It would be funny if it were not so potentially tragic. The U.S. seems to have a philosophy in which the governement feels that they must be prepared to counter every conceivable threat anywhere on earth; we never again want to be caught with our pants down like we were on December 7, 1941 and a few times since. To prevent that, certain programs are forced down our throats with the justification of: We need this (weapon/aircraft/whatever) no matter what it costs!
The problem with such a philosophy is that the U.S. may well go broke in the name of national defense. Why, if we don't have the Osprey then we run the risk of not being the biggest, baddest, most powerful nation on the planet! And that is, after all, our manifest destiny, isn't it?
The hard reality that all branches of the U.S. military must face in the future is that the money is not limitless. The American public is getting tired of sending troops to die in distant countries for unclear or sketchy causes. The old "fight 'em over there so they won't come over here," is weak and we're not buying it anymore.
And remember, the U.S. isn't the only country having a financial crisis. Worldwide, there's not a whole lot of money for weapons.
Also, I talk to fighter pilots here in Pensacola, Florida where we have a couple of large military bases (NAS Pensacola and Eglin AFB). The new kids understand that they are probably the last of their type. Fighters aren't going to be flown by humans in the future...probably the very near future, too. Those shiny, new F-35's that sit idle down the road at Eglin Air Force base may go operational...or may not.
I know that there are some people in the U.S. that get simply horrified at the prospect of a shrinking military. They want unlimited funding for every possible...thing...that is deemed necessary "for American safety and security!" Anyone who argues otherwise is portrayed as unpatriotic.
Thus, we get the V-22 and F-35. I hope to God we can afford them.