Obama: Soldiers in Afghanistan Must Be Fired Upon to Receive Combat Pay

[candycorn]

Obama: Soldiers in Afghanistan Must Be Fired Upon to Receive Combat Pay

As of February 1st 2012, President Obama has determined that Combat Pay for US forces will be determined by a new criteria. In general, Afghanistan has been deemed a combat zone and all US forces deployed in that region have been eligible for combat pay due to the certainty of encountering dirt-bags in firefights, ambushes, IED’s or suicide bombings. This new policy now requires having been shot at first. For those not understanding the problem with this, it now says that the US Government has effectively declared Afghanistan a “safe zone”! And this in spite of the nearly daily reports of Americans being either wounded or killed!

That will win him some military votes for sho'
:

If it were true it would be a problem. Since it's just another lie told by the wingnuts, no worries.

 

[candycorn]

fuck saving money by cutting entitlements... let's just cut combat pay to our military!

fucking morons in DC.

It isn't exactly happening the way the title of the thread states. Bripat is quoting blogs that quote other blogs.

Basically it has designated areas as high risk and when a solder serves in a high risk area, they get combat pay....whether or not someone shoots at them.

So as I understand it, if you drive a truck from a depot not in the high risk area to an area that is, you get combat pay for that day.

Combat pay, by the way is $7.50 per day. Seven fucking dollars and fifty fucking cents. I can't believe how small it is.

That must change.

Combat pay, by the way is $7.50 per day. Seven fucking dollars and fifty fucking cents. I can't believe how small it is.

That must change.

Why?
Surely it's supply and demand.

Why?

Many different reasons. Chief among these is what it says about us as a people that we rely on those who benefit the least from society to defend it THEN we turn around them and pay these warriors pennies.

As for supply and demand, sadly you're probably right; doing something because you can does not alleviate the fact that just because you can, you should.

 

[candycorn]

snopes.com: Obama Eliminates Combat Pay
Mix of true and false apparently.

Snopes has been discredited on almost every level. Few if any quote snopes any longer.

did you look at the link, or just assume that since you don't like the source, they must be wrong?

they specify S 1254 as their source. It was pretty easy to find...
Bill Text - 112th Congress (2011-2012) - THOMAS (Library of Congress)

If this is was reconciled with the eventual NDAA act signed into law, then hazard pay was 'altered', not done away with. Thus Snopes saying a mix of true and false.

SEC. 612. MODIFICATION OF QUALIFYING PERIOD FOR PAYMENT OF HOSTILE FIRE AND IMMINENT DANGER SPECIAL PAY AND HAZARDOUS DUTY SPECIAL PAY.

(a) Hostile Fire and Imminent Danger Pay- Section 310 of title 37, United States Code, is amended--

(1) in subsection (a), by striking `for any month or portion of a month' and inserting `for any day or portion of a day';

(2) by striking subsection (b) and inserting the following new subsection (b):

`(b) Special Pay Amount- The amount of special pay authorized by subsection (a) for a day or portion of a day may not exceed an amount equal to $225 divided by the number of days of the month in which such day falls.';

(3) in subsection (c)(1), by inserting `for any day (or portion of a day) of' before `not more than three additional months'; and

(4) in subsection (d)(2), by striking `any month' and inserting `any day'.

(b) Hazardous Duty Pay- Section 351(c)(2) of such title is amended by striking `receipt of hazardous duty pay,' and all that follows and inserting `receipt of hazardous duty pay--

`(A) in the case of hazardous duty pay payable under paragraph (1) of subsection (a), the Secretary concerned shall prorate the payment amount to reflect the duration of the member's actual qualifying service during the month; and

`(B) in the case of hazardous duty pay payable under paragraph (2) or (3) of subsection (a), the Secretary concerned may prorate the payment amount to reflect the duration of the member's actual qualifying service during the month.'.

(c) Effective Date- The amendments made by this section shall take effect on October 1, 2011, and shall apply with respect to duty performed on or after that date.

Good research. Wingnuts should look to your example before they broadcast these lies again.

 

[Conservative]

Good research. Wingnuts should look to your example before they broadcast these lies again.

I always try to back up my posts with links or facts. The term 'wingnut', on either side of the aisle, precludes those same actions

While the complete elimination of 'hazard pay' does appear to be garbage, I will say this... it's too fucking low.

 

[idb]

Good research. Wingnuts should look to your example before they broadcast these lies again.

I always try to back up my posts with links or facts. The term 'wingnut', on either side of the aisle, precludes those same actions

While the complete elimination of 'hazard pay' does appear to be garbage, I will say this... it's too fucking low.

Clearly it isn't too low...people are still signing up aren't they?

 

[Salt Jones]

Well, I guess people won't be able to get their tax free reenlistment bonuses by flying over the region for one minute in their reenlistment month. No taxes on $33,000 is nice.

YOU must actually know some US military brass, Salt.

Yup, for far too many US military brass, these "war zones" are merely tax havens, that's for sure.

While plenty of guys are actually in harms way, plenty of lifers are dropping into the the safe green zones just to get their TAX FREE combat pay.

This isn't new, of course. REAR eschelon desk jockies and their bosses were playing that I was in the combat zone treat me like a hero, too card back during the Viet Nam, era, too.

My last 3 years in the military I ran the operations department of a C-130 squadron. We had transported shit loads of people into the middle east on flyovers of combat/hazardous zones for reenlistment or re-ups. We didn't have to land just pass through the area and they were tax-free for the month. Plenty of MOS/NECs were receiving $99,000 in reenlistment bonuses, you got $33K at reenlistment and $33K on the next two reenlistment anniversaries. If you reenlisted in a tax-free zone you paid no taxes on the bonus, anniversary payments included.

 

[Conservative]

Good research. Wingnuts should look to your example before they broadcast these lies again.

I always try to back up my posts with links or facts. The term 'wingnut', on either side of the aisle, precludes those same actions

While the complete elimination of 'hazard pay' does appear to be garbage, I will say this... it's too fucking low.

Clearly it isn't too low...people are still signing up aren't they?

just my opinion. I think it should be higher.