“A Man’s Character is His Fate” by Bill Buppert

“What gets us into trouble is not what we don’t know. It’s what we know for sure that just ain’t so.”
– Mark Twain

 “In great and dangerous operations one must not think but act”
– Julius Caesar

We can thank Herodotus for the quote in the title

The Antifa commies have threatened to make 4NOV2017 the beginning of kinetic festivities for anyone who thinks government should be smaller or not there at all. Ironically, that is the same day in 1921 that Hitler’s SA started rumbling their way to the top in Germany.

Is it real? Who knows, but if the moronathon known as party collectivists in the USSA make the declaration, just consider it a training opportunity.

I have a confession.  I am a geardo.  I love kit in all its varieties from camo to bags to clothing to slings and everything in between.  I just upgraded my Level II EDC bag to a new Maxpedition Versipak S-Type EDC in Khaki.

So it may be time to review your safety gear for the weekend just in case.

My readers know that the primary handgun for our clan is the Glock. If you tote another handgun of any type and know what you are about with it, go with the Gods.

You never leave your house anticipating a head-on collision or an untoward event of any kind but you will discover that if you prepare ahead both mentally and materially, your chances of coming out alive and intact will increase exponentially.  It takes approx three thousand repetitions of a process to make it a battle-drill which you don’t “think” through such as drawing and firing a handgun. BUT…it takes approx ten thousands repetition to unscrew a bad habit when conducting social work.  Gear helps but don’t fall into the trap of thinking the gear will suffice without associated training and familiarity with equipment. Henri-Louis Bergson: “Think like a man of action, act like a man of thought.”

In the shooting community, a man’s ability to field a very expensive rifle in the field is inversely proportional to his ability to employ it with skill.  My modified Glocks consistently outperform two to five thousand dollar 1911 pistols because I have invested the time in training and at the range to ratchet up my skill level to a higher standard.

A brief explanation of the “levels” of Everyday Carry (EDC). I categorize my EDC into four levels according to the capabilities that particular system can provide. I’ll only detail the inventory of the Level I and II today.

Level I: The smallest and lightest of all the kits with the least amount of capability.

Level II: A modified version of what was my 2nd generation Level III. Similar in capability to my current setup but based on a bag which limits its size and capabilities. One could say this is my “true” EDC, since it’s the system I carry 95% of the time I’m not at work.

Level III: Everywhere I go, it’s never more than an arms reach away and strapped to my back whenever I’m walking if circumstances allow it.

Level IV: This is my BOB/EVAC bag. It’s not an EDC since it never gets carried, but is always ready to be picked up on the run in case I need to abandon my home, it has equal capabilities to my Level III in many areas but with much more capable kits for the types of needs one could have in an evacuation scenario. It is amazing the level of detail shown but it proves out one axiom I learned in the military:  meticulous preparation is a large part of good luck.  Over the next few months I would like to expand this series and approach the various “kits” one may need and some of the organizational schemes out there to make these functional and ultimately useful in a crisis if the need arises. Keep in mind that it is simply the gear but your ability to employ it skillfully and effectively.

I also have a variety of other kits for my vehicle, home and work that serve as additional layers of preparation.

My Level I (Work) carry for work is Casio Pathfinder, wallet, notebook, Zero Tolerance 0562CF Hinderer folder, keys with tools, flip phone, pager, Streamlight Stylus Pro and Maxpedition wallet.

My Level I (Leisure) is all of the above with a modified G19 in AIWB (lanyard w/ trigger cover) or a G-Code RTI OWB and Bladetech or G-code twin magazine holster.

My Level II (W) is a Maxpedition Versipak Fatboy S-Type in khaki with a variety of tools I carry to work to include a GSW/IFAK kit, Leatherman Wingman, iPod Classic, O-Light and 32oz Nalgene It also holds my notebooks and Kindle DX. I’ve re-purposed 2x iPad 2 covers for my graph-scaled steno pads along with other various items I use on a daily basis.

My Level II (L) is the same with the addition of gun gear and an augmented IFAK kit.

I have been using Glocks (Generation I-III) in CONUS and overseas since 1991.

There are two levels of mods for the Glock. It comes at a low price point because there are so many aftermarket items for it.

Level I:

  • Stainless steel guide rod
  • Glock OEM 3.5# connector
  • Aftermarket night sights (metal)
  • Extended slide release
  • Modified take-down plate
  • Grip plug
  • Vickers floor plates
  • Vickers Slide Racker
  • Blacklist or S3F threaded barrel
  • Gripper Slide Cut by Battlewerx

Level II:

  • Trijicon RMR 6.5 MOA Adjustable LED Red Dot Sight
  • Streamlight TLR-1 HL

I have a minimum of ten magazines per Glock to include both OEM and Magpul.

Your mileage may vary but I highly recommend that you be extraordinarily cautious this weekend and equipped to meet any communist threat that happens to come your way. I pray to the Gods it is a false alarm in a world of fake news. Just consider it good training.

Jeff Cooper’s rules may help.

Resist, Rinse. Repeat.

“A good battle plan that you act on today can be better than a perfect one tomorrow.”

– General George S. Patton

16 thoughts on ““A Man’s Character is His Fate” by Bill Buppert”

  1. Pingback: Buppert: “A Man’s Character Is His Fate” | Western Rifle Shooters Association

  2. “You never leave your house anticipating a head-on collision or an untoward event of any kind …”

    The Hell I don’t! Why would you not?

    1. It’s “Not your fault that you married and bred a woman in Kali thinking that she’d actually be a wife, anon” Not even a senerio one could escape from

  3. White Blue Collar Redneck

    November 4th, 2017, Yawn.……, Zzzzzz.

    Their declaration of “war” and accompanying threats of militant protests and riots is nothing but propaganda. The communists of “antifa” and the “left” know how easy it is to distract their opponents and adversaries with shiny objects.

    They babbled, printed, and posted social media nonsense about a November 4th rebellion, and right on cue, all of you Chicken Littles are screaming about the sky falling, circle the wagons, woe is me.

    Give it a rest.

    Or, at a minimum, become a student of competent tactical assessment and critical thinking, and learn to sensibly apply those skills.

    Just stop it.

    The clacking and knocking of your knees is costing me a good night’s sleep.

    1. You must be new around here, Mr. multicolor… and must not have read anything else Bill writes.

      We are prepared to deal with pretty much anything that comes at us – men and women. Most of us wouldn’t dream of starting anything, however.

      Nobody here afraid of the tranzi idiots, but even remote, improbable threats, especially when tossed around by irrational and immoral people like the “antifa” bunch… should be thoughtfully considered and efforts made to anticipate and counter.

      Just as I carry a gun everywhere, every day, every place I go… doesn’t mean I’m seeing threats all around me… but that I’m prepared if threats materialize.

    2. If this is costing you sleep then maybe you are a weak individual. You sound like a weak individual. You’re acting like a weak individual. Therefore, you are definitely a weak individual.

  4. So, why do you care what we say or thing? Why are you posting here? It’s obvious you don’t need us… and just as obvious we don’t need you. Go play on the freeway…

  5. Thomas T. Tinker

    WBR: May be best to simply keep to one’s self and wait to see what actually takes place. This left side call to the streets may be just another way to announce a nation wide “Creative Shopping” day…. There are, after all, only so many tennis shoes, flat screens or bottled wine on the shelf at any given moment. I’ve made it a rule not to pay attention to another fellas motive for and method of concealed carry…

    Get a good nights sleep Friday night and we’ll all see what the Saturday morning news brings us…. I’m having ‘Eggys fried in butter with maple syrup’ and home made Turkish coffee……. You?

    1. Saturday is my excuse to indulge in waffles. I prefer my home made jam to any syrup. 🙂 Not going anywhere, and I seriously doubt anyone will attempt any “creative shopping” here.

  6. The left and all the antifa useful idiots are starting to turn in on themselves. We must let them do it. Self destruction is a very efficient way of removing an enemy. As far as picking fights, that is just playing into their hands. So live your lives well, and be prepared. If they are stupid enough to show up and threaten our and our family’s lives, then there will hell to pay. Powder dry, folks.

  7. May I ask why you advocate a stainless guide rod on a Glock? I am a Glock armorer and our training said that the frame needs to flex, that a metal(stainless, steel, brass) guide rod can interfere in the flexing thus reliability… have you seen any captive polymer Glock recoil rods fail? I honestly never have….

    1. TD,

      If I am correct, the Gen4 have steel captured rods (RSA) in OEM guns. I’ll stand corrected if you know better. That may be their explanation but I suspect the reason is cost hence the OEM sights are plastic and the guide rod is [in Gen I-III]. I think this a savvy marketing ploy on the part of Glock to get the basic gun sold and customers can customize and tailor to their heart’s desire.

      My question to you is: do Glock shooters with titanium and steel guide rods suffer malfs as a result of this installation? Show me a malf and I will show you white box ammo or incorrect spring weight root causes.

      Per frame flexing, there is only two axes to flex and they are both in line with the travel of the barrel.

      I’m an engineer by trade and know that the forcing function is a lateral action along the axis of the frame and the slide. This can be complicated by gas systems like the gas operated AR systems that competed against direct impingement (DI) legacy systems. C. Reed Knight at KAC is a severe skeptic of the shearing forces introduced in the chamber through the gas operating system in non-DI AR designs.

      See: https://www.firearmsnews.com/tactical/ultimate-gas-impingement-ar-kac-sr-15e3-sbr-review/

      If you have any technical studies that speak to this issue, I am all ears.

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