Tactical Tangents

In this short episode, Jim introduces the idea of layering safety and security to “trap errors” and mitigate the risk of human error. We want to help you do dangerous jobs safely.

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School Shootings seem to be on the rise, is gun control the answer? How many red flags does someone have to show before you intervene? Let’s look at the evidence and learn from the recent cases like …

Mike & Jim work through the considerations a tactical commander has to account for to accelerate the decision making process, navigate risk, and ultimately encourage initiative and violence of action…

Mike has a quick rant about when someone says "Be safe tonight!" What does that even mean?

Link: The "X" defined

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People who have worked together long enough can almost read each other’s minds, and that sense of shared consciousness and implicit communication is the secret sauce to taking a team dynamic to the n…

An ex-police officer went off the deep end and committed a series of ambushes as he sought revenge for alleged injustices that lead to his firing. Christopher Dorner declared "unconventional, asymmet…

Four refugees entered a “Good Guy” electronics store and took over 40 employees hostage. After hours of deteriorating crisis negotiations, a SWAT team conducted a dynamic hostage rescue. We cover the…

Jim gives us a quick review of the key tactical and strategic lessons coming out of Ukraine, including things like the role of tanks in modern conflict, drones and air power, and information warfare.…

Whether you are trying to deliver consistent training to thousands of people or manage a major critical incident one thing is for certain: More is not always better. But a lot of tasks at major event…

Mike is a retired Special Agent from Homeland Security Investigations who also worked as a local cop back in the day. Now Mike hosts the ASP Podcast where he deep-dives critical self-defense encounte…

There is more to leadership than rank or titles—and before you know it, you’re the guy or gal with just a few years on when you realize you’re not the rookie any more. We talk about capitalizing on g…

A pet peeve of ours is when people talk about deadly force and say, “Do what you gotta do.” As instructors, using explicit language when teaching about lethal force is vital when there is a threshold…

The medical treatment for trauma patients doesn’t change just because there are a lot of them. Managing large scenes is fundamentally a logistics problem and requires leadership, teamwork, and commun…

In between a harsh word and hollow points we need a stepping stone of some kind; training or a tool for situations which lethal force isn't called for. Mike and Jim talk advantages and disadvantages …

Mike and Jim condense a 40 hour week of crisis intervention training into an hour discussion about tactics, dos, and don’ts related to talking to and otherwise dealing with someone who is suicidal or…

Fundamentals are final and the mission always drives the gear train, but the role of creativity still plays a huge role in the future of our industry and tactics. Imagine how much the game changed wh…

Mike talks about the role of proficiency and stress management in prevent bad outcomes if we miss when we get in a shooting. We briefly touch on using deliberate practice and discipline to make sure …

"It depends"

We explore the risks and benefits of a hasty transport instead of waiting for the medical professionals trained for this sort of thing. There are risks and benefits to this practice but …

McKenna Geer is a US Paralympic competitive shooter who brought home a bronze medal in the 2016 Rio games and also competed in Tokyo in 2020. McKenna talks about her upbringing and how her parents he…

In 2019 there was a big shootout between cops and some armed robbery suspects who carjacked and kidnapped a UPS driver in Florida. Both suspects were killed, as well as the UPS driver and another mot…