I think you have probably heard that St. Louis lawyers Mark and Patricia McCloskey became a viral sensation when they displayed firearms to fend off a large, violent crowd of trespassers. No shots fired.
I immediately thought of Joe Biden’s advice on home defense:
“[If] you want to keep someone away from your house, just fire the shotgun through the door.”
It’s only my opinion, but I don’t think you should get too fixated on shooting through a door at something you can’t see. Maybe that’s how Corn Pop did it, but “C’mon Man!”
Two rounds of 00 would open up your field of view (so you can see who you’ve shot) a bit more than would a .223 or 9mm round, but there’s no chance you’ll be able to patch that door.
In this case, the Biden surprise-your-neighbor method of home defense was inapplicable, since Mark & Patricia were not behind a door. They were already outside on their porch when the mob smashed down an iron gate.
The former Vice President had that covered, too:
“[I]f there’s ever a problem, just walk out on the balcony here, walk out and put that double-barrel shotgun and fire two blasts outside the house.”
He made these suggestions in support of his contention that semi-automatic rifles with standard magazine capacity should be banned from civilian ownership. They aren’t needed for self defense because we have 2 round shotguns.
I thought adding “outside the house” was a nice touch. It was the only sensible thing he said.
The McCloskeys, fortunately, ignored Joe’s preferred weapon, blasted no entryways, and didn’t inflict random collateral damage on the neighborhood. Nor were they forced to perform a reload under the mob’s gimlet eye.
Mark McCloskey had an AR-15. Which he didn’t have to fire.
Had he followed Joe’s advice, I’m thinking he might have died. Two rounds from the shotgun and you’re obviously dry. The crowd either completely panics and runs, or they come for you. They have to run 40 feet. You have to get 2 rounds loaded with your fine motor control in shambles. Even if you make that reload, you won’t make the next.
So, in one sense Joe’s right, you don’t need 30 rounds. Or even 2. But you’ll appreciate the deterrent effect of larger capacity when several dozen Biden supporters show up and threaten to burn down your house with you and your dog in it.
In the snippets of the confrontation I watched, I thought Patricia was, let’s just say, inadequately trained. She stood by her husband in a desperate time, even though he was in nearly as much danger from her handgun as the mob.
She must have been very frightened. Needs must, training or no. She shouldn’t be criticized for ignorance of something she never thought she’d have to know. I would criticize her if she doesn’t now get some training. She knows now.
Reflecting on that, I wonder if her ignorance of muzzle control and trigger discipline actually helped disperse the crowd. Some of them discovered prudence.