I live in the middle of the Southern California desert. We recently had a tropical storm hit us. Bugging out was not an option. How do you recommend I survive?

-From Nicholas Z.

Answer: Sheltering in place is always the best option and bugging out comes secondary.

So, I would recommend building up at least 30 days of food and water storage in your home, which would hopefully provide enough time until help arrived.

In addition, I would do anything possible to reinforce your home from criminals and natural disasters.

I would install a security system and make sure you have quality door locks such as Schlage.

Of course, you should also have a firearm so that if someone tries to kick down the door you can defend your family.

In short, you need to be able to hunker down for a long period of time without having to rely on others.

 

What ammo do you recommend for home defense and concealed carry?

-From Nikki D.

Answer: I carry 9mm Speer Gold Dot in my home defense gun and my concealed carry gun.

With advances in bullet technology, 9mm hollow points will get the job done.

Not too long ago, the FBI released a memo stating why police departments should consider going back to 9mm based on improvements in bullet technology.

There are a lot of folks that will only carry a .45 caliber.

Yet, a .45 caliber is going to have a lot more recoil and most shooters will be less accurate with a .45 compared to a 9mm.

Plus, my 9mm magazine holds more rounds than .45.

 

I’m new to concealed carry. My biggest concern is that if I use my weapon in self-defense that onlookers and police might not know if I’m the good guy or the bad guy. What do I do about this?

-From Adam O.

Answer: As soon as the threat is stopped, you need to holster the gun, that’s the important thing.

But definitely don’t holster it until the attacker is stopped. Of course, you can also verbally explain that you’re the good guy and the person attacked and tried to kill you.

 

Even though the pandemic has been over for a while I’m still having trouble finding ammo. Do you think the difficulty finding ammo could be some form of gun control?

-From Will L.

Answer: You bring up a great point. No matter how many guns you own, you won’t be able to protect your family if you don’t have ammo.

Some states have laws that require anyone purchasing ammunition to undergo a background check with every purchase.

In California, those who don’t already have their information in the Department of Justice’s system for these point-of-sale screenings will have to pay up to $20 for an initial screening.

In addition, California law requires that all ammo purchases take place in person. Even online orders must be delivered to a licensed vendor for customer pick-up.

So, the government will definitely use ammo as a form of gun control.

 

I wear prescription glasses and I can’t see anything without them. What do you recommend doing at the shooting range? Are there any glasses you recommend?

-From Neal B.

Answer: When it comes to going to the shooting range, finding quality shooting glasses when you already wear prescription glasses can be difficult.

But, some gun ranges will allow you to just wear your regular prescription glasses when shooting.

But, if you are looking for more eye protection I would check out the NoCry Over Safety Glasses. These sell for about $20 on Amazon. These glasses are OSHA approved and go over your existing glasses.

They are made from polycarbonate and have scratch-resistant lenses.

 

I have never had a concealed weapons permit. I feel like it will make me a target. If the government tries to take away guns they will have a list of gun owners. What do you think?

-From Jace V.

Answer: I don’t disagree that obtaining a concealed carry permit puts your name on a government record, but the good thing is, no one will know exactly how many guns you own and where they are located.

As for me personally, I carry concealed every single day and it’s not worth the risk for me to take the chance of getting caught illegally carrying a gun, and so I do have my permit.

But, I also have guns that don’t exist and are well hidden and nobody will ever be able to find them.