Situational awareness is probably the most important thing I learned at Gunsite. Jeff Cooper used a four part color code to teach his concept of levels of mental awareness.
CONDITION WHITE - when a person is unaware of what is going on around them.
CONDITION YELLOW - is being alert to what is going on around you. You don't let people or things get within a perimeter without being aware. This is a relaxed state of general alertness, with no specific focal point.
CONDITION ORANGE- This is a heightened state of alertness, with a specific focal point.
CONDITION RED- In Red, you are ready to fight!
For a more detailed essay on the Color Code:
States of Awareness, the Cooper Color Codes By Tom Givens
http://www.teddytactical.com/Sharpen...0Awareness.htm
Situational awareness is something I always use when I leave home. I have never had to use my handgun as a civilian in 30 years of carrying. I believe that being aware has saved me serious grief on several occasions.
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NRA Life Member - Orange Gunsite Member - NRA Certified Pistol Instructor
"When plunder becomes a way of life for a group of men living together in society,
they create for themselves in the course of time a legal system that authorizes it and a moral code that justifies it." Frederic Bastiat