Well, I wasn't intentionally misstating it. (Even I can occasionally win an argument with myself, especially if I cheat. <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> But what would be the point?) But I may have misinterpreted it.

>>he was just saying that you're a LOT more careful when
>>you feel scared and vulnerable, that there are times when
>>it's entirely appropriate and beneficial to feel scared and
>>vulnerable...

Maybe so. Otoh, the point of reconnaissance is not just to come back, it's to come back with information, so maybe making them TOO scared and vulnerable would be counter-productive.

It's an interesting concept, I can see that now. I never was in the infantry but I spent enough time playing "silly bugger" in the woods to remember that the rifle always seemed to be catching on branches and tree roots, or swinging around and pulling you off balance. Doubtless the groundpounders who live, breathe, eat and sleep with the damned things learn how to handle them in the pitch black night. Or maybe they really do just hide them under a layer of brush when they set out and pick them up on their return.

Now that you mention it, Carsten Stroud, in "The Blue Wall", interviewed a veteran city police detective who always locked his handgun in the trunk of the car at the start of his shift and left it there until the end. Figured it was more likely to get him into trouble than out of it. Maybe he was a Heinlein fan <img src="/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />
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