Pentagon Money Pit

http://www.counterpunch.org/2016/08/11/pentagon-money-pit/

It is complicated.  Things are not accounted for.  In order to bring accounts into balance numerical adjustments are made called voucher entries to make the math come out right.  The vouchers are numbers with no explanation to the things they relate to.

That is counting not accounting!

It is all called financial.  That includes real money as well as the things money bought.  Accounting for money itself is one thing.  A well controlled thing.  Accounting for the value of things after they have been bought is another matter.  That connects the physical existence of a bought thing to the mirror image financial representation of that thing as a value of the thing on a financial record.  Either asset or liability.  The representation on the financial record must match the real world existence of the thing.  Then it is accounted for!

It should not be so complex.  Complexity however hides sloppy management and pure ignorance.  That is a business model when accounting is the lowest priority.  War fighting is highest.  The whole intent of the revision of the military financial system was to support the war fighter.  In war, accounting be damned, just get the goods to the war front.  That is is the way it was in Vietnam.  That is the way it is today.  Focus on the operational mission comes first.  Taking care of logistic accountability is an exercise of neglect or cover up.  How can a war be fought when effort is spent on bean counting.  Take care of it after the war is over by writing it all off with a memo.  Trouble is war is never over.

I made Loss by Inventory adjustments when things were not located.  I made Gain by Inventory adjustments when they were found.  Little effort was expended in actually finding things.  Things were put back on the accounting records when someone was told to go out to the record item location and verify the thing was there or do research to find it.  No allowance to provide for the employee expense of finding things that should have been found in the first place if the system was working.  Nobody wants to say that it is not working and they are loosing things they can't find.  You mean you can't do the job you are responsible for?

What a mess.  Audits uncover it.  Audits might as well just change the date on the last audit report and recommendations that were supposed to be corrected.  Same old report over and over.

Anything worth accounting for should have a discrete identity in an block chain management system.  Money, personnel or material.