R9S Carry,
I agree with your opinion about graphite but when it comes to the military in the field/in under fire conditions I think that it does not matter what lubricant is going to preserve your firearm the longest. You use what works and when your gun breaks you get a different one from whoever is assigned to that duty in your unit. The "average" private, if there is such, is not interested in preserving his rifle for posterity. That went out with the Korean War. I have heard of one or two people who got their very own Korean War Garand back through the CMP. But anyway, IMO in a dry dusty environment like the sandbox, graphite is a VERY GOOD lubricant for guns. After all we are not talking about a Mauser 98 or a Springfield here. Modern military arms are not designed to be rock solid as they were in WW1. They are deployed with a definate and known service life expectancy untill the expected TBO, time before overhaul is reached.
On another but related note, the M-16 is a piece of crap compared to the AK-47 or AK-74 series of rifles. Actually, the U.S. hasn't had the best service rifle since the M-1 Garand. The FN-FAL was much better than the M-14, IMO.
Mike