2012 Defense Budget

[Polk]

The only people that really suffer when the defense budget is cut are the poor enlisted folks with a family and an E2 paycheck. And they enlisted to serve their country. They should be given a raise - not a cut.

I don't think anyone is suggesting cutting the pay for soldiers. At least I know that I'm not. I'm talking about bringing them home from overseas and stationing them HERE, inside the UNITED STATES to provide border security and to maintain their preparation to completely and utterly destroy anyone or any nation who makes the mistake of sticking their nose into America's business.

The government never cuts servicemember's pay, they just fail to give a meaninful payraise, if any at all. I haven't looked at a military paychart in many years - let me check it out and post here what their earnings are. It's public record. Back in a sec...

At least service members are receiving a pay increase. All other federal employees are in the midst of a pay freeze.

 

[Polk]

New guy (E1) - 2 years or less - less than $1500/month. Look bottom left. Not a hell of a lot of money while getting shot at. 2011 Military Pay Scale Chart - for Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines

I'm going to take a contrarian position here and point out it's not that bad of a deal. Yes, fresh recruits come in making a little under $1,500 a month. However, everyone is promoted to E-2 after six months of service, raising their pay to around $1,650. $19,800 a year isn't a king's ransom, but it's also misleading, since members of the armed forces also receive housing assistance, food assistance, education, and health care. It's not the most glamorous of career options, but it's certainly nothing to sneeze at, especially for those without the interest or aptitude for higher education.

 

[auditor0007]

New guy (E1) - 2 years or less - less than $1500/month. Look bottom left. Not a hell of a lot of money while getting shot at. 2011 Military Pay Scale Chart - for Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines

The military isn't a good deal for the new guy. However, for those that make it a career and receive regular promotions, it's not all that bad of a deal. Besides basic pay, there are food and clothing allowances also as well as good medical benefits. If someone joins when they are 19, by the time they are 30, they are doing fairly well, unless of course they remain stuck at the lower levels and do not receive any promotions. However, those who do not receive any promotions likely wouldn't fare much better in the private sector.

 

[WillowTree]

Not just the ones in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Libya either. The ones in Germany, Korea, and every other place on the planet that we shouldn't be to begin with. Turn the US Military back into a Defensive and Counter-Attack Force primarily.

Agreed.

Freedom isn't free.

Well, we certainty aren’t getting our money’s worth.

go find yourself a freeer country then whyconchya? one with no army. dumbass.

 

[Mr Natural]

The only people that really suffer when the defense budget is cut are the poor enlisted folks with a family and an E2 paycheck. And they enlisted to serve their country. They should be given a raise - not a cut.

I don't remember being issued a family to support when I joined up.

 

[lvcabbie]

New guy (E1) - 2 years or less - less than $1500/month. Look bottom left. Not a hell of a lot of money while getting shot at. 2011 Military Pay Scale Chart - for Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines

God! When I went in I don't think I got even $300 per month.
Question? If the government provides clothes, housing, medical care and food, what the heck is the pay $1.5k per month?
[I really believe they deserve one hell of a lot more than that with deployments and all that garbage]

 

[Care4all]

if you put in a 4 year term you can get a VA, no down payment mortgage/loan, college or training help as well, i believe?

standard pay is truly low...if stateside, but the mess hall, barracks to sleep in, commissary & px/bx privileges, medical care etc does compensate some, for the very low pay..

 

[lvcabbie]

Jun 2, 2011 - Bill Action

Introduced: H.R. 2085: To amend title 10, United States Code, regarding restrictions on the use of Department of Defense funds and facilities for abortions. Rep. Louise Slaughter [D-NY28] introduced this bill.
I can't tell whether she's trying to delete restrictions or add more! No summary available as of yet.

 

[old navy]

How's this for a timely article? Gates and Mullen both propose a pay cut for military members. Of course, they are both on their way out the door.

Mullen Says Pay, Benefit Cuts 'On the Table'

 

[Polk]

How's this for a timely article? Gates and Mullen both propose a pay cut for military members. Of course, they are both on their way out the door.

Mullen Says Pay, Benefit Cuts 'On the Table'

Strongly doubt that will happen.

 

[old navy]

The only people that really suffer when the defense budget is cut are the poor enlisted folks with a family and an E2 paycheck. And they enlisted to serve their country. They should be given a raise - not a cut.

I thought govt spending did not create jobs?

Not a job but a constitutional requirement.

 

[daveman]

The only people that really suffer when the defense budget is cut are the poor enlisted folks with a family and an E2 paycheck. And they enlisted to serve their country. They should be given a raise - not a cut.

I thought govt spending did not create jobs?

Not a job but a constitutional requirement.

He doesn't understand that.

 

[lvcabbie]

Jun 7, 2011

Sen. Max Baucus [D-MT] introduced S. 1154: A bill to require transparency for Executive departments in meeting the Government-wide goals for contracting with small business concerns owned and controlled by service-disabled veterans, and for other purposes.

 

[Trajan]

New guy (E1) - 2 years or less - less than $1500/month. Look bottom left. Not a hell of a lot of money while getting shot at. 2011 Military Pay Scale Chart - for Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines

The military isn't a good deal for the new guy. However, for those that make it a career and receive regular promotions, it's not all that bad of a deal. Besides basic pay, there are food and clothing allowances also as well as good medical benefits. If someone joins when they are 19, by the time they are 30, they are doing fairly well, unless of course they remain stuck at the lower levels and do not receive any promotions. However, those who do not receive any promotions likely wouldn't fare much better in the private sector.

right now its a good deal for a lot of 'kids' ( especially 'black' kids) and supposed "adults"....hello, 20K a year 3 hots and a cot, medical, education money ..for the newly frocked 24 year old, loaded with college debt, a degree and no job to suse it in/on, guess what ? the military offers debt. forgiveness and lower interest rates during term of service.......hello....

to say nothing of the life experience and attitude adjustment that goes with it....

 

[Lars]

Freedom isn't free.

Well, we certainty aren’t getting our money’s worth.

You're not free?

I'm not free. at least by the dictionary definition. I am not experiencing liberty, which is total freedom from outside control against my consent.

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/free
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/liberty

 

[ReginaG]

Cutting the defense budget is a good idea but this will also mean trouble.

 

[Paulie]

The only people that really suffer when the defense budget is cut are the poor enlisted folks with a family and an E2 paycheck. And they enlisted to serve their country. They should be given a raise - not a cut.

There's plenty of shit we can have them do over here. They don't need to be in fucking Diego Garcia for example.

I mean WTF, we have more troops in Germany where we aren't even fighting a war, than we do in Iraq. I realize Germany is important in troop mobilization around the world, but if we left Iraq and Afghanistan we wouldn't need most of them in Germany.

 

[old navy]

I am a huge defense hawk and subscribe to the fact that the number one mandate of the US Constitution is national defense. I also agree that there is plenty of room for cuts in the DOD budget.

When I first started running my own shop in the Navy, my budget prep instruction was to just add 10 percent to last year's budget. This was to allow for cost increases I guess. Another element of the budget game was that all the money had to be spent or it was lost. Very wasteful. Sometimes I did not need to spend the entire quarterly allotment but had to spend it or give it back. I have managed very large budgets and really small ones. Now for example in my high school teaching job, I am given a few hundred dollars a year to buy what I need. I rarely need all my allotment so I let it sit on the books and the finance officer gives it to someone else I guess. One year I was called in and told to spend all my money to show that I was doing something. I just walked out shaking my head.

One way to decrease spending is to go to zero-based budgeting (ZBB). It would have to be modified of course in an agency as large as DOD but could be done. Maybe they would have to justify anything over 90 percent of last year's budget, variances, and increased or new services, for example. One problem with ZBB is that it is time consuming and it would probably not get done or get done correctly.

 

[WillowTree]

Not just the ones in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Libya either. The ones in Germany, Korea, and every other place on the planet that we shouldn't be to begin with. Turn the US Military back into a Defensive and Counter-Attack Force primarily.

Agreed.

Freedom isn't free.

Well, we certainty aren’t getting our money’s worth.

What? You're not free?

 

[Paulie]

Not just the ones in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Libya either. The ones in Germany, Korea, and every other place on the planet that we shouldn't be to begin with. Turn the US Military back into a Defensive and Counter-Attack Force primarily.

Agreed.

Freedom isn't free.

Well, we certainty aren’t getting our money’s worth.

What? You're not free?

I'm less free than I was 10, 15, 20 years ago.