Supporting The Troops, Not!

Many words came to mind when I started reading this article over at CNN, none of which are normally printed in my blog although I use them quite liberally in person. After five years at war with a formerly inferior enemy (we've been giving them on the job training) and formerly having been touted as the best military in the world, our Marines cannot get the equipment and supplies they request in a timely manner.

Besides the fact that five years after WWII was started, it was over, we managed to produce scores of planes, ships, tanks, rifles, ammunition and anything else the military needed in an extremely timely basis by relatively unskilled workers. Now with our much vaunted technology Marines can't even get requests approved that a third grader playing G.I. Joe considers to be standard fighting equipment. And they can't let the brass know because the news is so bad. Who's running this third world operation? Bizarro?

Of more than 100 requests from deployed Marine units between February 2006 and February 2007, less than 10 percent have been fulfilled, the document says. It blamed the bureaucracy and a "risk-averse" approach by acquisition officials.

Among the items held up were a mine-resistant vehicle and a hand-held laser system.

"Process worship cripples operating forces," according to the document. "Civilian middle management lacks technical and operational currency."

The 32-page document -- labeled "For Official Use Only" -- was prepared by the staff of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force after they returned from Iraq in February.

The document was to be presented in March to senior officials in the Pentagon's defense research and engineering office. The presentation was canceled by Marine Corps leaders because its contents were deemed too contentious, according to a defense official familiar with the document. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss it publicly.

Why is everybody so afraid of the truth? So, can someone please tell me what the Iraq funding bill actually covers? Support the troops, my derriere. This is almost unbelievable until you remember who's in charge, then you wonder what else is going to leak into the light and hope that it doesn't cost any more lives. Even though you know it has.