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educes the risk of negligent dischargebecause the user must, on a heavierdouble-action, both pull a heavy triggerand move the finger across a wider arc.This provides two mental stimuli to theeffect of, “Hey, you’re pulling the triggeron the gun. Did you mean to do that?”In contrast, Glocks afford theoperator much less of a psycho-physicalbarrier when pulling the trigger. Civiliansand law enforcement alike seem to havemore incidents with Glocks than otherfirearms. This is not primarily due to somedanger inherent to the Glock’s design.Rather, it’s a function of probability. Thesheer numbers of Glocks sold mean thatthere are many Glocks out there. Theirlow price, high availability, and iconicstatus mean that many new shootersacquire them, often as a first gun. If theydon’t know what they’re doing and don’tkeep their fingers off of the triggers,the guns will fire. This is not the faultof the gun, which is doing what it wasdesigned to do. This is the fault of theinexperienced operators.The fact that the Glock is often usedin dangerous, stressful encounters andfast shooting sports (and the fact that itis perceived as ideal for these activities)also means that it is more likely to be usedat the edge of the operator’s envelopeof performance. The Glock shooter maytherefore experience a disproportionatenumber of negligent discharges whencompared to those experienced withguns used in other, slower, less stressfulactivities, or when compared to firearmsthat make it more difficult for the operatorto fire the gun. This added difficulty alsoinhibits the gun’s operator from deployingthe weapon quickly and possibly asaccurately (without much more training).You can search the Internet to findnegligent discharge stories. It only takes afew minutes on GlockTalk.com to find theDEA agent shooting himself in the leg orstories and questions from inexperiencedshooters who really require the NRAbasic pistol course. Despite all of this,Glocks are not unsafe. They don’tgo off when in proper condition unlessthe trigger is pulled. Hence, the firstfour rules of gun safety again are beingignored. Keep your finger off ofthe trigger!As an aside, Glocks are alsolikely to contribute to the poor state ofmarksmanship and limited trigger controlexhibited by many shooters today.The lack of learning to handle a 10 to12 pound trigger contributes to poorshooting. The Glock’s moderate accuracydiscourages the shooter from learning tofire a precision handgun, shooting bull’seyeor some other demanding targetsport, therefore diminishing the averageshooter’s ability and belief in his or herability to learn to shoot well.Fans of traditional pistols like the 1911love to liken the Glock to a cocked andunlocked .45. You wouldn’t carry a 1911in that fashion because of the danger itwould entail, so why would you carrya Glock with a round in the chamber?This criticism is specious. Glocks have amanual of arms like that of a revolver, butwith one notable exception. The Glock,with its light trigger pull, must be carriedin a holster that completely covers thetrigger guard. Those who don’t cover thetrigger guard risk negligent discharges.Those who foolishly use cheap holsters,carry inside-the-waistband and withouta holster (Mexican style), or try pocketcarry are a negligent discharge waitingto happen. The occasional self-inflictedgroin or buttocks wound attests to this.Glock users’ propensity to disregardthe manual’s injunction to always use a[proper] holster contributes to the risk.Those who use gadgets that block thetrigger (which are supposed to magicallyleap free when a firing grip is taken), orwho use such a widget in conjunctionContinued on page 48Volume 4 - May/June 2007 www.usconcealedcarry.comConcealed Carry Magazine 47