The "Boss" and I went to Mass, and we.........

[suncat05]

ended up having a discussion about where to sit in relation to the main door.

I like to sit several rows down the center of the main aisle, to the right. She always wants to sit to the left, at the very back pew, right next to the door.

The reason we had this discussion is because of all of the recent, and not so recent church shootings. And no matter how much I emphasize how important it is to be tactically prepared for an emergency situation, she just doesn't "get it". "You're not a cop anymore, and it's not going to happen here anyway". Famous last words, especially for those that don't think it can happen to them. I'm NOT that guy. I spent years and years watching, training, and preparing for just such an event, all the while praying to our merciful Father that it doesn't happen here.

I am right handed, hence the reason I want to be sitting to the right of the door that is behind me. That gives me a tactical advantage should, God forbid, that one day some scumbag with evil intent and a gun walks through that door and starts trying to murder innocent people. My wife just doesn't understand the concept of being in the best possible position to deal with a problem that you're not going to be able to run from. Somebody starts shooting in church, I am not running. Because evil has to be confronted, from the best possible position available. No, she wants to sit right next to the door, to the left, which puts us at a tactical and situational disadvantage. No matter how much I explain it to her, she's not hearing it. Fortunately, she listens "most of the time" about other things that are as important, but this, no. She's even told me "God will protect us". Yeah, I know He will, but He also tells us that we have to help ourselves too. Which would include being in the correct tactical position if the worst was to happen. And properly armed.

It makes me sad that I even have to think about stuff like this. This isn't the world and country that I grew up in. But now, somebody has to protect the flock, and even though I am retired, I'm an old sheepdog that can't forget about old habits. And that when faced with true evil, it has to be confronted and defeated right then and there. And I know some will question the very presence of a handgun inside His House, but I honestly believe it is necessary. Even Jesus used violence in the Temple to cast out the money changers and other sinners from His Father's House.

I don't ever want to be involved in another firearm related incident. I hope and pray that no one ever gets shot in another church anywhere ever again. But the good people that attend churches everywhere deserve to be able to worship their God in whatever manner they have chosen to worship Him. And I can't see having to die while doing it.

[Darrell KSR]

Suncat, I get the "not sitting in the back" close to the door as losing a tactical advantage, but for a right-handed shooter, what is the advantage of being to the right of the door, rather than the left?

To my feeble brain, being to the left of the door means that, if, God forbid, you had to shoot, you'd have your shooting hand more nearly into a shooting position without having to twist your torso as much.

Being to the right of the door means your left arm is closest to the door, your right arm farther, if I'm understanding what you mean by left and right of the door (I may not).

[blueboss]

This is unbelievable, I was wondering this exact thing when I went to mass this morning pondering where to sit… for a fleeting moment when I went in and sat about a quarter of the way up, and sat on the right side in the middle of the pew, I wondered how/what it looked like in a shooters mind when coming in to exact harm.


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[Catfan73]

I was always taught to get as close to the front as possible but my father in law always sits in the back. That’s because he always hightails it for the parking lot right after communion though.

I’m not really one of those people that think it can’t happen here, I just don’t think about it happening. I guess that’s just as bad.

[suncat05]

I'm right hand, right eye dominant. For me it would just be easier to go to my left that trying to go right from my left. My left side would be available to push off/keep someone from making me lose my balance or to push me down into a compromising position. Also, going right to left allows for better target acquisition, at least for me.

Why give the bad guy a tactical advantage by making you have to shoot from your weak side? Nope, when these things happen, it happens suddenly, unexpectedly, and with the element of surprise in their favor. You can negate that by being in a place that is advantageous to you.

Who is going to be the first victim that is shot? Whoever is closest to the door, and it doesn't matter if it's to the left or the right. Whoever is within that first 5-10 feet is likely going to be shot.

Look, you're in church, with your back to the door, and then there's gunfire behind you. Then everybody in the building starts screaming, running, and are trying to get away and falling all over each other. At this point you have to have your handgun in your strong hand, and you have to use your weak hand to push them off, or down, or away from you so that you can get in the fight. Where you are at when it all begins helps determine how it ends for you. For me, that's to the right side of the door.

A few years back, while I was still working, we went through an active shooters class, with the emphasis being stopping an active shooter in a school. What I learned there, and how I came to "see" these situations leads me to believe that being in the right place at the right time when one of these events kicks off gives me the tactical advantage I need to stop the fight. Now, in a school shooting that's most likely not going to be the case. You're very likely going to have to move to the sound of the gunfire. But sitting in a pew in church can give me a tactical advantage because I'm already there, have a tactical advantage and I can at least control that. Being in the right place is important. The shooter has come to you, and he's in the wrong place.

And Darrell, I absolutely see your point. My perspective comes from the training I've had, and putting myself in the best possible position to stop the shooting before it goes any further. Position is everything. Having your gun in your strong hand and using your weak hand to help you establish a good shooting position is important.

Again, this is just part of my conversation with my wife this morning. She doesn't understand.

Or maybe she's thinking about that big payday she'll get from life insurance. Who knows how women think?

[dan_bgblue]

Similar, but certainly not the same, in a restaurant, I always sit with my back to at least one solid wall, preferably at a corner table with me facing the windows and doors when ever possible.

[suncat05]

Similar, but certainly not the same, in a restaurant, I always sit with my back to at least one solid wall, preferably at a corner table with me facing the windows and doors when ever possible.

As do I. I want to see who is walking through that door.