"please provide fingerprint to verify"

Looks at glove

"Fuck"

Now all we need is physical access to one of those tablets and we're in!

gives a private US corporation the power to cripple their subs.

You, umm, probably shouldn't look up who maintains the trident missiles those subs carry...

I agree, but then I'm one of those really hardcore libre-software-only nutcases ;-)

EDIT: Though, to be fair, the Trident Missiles they carry are US-made, too, so...

Further to this, there isn't a 'launch the nuclear weapons' application which controls things. Windows is used for the day to day admin - producing the paperwork required in any organisation - but the actual control systems, for the submarine, the weapons the reactor etc are not running off windows.

using a Windows base with a “Custom Support Agreement” still gives a private US corporation the power to cripple their subs.

No, it doesn't.

How is Microsoft going to affect the software installed on a nuclear submarine?

It only gives Microsoft the power to choose to not add new features, the software wouldn't be on the sub if it required any kind of outside support... the entire point of a nuclear submarine is to perform a second strike after everyone (including Microsoft) is destroyed in a nuclear apocalypse.

Having software that's dependent on anything that isn't on the boat would completely defeat that purpose.