By: Brian McNicholl

Defense acquisition takes a lot of flak, most of it entirely deserved.

The services, being at heart big government bureaucracies, compete with each other for resources, capabilities and influence – impact on overall spending be damned. They could not survive an audit, and billions of dollars seem to slip into the ether each year.

They protect their interests, try not to let any funding already acquired not be used to its fullest and jealously guard their turf.

But every once in a while, the services do it right. They see a program that doesn’t measure up, and they make the tough decision to get rid of it. They forgo a capability, opt for efficiency and call for going back to the drawing board.

The Navy has made this difficult decision with the Freedom Class Littoral Combat Ship. These are small and fast ships – they can go…