Black Man Green Beret - Circuit Magazine

Black Man Green Beret - Circuit Magazine - Protection

source: https://circuit-magazine.com/black-man-green-beret/

Book Excerpt:

Whenever I hear the term “load a clip” or “the clip was empty”, it just screams to me that somebody needs some training. Yes, there is a such thing as a clip of ammunition. However, that’s talking about something like the method used when firing a M-1 Rifle, which holds an eight round “clip” of .30-06 ammunition. When the last cartridge of ammunition is fired, the M-1 Rifle bolt locks in the open position and the clip is ejected.

But when talking about handguns; whether revolver, semi-automatic or fully automatic there are some things that are just basic. If we’re discussing firearms and someone tells me that there EDC (everyday carry) weapon is a .380 or a .45 caliber weapon, I immediately cringe with apprehension in preparation of the usual eventual disappointment.

The most popular misconception about firearms when talking to many women is: they will say that their friend told them it’s best for them to get a .380, and they have never had any training.

The most popular misconception about firearms when talking to many men is: they will say that they prefer a .45 caliber because it has “more knock down power” than that of many of the smaller caliber ammunitions. I normally ask them, “How many men have you knocked down (killed)?”

Because of the mass media perception of what firearms do, and don’t do, this has led many people astray.

Starting with the bullet traveling in a straight line that many movies portray, in slow motion. People forget the effects of gravity that play on everything, and that it will have the bullet start to drop in its trajectory “immediately” after leaving the barrel of whatever weapon is firing it. Hence the barrel of most weapons is canted upwards slightly to compensate for this effect.

I always say, the novice individual handling firearms will almost NEVER have THREE things.

First, they never seem to have spare magazines of ammunition.

Because you almost never see your favorite Hollywood action movie star reload his/her ammunition in the action scene. He or she will have a semi-automatic weapon that fires one round or bullet, for each one time their trigger is pulled (you must release or re-set the trigger again to fire another round of ammunition). But on television and in movies they just hold the trigger to the rear, or they keep pulling the trigger and never re-load the weapon, causing military veterans to cringe at the movie or television show because of that one grossly inaccurate scene. The hero shoots 50 people with one handgun that only holds 12, or 15 rounds. In turn, many people don’t carry spare magazines when they do carry a weapon (legally or illegally).

Second, they never have a decent handgun holster.

It’s like a great stereo system, that has cheap crappy speakers. It’s like a great automobile, with cheap tires. It’s like a great gourmet meal, served on cheap paper plates. Except the consequences are not just bad sounding music, poor automobile road handling or the overall dining experience. The consequences of having a cheap carry holster (or none at all) could be deadly, and normally result in self-inflicted wounds. If you tuck a loaded weapon (without a holster) in the waist band of your pants, you risk shooting yourself in the buttocks, the hips or in the genitals depending on where you carry it.

I once heard a story of a famous NFL football player who was in a crowded night club in NYC with a loaded handgun tucked into the waistband of his pants, you know like they do in the movies. Story goes that he had on baggy jeans, you know like they do on television. The story I heard was that he was walking down some stairs inside a club and both of his hands were holding something; a bottle of bubbly champagne, a beautiful woman, I don’t know I wasn’t there (I am just telling you what the word on the street was to illustrate my point). Anyway, the story goes that as he was walking down the stairs, the gun stars to slide down the inside of his pants leg. I heard he let go of whatever was in one of his hands in an attempt to grab the weapon bulge from the outside of his pants, in an attempt to catch the weapon. Well, when he grabbed it, he grabbed the trigger, of his loaded weapon, and since it was already sliding down his leg it didn’t take much pressure or trigger pull to discharge his own weapon, accidently shooting himself, in the leg. Although he had an expired concealed carry license from Florida, he didn’t have a New York license. So, he turned himself into the police to face charges of criminal possession of a handgun. He was arrested, indicted and convicted of two counts of criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree, and a single count of reckless endangerment in the second degree (all felonies).

He was imprisoned for nearly two years (20 months), for accidently shooting – himself.

If you carry a loaded weapon in your purse, handbag or backpack without a sturdy holster, you too can cause the weapon to get caught on something else inside of the bag; and cause a negligent or accidental discharge. Again, you could wind up hurting yourself, or more likely shooting some innocent person.

Third and finally, the novice almost never has a tight shot group.

Since they almost never train, or many have never received any formal instruction on how to shoot, they don’t have the fundamentals or basic rules of firearms handling down to muscle memory.

I have a simple training drill that I’ll share with you right now, just because you purchased this book. Go test yourself and see where your level of proficiency is at.

Let’s start with the back story.

How close do you think the distance will be for the average gun fight?

Close proximity means the distance you will be from an attacker or perpetrator of a crime against you; like an armed robbery, carjacking or a home invasion. The FBI statistics show that the average distance of a lethal encounter or gun fight is around ten (10) feet. Several reputable departments, companies and agencies states that distance is more like twenty (20) feet. But just for the sake of this chapter: I’ll do one even better.

I’ll give you a scenario that is more realistic and something the majority of you readers can relate too.

What do you think the distance is across the street, in the average residential neighborhood?

If you use an average of 10 feet as the distance for the width of the average traffic lane, and a two-way street would be 20 feet in width, and parking on either side would be 40 feet total, give or take 4 feet (10%). That would make that distance thirty-six (36) feet.

Well a survey conducted by the Institute of Urban and Regional Planning on Residential Street Standards & Neighborhood Traffic Control states that the average distance in a typical subdivision is thirty-six (36) feet across.

Now imagine a scenario where you have to use self-defense measures, with lethal results.

In other words, if someone was shooting at you, trying to kill you from across the street, in the average neighborhood, that distance would be about 36 feet.

So, take a standard man size target, and send it down range anywhere between 30 and 40 feet in distance, since many gun ranges are in ten-foot increments. I prefer to use the “Izzy” target that is preferred by the U.S. Department of State (DoS) because it doesn’t brainwash me into shooting a “dark” or “black” silhouette on a white background. Although the “Izzy” target was based upon a real-life DoS Firearms Instructor named Izzy (from like 20 years ago), I found it to be the most neutral and realistic based upon the state of the world today.

Anyway, with no rush, but still using a little sense of urgency (in other words take your time but hurry up), engage your target at that gun range, at that distance, with ten (10) shots at your own pace.

First thing you will learn, especially if you have a revolver, is that you have to stop and reload your weapon when you run out of ammunition. Take that loud silence and dedicate it to your memory banks. So that you will never forget, what it sounded like, when you attempted to engage a stationary target(s) at a distance of 30 to 40 feet, with 10 rounds with a revolver, when you ran out of ammunition after 6 bullets, and had to reload.

If that don’t teach you about the difference between a revolver and a semi-automatic, just wait until you’re at a two-way range, where people are shooting back at you.

Next, even if you have a semi-automatic (I hope you’re not using a fully automatic handgun, they do exist, like the Glock 18: but I hope a novice doesn’t have one) you will learn from this drill.

Now engage the target with a total of 10 rounds.

Many people fail this test before they even start, because they don’t count nor keep a track of the rounds they shoot.

They get so caught up in the adrenalin, and the rush at a standard gun range, that they forget how many rounds they fired. Now image when you’re standing in a court of law, attempting to defend yourself (even if you’re within your rights) having to account for every round you shot.

Every single person will get 10 out of 10 hits, if they fired 10 rounds, guarantee!

However, the average person will NOT get 10 out of 10 hits, on their “intended target”, but every bullet will hit – something.

They normally get between 3 – 6 hits on their intended target. But every now and then I get friend who is a novice, and they get 8 hits on their intended target. They feel they have accomplished something with their 80% passing score.

But I always inform them of a few scenarios.

Would they jump from an airplane with a parachute that is guaranteed to work 80% of the time?

Would they want to eat some food that has an 80% guarantee chance of it not having any poison in it.

Or how about the big one that really gets people’s attention?

Would you be satisfied on your job, on payday, if you only got 80% of your paycheck, that you earned.

No!

The standard is 100%; and as in the last part, of the third stanza, of the U.S. Army’s Ranger Creed “And Then Some!”

I tell people that every round they fired, hit something. Even if it didn’t hit their intended target, from a distance that is equal to standing across the street in almost any major American city, or suburban neighborhood in this country. I illustrate that maybe one of their rounds that did NOT hit it’s intended target, maybe it hit an innocent little kid that was just playing inside their home. Or maybe it hit a woman, just sitting on her front porch. Or any of the hundreds of other possibilities, to highlight the fact that you as a responsible firearms owner, user and/or holder, are responsible for every round that leaves that weapon.

Black Man Green Beret By Muhammad “Shadow” Bilal

Black Man Green Beret is an American story, a semi-autobiography of a man born in the ghettos of the South Bronx and raised on the mean streets of Harlem, in New York City. Experienced homelessness, became a NCO in the military, graduated the U.S. Army’s Special Forces Weapons Sergeant “Q Course”, and eventually became a master level military instructor who wrote Infantry Battle Doctrine for the U.S. Army. Traveled to over 30 countries around the world, including sites in the middle east; the Great Pyramids of Egypt, swam the Red Sea, climbed Moses Mountain and saw the actual Burning Bush. A Retired Military Combat Veteran, who then served almost seven more years in Iraq on the U.S. State Department’s (DoS) WPPS/WPS HTP program in a extremely high threat environment culminating with his successful service on the U.S. Ambassador to Iraq’s Personal Protection Detail (APD). It can be found online at Amazon.com

The post Black Man Green Beret appeared first on Circuit Magazine.

Tactical Firearms Training – The Basics

If you plan on working internationally in the close protection or security industry you will be expected to some degree to know how to handle firearms. Now, to get things straight to start with, what most people, especially Americans, don’t realize is that most non-government close protection jobs are unarmed due to the legal restrictions on firearms in most countries. Part of your threat assessment for any assignment needs to include the laws on the use of force and what if any weapons are legal in the locations you are going to be working in. Being caught with an illegal weapon, especially a firearm will get you thrown in jail very quickly, no matter how important you think you are! So, what do you need to know about firearms if you are looking to work internationally in the close protection and security industry, well the first and most important thing is knowing how to use firearms safely. To become proficient with firearms, like everything else takes practice and time, you’re not going to become and expert after a few hours’ tuition. Many firearms related accidents happen because those handing the firearms are not complying with the basic firearms safety rules of keep the firearms pointed in a safe direction and keeping their fingers off the guns trigger. If you ensure you always follow these two safety rules, you will be acting more responsibly than many others who are working with and carrying firearms. Remember, if you’re the one holding and in control of a firearm that accidentally discharges and injures or kills someone you will be held responsible. A thorough understanding of firearms and range safety is essential before you even start any shooting with live ammunition. Here is a more complete list of firearms safety rules and considerations. WEAPON SAFETY DEPENDS ON KNOWING YOUR WEAPON, CONFIDENCE, ALERTNESS Safety considerations for firearms must always be followed Always keep firearms pointed in a safe direction, especially when loading and unloading. Keep your finger off the trigger until the weapon is pointed at your target. If the action or slide on the weapon is closed, always treat the gun as if loaded and carry out the unload drills. Always show that a firearm is unloaded to a person before you hand it to them. When someone hands you a firearm, always check the chamber and make sure it is unloaded. Never take a person’s word for whether a firearm is loaded or unloaded, always check! Never point a firearm at anyone just for fun or play games with firearms. Always know what is behind your target and have a good backstop. Only fire-controlled shots. You can rapid fire but make sure you are hitting your target. Always practice tactical drills with unloaded firearms until you’re confident and competent enough to use live ammunition. Always unload firearms before dry-fire tactical training. Only use dummy ammunition or blank-firing firearms for demonstrations or dry-fire drills. Never mix blank, dummy, and live rounds. Always check that the gun is unloaded before cleaning. Never tamper with ammunition, and only use reloads from reliable sources. Never use damaged rounds, and always dispose of them safely. Keep guns and ammunition in secure storage when not in use. If you do not know how to operate or are having problems operating a firearm, get professional help. Never used drugs or alcohol when using firearms. Always check and comply with local firearms law Types of Firearms You should try to train with and get to know as many different types of firearms as possible as you never know what you will come across. You might be working unarmed on an assignment in a hostile environment but you need to know how to use the firearms you might encounter in that environment incase things go bad, say your hotel is attacked, and you might have to use the firearms of the local security, police, military and bad guys or make them safe after an incident. Pistols: The two main classification for pistols are semi-automatic and revolver. Sadly, most people these days tend to only train with semi-auto safe action guns such as Glock and S&W M&P’s etc. You need to know how to safely use revolvers, single and double action semi-autos, single action semi-autos and at least be familiar with derringers and sub-compact pocket pistols. Shotguns: I have heard quite a few supposed close protection experts, usually from police backgrounds dismiss the requirements for shotgun training. The reason for this I believe, is in their limited experience within a government agency they have never had the opportunity to use shotguns or travel to locations where they are used. I have personally working in Europe, South & West Africa, Middle East, US, Caribbean, Latin America and have come across shotguns being used in for security details in all of those locations. I would say shotguns are the most widely used firearm used for legal security purposes globally. Shotguns come in various configurations and you should at least understand break action, pump, semi-auto shotguns and the various types of ammunition and chocks. Assault Rifles: Even though most of the tacticool firearms training videos on the internet put an emphasis of training with AR-15’s and AK-47’s in reality there are not many places you can legally use them for security purposes unless you are in the military, on a government related assignment or working illegally. In Iraq and Afghanistan, the laws were put in place for security guards to carry assault rifles, but in most places if you are lucky enough to legally have firearms there is a greater change of it being a shotgun or a pistol rather than an AK etc. Sporting Rifles: In a lot of countries semi-auto firearms are banned or very restricted and the only legal firearms available will be sporting shotguns and leaver or bolt-action rifles. The only time most tacticool operators will consider learning how to use a bolt-action rifle would be if it was a tricked-out sniper rifle… Well, I am sorry if I offend any tacticool operators reading this but all hunting rifles, even with wood stocks, can be used as sniper rifles and for tactical applications. If someone is trained how to shoot properly, understands individual tactics and is armed with a decent leaver or bolt action .22 rifle, I would class them as far more value than the tacticool shemagh wearing operator who uses optics on their tricked-out AR-15 to hit paper targets at 15 meters… Other Firearms: Depending on where you are planning to work depends on the types of firearms you could encounter; in hostile environments you may need to have the rudimentary knowledge of how to operate belt-fed machine guns. Or, if you’re in an area where hunting is popular it might make sense to learn a little bit about black powder rifles and pistols, which in some places have a lot less restrictions on them than cartridge firing firearms. Tactical Firearms Training I have my own views of firearms training and the state of the firearms training industry but will try to keep them to myself as much as I can for the sake of this article. My basic advice to anyone looking at attending any firearms training courses would be is the course relevant and is the instructor experienced enough to teach it. The best place to get a good grounding in firearms training is in the military as you should be given thorough training, the bullets will be free, and you will also be getting paid for your time. There is no way you can replicate a few years military firearms training experience by taking a two-week tactical firearms course. One issues with those who have only had regular military training is that they are only used to dealing with a limited range of firearms. Personally, I only really started to learn and use handguns other than a Browning Hi-Power after I left the British Army and worked in South Africa, Eastern Europe and then joined a gun club in UK before handguns were banned. You must ensure the training you will be getting is relevant for what your going to be doing and is of a good standard. In the U.S. the general standard for training is what’s put out by the National Rifle Association (NRA). Most people don’t realize when taking a training course from an NRA instructor that it only takes one-day to become and NRA instructor or Range Safety officer. In the United States, it’s easy for a novice shooter to become an NRA firearms instructor, as I said it’s a one-day course, SERIOUSLY! With another one-day course they can become a Range Safety Officer, and after that with another one-day course a Chief Range Safety Officer able to certify Range Safety Officers… All without any experience of ever running a firearms course or any experience of actually working on a shooting range… I have come across NRA instructors who could not field strip their own firearms, Chief Range Safety Officers who had never used revolvers or shotguns. From their certifications you would expect them to be experienced professionals! Well, think again… You cannot gain the experience required to be a decent RSO or instructor by just attending a few theory classes, watch tacticool YouTube videos and belonging to Gung-ho online chat forums. The schools issuing these NRA certifications are making money, it’s business, but how many of their students then go on to market themselves as “firearms experts” after just a few one-day classes? I think this can be classed as fraudulent in anyone’s books. It’s just like taking a first-time driver, giving them a two- or three-day theory on how to drive, showing them a car, starting the engine and then certifying them to set up a driving school… Scary, right? Always verify the real-world experience of the instructors who you’re intending to pay good money for quality training. Firearms training can be very expensive so ensure you’re not wasting your money and understand that after just a few days training you’re not going to be at a professional level, whatever your certificates say! Ongoing dry and live firearms training and weapons familiarization is essential if your serious about working in hostile environments but learn to differentiate the difference between tacticool holidays and experiences and relevant training! Tactical Firearms Training – The Basics The post Tactical Firearms Training – The Basics appeared first on Circuit Magazine.

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