Rob Pincus is an educator first and foremost — at least in my eyes. Sure, he has an impressive bio as a firearms, self-defense and tactical instructor. That’s how he puts food on the table, via his ICE (Integrity, Consistency, Efficiency) Training company. But his capacity to educate one certainly extends beyond the purview of the gun range.
See, Pincus is not just good at teaching one about hardware, tactics and shooting know-how, he is also excellent at spreading the gospel of guns. And for me, that’s equally, if not more, important as the survival of our right to keep and bear arms is less dependent on our skills as militia operators and more reliant on our ability to proselytize our way of life.
At the 2016 SHOT Show, we asked Rob about how we, as gun owners, should go about winning the hearts and minds of the non-gun owning public. His answer was spot on. In a word: education.
“What I’m not going to do is lead with the politics when it comes the American middle ground on guns,” said Rob, noting popular beliefs held by members of the gun community, e.g. it’s your Constitutional right, Hillary is going to take your guns away, you’re not a real American unless you own guns.
Instead, Rob’s pitch to the non-gun owner, his way of educating him or her, is on the subject of personal safety.
“Have you considered that evil exists, that you could be visited by that evil and that you should be prepared — I believe you have a responsibility, you should own up to your responsibility to be prepared — to fight that evil when it shows up and that a gun may play a role in that [battle].”
In other words, the gateway into the gun world isn’t conservative talking points or gun community platitudes but common ground on the vulnerability that we all face living in a world with evil. If one can agree with the premise that evil does exist in the world, one ought to agree that preparing to confront that evil is not only a part of what it means to be a responsible citizen, but also what it means to be a good father, mother, brother, sister, friend, relative, teacher, etc.
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After all, we carry to increase public safety, keep our limited democracy free from tyranny, and, ultimately, protect the ones we love and care about. Those on the fence about guns can usually come around to this idea. And from this starting point, a constructive and healthy dialogue can begin, and the very sailable argument that gun ownership is part of one’s moral and civic responsibility can take hold.
In any event, watch the video and tell us what you think. I also should mention that Rob is excited about his new handgun, the PD10, that he is building with Avidity Arms. The PD10 is a polymer-framed, striker-fired pistol chambered in 9mm. While that doesn’t sound too intriguing, what makes the PD10 special is that it takes a 10-round, single-stack magazine so it is ultra thin and relatively light compared to the other polymer-framed 9mm on the market. The gun is still in the testing stages, but should be available soon, with an MSRP of $450.