Budget Woes ... BOHICA
Good news keeps on rolling. The first line of the article and my personal favorite, "Congress and the Pentagon have lavished money on the nation's 1.3 million active-duty troops and their families." Good times. :rolleyes:
Defense Budget Faces Cuts To Personnel After Decade Of War |
That's why I don't read the Huffington Post, New York Times, Mother Jones or the Daily Kos, among others. I usually stick to the Wall Street Journal.
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Army just suspended its tuition assistance program. I always felt that was the main reason people joined. It was a solid opportunity to get whatever education you wanted after you served.
My buddy had his flight training and 4 year degree paid by the Army. Over $100k worth of total schooling in the span. He was planning on getting a Masters when he gets back from Afghanistan in a couple months, but looks like it's out of his pocket this time. It is an awesome incentive, but I can see how these programs can destroy a budget. |
Originally Posted by KC10 FATboy
(Post 1370808)
Good news keeps on rolling. The first line of the article and my personal favorite, "Congress and the Pentagon have lavished money on the nation's 1.3 million active-duty troops and their families." Good times. :rolleyes:
Defense Budget Faces Cuts To Personnel After Decade Of War Personally, I think we need to dial back the amount we spend on families. It makes no sense to have 2 people of identical rank and experience contributing the exact same amount towards national defense, but one of them costs 4 times more because of their dependents. Worse yet, the mission suffers because actual people in uniform are getting kicked out to pay for that guy's dependents. Of course, there's way more to the budget but I figured the scope of this thread is mainly personnel costs. |
Interesting.... the DoD budget is one of the biggest if not the largest... deploying the empire globally is incredibly expensive. In fact it has caused the demise historically of other empires. Maintaining our vast empire is gutting our country... at what point do you quit holding onto flawed values and realize change is needed?
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Originally Posted by mspano85
(Post 1370829)
Army just suspended its tuition assistance program. I always felt that was the main reason people joined. It was a solid opportunity to get whatever education you wanted after you served.
My buddy had his flight training and 4 year degree paid by the Army. Over $100k worth of total schooling in the span. He was planning on getting a Masters when he gets back from Afghanistan in a couple months, but looks like it's out of his pocket this time. It is an awesome incentive, but I can see how these programs can destroy a budget. Recently found out the twin turboprop I fly (HC-144A aka CASA 235) costs $60 mil per copy (45 for airplane, 10 for spares, 5 for mission systems pallet). Retarded. Let's keep TA and buy cheaper machines. |
And we continue to give $16B/yr to other countries for their military.
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Originally Posted by hawgdriver
(Post 1370937)
And we continue to give $16B/yr to other countries for their military.
I'm Ok with that spending, as long as it's rational and thought out. |
Originally Posted by rekatron
(Post 1370900)
To be fair, annual raises on our compensation have been outstripping inflation for a while now. Not only that but we do pay an immense amount of money in benefits for active duty and their families. I'm not saying people don't deserve it for the crap they go through, but personnel costs per person are incredibly high in the military.
Part of the problem is when they add programs and benefits they make them open-ended. There should be "war-time bonuses", "war-time education benefits", etc which can be easily scaled back when the war is over. A bit over-simplified but you get the idea.
Originally Posted by rekatron
(Post 1370900)
Personally, I think we need to dial back the amount we spend on families. It makes no sense to have 2 people of identical rank and experience contributing the exact same amount towards national defense, but one of them costs 4 times more because of their dependents. Worse yet, the mission suffers because actual people in uniform are getting kicked out to pay for that guy's dependents. Of course, there's way more to the budget but I figured the scope of this thread is mainly personnel costs.
The current system actually encourages junior enlisted to get married...bigger paycheck, get out of the barracks/off the ship. The DoD is then saddled with additional family costs. Not to mention the system attracts "predatory spouses" who actually want to marry the system, not any particular sailor. Make it like any other entry-level job: You can start a family at age 19 if you want, but you have to pay for it yourself...might want to think twice. On the other hand I think it would be a bad idea to actively discourage marriage/family, especially among career service members. Family provides a better off-duty outlet than alcohol, nightclubs, sports cars, motorcycles, strippers, etc. Also I'd prefer that our senior military leadership in general have a grounding in family and an appreciation for small children. |
Originally Posted by Elvis90
(Post 1370819)
That's why I don't read the Huffington Post, New York Times, Mother Jones or the Daily Kos, among others. I usually stick to the Wall Street Journal.
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