The Factor of Little of Either.

by JLF , Tuesday, October 23, 2012, 22:48 (4416 days ago) @ Byron

Within the limitations of common handgun calibers, the overwhelming bulk of what a person who has been shot will do, is determined by...what a person who has been shot will do. Precious few handgun hits render a target either instantly unconscious, or physically/neurologically incapacitated. OTOH, the scale of human reaction runs the gamut from falling down and howling when shot with a BB, to remaining active, and lethal, for an astounding amount of time after multiple hits with any handgun caliber. The determining factors along this scale just have one heck of a lot more to do with the human, than they do the caliber/bullet.

So despite our many decades of study and research on "stopping power", the single most life-saving element of the complex equation for us good guys, is the "reality" that the overwhelming majority of humans share a common reaction to being shot, which is a *mental* reaction. "I've been shot!" means, stop, lay down, or sit down, and hurt like hell. Bill Jordan devotes a whole chapter to overcoming this for us good guys, to stay in the fight, and perservere. It's not easy, and few scrotes have read his book.

Don't misunderstand, I think the focus and the work, and the research has blessed us with the best guns and ammo we have ever enjoyed. I have zero objections to upping the odds, every time, and any way we can. My preference, if a gunfight is just going to happen, is a 4" Colt Woodsman, with a magic round of .22 that turns my adversary into a lingering cloud of pink mist, depending on the wind. Until I have that, I want my adversary in that giant percentage that lays down when shot, no matter what I have hit him with.

JLF