunderstood element may well be Disparity of Force. This is the principle that allows the innocent defender to shoot an unarmed man if the latter’s assault is so violent – and the criminal has so great a physical […]

‘TIS THE SEASON…

Were you one of the many who shot your Thanksgiving turkey in the woods? I thought about shooting my Thanksgiving turkey, but it would have upset everyone else in the supermarket, so I abstained. I haven’t had time to go hunting in a while, but I hope you have, if you’re so inclined.  Last night […]

HITTING A MILLION

Yours truly is one of several content providers on the Wilson Combat channel on YouTube.  I recently learned that one of mine there had surpassed a million views: The same is true of one I did earlier with Bill Wilson himself, here: The Wilson Combat channel includes great material from Bill and from other legends […]

THANKSGIVING THOUGHTS

Much to be grateful for. Wonderful family members, great friends, great students. We’ve dodged some weather bullets. Not one but two hurricanes, each of which according to weather service predictions had our home county in the crosshairs.  Each diverted at the last moment, no harm done at our end. Our hearts go out to those […]

MEET MY SPIRIT ANIMAL

Lacking the strength of the bear and the speed of the leopard, my only natural attribute was native animal cunning so I adopted the weasel as my spirit animal.  Some years ago I did an article on what I call Weaselcraft, and the good folks at American Handgunner magazine just reprinted it on their excellent […]

MEET LARRY ANDERSON

If you ever took one of my first level classes in the last 29 years, you’ve heard of Larry Anderson. A key element of self-defense is knowing how fast an assailant can close on you from a distance. In 1983, my friend and colleague Dennis Tueller published his study in SWAT magazine titled “How Close […]

DFI CLASS

Last week we graduated another DFI class of more than thirty Deadly Force Instructors from all over the country, spanning Hawaii to the East Coast. We were hosted by the Trigger Pressers Union in Pittsburgh. I always enjoy teaching a “train the trainers” program. Each candidate makes a presentation – you can’t deem people competent […]

BEFORE THE DEATH OF THE WALKING DEAD…

The Evil Princess and I owe you a confession. Since its inception a dozen years and eleven (COVID-extended, ironically) seasons ago, this AMC series about a zombie apocalypse has kept us tuning in. Sociologists see it as an allegory to the poor rising up against the rich in a dystopian world, and epidemiologists have used […]

GOING AUDIO

So, I’m doing my first audio book.  Took two days to record it, of the three days it was budgeted for; figure an eight or so hour listen.  I always knew I had a good face for radio; we’ll see if I have a good voice for radio. Many thanks to Trammell Starks in Atlanta who […]