>Since the program was so large, every Congressman got involved to send money to their particular agenda. The Greens got a complete ban, not only on parts with chromium or cadmium, but on any parts made by a company that also made chromium or cadmium plated parts that we were not buying. (You can’t make this stuff up.) The gays got special sensitivity training imposed on contractors and, of course, there are the usual small business set-asides and the like. All of these added hugely to the cost. Parts that tested perfect when they left had corroded by the time they arrived because they didn’t have chromium or cadmium plating.
Wow. I’d thought the rot from the top was pretty bad, but not to this point.
“Wow. I’d thought the rot from the top was pretty bad, but not to this point.”
Companies will happily sell the government their inferior product by convincing the government that the superior product isn’t. (They will also use their personal relationships and job offers after military retirement, etc.) Congress will authorize the purchase of stuff they know is inferior because it means jobs in their district or state. Almost nobody gives a damned about the soldiers who will use the stuff. The entire procurement process needs a huge enema.