You often hear, read, or watch debates and opinions about “stopping power”, this cartridge vs that, and whatnot. They quickly devolve into an emotional debate, heck I definitely have some opinions after more than three decades surrounded by death which include time in combat and combat zones, law enforcement, hunting big and small game, and butcher animals on a farm or homestead. But I don’t think the tool selection matters nearly that much and its certainly less important than how its being used.
What really stops a threat: man or beast? During firearms instructor course there was the phrase: “Electrical, Hydraulic, or Mechanical”. I had never heard it put that simply before but it was catchy, simple, and really summed up the areas to target to stop a threat. This was taught as a solution for two legged problems, it seems just as applicable on a dangerous game side.
Electrical means a hit high enough on the central nervous system (CNS) to either outright kill a threat, or to shut down it’s ability to have control of their arms in the case of people, legs for animals. As arms can hold projectile launching tools and legs can bring them to you. From a self-defense perspective, electrical would be the most preferred approach as it works the quickest. Frankly, in real close proximity its the only option I trust to stop a threat. The disadvantage to this approach is the smallest target size. But it works immediately and in a life or death struggle speed is rather helpful.
Hydraulic, meaning let all the blood out. It’s a surefire method typically with the largest target area. The limitations being the most time consuming to take affect, and a determined threat could still cause you harm (kill you and yours) before they expire.
There was a case during the Vietnam War were a Marine Gunnery Sergeant was on the radio calling in an artillery fire or close air support, and relayed he had been hit. He then continued to talk on the radio for six minutes before the radio fell silent. When his body was examined later, he was found with only one wound, he had been shot through the heart. Talk to combat vets, EMS crews working violent areas, hunters, and butchers who do live kills and have to slaughter “wild” domestic animals at the farms, if they have done that work long enough they will have their own similar stories.
This is caused by adrenaline, it does some impressive things at times and has been shown to shunt the oxygen available in a body to the brain allowing it to function much longer than what anyone would consider normal. Similar occurrences with dangerous game have been recorded, where they have been shot through the heart/lungs after being agitated and it taking minutes for them to expire. Mind you, this differs from game hunting for example, or anything that hasn’t been stimulated into a fight or flight state. When hunting and shooting a calm animal through the heart or lungs, then they expire rather quickly. But if they are excited beforehand and have adrenaline pumping through their system they often run a long ways.
The last, mechanical, being the breaking down of the bones and joints responsible for the mobility (shoulders and hips) so they cannot move towards you or in the case of a human threat launch a projectile (shoot) at you. The advantage being speed, but only when enough of the joints are broken. The problem is making certain you get enough joints broken down. Another disadvantage is you need the bullet to be up to the task, and I wouldn’t want to attempt with this with a marginal cartridge and bullet combination. Mechanical might be a better option for dangerous game than people. After all they have to get to you to hurt you.
Hopefully you never are placed in a position where you need to defend your life. If you being forced into a self defense situation hopefully you trained with these principles in mind, consider your potential threats and the tools you will have available. I’d also read the self defense laws for your area to see if these concepts are inline with the rules.
God Bless, stay safe, the world is changing.
-Joe
Outpost 95 