Posted on 03/12/2019 8:30:01 AM PDT by Perseverando
U.S.A. –-(Ammoland.com)- Many people have a difficult time changing their minds once they have formulated an opinion, especially once they have committed to the opinion on the record. I am happy to say fellow writer Wes Siler is of better material than that.
In a June 2017 article, Wes was of the opinion that firearms, all firearms, were worthless as a defense against bears. He opined that statistically speaking, a person, when attacked by a bear, was as well off without a firearm as with one. He depended on research which had some problems with selection bias. Wes, quite generously, quoted me correctly. From outsideonline.com:
Like most tragedies, this one has become a canvas onto which various crackpots and special interests are painting their opinions. My favorite hot take has to be this one on the Truth About Guns, arguing that teenagers should pack heat while going on fun runs. “The runner was able and willing to carry a cellphone,” writes Dean Weingarten. “He could easily have carried a Ruger LCP II, which weighs about as much. Whether or not that would have been ‘enough gun’ for a black bear is not entirely germane. It would have given him a chance.”
Would carrying a small .380-caliber pistol have made a difference? A study of 269 bear encounters conducted in 2012 found that relying on a firearm (any firearm) as your primary line of defense gives you the same odds as carrying no defense whatsoever. Statistically speaking, Cooper was just as safe from bears running without a pistol as he would have been with one.
With a year and a half more experience available to Wes, as well as the salubrious effect of moving into grizzly bear territory in Bozeman, Montana, Wes has considered the evidence and changed
(Excerpt) Read more at ammoland.com ...
Bear cubs are cute. Aw.
I wanna take a selfie with those cute bear cubs.
~~ said a soon to be ex-liberal.
Do I carry a gun to protect myself from a cougar or not carry a gun to better protect my self from a bear?/s
It’s ok to be stupid because stupid is supposed to hurt. Just don’t infect others with the stupid.
90% of attacks on humans are caused by animals, yet 100% of self defense courses teach only how to defend against other humans.
I’m planning of teaching a self defense class against various kinds of animals.
Well, I’m in black bear country. If I was in Grizzly country I’d go for a .45 or 10mm. And yeah, I’d think penetration would be the rule of the day.
Those things can go through a buffalo the long way.
Read the article, gentlemen...
He won’t have to “grab it”, he’ll be wearing one.
The “Re-Think” part of the title is how he now believes they work.
I was once fishing in a creek on Douglas Island across from Juneau Alaska. A pretty good run of Chum with Dollys following Three blacks about 30 yards upstream and a couple of them below. They didn’t bother me. Too busy eating.
Here’s the link to the report on those 37 incidents:
Me neither. I understand that in some locations, I have to be heavily armed to remain at the top of the food chain.
Under most circumstances the black bear is simply not a naturally aggressive animal. Brown bears are pretty much the opposite.
Or carry a big stick that will allow you to "Tonya Harding" your buddy in an emergency.
"Hey, buddy, are you prepared to defend yourself in case of a bear attack? ... Sure, I have this stick.... Huh? Your going to hit a bear with a stick if it attacks?.... No. I'm going to hit you in the knee and run like hell."
Monty Python jokes would apply then, because sticks are often the handiest way to kill poisonous snakes.
Okay, maybe not the part with bannanas.
Why should I reads the article? I read boogieman’s post and responded to it.
#youpompousprig
I prefer a 45 handgun because (I believe) it is an excellent balance between grain weight and lack of muzzle flip due to slower velocity.
Go ahead and laugh, but people are attacked by animals a lot more then gets reported. Last year a large goose somehow got into one of my (senior citzen) neighbor’s house.
It chased him around the dining room table until his wife called the police who finally came to remove it.
His wife told my wife that if the police had come a minute later, her husband would have died from a heart attack.
“When hiking always bring along a buddy that YOU CAN OUTRUN IN A SPRINT.”
Or shoot them in the knee or a foot with your handgun and then run.
One of our SILs, jokes about that.
Most of us would not go hiking in the woods with her.
Ever see the claws on a small 150# bear?
Imagine a teacup saucer with 5 pocket knife blades
Please forgive my “pomposity”, Sir. (Good motive, bad delivery.)
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