Who would you want on YOUR side in a gunfight?

[Gordon]

Clint Smith of course because hes a) still alive b) in better shape as a tactician and marksman at this moment than othersc) probably a better combat shot than the old timers were as he has taught the Modern Technique for a long time and 'practice makes perfect'. If the oldtimers even in their peaks entered modern competitions of realistic combat marksmanship they would be dwarfed by modern atheletes!

 

[D.W. Drang]

Insufficiant data. The correct response is OBVIOUSLY "All of the above."
"Rule 1: Bring a gun. Bring 2 guns. Bring all of your friends that have guns..."

 

[mrstang01]

I voted for Clint as well, but missed seeing Jordan's name on the list. He's been there and done that. Askins was a cold blooded killer, no doubt, but if we are going for the toughest, I'd have to vote for Mr. Elmer Keith. He was another old boy who just went ahead and did what he thought was right, without the bragging attitude Askins had.

And besides, anybody who can live through a fire like he did, has got to be a tough old hombre!

Michael

 

[Camel]

Id want some Gurkhas on my side. They sound like a scary bunch!




"In fact, just last week a war game took place in the heart of the Omani desert. The objective was a two-man post held by the Lancers, an armored infantry unit. One-hundred yards away, a platoon of elite special forces dismounted from personnel carriers and charged the post. The first four soldiers to reach the Lancers threw their SA80 rifles to the ground, whipped out curved, razor-sharp short-swords for hand-to-hand combat, jumped into the nest, and simulated slitting the Lancers' throats. Observers on the sidelines were rendered speechless.

These knife-wielding warriors are members of the Royal Gurkha Rifles. And they're not British--they're Nepalese. Their signature blade is called the kukri. Gurkhas have been known to decapitate their enemies with it (it can also double as a deadly boomerang)."


Finally a true story told by General Sir (later Field Marshal Viscount) W J Slim.

“Early in his command of 14th Army he encouraged constant patrolling by all forward units. One Gurkha patrol on return presented themselves before their General, proudly opened a large basket, lifted from it three gory Japanese heads, and laid them on his table. They then politely offered him for his dinner the freshly caught fish which filled the rest of the basket.â€

 

[JeepDriver]

Who wouldI want on my side in a Gunfight?

Someone I know and Trust.

There are only 3 people on this planet that fit that description. None of them are on that list.

 

[Shaughn Leayme]

Horatio , Hannibal, Sun Tzu, Ceasar (thoroughly nasty bunch, whichever you want to pick), Napolean, Rommel, Patton, Genghis Khan and a host of others.

I opt for sneaky mean and down right dirty. Any one of the above mentioned person's, if brought forth to the here and now, would be one of my choices.

As far as the list posted...ALL OF THE ABOVE.......

 

[WYO]

Doc Holliday. . . . or any of the above.

 

[CZF]

WHat about Col. Rex Applegate?

No gun, then he would use a knife or his hands.

deadly efficient with a .45 auto or any implement.

 

[Greg G]

Lucas McCain

 

[mgjohn]

All were good choices, but I went with Charles Askins.
Why you ask?? Because of all the other choices he has the track record for leaving no bad guys alive.

 

[Blackhawk]

My choice would be somebody I know, REALLY know, not just some celebrity I know of.

No matter what somebody has done in the past, including combat, there's no way to know what they'll do in a new situation. I know some combat vets who were avid hunters for decades after, then they had an epiphany, and now can't bear to shoot a deer.

Whomsoever's my choice for my side in a gunfight will have to be somebody I KNOW feels the need to be in it AT THE EXACT TIME of the fight.

 

[Dienekes]

Jim Cirillo. Spent a couple of hours talking gunfights and firearms training with him in 1981 when he was instructing for US Customs at Glynco GA. Although he had (and still has) a keen interest in experimentation, he thought all the emphasis on hardware was misplaced. He did some of his most notable work with a M10 Smith. One of his more useful efforts was an article on how to pick a good man.

Spent a similar afternoon with Rex Applegate a few years later. These guys have a bit of an aura about them which is rather comforting...

As J.B. Books said, it's not about how well you can shoot; it's how willing you are.

It's really not about guns after all.

 

[ZekeLuvs1911]

An A-10 and an AC-130........

 

[STEVE M]

I voted for Bill Jordan. Not only was he very very good but he would be more likely to try to keep me alive than Askins would.
Besides, Jordan was like 6'3 or 4". I could use him for cover while I shot

 

[Beren]

Ripley from "Aliens." Maybe Hicks if his facial scarring wasn't too bad. A cloned Hudson for comedy relief.

 

[firestar]

Rosie and Oprah!

I would use them as human shields and take nice slow accurately aimed shots from between their folds of fat. Unless the other guy has a .50 cal there is no way his bullets would penertrate all those layers.

 

[Tim]

Cyberdyne Systems Model 101, 800 series.

 

[Amegatek]

I like lostdog's choice. Richard Marcinko is very intimidating w/o a gun. With a gun watch out! He was a SEAL in Vietnam, when noone new what SEAL's were. For up close he would be great. Carlos Hathcock for the "reach out and touch someone" option.

 

[Blueduck]

Picked Askins, but then again he might just shoot me to get his body count up

Change my vote to Jordon...

 

[Kahr carrier]

Lucy Liu after seeing ECK VS SEVER.

 

[JMLV]

First off I think you missed the boat by

leaving Runt, Tamara, and Kaylee off the list. I think they would be the poll winners by far if you had done so.
But going by the folks you did list I would have to agree with Mike Irwin - Askins was a stone killer if you were his enemy and from what I read you could'nt ask for a better man in your corner if he was your friend.
Bill Jordan was also a man who "would do to ride the river with"
As they say. Cool in a gunfight and possiblely one of the fastest who ever lived. (I would love to have seen a contest between him Ed Mc given and Jelly Brice what a trio they would have made!
Question to the list:
Who knows who Jelly Brice was?

 

[MrAcheson]

James Butler Hickock and/or Wyatt Earp

 

[Kor]

"Jelly" Brice, FBI!

...The fastest - and best-dressed - gunman in J. Edgar Hoover's FBI. His nickname, "Jelly," came from the '20s-era slang term, "jelly-bean," for a dapper, well-dressed man.

Of course, I only know about him from reading an article in Guns & Ammo...

 

[Delmar]

Superman and Lone Wolf Gonsuelas

 

[Harold Mayo]

If the oldtimers even in their peaks entered modern competitions of realistic combat marksmanship they would be dwarfed by modern atheletes!

Gotta vehemently disagree with that statement...

Modern day competitions of realistic combat marksmanship AREN'T. They are games, pure and simple. Although they are better than nothing, they miss the mark. Take winners of these competitions and put them in Simunitions training against guys who they can beat in the contests and you have people on pretty equal footing. Shooting at targets is different than shooting at people who are shooting back.

Yeah, they would probably lose, but that's because they don't know the rules of the game.

This same thing was brought up in a martial arts discussion in which I participated in once. A bunch of the guys thought that, since they were bigger than the orientals of yesteryear and since they had better training equipment that they would be able to beat "old-time" martial artists. Well, maybe, but they miss the mark.

The point is that most of the guys on that list have been in and survived multiple gunfights. Most grew up in a time where people weren't quite as conditioned against shooting and/or killing someone as we are today. Read Askins' autobiography and you will see what I mean. Another poster was dead on when he quoted J.B. Books (love that movie..."...and a little somethin' extra!"). Technical perfection in a game (or even realistic training) DOES NOT automatically translate to success in reality.

I have several friends and acquaintances who have been in war and have been in shootings in civilian or LE life. I would take any one of them who has actual EXPERIENCE under his belt over any of the competition shooters who do NOT. In a real gunfight, Robbie Leatham would not necessarily beat Elmer Keith or Bill Jordan. No offense to those who have honed their shooting skills in competitions, but a real gunfight is not an IPSC (or even IDPA or USPSA) match.