Guns: Housework, Initial Thoughts

Given how much time most people spend indoors, there's a good chance that if you ever need to defend yourself with a firearm, it'll be inside a building. People have written books and taught entire courses dealing with fighting in such spaces, mostly driven by the fact that the armed forces and police have to deal with these types of situations all the time. I'm neither a soldier or a cop, and I've never participated in a gunfight, thankfully, but I'm familiar with some of the theory. More able readers, feel free to correct me where I'm wrong. :-)

I've heard from nearly all sources that clearing a house is dangerous and difficult. If you don't have anyone to help you, it's nearly impossible to do so safely. The average residence or office building has a lot of concealment to offer anyone waiting to ambush you. The police and military go into such places because it's their job; if given a choice, it's definitely better to sit tight in one place, gun in hand, and call 911. Sometimes, though, you don't have a choice - you have to move through a dwelling in order to secure a loved one.

Common sense tells us that concealment is everywhere - sofas, desks, kitchen islands, you name it. The odd thing here is that the closer you get to an obstacle, the less you see. While your first instinct might be to hunker down behind a couch like in an action movie, it's actually often safer to stay away from such obstructions, lest you get pinned down and trapped without any way of easily knowing what's going on. Additionally, the further away you are from an obstacle, the less area behind said obstacle a bad guy can use to hide from you.

I use "concealment" because very few places in a home provide actual "cover." Most indoor walls and doors don't do anything to stop bullets. I'm not sure how many people have sandbags or engine blocks in their living rooms, but suffice it to say not much is going to stop any shots fired, especially rifle rounds.

While I do believe training for indoor fighting is extremely desirable, not everyone can afford or even attend such things. I'm also convinced spending a few days in a shoot house somewhere is no substitute for regular, monthly practice. I'm not sure of the best way to achieve such a thing - the much-vilified AirSoft? Water pistols? Imagination?