We live in the age of increased violence. Even during a downward spiral of crime, there seems to be more violent crimes and shootings being reported. I won’t bother you with any conspiracy theories about why this is, though many abound.
Instead, let’s discuss what you should do if you encounter a bad guy who decides to put on body armor before going out and shooting the place up. I’ve written about this topic for another publication, but it bears repeating on a website that I actually care about. The first step is to find out if the shooter is wearing body armor.
The only way you can figure this out is by shooting back. If you don’t shoot back, you’ll never know unless you can see it. So that is the first step. Now, this obviously gives you away. When you shoot back it points out the fact that someone in the area the mass murderer is trying to kill people in, has a gun.
If he isn’t wearing armor it won’t really matter. Just as long as you land those shots, anyway. If you land those shots and he’s not sufficiently protected he’s going down.
When you take these shots at a bad guy doing harm, you know you always want to go for the biggest target. The biggest, easiest to hit target is always the torso. That way, if you happen to drop a shot low and left and you’ll still likely hit something.
Here’s the thing, though: You don’t just want to unload on the guy, hoping for the best. You don’t just want to zipper the guy up with body shots.
Firing and assessing is the best case scenario here. Ammo is a precious commodity during a gun fight, and the last thing you want to do is run out while your enemy is still shooting.
So, after firing two shots, if the bad guy doesn’t go down, chances are good that you’re either a horrible shot, or the guy is wearing body armor. Either way, you need to reassess your situation.
If it’s the latter, the bad guy will hopefully give some sort of sign that he knows he’s been hit, like a glance to that area at the minimum, to a lot of pain and potentially falling to the ground depending on a lot of factors like the type of body armor, your bullet, etc.
But, let’s say that the bad guy doesn’t even budge. What then? Remember, you always want to shoot the biggest spot you can. So, anyone who tells you to go for a head shot or one of the extremities on a moving target isn’t thinking clearly.
Chances are good that you’ll miss, sending a precious bullet off into the sunset as you give yourself away further.
Instead, remembering that you want to hit the biggest target, you have to shoot at the groin. The pelvic area is the next biggest part of the body and is also not usually protected by body armor.
Because you want to stop the attack and there are big bones in that area, as well as … other important stuff, a couple shots to the groin should stop an attacker in his tracks.
If you miss the groin and shoot low and to the left, you will still likely shoot a leg, perhaps taking out an artery. Again, it isn’t a good idea to aim for the leg, though.
In summary, when encountering an active baddie, you need to test the waters. Shoot twice to the torso. If nothing happens and you’re sure you made those hits, chances are good he’s wearing protection. If that’s the case, the groin is where it’s at because it’s the next biggest target, and next easiest thing to hit.
And, in an age where people are trying to hurt others however they can, maybe it’s time to rethink the Mozambique drill (two to the chest, one to the head) and go with the Pelvique (two to the chest, one to the groin), instead.
Here is a review on my chosen body armor.
