"Law 3" – Details, details

In warfare, the smallest detail can be the difference between life and death, victory and failure. Throughout history, wars have been won or lost because of details that were ignored. Benjamin Franklin is famously quoted as saying "For want of a nail, the shoe was lost. For want of a shoe, the horse was lost. For want of a horse, the rider was lost. For want of a rider, the battle was lost. For want of a battle, the kingdom was lost, and all for the want of a horseshoe nail". He also said, "A little neglect may breed great mischief," in Poor Richard's Almanack in 1758.

There are concrete historical examples of the truth behind that proverb. On the bloodiest day in American history, September 17, 1862, the Civil War Battle of Antietam resulted in nearly 23,000 casualties. After crossing the Potomac River into Maryland on September 9, 1862, Confederate General Robert E. Lee divided the 45,000-man Army of Northern...