Comments on: Worn out men cannot fight or think

By: McChuck

McChuck — Wed, 18 Feb 2026 10:53:59 +0000

Uniform & boots, helmet & body armor (this was back in 2004 before they made them smaller and lighter), rifle + 8 magazines, pistol + 3 magazines, multitool, folding knife, ID lanyard, keys, pocket lint…

I also had my own personal body armor (best life insurance policy I ever bought) that I wore under my uniform. Very handy when your job is to go into town and talk to people in their shops and homes. Taking off the helmet and bulky issue armor shows trust when you all sit down to talk. The drop holster on my thigh pointed at their crotch shows I’m not completely stupid.

By: Isegoria

Isegoria — Tue, 17 Feb 2026 19:07:48 +0000

Sixty-five pounds isn’t light, and that’s without a pack, water, radio, batteries, or extra ammo? Good grief! Body armor and a helmet aren’t light, but what’s the other half?

By: McChuck

McChuck — Tue, 17 Feb 2026 13:58:30 +0000

On our last day in Iraq, we had to weigh ourselves with our gear. (This is for the benefit of the Air Force load masters.) My “walking around the base” load was 65 pounds. No pack. No water. No radio. No batteries. No extra ammo.

65 pounds.

By: McChuck

McChuck — Tue, 17 Feb 2026 13:56:09 +0000

Absolutely. Senior officers are conditioned to think of the men beneath them as unfeeling, unthinking automatons.