I am similar to you in my appreciation for the 1911 platform...have shot something over one million rounds of .45ACP since 1977 both in competition and practice...the platform is not for those that want easy or simple...it is something that needs to be studied and mastered...not for the stupid or the lazy...but once you have achieved a level of mastery, it is the almost perfect self defense handheld weapon...Mine is a 70 Series Combat (steel) Commander with all the trick features, (which are not for everyone either), but they work for me...

Being an advocate of the late Jeff Cooper, and having taken lots of courses and study under his hand, I believe you can't do much better unless it is to have more than one 1911...but to each his own...

It is not the first, nor will it be the last bad call the military makes...the M16 is another one..but we'll save that for another discussion...

Self defense is a mindset as much as anything...refusing to be a victim...and it starts way before you start carrying for self defense...the decision to shoot or not is made long before the situation comes up...and when it does, those that hesitate are lost...as the saying goes in my neck of the wood: Better to be judged by 12 than carried by 6...

While the perfect defense handgun has not yet been made, and while we each have our preferred weapons, you have to remember that even a .22 in your pocket is better than the .44 Mag on your dresser at home when you really need it..