STORY:
Y2K May Burden Defense Department

The Los Angeles Times is reporting that critics both inside and outside the Pentagon worry that the DOD's success with computers is also a potential Achilles' heel, and that the Y2K bug could become the chance of a lifetime for an adversary to land a sucker punch on U.S. forces or allies and thus win a victory of enormous propaganda value.

The article says that under this nightmare scenario, the Y2K bug lashes out on New Year's Eve and "blinds" a portion of the military's computers, and suddenly, U.S. warplanes, Tomahawk missiles, early-warning devices, surveillance systems, and information-needy combat troops become useless.

To ensure this does not happen, the Department of Defense is hip-deep in an unprecedented $3-billion computer repair and replacement program.

Congressional critics, such as Rep. Stephen Horn, R-Calif., want to believe Pentagon officials when they say that "mission-critical" systems will be repaired with time to spare. But Horn and others say more tests and more proof will be needed before they are satisfied.

As late as November, Horn, chairman of the House Subcommittee on Government Management, Information and Technology, graded the military's Y2K performance as worthy of only a D-minus. In February he upgraded that to a C-minus.

Source: Los Angeles Times

DATE: 4/16/99

For more E2000 stories, click here:
news | events | Y2K | today's news

Marketplace
Books
Collectibles
Celebration Supplies
General Merchandise
Travel Packages