Wow.....long thread....haven't read it in it's entirety yet to really weigh in here, but I'll state a couple of ideas...
I could have more academic sources, btw; but I am limited to net sources because I am not giving you guys access to my academic library accounts
1. Learning to shoot 2 guns simultaneously in minutes is believable for a number of reasons; you are using the mind/hands natural abilities to "point," and you are using your peripheral vision which is designed to detect shape and movement. In theory it should be actually easier to do this in the dark because you use your "rods" (outer eye; in charge of peripheral vision, depth perception, and shape/space detection, all things important for night vision) which is what allows you to see in the dark AND use your peripherals rather then your "cones" (the inner eye that is centrally focused and allows you to do detail work like reading, and detects colors, textures, etc.) which is primarily not used at night. See:
http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/vision/rodcone.html
Your "Rods" are what you should be using under stress in a fight to visually perceive what is going on around you. Unfortunately, because we are no longer "cave men," most people have poorly developed use of their rods as well as functioning under combat stress, which is why focus can be "tunneled" when operating with the SNS in a fight to using cones and focusing on the attackers weapon or hands to the exclusion of everything else, for instance. More research needs to be done on the biology of the visual process as it relates to the SNS.
The good news is that we can develop use of our peripherals through attribute focused exercises designed exclusively to develop the peripherals, or task specific things like operating at night or in the dark without artificial lighting, or doing physical activities that would require the use of our peripherals (like sparring or football for example). Once again, though, more emperical research needs to be done to determine the usuefullness of peripheral development and visual function through the SNS.
Then there is the natural ability to point accurately at a target that we all have, which is essentially a core aspect of how unsighted fire works. Focusing on the target rather then trying to split focus between weapon (sights) and target has been done since man has been chucking projectiles. Even sport clay shooting folks know the value of being target focused (see tip # 5):
http://www.americaoutdoors.com/shooting/features/ten_tips.htm
That leaves the aspect of "two guns," meaning being able to split your mind body coordination between left/right brain function. This is not to suggest exclusivity or specificity in function (meaning that being right handed doesn't mean left-brain dominant or vice versa), but physical function is correlated to hemisphere activity. I am fairly ambidextrous and I shoot fine with both sides (but tend to do slightly better on my right probably because I am right eye dominant). But for the beginner, I am sure that they would have to learn to shoot 1 handed on both dominant and non-dominant sides before trying a 2 guns at one feat. I am sure that those of you who train equally on both sides should have no problems with assimilating this skill. Side note: If your having trouble with using your non-dominant side, and if your really bored, learn to juggle with your eyes closed (even if it is just with 1 or two balls). Sounds stupid, but some NLP Psychologists believe that this helps unify your right/left brain, coordinates your hand/eye in both dominant and non-dominant sides, and has therapeutic effects life reducing maladaptive responses such as panic and anxiety. But that is worth a separate discussion. I digress....you could just cut to the chase and shoot with your non-dominant hand more often...
When you put it all together, this leaves the possibility of one learning "two handed shooting" fairly quickly. Because I like to mess around with different things, I have done this myself with my BB and airsoft guns. I can attest that it isn't as hard as it sounds when you can tap into your natural ability to use your peripherals, naturally point at your target, and split your activity between your right/left side.
2. I question the value of this as a usable method in a defensive situation, however. Such a skill could be useful in an extremely task specific situation, but I can't see how this would be common as it pertains to most defensive shootings. Particularly problematic is that when one is operating with the SNS, one has a difficult time splitting focus physically speaking and between both brain hemispheres. This is why the "pull push" modified weaver often fails under stress, among other things. People are also threat focused under stress; there is the propensity of focusing on the NEAREST/MOST DANGEROUS THREAT until that threat is no longer present. This idea of splitting focus between two hands and multiple threats simultaneously would most likely fail in an actual gun fight. Then there is the issue of thread ID, but lets assume that we have identified our threats previously, for arguments sake.
All and all, this seems like a skill that would work in practice, particularly on stationary targets, but would fall apart in an actual fight. The best way to test this would be to run airsoft or simunition scenarios; so far in the scenario's I have seen/experienced, the person tends to focus on the threat nearest/most threatening until that threat is no longer present, every time, and doesn't split focus. Current data supports that splitting focus isn't going to happened when operating with the SNS. I will admit that in these scenarios participants haven't necessarily been trained to use peripherals, and haven't been trying to use more then one weapon simultaneously; so my statement is just a hypothesis and more research would have to be done to verify the idea. But I certainly wouldn't be teaching this method in a defensive shooting course until it could be verified as reliable. On biopsychology and SNS:
http://allpsych.com/psychology101/brain.html; On SNS response:
http://www.gsgi.org/combat_stress.htm
3. So, yes I do have doubts to the validity of such a method once combat stress enters the picture. But does that mean that it wouldn't be a valuable skill to learn?
I will say that I am happy that I have picked up two guns and shot targets simultaneously to learn these skills. If anything, these have been both therapeutic and attribute building exercises. Plus, it's a lot of fun! I say do it if it is enjoyable and if it floats your boat.
SOOOO....
That's my take on this discussion. Hopefully there is something valuable there. I'll finish reading the thread, then I will probably crawl into my hole for another week or so (been real busy). So no offense if I don't respond to people right away. I will state that when given the opportunity, hopefully over the next year or two, I would like to put the issue of peripheral development and combat stress to more empirical university studies. Time will tell...
Paul Janulis
