rmb173rd

This is important and rarely discussed. I'd add that there's a larger pattern tying these cases together, one that also speaks to some of the Encyclical's broader points: whether it's the Politburo of the USSR, the Court of Directors of the East India Company, or the Board of the United Fruit Company, historical atrocities in any age, society, or economic system almost always occur in the context of enormous power concentrated in few hands. It isn't capitalism or communism but the absence of accountability.

Respectfully, the problem is not incompetence or bureaucracy. There's plenty of each in the military but they are only symptoms.

I like the Stanford Beer quote - "The purpose of a system is what it does".

What does the current defense acquisition system reliably produce? Obscene amounts of money for the defense contractors, campaign contributions for politicians, promotions and well-paid private sector careers for the top military leadership. The quality and suitability of its weapon systems, though sometimes excellent, is secondary.

All people who matter in this system, the ones who built and sustain it, are rewarded by the status quo. It's working exactly as intended.