RESPECT YOUR OPPONENT
“Dealing with morons … is like teaching Hindu to a beagle.”
“He was in no imminent danger of winning the Nobel Prize but definitely smarter than the average bear.”
“He wasn’t the crispest shirt in the closet.”
“You’re pretty good for an old guy.” “That’s how I got to be an old guy,” McGrath said.
“You have a message? Who from? The National Association of Assholes?”
“He’d fallen out of the ugly tree and hit every branch.”
“Guys like these, they couldn’t find their own assholes if I gave them a mirror on a stick.”
“He was an observant man. He had made his living by noticing details. He was
Think about everything you’ve seen and heard. Work the clues.
>>KNOW THE SIGNS OF BEING UNDER SURVEILLANCE
unexplained cars
parked vans
pairs or trios of dressed-down people with wires in their ears
clean taxicabs with two people in them
pedestrians you see inexplicably in two different places
The width of a person’s wrists is the best indicator of his or her strength.
People don’t like searching above head height. If you want to hide something, hide it on the top shelf.
People hiding and waiting give off human vibrations. If you don’t feel them, they’re not there.
An elected official always has a separate brass plate. (It makes it cheaper when the guy changes every few Novembers.)
The easiest way to spot a hooker is by her big purse—hookers have to carry around a lot of stuff (condoms, massage oils, gun, credit card machine …).
If a lock doesn’t have scratches around it, then no one uses the door.
“I think Reacher’s the kind of guy that sees things five seconds before the rest of the world.”
Look, don’t see; listen, don’t hear. The more you engage, the longer you survive.
If somebody’s got money outside of his salary, it shows up somewhere.
“Suicide bombers give out all kinds of telltale signs. Mostly because they’re nervous. By definition, they’re all first-timers.”
>>THE PERFECT OBSERVATION POINT
An unobstructed view to the front
Adequate security to the flanks and rear
Protection from the elements
Concealment of observers
A reasonable likelihood of undisturbed occupation
A result
THE TWELVE SIGNS OF A SUICIDE BOMBER
(as identified by Israeli counterintelligence)
1. Inappropriate clothing—oversized or padded coat
2. A robotic walk—because of carrying unaccustomed weight
3. Irritability
4. Sweating
5. Tics
6. Nervous behavior
7. Low and controlled breathing, panting
