If we're honest about the NWUs I think we can pretty easily trace their lineage back to the height of OIF, when the Navy (excluding Naval Aviation and SPECWAR) was largely sidelined. That didn't really work with the Clark/Roughead/Mullen/Every-MCPON-ever "we're all warriors" mantra. Camouflage will certainly do the trick, right!? Well that, and IAs...
Alright then, let's spend $225 million developing a uniform that if we called it camouflage would incur congressional oversight - so, instead, let's go with "
camouflaged style uniform" (three clicks to the right). Now that we've decided on something that is neither "camouflage," nor useful, let's find a shitty contractor that can't deliver the goods on time. We'll slowly and without much forethought start issuing these uniforms to boots, but we'll expect the rest of the fleet Sailors to buy them - but wait... we can't afford to increase their uniform allowance to pay for it. This seems like a problem that
should rise to the level of the CNO to resolve (two clicks to the right).
My suggestion going forward: remove all the MCPOs, retired MCPOs, and contractors from the Navy Uniform Matters Office (
yes, that's a real thing), and chalk
Task F.U. up as a bad joke that went too far. IF/when a decision needs to be made concerning new or changed uniform policies, you instead sequester a group of Second Class Petty Officers and JOs into a room and go with the resulting recommendation. Beer and wings will be reimbursable with submitted travel claim.