Principles of Principals

While serving in the military, I was introduced to the terms force multiplier and force mitigation. Permit me, dear reader, an explanation. I served as a Forward Observer, 13Foxtrot, or FISTr. FO's are fire support specialists who have the ability to arrange for extra artillery, close air, mortar or naval gun ship ordinance when things get really dicey. We do this job with one tool, a radio. That radio has two critical  parts necessary to it's function, without which nothing will happen. Antennae and batteries. With those two accessories, the radio is a force multiplier .  In other words, when compared to a weapon (pistol, rifle, tank), it has nearly limitless capacity to incapacitate the enemy. A weapon is limited by the number of bullets in a magazine (clip) and the number of bullets one soldier can carry. It's not an efficient nor is it, in my opinion, a very effective tool of war. Even more effective than a radio in war is an outward mindset - or that ...

I thought I knew how to shoot a rifle.  I mean, I grew up hunting.  I received my first BB gun, a Red Rider , at the age of 5.  I was taught then and there how to shoulder the weapon, raise the site, look through one (dominant eye) and place the front site on the target, squeezing the trigger...and click, the BB ricocheted into my teacher's eye...hence the reminder to wear eye protection. I graduated to a .22 single shot, spring loaded, rifle, then to a .30-06 for deer hunting, always creating a field of vision that focused one eye on the target.  I was a moderate marksman...nothing to brag about, but I could target and shoot. I entered Army Basic Training at Fort Leonard Wood, summer of 1999. Hollywood has yet to capture what goes on there, suffice it to say, I was WAY out of my comfort zone .  Anyway... Basic Rifle Marksmanship takes up the bulk of instruction during training.  The Army is good at a lot of things, but perhaps their hallmark is task ...