War Is The Realm Of Uncertainty; Three-quarters

However Much Pains May Be Taken To Combine The Soldier And The Citizen In One And The Same Individual, Whatever May Be Done To Nationalize Wars, Never Will It Be Possible To Do Away With The Professionalism Of The Business; And If That Cannot Be Done, Then Those Who Belong To It Will Always Look Upon Themselves As A Kind Of Guild, In The Regulations, Laws, And Customs In Which The "spirit Of War" Finds Its Expression. It Would Be Very Wrong To Look Down Upon This Corporate Spirit, Or Esprit De Corps, Which May And Should Exist More Or Less In Every Army.

A Certain Grasp Of Military Affairs Is Vital For Those In Charge Of General Policy.

With Uncertainty In One Scale, Courage And Self-confidence Should Be Thrown Into The Other To Correct The Balance. The Greater They Are, The Greater The Margin That Can Be Left For Accidents.

To Be Practical, Any Plan Must Take Account Of The Enemy's Power To Frustrate It.

Obstinacy Is A Fault Of Temperament. Stubbornness And Intolerance Of Contradiction Result From A Special Kind Of Egotism, Which Elevates Above Everything Else The Pleasure Of Its Autonomous Intellect, To Which Others Must Bow.