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Principles of Personal Defense Paperback – January 1, 2006

by Jeff Cooper (Author)

4.7 1,669 ratings

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This revised edition of Jeff Cooper's classic on personal defense is the best study of the guiding principles of survival in the face of unprovoked violence by human assailants. Cooper discusses the vital elements of defensive mental conditioning, including alertness, decisiveness, aggressiveness, speed, coolness, ruthlessness and surprise.

Print length

56 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Paladin Press
Publication date

January 1, 2006
Dimensions

5.25 x 0.25 x 8.5 inches
ISBN-10

0873644972
ISBN-13

978-0873644976
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Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Paladin Press; 2nd edition (January 1, 2006)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 56 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0873644972
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0873644976
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 3.03 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.25 x 0.25 x 8.5 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #1,059,545 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #1,973 in Martial Arts (Books)
- #12,012 in Exercise & Fitness (Books)

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4.7 1,669 ratings

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Jeff Cooper

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Jeff Cooper was born in Los Angeles, California, in 1920. He was educated at Stanford University and took his advanced degree from the University of California. He was commissioned in the Marine Corps in 1941 and served throughout World War II in the Pacific, achieving the rank of Major. Recalled to active duty for the Korean War, he moved up one rank to Lieutenant Colonel before leaving the service.

Cooper became a shottist at the age of eleven. In 1958 he originated the sport of practical pistol competition. From this activity he formulated the Modern Technique of the Pistol, now generally observed throughout the world. For the next thirty years he was active in teaching the new method throughout the Western World.

In 1976 Jeff Cooper founded the International Practical Shooting Confederation. In 1977 he founded the American Pistol Institute at Gunsite in Arizona, where he lived until his death in 2006.

He served as editor-at-large of Guns and Ammo magazine, for which he wrote a monthly column. After having served many years as a director of the National Rifle Association of America, he was elected to the Executive Council.

Jeff Cooper spent a long and active life reading, shooting, hunting, fighting and teaching. Internationally respected as the “Gunner’s Guru,” Jeff Cooper is a philosopher, moralist, and political commentator — a true modern Renaissance man. It is to the benefit of his many readers that he developed the passion at an early age to write it all down.

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Simple. Practical. Profound.

Reviewed in the United States on June 4, 2023

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You can read a chapter in a minuet or two and spend the rest of the day pondering it. Worth multiple re-reads.

Not for the faint of heart

Reviewed in the United States on November 12, 2022

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I really like this book (pamphlet if you prefer). I can appreciate the dissatisfaction some reviewers have with brevity of content but I personally do not buy books by the pound. I appreciate the fact I can read and reread the content allowing me to better grasp the principles. My key takeaways were the speed and ruthlessness aspects of the response to a criminal intent on not being avoided. I suspect this content is not for everyone. Possibly written prior to the concept of "victim shaming", references to victims as idiots will not be well received by many, however, most of those readers would most probably not buy the book in the first place. I think I get it that the authors approach is primarily to motivate readers to read, understand and implement the principles with examples of what could / would occur if you do not. Nonetheless, assuming you know who to recommend this book I would highly recommend this material.

5 people found this helpful

Raymond Bierschenk

Reviewed in the United States on July 22, 2023

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It was just ok for me

One person found this helpful

Of all the books I've read, this is an absolute must read for everyone.

Reviewed in the United States on January 25, 2016

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When I was thinking of what type of person should read this book, I really struggled to ID a "type" of person. Then it struck me - everyone needs to read this. There are some people who area already geared up and thinking along these lines. I am one of those persons who tries to maintain situation awareness where ever I go, but Col. Cooper really put my mind in the game. He covers the full mental spectrum of personal defense. Listen, it doesn't matter where you carry concealed or not, it doesn't matter if you ven support the act of carrying concealed. This book isn't about that. This book is about you coming out on the other end of a personal attack alive, able to go home to you family. Able to see you kids another day. Able to see your wife or husband another day (Hopefully you want that...) able to see your brother or sister, mother or father again. This world we live in today isn't like it was 60 years ago. Today people will take from you because they believe they can. Today people don't have a respect and love for human life - other human life. So in light of that truth you should get this book. Yes, I'm talking to you. On the fence, still wanting to believe that "nothing could happen to you". Well I thought that myself and in a small town in a big state I was proven wrong, when a man with a disregard for human life took my mother's life. I wonder how she would have fared had she had the mind that Col Cooper shared with us. Maybe the result would have been the same maybe it would not have been, I will never know. But what I do know is that this world, even small little towns have people with evil intent in their hearts. What will be your response when your path crosses theirs? Here is another fact, your chance for survival increases exponentially when you do counter-attack with surprise, speed, and violence of force, the chances of you seeing those you love another day do increase. This is the area Col. Cooper covers. He doesn't talk about the "How", he talks about the state of mind you need to be in to protect yourself and those you love.

48 people found this helpful

Kendall F. Jones

Reviewed in the United States on April 23, 2023

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Criminals don't stop until victims fight back. They don't fear the courts or the police. They must be taught to fear armed citizens who are willing to fight back.

One person found this helpful

Reviewed in the United States on April 20, 2023

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Best survival tips needed in this Woke and Looney World. 10 more words required beyond my thoughts. Creepy and weird requirement.

One person found this helpful

Fantastic read.

Reviewed in the United States on April 16, 2023

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Short, concise and true. Every word is gold. In the “defund” society we now unfortunately live in, this is a must read.

One person found this helpful

Great information

Reviewed in the United States on April 15, 2023

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A must read for taking care of your own personal defense or the defense of your family. Thank you Jeff Cooper

One person found this helpful

Samuel K. Stafford

Reviewed in the United States on April 7, 2023

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Very valuable life lesson's. Memorize. Read and read again. We'll worth it. Take to heart, you'll be glad you did.

Amazon Customer

Reviewed in the United States on January 18, 2023

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A must read book !!! Thus book has a lot of information for being so small. You won't be disappointed with this book.

Kindle Customer

Timeless Wisdom

Reviewed in the United States on November 2, 2022

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In a time when many would have us deny the reality of criminal human nature, Col. Cooper explains that reality and presents basic principles necessary to deal with it in real time.

One person found this helpful

Reviewed in the United States on August 28, 2022

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A must read. Succinct, to the point, modern day survival counsel in easy to assimilate language. For those who choose not to be sheep, but rather sheep dogs, this book is a treasure. Worthy of periodic re-read. Very thankful I encountered it.

2 people found this helpful

Amazon Customer

Reviewed in the United States on March 1, 2013

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If you're picking up this book to learn how to shoot then you're looking at the wrong book. And to add no book can teach you how to shoot you should seek professional advise from certified instructors. This book is short and sweet and to the point. This book applies to everyday life in general. Having a sense of awareness at all times is paramount to keeping yourself and your loved ones safe when out and about. It does not mean you are paranoid, it just means you should be aware of you surroundings. By being aware you can either avoid a deadly confrontation or be prepared to meet it with equal or more force. It's nice to believe that we can and should get along but know this, there are people out there that are EVIL and take joy in hurting others. We must be ready physically and mentally to deal with such an event. That's the big difference between a good guy and a bad guy, the good guy takes no joy in hurting another human being even in self defense. A bad guy on the other hand does. This book by Mr. Cooper explains it in a very concise and clear manner. "The will to survive is not as important as the will to prevail ... the answer to criminal aggression is retaliation." - Jeff Cooper

From Victim mentality to Survivor Mentality

Reviewed in the United States on August 3, 2016

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I'm required to read this before a fighting pistol training course I'm taking this weekend. I'm a mom to 5, a wife, a homemaker, a patriot citizen. I had read last week a news article written in response to all the terrorist and mass shooting attacks that said our society's instruction to just submit to the violent attacker is pretty much ensuring that more innocent lives will be taken. When I look at the news and everyday I see another attack, it becomes clear that the police we depend on are not in the right place at the right time, and no one is prepared to defend themselves or others. I'm done with that. "BE the change you want to see in the world." The first step starts with me being prepared. This book is a great intro to the mindset required to go from a victim mentality that our government pushes to the mentality of a survivor of a violent attack. I plan to read it again and again until these principles become embedded in my instincts, so that if, God forbid, I'm ever in a violent attack situation, I will be a survivor, along with any other innocent lives around me.

49 people found this helpful

Clear and Concise. A guide to live by.

Reviewed in the United States on September 12, 2012

Verified Purchase

There seem to be a lot of reviews taking issue with this book's short length. It is extremely short and Cooper himself refers to it as an essay, within. I don't think the fact that it is short makes it any less valuable. The book outlines 7 principals which should be kept in mind at all times, trained, honed, visualized, and reread. Cooper's no-nonsense approach to giving you the hard facts leaves no room for interpretation. It is very clear and if you just memorize the concepts within the book and commit them to your mindset, I can easily see how this book could save your life.

I also noted when reading it, that it might be a perfect quick-read for friends or family members who are less conscious of the harsh world we live in.

I find that this book has something in common with the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, by Steven Covey. It is a manual to be read and reread over the years. I would say that if you could memorize all the teachings of this book and the 7 Habits, and then master the skills involved in personal defense (pistolcraft, martial arts, etc), you should be able to live a happy, prosperous, safe life.

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