Since this thread is finally cooling off, I hesitate to weigh in, but... Among my own archaeological colleagues in the greater Washington DC area it is the military that is one of the biggest clients, even as private contractors. I can think of several projects off hand - at Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland, Fort Belvoir, Virginia, and even Vieques Island in Puerto Rico. In fact, I thought the federal agencies were all hiring their own archaeologists in the last 15 years (or so) precisely BECAUSE they were paying so much for outsourced archaeology. Which calls into question the rationales behind both the current job review action and this entire thread of discussion. --Tom ---------------------------- Thomas W. Cuddy Curator of Archaeology Historic Annapolis Foundation 18 Pinkney Street Annapolis, MD 21401 (410) 626-1032 [log in to unmask]