Southwest PA Self-defense Network Blog

 There is a concept that is foundational for children's safety that parents must understand - How much can they participate in their own safety ?   As parents, we give directions and orders to our children with the expectation they'll follow those directions and it will keep them safe.  By following our directives, they participate in their own safety.   But parents will give unreasonable directives that are age inappropriate; simply put, the kids are too young to understand and follow them.  " You should be watching and staying close to me. Don't wander off."  Good for an 6 year old, terrible for a 3 year old.  " Don't talk to strangers." Bad advice to start with and very difficult for children to put in practice. Even adults can be suckered in with a smooth sounding adult how much harder for a child to differentiate between good person and con person ? "Don't open the door."  What if it's the police or fire department bagging on d...

There are enough cases of kids being kidnapped by force or a lure that parents should keep a watch. There is a philosophical point - at what age can your kids participate in their own safety ? It is unreasonable to expect a 5 and 7 year old to " stay close" to mommy and daddy so the parent have to do a better job.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_9rqjT3Yzsw    DEAR ABBY: I'm married and the mother of two kids, ages 5 and 7. My husband is a very involved father and partner in our marriage. My complaint is that he's too trusting of other people and doesn't keep an eye on the kids in public places. An example: He'll take them to the grocery store and let them hang out in the toy department while he's getting groceries. They will be 100 yards away from each other. I have told him several times that I'm not comfortable with this, yet he continues to do it. I'm not sure what to do about it anymore. Have you any suggestions? -- NERVOUS IN NEBRASKA DEAR N...

  Topgun: An American story. 320 pages; c2019 This book is told from the perspective of one of the founding members of the Topgun training program for naval aviators. As most stories go it starts with his household and upbringing and such, moves into his joining the navy, his early career as an aviator and his experiences over Vietnam.  It ends with him retiring after commanding his own aircraft carrier.  The book is interesting with a ton of names mentioned for recognition and history but it weighs it down a bit. 50 years later the audience doesn't care that much about who was the hotest stick in your squadron.  It does have a nice first hand discussion about the air war in Vietnam and the politics behind who they could and could not bomb. It also has some nice first hand accounts of some of the military actions that have taken place over the years.  It also discusses some of the classic naval fighter jets they have implemented over the years especially focusin...

  Recommended reading list 4-1-21 The Gift of Fear - Gavin DeBecker - foundational book on listening to your intuition and pre incident indicators.  Why does he do that by Bancroft - domestic violence I never called it Rape -  sexual assault Her wits about her - inspiring true life writings from women who defended themselves. Without Conscience by Hare - criminal psychology Inside the Criminal Mind by Samenow - Criminal psychology Mindhunter by Douglas - FBI Forensic Profiling  Journey into Darkness by Douglas - forensic profiling  STreet Smarts by Glover - general selfdefense Tough Target by Bittenbinder - general selfdefense Deadly Force Encounters - law enforcement  The Unthinkable: who survives when disaster strikes by Ripley - great book on mental preparedness Musings on Violence by Christensen - combat psychology Meditations on violence by Miller - combat psychology On Killing by Grossman - combat psychology On Combat by Grossman - combat psychology T...

 Recommended Websites 4-1-21 Firearms, gun ownership and general information http://www.a-human-right.com/introduction.html  Training, both in person and online https://oftllc.us/  Onsight Firearms Training 

Kitestring is a SMS-based service. Sign up online, then ask it via text message to check up on you in, say, 25 minutes when you are supposed to arrive in your destination. After 25 minutes, Kitestring will send you a text, checking to see if you made it. You reply via text or check-in online. If you don't (and you haven't extended the time or checked in early), it will send a message you created to your emergency contact, letting them know to give you a call. If your phone dies, you lose it, or something happens to you, it will send the message anyway -- it doesn't need your phone to be serviceable. Of course, this wouldn't be something I would use every time I leave my house, but knowing the technology is available is the important part, and it's good to know it could be use at particularly important or dangerous times. There's also the possibility of missing the message and creating a false emergency. http://www.techrepublic.com/article/can-tech-help-prevent-v...

‘Sexy’ clothes don’t excuse sexual violence Carol Costello Updated 8:27 AM EDT, Thu October 9, 2014 01:29 - Source: CNN 'Sexy' clothes don't justify violence Editor’s Note:  Carol Costello  anchors the 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. ET edition of CNN’s “Newsroom” each weekday. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of the author. (CNN) —   Silly girls. If you didn’t show-off your lady parts, you wouldn’t be as remotely prone to sexual harassment as you are now. Or worse – rape. I’m told there are far too many young men with uncontrollable urges. When they feast their eyes upon your barely covered naughty bits, the Neanderthal inside comes roaring to the surface. They just can’t help it. The latest volley in the war over so-called slut shaming comes from radio host and ABC contributor, Laura Ingraham. She  celebrated  a Utah high school for denying girls their homecoming dance because of their “immodest dress.” “These are still girls,” Ingra...