Just for the record, I was a CO of a Company in the 7th Marines, under Harry Ass Truman, President. Speaking of being short on gear, I had only 14 complete rifle sights in the whole Infantry Company. Only half the troops had armored vests. We frequently rotated chow lines so everyone would get a full tray at least once a day. The sleeping bags were of summer issue, which required as many blankets on top as one could midnight survey.
I also recall major equipment shortages in Vietnam, under LBJ. I suspect there will shortages of gear the next war also, and the next, especially if we have Democrooks running the country.
Its actually worse than that. Every few years or so, someone comes along to "reinvent" the acquisition process. There are a lot of stupid ideas that are floating around out there and that are being implemented that are detrimental to keeping our forces well-equipped. I've seen it firsthand.