**Background - Chaos night is something every student in IOC knows is coming, but doesn’t know when and doesn’t know what it consists of. You could say it almost takes the form of legend. Mine came after a long wet and cold week of living and fighting in the mud. It started by awakening to the sound of canisters of CS gas popping as they flew through the windows of the building we had occupied. It ended many hours and many miles away, but we all learned something about ourselves that night. **
The following are scribbles from my notebook after the night ended.
" Do I deserve to lead these Marines?"
Chaos Night - Cold, Hunger, Tired, CS Gas, Weight .. After a week of freezing rain and living in the mud.
What did these factors do to my ability to help others?
How much more unwilling were we to do what needed to be done?
Near peer threat will not look like a cookie cutter range, it will look more like chaos.
This event is designed to show you what darkness really looks like.
Preparation vs. Anticipation:
What did we do to prepare, not just anticipate.
I need you to sere this into your souls - when you lose Marines in combat the only way you sleep at night is to look in the mirror and know you did everything in your power to prepare them.
What did you need from a leader going through this situation? "The will of the leader" The only thing a unit has in chaos is the will of the leader. Be a lion, it is all about will.
"The more you sweat in peace, the less you bleed in war." -- Norman Schwarzkopf
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