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Welcome to Rewind & Reconnoiter. Each week, we’ll ask one of our authors to look back at an article they’ve written for War on the Rocks in light of a current news event. Did their argument hold up? Read more below to find out.***In 2018, Leo Blanken, Kai Thaxton, and Michael Alexander wrote “Shock of the Mundane: The Dangerous Diffusion of Basic Infantry Tactics” for War on the Rocks, in which they argued that “the marginal improvement of tactical prowess in violent non-state groups may lead to outcomes that have strategic implications for global U.S. counter-terrorist and counter-insurgent operations.” Specifically, they wrote that the diffusion of basic infantry tactics combined with “readily available technology” could make such groups a serious threat and “open the door for strategic success for these groups, despite their continued inability to defeat U.S. forces in conventional battle.”In light of the Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7, we asked Leo, Kai, and Michael to reflect on their piece and argument. Read more below.The 25th Anniversary of Hamas Celebrated in Gaza, via Wikimedia CommonsYou argued something very simple: “The marginal improvement of tactical prowess in violent non-state groups may lead to outcomes that have strategic implications for global U.S. counter-terrorist and counter-insurgent operations.” Is the Hamas attack an example of this phenomenon? Are terrorist groups just getting better at the basics?The short answer is yes; this was precisely the type of event that we warned about in our 2018 piece. These groups have access to motivated young fighters, small arms; by simply training and preparing along the lines of a traditional military force, Hamas achieved strategic success. It is also important to note that these 100-year-old tactics are malleable; for example, Hamas has clearly managed to integrate cheap commercial off-the-shelf drones effectively into their tactical systems. These quad-copters