153 Quotes by Jeff Cooper

We thought everybody knew by now that barrel length has almost nothing to do with accuracy. I believe the myth of the superior accuracy of a long rifle dates from colonial days, when the only way to extend sight radius was to make the barrel as long as possible. It is interesting how long it takes a myth to die.

Under any sort of attack, keep cool. And if you must shoot, shoot with precision.

Speed is the absolute essence of any form of combat

[T]he only thing the United States government ever did about slavery was to abolish it. Perhaps that was a mistake, but I do not feel inclined to apologize for it.

If you must use your hands, use them with all the strength you possess... If you choose to strike, by all means strike hard.

Anyone who is aware of his environment knows that the peril of physical assault does exist, and that it exists everywhere and at all times.

Let your attacker worry about his life. Don't hold back. Strike no more after he is incapable of further action, but see that he is stopped.

Beware the man with one gun. He can probably use it.

Personal weapons are what raised mankind out of the mud, and the rifle is the queen of personal weapons. The possession of a good rifle, as well as the skill to use it well, truly makes a man the monarch of all he surveys. It realizes the ancient dream of the Jovian thunderbolt, and as such it is the embodiment of personal power. For this reason it exercises a curious influence over the minds of most men, and in its best examples it constitutes an object of affection unmatched by any other inanimate object.