In an interesting article published on the New York Times “At War” Blog, we recently had an opportunity to reflect on

Want to know what type of small arms the enemy uses to fight us with in Afghanistan?  Specifically in Helmand province?  

No one should be shocked at the simple and rudimentary arsenal that is being used against our troops – bolt-action rifles, Kalashnikov assault rifles, and PK machine guns, all of which are resilient and adaptable firearms for the area of operations that they were captured in.  

The “At War” blog entry ends with: “Together the technical qualities of these rifles and the thinking behind them, along with the quality of their manufacture and the relative simplicity of their ammunition resupply, have helped a largely illiterate insurgent movement not just to exert its will on its own country, but also to stand up to the most sophisticated military in the world.”