Imagine this is a parallel universe, just as a thinking exercise.
Imagine that in this universe someone thinks it’s a good idea to actually hire T-Bolt as a Law Enforcement Officer type. There would be all the requisite training and what not. And I would have to interact with the public in my day to day work, and not just hide in an office behind a desk. So the whole 1-Adam-12 get up with uniform, badge, gunbelt, radio and what not.
Now imagine that the firearm policy in this department is: “We carry Glocks but they make some exceptions and allow people that ask to carry S&W M&Ps. There are no other exceptions.”
Well, ick. I don’t like either of those choices. And not just because they are plastic guns. I truly detest the trigger feel on the S&W and I don’t like how the Glocks fit my hand. I shoot neither well (relative to how I do with other models). I do ok with the XD flavors, though, oddly.
I guess I’d carry the Glock as a duty weapon, as I hate those less, and I’d have a chance to train and practice with it long before I graduated training, but I sure wouldn’t be happy about the whole deal.
What WOULD I like to carry? The 1911? Perhaps. I think I might prefer a modern revolver on my duty belt, really. 8 shots of .38 +P. Yes. Either of those over a plastic gun of any flavor, or any SIG I've shot.
But I, truly, wouldn’t be happy in my law enforcement career in this parallel universe unless parts of my personality changed too. Interacting with people, and a lot of those people kinda sketchy, is not my cuppa. And I don’t enjoy banging heads enough for that whole ‘maintain order’ aspect. I think to be a good cop you have to at least not mind getting into scraps and establishing a physical pecking order out there. And that’s not me.
Suggestion- carry a personally owned Glock and get the grip reshaped to fit your hand. And then practice till you are good with it.
ReplyDeleteI had briefly considered LE as a career option post-military and I have profound respect for those who do that job well. Several thoughts about the general nature and then about the handgun "issue"
ReplyDelete1. Nearly everybody a cop encounters is NOT somebody you'd want to spend any time with. Even the good folks you encounter are probably having a really BAD day.
2. The psychological hazards fo the job; seeing enough of the really heinous shit some twisted folks do does take a toll. There's a reason that suicide is a real danger for cops.
3. Idiot bureaucrats making decisions about something so crucial as your weapon (c.f Department of Defense and the Beretta M9).
4. Like the military in the 90's there are any number of "leaders" who will sacrifice their people in favor of their careers - as opposed to the other way around.
There's a reason you do better with the XD than the Glock; it's a better pistol. Haven't shot the S&W. Carried the Glock for a time (see #3 above) and don't care for them.
1911. Hands down. If plasti-guns were the only choice, however, XD, then Glock. Don't get me wrong - I LOVE Revolvers! But I believe a quality Semi-Auto is better for duty. In a Major Caliber, of course.
ReplyDelete1911- I can't get NPOA with either an M&P or an XD.
ReplyDelete