The issue of body armor has been hotly debated over the past several years. Outcry over reported limitations of the vest and the countering concerns about additional weight and mobility limitations have combined into a confusing sea of indignation. The Catch-22 quality of all of this has been amplified by the fact that a number of the voices didn't really appear to have any actual field knowledge. Today, it appears that some who do - the Marines - are adding their voice to the discussion:

Wednesday, February 27, 2008
By Jennifer Griffin

BAGHDAD, Iraq — The Pentagon and Marine Corps authorized the purchase of 84,000 bulletproof vests in 2006 that not only are too heavy but are so impractical that some U.S. Marines are asking for their old vests back so they can remain agile enough to fight.

Marine Commandant Gen. James Conway wants to know who authorized the costly purchase of the nearly 30-pound flak jackets and has ordered the Marine procurement officers at the Quantico base in Virginia to halt the rest of an unfilled order, FOX News has learned.

The rest of the article is here.

Having never needed to rely on one of these vests, I haven't got enough of a frame of reference to opine on these vests. I can say, however, that I can't imagine having to choose between a higher level of protection, and necessary mobility. It seems to me that some techno-genius somewhere should be able to remove the need to do so. But of course, that takes money, and when we've got Congress debating the issue of de-funding the war, and at least one candidate for President who has expressed contempt for the military, I'm not real optimistic that the money for research and development to solve this issue is going to be there.

Until that point, it looks like our troops are still going to have to choose between improved protection or mobility, and just that doesn't sit well with me.

Labels: body armor, USMC