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Going against the grain takes humility, guts, and the chance to lose.
Last month I went to shoot a competition with Bob Mayne at the Handgun World Podcast. Not unusual, Bob and I shoot competitions at least once a month if not more. I normally beat him, but there have been times when he has beaten me. We are normally in the middle of the pack someplace when it comes to overall scores.
Last month was different because I invited a former military guy and current law enforcement guy that are always asking about shooting and one of them tells me how good he is at it. My arrogance and experience come in here when I say that most law enforcement and military guys aren’t very good with their weapons. They lack training and lots of practice.
I’ve gotten to the point where I just don’t ask people to shoot competitions with me because they will not. It gets really old, really fast, and excuses are like assholes; everyone has one, and they all stink.
My wife “highly suggested” that I ask these guys, so I did. And no big surprise, I got an excuse for why they both couldn’t go.
That got me thinking about others’ lack of guts. With the chance to lose and look foolish on the line, almost everyone in the military and law enforcement will refuse to play a game with their profession’s chosen tools.
It got me pissed. I am out of both professions and getting too old to play the game professionally anymore. I rely on these people to keep our world safe, and they don’t have the guts to lose or look foolish in front of people they don’t know. How are they ever going to stand up for the things that are needed? When a police officer gets direction from their command to do something against the Constitution or against the people, how are they ever going to say no when they don’t have the guts to shoot a competition with a bunch of civilians?
When the military hands down UnConstitutional, immoral, or illegal orders, how will the individual fighter or commander say no to their command if they can’t shoot a competition?
Courage, like most things, is a muscle that you have to exercise in life. If you don’t practice courage, it will atrophy and die.
How often do you practice courage? Moral and or physical? Do you do new things that you are going to look foolish at? Do you accept challenges when others ask you to do something that should be possible? Do you do things that are hard that others say are hard, shouldn’t be done, or is impossible? Do you do different hard things on purpose because they are hard and scary?
Take a challenge. Do something hard. Say something when you know something should be said. Practice your courage. If what people are saying in the firearms/2nd Amendment culture is true, we are going to need courage both moral and physical soon. Now would be a good time to practice.
Stay Safe,
Ben Branam