So who’s writing all this? My name is Tiffany Johnson. Who? Exactly. On the grand stage of the Second Amendment, I’ve got no major affiliations, no contracts, no media deals, no endorsements, no political aspirations, and no ulterior motives. I’m just a random person speaking her mind. That’s it!
That’s me in the pic above, with my beloved two kiddies, Tina and Ike (why yes, they are indeed awesome). So, if you’re still interested, below is a fake transcript of me being fake-interviewed by… uh… me.
Q: Blogging doesn’t pay the bills, so what do you do for a living?
A: I’m a lawyer. I practiced personal injury and civil rights law for several years before starting my own business as a freelance legal writer and researcher. I’m also a teacher. I teach college courses at the University of Memphis and coordinate their Legal Studies program.
Q: Were you raised as a gun person?
A: Nope. Not at all. Late bloomer.
Q: Are you a hunter or a competition shooter?
A: Nope. Never been hunting in my life. Never competed in any of the big-name shooting tournaments. All my training is basically limited to personal defense.
Q: Are you in law enforcement or the military?
A: Nope. Just plain old Jane Q. Citizen. But since we’re on the subject, I’ll take this opportunity to give a quick shout out to all the police and military folks out there. Thank you so much for all you do!
Q: What sparked your interest in guns?
A: My best friend was murdered.
Q: If you’re such a gun advocate, why haven’t you posted photos of yourself firing a giant machine gun or blasting a flamethrower or something awesome like that?
A: What for? That wouldn’t make me any more credible.
Q: What sparked your interest in the law?
A: My dad was a judge. That’s the short version.
Q: What do you teach?
A: I teach undergraduate courses in legal research, legal writing, torts, and a few other topics occasionally. I also conduct professional development seminars for attorneys and law students. I used to be a high school teacher back in the day. I also taught dance for nearly 15 years before my joints finally conked out on me.
Q: No, no, I meant what do you teach in the firearms world?
A: Oh, my bad. Well, I’m a Rangemaster baby (see next question), so I assist with Rangemaster classes whenever I can, and I help out a lot with the annual Rangemaster Tactical Conference. On the local circuit, I teach Tennessee and Mississippi handgun carry permit classes with Aqil Qadir of Citizens Safety Academy. We also teach all the NRA pistol courses. We are both NRA Training Counselors, so we also teach instructor-level courses to certify new NRA instructors in all the pistol disciplines (Aq also does rifle and shotgun, but I’m not that cool yet).
Q: What’s your firearms background?
A: I took my very first firearms class (to get my CCW permit) in 2001. Since then I’ve taken every class available from Tom Givens at Rangemaster in Memphis, TN. I’ve also trained at other schools with a bunch of awesome trainers, including John Farnam, Jim Higginbotham, Marshall Luton, Massad Ayoob, Craig Douglas, and several others. I have learned a LOT, but not nearly as much as I still hope to learn. I’m a handgun safety instructor, certified by the NRA (Training Counselor), the State of Tennessee, the State of Mississippi, and Rangemaster (Advanced Instructor). Most of my training is in handgun marksmanship and tactics, but I’ve also taken shotgun and O.C. classes. I dabbled in hand-to-hand stuff here and there, though not much. I’d like to learn more about rifles, but as of right now that’s still a work in progress.
Q: Have you ever shot anyone?
A: No, and more than anything I hope I never have to. That being said, I have absolutely no doubt that my personal defense training has saved my life multiple times. It has taught me self-discipline, humility, and situational awareness, all of which results in avoiding fights. Any fight avoided is a fight won.
Hopefully that’ll at least get you started on a general picture of me. Any other questions? Feel free to post a comment or contact me directly by clicking here. Thanks!