if you think that a person has to personally do something to make a claim then you are wrong.
You really don't want to get into an argument about supporting claims when you're in a discussion with an experimental physicist... <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />
What you have is an opinion, not a statement that can be defended. There are a set of attributes which you believe makes the perfect hard use knife, and yet never having actually tested any of those attributes you can't reasonably support that claim. It's not like you are citing peer-reviewed scientific studies here, we're talking about hunches and observations formed by reading internet forums. Sure, you might be able to find one or two people on the internet that agree with you, but you need more than a few citations to make a rigorous argument without carrying out the experiments for yourself.
Your .50 cal analogy breaks down really quickly - the use of that .50 cal in combat situations has gone on for how many decades now? There are how many records from experienced experts in the military that demonstrate its effectiveness?
By comparison, how many records can you find to support your belief that the DMCG is the be-all, end-all? How many studies that have defined that the characteristics you listed for a hard-use knife are the most desirable, and then how many that compare those characteristics between different knives?
It reminds me of what I was like in high school - I thought the Lamborghini was the most awesome sports car on the planet, and my best friend was adamant that Ferrari was far superior. In reality, neither of us had the faintest clue - we had certainly never driven the cars, and our opinions were based on fanboyism and appearances. I guarantee you I could find interviews in magazines from folks who knew about fast cars that claimed the Lambo was better, and I guarantee I could find a big long list of specs on the Lambo that painted in the light I wanted to paint it, but that doesn't change the fact that I was a clueless teenager blowing smoke out of my arse.
In other words, unless you want to keep sounding like I did when I was a clueless teen, I strongly recommend getting out into the woods, beating the ever-living snot out of that DMCG, and beating the ever-living snot out of a couple of other beefy knives, and THEN form your opinion and repeat it here as many times as you want. I hate to be the one to let you in on this, but quite a few folks around here give me the impression that they see your rabid support of the DMCG as sort of a running joke in the Yard, and I really fear you're hurting your own credibility in the long-run. You are about to go into a world where you will likely get FAR more experience with your field tools than any of us here will ever have (or want!) - your opinions in the coming years have tons of potential to really enrich the knowledge of the folks in these forums, as long as you don't make people stop taking you seriously before you have the chance to form some really well-founded opinions.
I realize this is sounding sort of harsh, and that's not my intention - I think you're a good dude, and I salute your enthusiasm, but at the same time, I hope you take my advice and learn to temper that enthusiasm with a little bit of real-world experience.
So get out and beat on that knife!
