The Pentagon Wars: Reformers Challenge the Old Guard

Former Air Force colonel Burton spent 14 years as a Pentagon specialist in weapons acquisition and testing before his retirement in 1986. In this angry, controversial, convincing brief, he testifies that the process of selecting and purchasing weapons for our armed forces is ``ethically and morally corrupt from top to bottom,'' with few checks and balances. The most scathing and damning portions of the expose illustrate how Pentagon procurement officers routinely give more consideration to satisfying defense contractors than to the safety of the troops who will use a given weapon on the field. Burton recalls the fuss he raised over the Bradley Fighting Vehicle's vulnerability to anti-armor weapons, and though (reluctantly made) design changes improved the safety of the vehicle, Burton suffered both personally and professionally for his boat-rocking, as he shows here. Ultimately, he is not optimistic: the flaws in weapons procurement are probably permanent, Burton concludes, since the reforms he and others forced were only temporary. Photos. (Sept.)