Quotations from Jeff Cooper

FIGHT BACK!
November 1993--"Fight back! Whenever you are offered violence, fight back! The aggressor does not fear the law, so he must be taught to fear you. Whatever the risk, and at whatever the cost, fight back!"

SEMPER FI
December 1991--"We learn, not much to our surprise, in the Age of the Wimp, that the cop-shrinks in general do not want ex-Marines in law enforcement. It seems that they are 'too aggressive.' Well, shucks!"

VIOLENCE
January 1975--"One bleeding-heart type asked me in a recent interview if I did not agree that 'violence begets violence.' I told him that it is my earnest endeavor to see that it does. I would like very much to ensure--and in some cases I have--that any man who offers violence to his fellow citizen begets a whole lot more in return than he can enjoy."

THE 9MM
August 1975--"The 9mm Parabellum cartridge cannot be considered a reliable fight stopper--with any load. I have three recent cases of multiple torso wounds (four hits, four hits and seven hits) that did not shut the subject down, and each was with a different load."

"TERRORISM"
May 2002 - So it appears that the "home of the brave" includes citizens who may be intimidated by the presence of a plastic knife! One may only be terrorized if he allows himself to be. "Terror" is a bad word and should be abandoned. Apparently, we are living in an age when word usage may be dictated by the timid, the cowardly and the dishonorable. Let us turn that around and set up proper English usage to suit people who are worthy of it. Just as you cannot be enslaved against your will, you cannot be terrorized against your will. We inherit a noble tradition. Let us now resolve to live up to it!

LONG SHOTS
November 2005 - With the rifle, it is not how far away the shot was but how close you were able to get. I have been shooting seriously since my late teens, and I have taken just six long shots that I remember. (By "long" I mean shots 300 meters or over.) I do not mean to set myself up as an example, but I need to point out that if one is forced to take a long shot, he owes himself an explanation.

THE MEDIA
July 2006 - We now have two different sources of information regarding the current international scene. First there is that furnished by the media, and the second is that given to us by returning combat veterans from the Middle Eastern front. The media seem to insist that we are doing it wrong, especially that the current administration is doing it wrong. The men back
from the war zone insist that we are doing the best possible job and that while the battle is not yet over, the situation is well in hand. I prefer to put my faith in the word I get from the troops. I know those people better than I do the journalists.

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Semper Fi, Colonel Cooper. We can rest assured that the gates to Heaven are now well guarded.