The tackdriver comment struck me as strange. If you are far enough away from your attacker that the accuracy of your handgun makes a difference, you are probably far enough away to run and get the hell out of there without bloodshed. At the very least you should be able to get behind cover or concealment where you are relatively safe. Nobody is dead, you don't have to stand trial or face indictment, and you lived, you win.

If you really expect to draw fire from a significant distance away and need to shoot back, you better be carrying a long-gun! There's a good article in the American Rifleman. It was written by an NRA member who's a museum curator in New Orleans and stayed behind when the hurricane hit. He was an ametuer collector of military arms and had several rifles and handguns. Faced with getting him and his woman through the city in a state of civil unrest he grabbed the Kalashnikov and the highest cap handgun he had.

He wanted his guns to go BANG when and as often as he needed it. No tackdriver required!