I know many of you may be interested in this subject so I am curious as to hear people's responses and opinions. We are currently pursuing publication of this article. I know I am not the first one to write such an article but this is what makes sense to me. Enjoy.
To read the article on our website click on:
http://www.avoidthefight.com/whats-new/ Or simply read the text below:
The NEW Four Rules of Firearm SafetyBy Cody Blocker CPS
The four firearms safety rules as laid out by Jeff Cooper are a safety standard that have helped numerous students, instructors and the firearms industry for decades. There is no doubt the concise and well-thought out rules have been incredibly helpful in making people safe with their firearms. The contribution by Jeff Cooper to this subject cannot be minimized. I personally, have benefited greatly by learning Cooper’s rules. But like many concepts, things change and evolve over time.
In the following article, I will present a different perspective on Cooper’s Rules. Words are important and the words we chose mean things, so in the following paper I will examine the words used and present an updated perspective of the rules that better apply to a tactical environment.
My intent is that this article is an homage of Cooper and his achievement. It is simply to ask questions and challenge instructors to train better, smarter, safer and more efficiently. We need to continually out think the bad guys and make ourselves better and safer.
Posing this question of a “new” set of rules is controversial because instantly the critics will incorrectly hear that someone is advocating unsafe gun handling and are too lazy to adhere to the tried and true method of “safe gun handling” as defined by Cooper. But this is not the case. I challenge those critics to open their minds and look at the concept exactly as I am explaining it, not as they perceive it. My proposal should be read in context of the entirety of the concept, not seen as simply a contrarian rejection of Cooper. I am certainly not advocating sloppy gun handling or laziness or any sort of mindset that says “I’m too good for Cooper’s rules, I’m better than that.” Anyone who thinks that they “have arrived” or that “a negligent discharge will never happen to me” is ignorant and prideful. Safety is a mindset that comes from an attitude of humility that needs to be intentionally cultivated every day of our lives.
In training, I learned early on that it was important to clarify if you are training for techniques or tactics (Howe, Pagni, Pannone). For communication purposes of this paper, techniques could be defined as a specific motor skill or a concept like marksmanship. Tactics could be defined as the process of strategic thinking and using those techniques in combat against an opponent. I believe Cooper’s Rules primarily have a “technique-focus” but are lacking in the “tactics-focus” area. Let’s start at the beginning.
History of Cooper's Rules
Jeff Cooper has stated that the basis for the rules started to come together in the late 50s and early 60s. They were most likely compiled from ideas in the Marine Corps and the Southwest Pistol League (Schaefer). There was originally one rule:
1. All guns are loaded.
Although this rule should have been enough, Jeff Cooper was a student of human nature and other rules were added to help insure better safety. Jack O’Connor’s book, Complete Book of Shooting (1965) contains a section by Cooper listing the original three standard rules as:
1. Guns are always loaded.
2. Muzzle in a safe direction.
3. Be sure of your target.
By 1986, Cooper still taught these three rules but talked about a “fourth rule” to be added (Schaefer). Different instructors have modified the rules over the years and taught the concepts slightly different. However, the framework and relation to Cooper cannot be ignored. For communication purposes of this article, the four rules that we will be using for reference is the version written in 2003, in Jeff Coopers’ Commentaries. Where he states the rules as:
The Standard Rules of Safe Gun Handling
1. All guns are always loaded. Even if they are not, treat them as if they are.
2. Never let the muzzle cover anything you are not willing to destroy.
3. Keep your finger off the trigger till your sights are on target.
4. Identify your target, and what is behind it. Never shoot at anything that you have not positively identified (Cooper).
The wisdom and brevity of the four rules make them memorable and easy to learn. One has to violate at least two of the rules in order for someone to become injured. The rules have a built-in redundancy, something that is always helpful when it comes to safety. There are few other such wise and concise statements that have added as much benefit to the shooting community as Cooper’s rules.
I have been fortunate enough to participate in a good deal of firearms and combatives training over the years, and especially these last few years where the market has had no shortage of firearms instructors. I have been fortunate to learn from many high quality and Tier 1 instructors. During my years of continual training, I began to pick up little, subtle differences that each said or hinted at during their classes. Over time, I heard many consistencies and began to compile each instructor’s version of the rules and compare it with others. Each one of these instructors had clearly thought out their exact wording in detail. But I found it interesting why each instructor decided to highlight a somewhat different focus or use slightly different words. I frequently noticed that Cooper’s rules were stated primarily for an “administrative setting” yet another set of rules were sometimes used for practical training purposes on the range. One thing is for sure, every instructor who mentioned the rules always respected Cooper’s contribution, however many of them would provided their own commentary or opinion on the rules.
These other well-respected instructors were not saying the Cooper’s rules were wrong, but that the rules may be missing a few things. This article is my attempt to compile those thoughts into one system. I have chosen what I believe to be the best presentation of the rules. I will highlight which versions I have selected and the reasons why below. Let’s look at each rule one at a time.
Rule # 1: All guns are always loaded. Even if they are not, treat them as if they are.
To read the full article visit our website at:
http://www.avoidthefight.com/whats-new/ 
