The Atlantic "Gun Trouble"

[pardus]

Was your adapter loose?

No, but I can't say with certainty that it wasn't faulty, we weren't given an opportunity to test fire.
Also I'd never used that particular rifle before, it was handed to me before the exercise and taken away afterwards.

 

[BloodStripe]

Which then obliterates the argument that "Every ____ is a rifleman." The Marines said it for years and the Army adopted the philosophy after it found itself in Iraq. Giving a new rifle to the infantry admits there is a "class divide" in the military which runs counter to the feel good, "we're all the same" policies in place. It isn't that I disagree with you, but I also don't see it playing out. Just because something "is" doesn't make it right.

Agreed, but the point of war is to win. Caring about feelings is partially what has led to the Generals leading the Iraq and Afghanistan War to fail.

 

[DA SWO]

The Army has what? 25% of it's M1 Abrams tanks in storage, yet the current defense bill buys more tanks.
They've (the Army) asked to stop the line yet the Ohio delegation keeps adding tanks. They could stop (reduce) production and let the Army spend the rest on items it deems necessary for warfighting, but that won't happen.
Ike bemoaned the Military Industrial Complex, he needed to add Congress into the mix.

The RFI system initially put into practice was great, and quality gear made it to those that needed it, the the Acquisitions folks whined about the system not being used, those in-charge then demanded we return to the established (wasteful) system.

Winning has become secondary.

 

[DA SWO]

Story from WiB today:
https://medium.com/war-is-boring/the-m-4-carbine-is-here-to-stay-fe9012f293f4

BLUF: The M4 family is here for a few more years.

 

[Ranger Psych]

Erm, you might want to reference if that's refurbishment or outright replacement. There's a huge buy from/resell to thing w/ the Abrams for significant maintenance and upgrades. Plus, all the powerpacks aren't even manufactured anymore and as such have to be hand rebuilt.

 

[Il Duce]

We're going through the M4 upgrade now, it's refurbishment but essentially they replace the entire upper receiver.