Don't overload troops with gizmos.

• Author: Erwin, Sandra I.
• Position: Defense Insider

Maj. Gen. Richard P. Mills, who has been nominated for a third star and assignment as Marine Corps deputy commandant for combat development and integration, said he will be looking into whether troops are being burdened with unnecessary gadgets that interfere with their missions.

"I want to ensure that we're not over tasking our basic leaders--our lieutenants, our squad leaders and our platoon sergeants," he said. "Are we giving them so much technology that we're over tasking them and they can't do their basic job, which is to lead in the firefight? We need to look at that very, very carefully to make sure that what we're giving to [a leader] is absolutely essential to his task but allows him to focus on what he needs to do, which is lead his marines in combat."

One piece of equipment that marines should not give up...