Some Air Force pilots will adamantly refuse to take off without a thumbs up from their ground crew. Whistling aboard a Navy ship is strictly forbidden for a reason. And God help any sailor who washes a coffee mug.
U.S. military personnel deal with matters of life and death, sometimes daily, so it's hard to judge them for being more superstitious than a medieval serf.
If Keke didn't want to be kidnapped by the devil, she shouldn't have spilled the salt. That's how superstitions work.
These superstitions, unsurprisingly, extend to the battlefield. From the patterns on their uniforms to the food they eat in the field, including their field rations, strange superstitions have been around for a long time. Refusing to wash your patrol cap might make it smell bad, but will it really be a catastrophe? The answer is a firm "maybe."
1. Black-Eyed Peas
This is one of the oldest food-related superstitions, and it dates back to the Civil War. Legend has it that Union troops raided a Confederate food supply during Sherman's March to the Sea, but left the black-eyed peas. Maybe the Union thought they were gross.
