OUR LATEST SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENTS 4/4/2025
Our latest scholarship recipients at Friday’s Open House at the Sconce on April 4, 2025
L to R: Chris McAllister, Chelsi Remme, Judi Long, Lindy, Brooke Robbins, Robert Robbins.
SOLDIER OF FORTUNE MAY 1981 – SHARPSHOOTING WITH CHAIRMAN JEFF column
Jeff Cooper is the Honorary Lifetime Chairman of the International Practical Shooting Confederation, and thus combines official authority with his vast background and experience. In this column Jeff with alternate his own observations with those of other experts of his personal selection.
“Gunsite Rifle Course”
(November 1980)
The American Pistol Institute (API) at Gunsite, Ariz., is widely known (and widely misrepresented) for its courses in defensive pistolcraft. Consequently, a new dimension has been added to the curriculum at Gunsite Ranch.
Cooper’s infatuation with rifles preceded his military service in World War II. He hunted North American trophy animals between terms at Stanford, and learned the ’03 Springfield in ROTC. He still considers the Garand the finest battle rifle of all time. (Now, however, he is inclined to favor the Italian BM-59 version in 7.62mm NATO).
Having grown up with bolt actions, Cooper retains a fondness for the breed—and not merely from sentiment. He maintains that, in most circumstances, a skilled person—male or female—can do as well with a boltgun as with a semiauto. Cooper’s favorite “riflechick” is his daughter Parry, who’s won open matches with a Remington .308. She confidently asserts, “If I can see it, I can hit it.”
Therefore, API’s basic rifle course begins with the assumption that a prospective student will bring the weapon that best suits his needs, and that doesn’t always mean a semiauto with a 20-round magazine. Indeed, Cooper’s hands-down favorite general-purpose rifle is the .308 Remington 600 with an extended eye relief two-power scope.
Hefting his pet, he says, “If the bad guys were pounding on the front door, thus is what I’d grab as I ran out the back.” He’s speaking figurately, of course as an armed opponent is unlikely to get within 300 yards of the ranch house. But the point is well made, and is often reinforced during the six-day course.
Guns & Ammo Throwback (From 1975): Jeff Cooper vs. Terrorism
January 04, 2025
So here we are in the “Age of Extortion!” Our local friendly felons have finally discovered what has long been taken for granted in what we used to call “more backward countries” — that crime does pay, in millions. All you need to do is threaten to do something terrible and people will throw money at you. You don’t need any particular talent or skill to get rich this way, and you don’t need education or training. The only requisite is nastiness, and that is no rare quality.
We can speculate at length upon why this foulness has come upon us so strikingly at this point in our history, but I doubt that any incontrovertible conclusion will result. My own suggestion is simply overpopulation. Like rats, we get testier as we get crowded. By simple arithmetic, if the proportion of goblins to people in our society remains constant, doubling our population doubles the number of goblins. And they reinforce each other as their numbers rise.
Situational Awareness: A Critical Life Skill You Didn’t Know You Needed
From the Epic Times (1/3/2025):
A domestic disturbance call is made, a police car arrives, and two officers step out. The scene is chaotic. Screaming can be heard from inside the house. Toddlers are crying in the front yard, and it’s after dark.
The officers are trained to analyze the situation quickly, detect potential threats, and ensure the safety of everyone involved—including themselves.
Their training teaches situational awareness, the concept of being fully aware of what’s happening around you. It’s critical for those in the military, law enforcement, and professions like first responders to help them deal with stressful and potentially life-threatening situations.
Excerpts from Jeff Cooper’s writings 1/5/2025
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In my opinion, neither money nor greed (cupiditas) is the root of all evil. The root of all evil is envy. The non−coper hates the coper, and thus the non−shooter hates the shooter. I see no other explanation for the pointless and irrational activism of the gun grabbers on the political scene. They know that their machinations can have no effect upon crime. Guns have no effect upon crime, but they do make all men equal, as the saying goes. This puts the coper on top, and infuriates the non−coper.
– Jeff Cooper’s Commentaries Volume Nine Vol. 9, No. 3/15/73
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Among the other signs of times we discover that coping is unfashionable. As far as I can tell, today’s young people are taught not to handle problems but rather to call for help. This is very bad race conditioning. As a boy I led a privileged life, but I nonetheless often got into jams beyond reach of assistance. I never called for help, and my father would have sneered at me if I had done so. At age seventeen while driving alone I blew a tire. I had never seen a wheel changed but I figured the matter out by myself. This is not to boast but only to point out that young men should be expected to cope.
-Jeff Cooper’s Commentaries Volume Ten Vol. 10, No. 3/14/73
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Could it be that the essence of liberalism is fear? It occurs to us that those who are considered “conservative” tend to be people who can cope with circumstances, while those who cannot cope tend to be of the “liberal” persuasion.
The pious man properly fears God, but on the political scene the winner fears only the state. It may be that the loser looks to the state for protection against the winner, and only eventually discovers that he has identified the wrong enemy.
Jeff Cooper’s Commentaries Volume Eleven Vol. 11, No. 12 5/6/75
History of the Pixley Mansion in Orange, CA.
A neat video presentation about the history of the Pixley Mansion in Orange, CA.
The Pixley Mansion was built by D.C. Pixley, who was Janell Cooper’s grandfather.
The Cooper Girls Reunited
The Cooper girls reunited at the Sconce for a visit with the 250 Class November 22, 2024.