Principles of Personal Defense

by Jeff Cooper

If a principle exists it must be immutable, for that is what a principle is — a truth standing apart from the mood of the times.

Any man who is a man may not, in honor, submit to threats or violence. But many men who are not cowards are simply unprepared for the fact of human savagery. They have not thought about it (incredible as this may appear to anyone who reads the paper or listens to the news) and they just don’t know what to do. When they look right into the face of depravity or violence, they are astonished and confounded. This can be corrected.

“Acommander may be forgiven for being defeated, but never for being surprised.”

Two rules are immediately evident: Know what is behind you, and pay particular attention to anything out of place.

Do not enter unfamiliar areas that you cannot observe first. Make it a practice to swing wide around corners, use window glass for rearward visibility, and get something solid behind you when you pause.