"Only dull people are brilliant at breakfast" -Oscar Wilde |
"The liberal soul shall be made fat, and he that watereth, shall be watered also himself." -- Proverbs 11:25 |
The system for delivering badly needed gear to Marines in Iraq has failed to meet many urgent requests for equipment from troops in the field, according to an internal document obtained by The Associated Press.
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.
The document's claims run counter to the public description of a process intended to cut through the layers of red tape that frequently slow the military's procurement process.
The Marine Corps had no immediate comment on the document.
Labels: corporatism, corruption, Iraq