[vonmoltke]

> But bottom line is that if you have a stubborn customer who insists on doing things the hard/stupid way, there's not a lot you can do.

This is something most people who have never dealt with the US government don't understand, thus they put all the blame on the contractors. Many groups within the government are the epitome of the "customer from hell". They hire you to do a job, to build a product, but think that they (and their experts) know better how to do it than you. Essentially, all they want is a body shop to implement their design. This is not what most commercial outfits, particularly SV-type companies, are used to.