I have been reviewing some of the things we have discussed for a long time out of personal interest, and lately out of seeming oncoming necessity. Obviously, defense is quite a broad topic, but as I have talked to military personnel and studied several written sources (including the U.S. Army Field Manual, which we might want to get a copy of), the curriculum we are interested in seems to break down into a couple of categories.

1. Individual Militant Skill

Anything is only as good as its parts. This involves:

-Individual Fitness
-Unarmed Combatant Skills
-Armed Combatant Skills (From edged weapons to pistol and rifle)
-Auxiliary Skills (Medical, Explosives, Radio, Repelling, Etc.)

2. Small Unit Tactics

Working in groups to defend our families, essential positions and material, and to take strategic objectives.

-Small Infantry Unit Organization and Roles (Fireteams, Support Teams, Squads and Platoons)
-Combat Strategy and Phases (Assault, Interim, Defensive, Patrol, Strategic Insertion and Raids)
-Required Equipment (Assault Weapons, Suppressive Weapons, Tactical Gear, Engineering, Medical, Mechanized, Etc.)

3. Theatre Strategy and Control

Fitting all the pieces together, developing a plan of action and organizing the carrying out of operations

-Intelligence Gathering (Forward Observation and Listening Posts)
-Tasking and Force Deployment
-Operational Oversight/Control
-Artillery Battery control

So I guess we should set some goals for developing our understanding of these principles. These two links are for the best civilian training available, for both unarmed and armed combat.

Unarmed (in San Diego)
http://www.targetfocustraining.com/


Armed (Las Vegas)
http://www.frontsight.com/index.asp

These are Tactical Gear sites:

http://www.afmo.com/
http://www.eagleindustries.com/home.php
http://www.tacgearstore.com/?gclid=CLnu8pK3yJgCFRwpawodIXLe0w
http://www.ustacticalsupply.com/
http://www.cuttingedgetactical.com/
http://www.armysurplusworld.com/default.asp

Anyway, call me if you want me to explain anything, or when you want to talk about this stuff.