Just in case you missed these stories earlier this week, here’s some reading material to get you through the weekend.

Oh, wait. I should first mention the reading material on my nightstand. Right now it’s a book that isn’t out yet. Hint? Sure: it’s written by someone on the blog list to your right. Tease, tease!

Mom With a Gun did an excellent interview with Dr. Alexis Artwohl, author of Lethal Force Encounters. Although focused on law enforcement officers, a lot of the data Dr. Artwohl collected and put into usable form applies to all of us. The interview focuses on a really critical question:  As regular people, how can we best prepare for the emotional aftermath of using a gun in self-defense?

Marty Hayes, one of my mentors and the founder of the Armed Citizens Legal Defense Network, offers a thoughtful explanation for why you need an “assault weapon” (and why you shouldn’t call it that).

Lawdog rants, as only he can, that gun-free does not mean violence-free. Really, Lawdog’s writing is so thought-provoking and complete that there’s nothing to add. But I am so wordy that I will say the obvious again: if you need a restraining order, you need a personal safety plan that includes the tools and training it will take to keep you safe. Nobody else can provide that protection for you. Nobody. ¹

Smith&Wesson has a handy tool you can use to contact your politicians. So does Ruger. This week, I’ve heard from several people who feel discouraged about doing this. One of them asked me, “Kathy, why am I even bothering to call them? I have one of the most anti-gun senators in the country!”  Even though we won’t directly change their minds, the anti-rights politicians still need to hear from us. Why? Because they live in an echo chamber. They really believe that you don’t exist. They think an intelligent, reasonable woman who believes in her right to protect herself is just a made-up fiction, a lie, that lobbyists use for their own dishonest reasons. So when we call or write, we undermine their idea that we don’t exist. We make denial harder.That makes it much easier for our side to stand firm against them at the bargaining table.

PolicyMic wants to remind everyone that homicides and violent crimes have dropped by over 50% over the past 20 years. Clayton Cramer says rape rates are much higher in Great Britain than they are in the US. Hey, maybe that’s something you can use when you write to your politicians.

Chad Baus of the Buckeye Firearms Association asks, “Can anyone think of a reason why this man [a convicted rapist] doesn’t want law-abiding citizens to have the ability to defend themselves with firearms?”

Rory  Miller confesses he was not a good father: “When my kids were little we would sometimes play a game I learned from my parents– Hide and Don’t Seek.  I’d send them to hide and remind them to be extra still and extra quiet and that I would not only find them but stalk them silently.  Then I would get done whatever job I needed the peace and quiet for. After that I would go look.  ‘You guys did so good!  It took me almost an hour to find you!'” I wish I’d thought of that.