OK, here we go. No flames intended from my end, but as I recall some of the points, here are mine:
One guy complained about having "only" four magazines. That count may be innaccurate: four in the TV, one on rifle makes five. Five times thirty equals 150. Suppose the section is full up. He mentions getting out of a LAV. There are 440 in the coax, and 210 25mm in the main. 7 guys get out, 2 have LMGs (three belts each? If so, that's 600 rounds each). 5 guys have rifles (each with 150 rounds) for a total of 750 rounds in magazines for the riflemen. Oh, and two M203 grenade launchers. ;D That's 1950 rounds for seven guys on the ground. The LAV crew has access to a coaxially mounted, fully stabilised C6 MG with 440 rounds of 4B1T, and 210 rounds of 25mm "just in case". That is one hell of a lot of firepower. And don't forget the pintle mount!
One word:
fire discipline. . Suppose "normal rate" of fire, by all at once. What is that: 10 rounds per minute? Even with 150 rounds per soldier, that's 15 minutes! Rapid rate is what: 20 rounds per minute? That's 7.5 minutes of fire. "Mad Minutes" only waste rounds, and are a pet peeve of mine!
IF they are in a sustained firefight (not up against some dude with an old, rusting Mosin Nagant, but a bunch of dudes with a bunch of semi-modern rifles), then I can only imagine that the LAV III alone would win the firefight. If not, the 2 LMGs would be able to help out. And don't forget the M777s! You stand alone, but you're never alone, to quote an old recruiting pamphlet. As well, when I was "over there", we carried ten magazines each, doubling the riflemen 300 rounds each, or 2100 rounds of 5.56mm ball per five dismounted riflemen: not in bandoliers, but in magazines. And the extra five mags were in an
issued piece of kit housed in the side pouch of the TV: the pouch in which the LMG gunners are "supposed" to keep a belt-box.
I hate to say it, but the issued gear is "pretty good", In my professional opinion. Yes, troops may want "more", but they will ALWAYS want more. Sometimes with good reason: imagine the 60's pattern Y Strap webbing! You know those pockets on your combats? They were designed to hold magazines! Remember the "sock pouch"? You think the 82 pattern is junk? You should see that really old stuff
Anyway, the idea of the supply system is to be able to sustain the pointy end. If everyone goes off and buys the "cool stuff" (sights that bleep and paint the target, GARMIN GPS because the PLGR +96 is "too big", even though they can be encrypted: GARMINs can't, etc), well, then the system cannot keep up. Yes, some of the issue stuff may not be the best possible, but with
any army, what you get is good enough, again, in my professional opinion AND experience. Carry too much stuff, and you no longer will be able to do your job: you are part of a team, each soldier, sailor, airman and airwoman a cog, and, here comes a buzz word, but the synergy created from such a team is why we have what we have.
Now, about the boots :-X
(OK, I've said enough, but there you go)
Hauptmann out
You won't have trouble convincing me, or anyone else, that the Marines up north had things tough. 
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