Do You Have What It Takes?

Soldiers and Armies

You are not Superman.
Professionals are predictable, but the world is full of amateurs.
No combat ready unit has passed inspection.
No inspection ready unit has ever passed combat.
Murphy was a grunt.

Battle

If you are short everything except enemy, you're in combat.
When both sides are convinced they are about to lose, they're both right.

Planning

The important things are simple.
The simple things are very hard.
No plan survives the first contact intact.
Prefect plans aren't.

Tactics

Don't look conspicuous, it draws fire.
Try to look unimportant, they may be low on ammo.
If the enemy is within range, so are you.
Anything you do can get you shot, including doing nothing.
If you can't see the enemy, he still may be able to see you.

Techniques

If it's stupid but works, it's not stupid.
When in doubt, empty the magazine.
Never share a foxhole with anyone braver than you.
If your attack is going really well, it's an ambush.
The enemy diversion you are ignoring is the main attack.
The easy way is always mined.
Make it too tough for the enemy to get in, and you can't get out.
The only terrain that is truly controlled is the terrain upon which you're standing.
If you take more than your fair share of objectives, you will have more than your fair share objectives to take.

Casualties

Ammo is cheap; your life isn't.
It's easier to expend material in combat than to fill out the forms for Graves Registration.

Weapons

Always keep in mind that your weapon was made by the lowest bidder.
The law of the bayonet says the man with the bullet wins.
Tracers work both ways.
Armored vehicles are bullet magnets, a moving foxhole that attracts attention.
All five second grenades are three seconds.
The bursting radius of a grenade is always one foot greater than your jumping range.
If you can't remember, the claymore is pointed towards YOU.
Recoilless rifles, aren't.

Artillery and Bombing

Suppressive fire, won't.
Final protective fire doesn't.
Friendly fire, isn't.
Radios will fail as soon as you need fire support desperately.
Incoming fire has the right-of-way.
The only thing more accurate than incoming enemy fire is incoming friendly fire.
If you are forward of your position, artillery will fall short.
All-weather close support doesn't work in bad weather.
Precision bombing is normally accurate within plus/minus one mile.
Cluster bombing is very accurate. The bombs always hit the ground.

Supply

Things that must be together to work, usually can't be shipped together.
Radios will fail as soon as you need something desperately.
Beer math is "2 beers x 37 men = 49 cases."

Intelligence

Body count math is: two guerrillas plus one portable plus two pigs=37 enemy in action.
The enemy side always looks stronger, especially when they are firing at you, to both sides.
The noisiest weapons always appear to the most powerful.