The Prepared Mindset Podcast

Chris Aboussafy is a retired Law Enforcement officer with a unique background - having spent the first three years of his career in Canada, then move to the U.S. to spend the thirty years in Nevada and Phoenix. It brings a rare perspective, and experiences that hold a lot of value. Chris spent time working with multiple federal task forces, and rebuilding the fugitive apprehension team while in Phoenix. Today, he runs Bishop One - a training company that takes the lessons learned first hand, and helps officers today be more successful, while reducing risk. Through implementing things like improved planning, "trap door" tactics, and more, Chris and his team at Bishop One are working to improve the efficiency of Law Enforcement teams across the country. Give this one a listen, I think you'll find a lot of valuable insights, and perhaps a fresh perspective or two that may help you in our own efforts to pursue change.

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Hard to believe it's already November, and time for another SITREP episode. On the plus side, at least we're nearly past the political mailer season and can finally go back to normal mail! With the ramifications of this mid-term election being so great, considering the momentum through the year fighting the NFA, we have to talk about it. There are large stakes here with the election outcomes in many states, including my home, Michigan. It would be a shame to see all the momentum and the large victories this year all go to waste in the states that are so close to having pro-2A leadership who could potentially restore firearms rights in multiple states. As always, I give you all my unfiltered opinion on what's going on, and what is to come. Give it a listen, drop a comment, share with a friend.

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Tourniquets are one of the most common and essential pieces of equipment within our community. The amount of preventable deaths due to blood loss justifies this. Snakestaff Systems took this a step further, and made it their mission to get a tourniquet out into the world that would help not only enable those that face mortal situations in the military and law enforcement realms, but the everyday carry and well trained civilian audiences too. The ETQ they developed has won over the hearts of many with its effectiveness and small form factor. I sit down with Jefferson Colledge, the CEO of Snakestaff, and talk about the company and its mission, as well as help to share some important knowledge behind some of the common equipment we all carry, and ways that he and his team are working daily to bring better tools to us all.

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2026 has been a year of major, foothold victories, for the 2A communities battle to restore our rights, and push back the overreach of the National Firearms Act. The latest victory comes in from an announcement by ATF director Robert Cekada indicating that his agency will halt enforcement of rules on short-barrel rifles, short-barrel shotguns, and suppressors. While this is more a half measure, than a true victory, it's important we celebrate it. Also, acknowledge that even though this is more forward progress in ten months than we've had in the last ten years, it cannot stop here if the hope is for lasting relief. I dive into our ongoing fight, and how we can go about making these changes permanent - both in our states, and our country.

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I got a bunch more questions from all of you, my audience, and we're sitting down to go through them! From underrated gear, to the rapidly diminishing faith the community has in gun-tubers and influencers, there's a lot in this one. I love getting the opportunity to explore these questions - it allows me to directly speak on the subjects and unique topics that matter most to all of you. While obviously, I can't guarantee that I'll have the most complete answer, or even that I'll be the best source of information on a given subject, I absolutely can guarantee that I'll do my best to provide you with a thorough response, which may or may not be colored by my own opinion and experiences. Enjoy!

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Medical training is one of the most overlooked parts of preparation - including by us, here on the podcast. To remedy this, I sit down with Joe, the owner of Buckeye Tac Med, for a dive into medical training, his background, the community, and more. We dig into tactical medicine, and more specifically which parts of it are applicable to folks like you and I - the tactically minded civilian, who wants to be better prepared. Truly, the medical skillset has much less to do with the supplies we carry, than the knowledge we have. From being able to carry out a M.A.R.C.H. assessment, to proper tourniquet staging, and beyond, Joe and I got into an awful lot. Medical skills are something we can use in so many ways, especially outside the tactical realm that many of us fixate on. I highly suggest giving this a listen, and checking out what Joe and Buckeye Tac Med have going on!

https://buckeyetacmed.com/

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One of the largest, and I'll add most upsetting trends I've seen within our social media space over the past few months, is the accepted trend of using a gaslighting, and victim mentality, as a rebuttal for accountability and discussion. This community is one, I assume, where one can seek out information and mentorship. Where a individual can come to develop their own skillsets, learn from their peers, and build lasting relationships. It's honestly a big part of why many of us have stuck around. Lately however, it seems there's an ever-growing portion of our community who has pivoted to justifying poor performance with victim tactics, and resorting to lowest common denominator communication strategies to "prove a point" and to some extent, "defend" themselves. I'm here to dive into it, and talk about why we need to restore a greater level of accountability.

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If you've built out a full kit - plate carrier, tactical belt, helmet, etc. you know that the gear in our community is a true investment. Many times, the investment is too great for folks, and they're left to try and make the best of a rough situation. However, all of this changed a few years ago with the introduction of the Vakarian from Rebels Raiders - an "all in one" kit that provided everything a prepared citizen would need, at a very attainable cost. To dive into this effort and understand the mission behind the company, we sit down, we talk about the nylon industry, product development, of course the origin of the company, the affordability factor, and a ton more. We even take the time to talk about social media and complex relationship that many of us have with our peers in the community. A absolutely awesome discussion, and one I think you all are gunna enjoy. Check it out!

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When we talk about building skill, creating your "toolkit" as a prepared individual, do we really understand what we're chasing after? Civilians here in the United States are afforded many, many more opportunities than those in other countries, and often don't exercise them to the greatest extent they can. It's not for lack of desire, but I think, because we've let social media, and to some capacity, consumerism, drive us on our journey. The reality is that the conversation is much larger, and more all-encompassing that what we probably realize. While yes, the term "Gunfighter" implies that you'll use a firearm to fight, there's so much more that goes into building that skillset, and being able to effectively apply it. So, I think it's worth our time, to sit down, and dig in to what this really means, in 2026.

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Joe Farewell is a former law enforcement officer, and current competitive shooter who is also the owner and founder of Farewell Firearms Training. Having spent time working on various units and task forces, as well as ERT, while also winning numerous awards in the competitive shooting community, Joe is a subject expert with a wealth of knowledge not only on shooting, but on how to develop the supporting skillsets. Working with top level shooters in the competitive community, training military and law enforcement, Joe has a lot to share because he's seen a lot, tested a lot, and most importantly learned a lot. This is a fantastic conversation that addresses some of the key considerations behind performance based shooting and building stronger skill, as well as addressing a lot of the noise from social media that can make they pursuits more difficult. A fantastic discussion for anyone interested in truly become a better, stronger shooter.

dryfiremastery.com

farewellfirearms.com

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