03Lightningrocks wrote:I am not sure what alert state I would be considered. I don't freak out at every noise I hear. I don't take a shower with my gun. I don't walk around afraid that danger lies behind every corner. I don't lie in bed at night afraid that someone is going to break into my house. I don't have a plan of how to shoot someone that is running from my house or even breaking into my car. Quite frankly, I am not much afraid of anything life throws at me. I can go from condition "who cares" to red alert in about 1/1000th of a second, but live my life without fear. I think the bad guys win if we allow them to make us act as if we are in a war zone. I may just be spoiled from living in an area that is relatively crime free. We don't have bad guys hiding behind every rock in the North Dallas/Plano area. I take normal precautions such as locking my doors. My hair does stand up for a second if a stranger get's in my space and I relax or get nasty after determining why. If in a restaurant and see certain profiles come in, I watch them for a few seconds to determine if they are up to no good or just up to having dinner.
I think I may be a condition green...LOL....maybe yellow. Definitely not orange.
Your description is definitely Jeff Cooper's condition yellow - Relaxed Alert. That is the state we should all be in unless something triggers an escalation to Orange or Red
Here are the four conditions:
White - Unaware and unprepared. If attacked in Condition White, the only thing that may save you is the inadequacy or ineptitude of your attacker. When confronted by something nasty, your reaction will probably be "Oh my God! This can't be happening to me."
Yellow - Relaxed alert. No specific threat situation. Your mindset is that "today could be the day I may have to defend myself." You are simply aware that the world is a potentially unfriendly place and that you are prepared to defend yourself, if necessary. You use your eyes and ears, and realize that "I may have to SHOOT today." You don't have to be armed in this state, but if you are armed you should be in Condition Yellow. You should always be in Yellow whenever you are in unfamiliar surroundings or among people you don't know. You can remain in Yellow for long periods, as long as you are able to "Watch your six." (In aviation 12 o'clock refers to the direction in front of the aircraft's nose. Six o'clock is the blind spot behind the pilot.) In Yellow, you are "taking in" surrounding information in a relaxed but alert manner, like a continuous 360 degree radar sweep. As Cooper put it, "I might have to shoot."
Orange - Specific alert. Something is not quite right and has gotten your attention. Your radar has picked up a specific alert. You shift your primary focus to determine if there is a threat (but you do not drop your six). Your mindset shifts to "I may have to shoot HIM today." In Condition Orange, you set a mental trigger: "If that goblin does 'x', I will need to stop him." Your pistol usually remains holstered in this state. Staying in Orange can be a bit of a mental strain, but you can stay in it for as long as you need to. If the threat proves to be nothing, you shift back to Condition Yellow. Cooper described this as "I might have to shoot HIM," referring to the specific target which has caused the escalation in alert status.
Red - Condition Red is fight. Your mental trigger (established back in Condition Orange) has been tripped. If "X" happens I will shoot that person.
