01-16-2024, 02:15 PM
One of the challenges is that the US Military is the second largest bureaucracy in the US -- Just behind the entire Federal Government. There are some very large and ossified ones in other parts of the world too.
As these entities grow and age, making "progress" with a not subtle resistance to change becomes a common theme.
Hence we see large and complicated studies to determine "just the right" path forward, but with enough subtle "keep things the same" to make true progress very challenging. The introduction of the AR15 with the 5.56 was a notable exception along with standing up of NASA. Both were aided by the existential struggle with communism. The AR and 5.56 were helped by the most powerful general in the US finding the cartridge and rifle very useful for protecting airecraft and missile sites. The fact that the cartridge and rifle made more sense than the M14 / 7.62 made things easier for the Army to accept the obligation to follow suit
A larger, more significant, bureaucracy tail-twister was World War II. How many new tanks, aircraft and ships were designed, tested and fielded in huge quantities during those FOUR years? Today we see mutiple decades passing between expressed need and fielding of new systems.
Today, most, if not all, of those factors have faded in perceived importance, so we trudge forward studying things to death by committee with little to no real progress.
Military firearms and cartridges have largely shared the same fate because the only "compelling" arguments for change have resulted in tweaks to the existing AR15 or cartridge. This is made worse because the individual weapon is, in the large scheme, deemed not particularly important to war winning.
So, we get small changes that frequently don't connect to the needs of the vast majority of individual soldiers. "Those Furys and Westerns" mentioned by Konocti's Wigwam are an example.
As these entities grow and age, making "progress" with a not subtle resistance to change becomes a common theme.
Hence we see large and complicated studies to determine "just the right" path forward, but with enough subtle "keep things the same" to make true progress very challenging. The introduction of the AR15 with the 5.56 was a notable exception along with standing up of NASA. Both were aided by the existential struggle with communism. The AR and 5.56 were helped by the most powerful general in the US finding the cartridge and rifle very useful for protecting airecraft and missile sites. The fact that the cartridge and rifle made more sense than the M14 / 7.62 made things easier for the Army to accept the obligation to follow suit
A larger, more significant, bureaucracy tail-twister was World War II. How many new tanks, aircraft and ships were designed, tested and fielded in huge quantities during those FOUR years? Today we see mutiple decades passing between expressed need and fielding of new systems.
Today, most, if not all, of those factors have faded in perceived importance, so we trudge forward studying things to death by committee with little to no real progress.
Military firearms and cartridges have largely shared the same fate because the only "compelling" arguments for change have resulted in tweaks to the existing AR15 or cartridge. This is made worse because the individual weapon is, in the large scheme, deemed not particularly important to war winning.
So, we get small changes that frequently don't connect to the needs of the vast majority of individual soldiers. "Those Furys and Westerns" mentioned by Konocti's Wigwam are an example.
shootersnotes.com
"To those who have fought and almost died for it, freedom has a flavor the protected will never know."
-- Author Unknown
"If at first you do succeed, try not to look astonished!" -- Milton Berle
"To those who have fought and almost died for it, freedom has a flavor the protected will never know."
-- Author Unknown
"If at first you do succeed, try not to look astonished!" -- Milton Berle