The Affordable Care Act

[piece-itpete]

Was that voluntary?

Pete

[BlueStreak]

Six tours would most likely be voluntary, yes. At least the ones that came after reenlistment would certainly be voluntary. But the first two or three? Probably not. Some people join the military for reasons other than a desire to experience combat, Pete. Some of them simply need a job or they're trying to get "money for school". I know, it seems absurd, but it is nonetheless true.

(This is not to say that if we need them to fight that they should be excused, because, "That isn't what I signed up for!", by any means. That's ridiculous.)

However, the point is that in the past, I believe soldiers were generally required to do only one combat tour per enlistment if so assigned. But for this latest bogus adventure, we've been forcing them to stay longer. I'm thinking this was done purely to avoid the draft.

Dave

[Pio1980]

Originally Posted by BlueStreak

Six tours would most likely be voluntary, yes. At least the ones that came after reenlistment would certainly be voluntary. But the first two or three? Probably not. Some people join the military for reasons other than a desire to experience combat, Pete. Some of them simply need a job or they're trying to get "money for school". I know, it seems absurd, but it is nonetheless true.

(This is not to say that if we need them to fight that they should be excused, because, "That isn't what I signed up for!", by any means. That's ridiculous.)

However, the point is that in the past, I believe soldiers were generally required to do only one combat tour per enlistment if so assigned. But for this latest bogus adventure, we've been forcing them to stay longer. I'm thinking this was done purely to avoid the draft.

Dave

That and budget cuts, can't train fresh troops and pay contractors like Halliburton at the same time.

[icenine]

Originally Posted by Boreas

Do you remember the E-6 that President Obama invited to the SOTU this year? He was wounded while on his SIXTH deployment! How can we do this to people?

John

What people do not realize that during the 2000s (the aughts) when we had two wars going the military (the Navy anyway) was downsizing at the same time.
I remember people getting kicked out at 10 years because they could not make E-5 but at the same time a war was going on. It was really strange...and they started to pull Navy sailors off of ships to fill Army billets in the Middle East.

Plus there was a back door draft of National Guardsmen being sent in to Iraq who never thought they would be there.

The saddest thing to me was that in 2004 Bush sent Army people from Korea to Iraq....some of those troops had been in Korea for 12 months already and were supposed to go back stateside then they got sent to Iraq for 12 months!!

Sadly there were people in that group that got killed and never made it home to the States...I remember that many of these Army guys were in Ramadi and that was very dangerous. I used to x-ray them sometimes at Al Taqqadum.

Of course everyone today is gaga over Bush's paintings.....


that shit pisses me off.

[icenine]

I mean I know we were all volunteers....but I hated Rumsfield and Cheney's cavalier attitudes toward other people's lives....sometimes I think that if they had been in combat when they were younger they would not have told Bush to invade.


I mean someone was telling him to invade...or do you think Bush thought it up first?

[Zeke]

Originally Posted by icenine

...there was a back door draft of National Guardsmen being sent in to Iraq who never thought they would be there.

It wasn't "back door."

If you volunteer, you're a pawn.

[Ike Bana]

Originally Posted by icenine

I mean I know we were all volunteers....but I hated Rumsfield and Cheney's cavalier attitudes toward other people's lives....sometimes I think that if they had been in combat when they were younger they would not have told Bush to invade.


I mean someone was telling him to invade...or do you think Bush thought it up first?

Having volunteered doesn't mean anybody's in for being treated like a piece of meat. If someone pushed to be deployed 6 times that's his business, I suppose. But there were plenty who were deployed 4 times...and plenty of those who had fulfilled their contract and were told that it was "wartime" and their contract doesn't count for a shit in Cheney's hat. And plenty of those who were so mentally and emotionally damaged that it was not cavalier...it was criminal.

I was in the Corps from 1969 to 1975 and during the Vietnam war 90% of us were volunteers. And we were meat to the government and the military high command then as well.

Rich man's war, poor man's fight. Pretty much every war in the country's history.

[Tom Joad]

Originally Posted by merrylander

I know two seniors who might vote Republicant about the same time hell freezes over.

I know.

Plenty of us seniors are in the same boat.

They would have to go back to the way they were when Ike was President for me to even consider it. And that ain't gonna happen. Most of the old school reasonable Republicans have already left. Note that New England is mostly blue now, where it used to be mostly red back in the day. What's replaced these reasonable New Englanders are a bunch of Old Slave State Rednecks that were formerly George Wallace Dixiecrats. This is the faction that basicly controls the party now.

But the GOP does get a majority of the over 65 vote in national elections. Mostly because they get close to 100% of the nasty old Cracker vote, most of whom would be fucking dead by now if it weren't for the gummint healthcare they get from Medicare. .

And if I am correct I think that's the only age cohort that do.

[Tom Joad]

Originally Posted by BlueStreak

Six tours would most likely be voluntary, yes. At least the ones that came after reenlistment would certainly be voluntary. But the first two or three? Probably not. Some people join the military for reasons other than a desire to experience combat, Pete. Some of them simply need a job or they're trying to get "money for school". I know, it seems absurd, but it is nonetheless true.

(This is not to say that if we need them to fight that they should be excused, because, "That isn't what I signed up for!", by any means. That's ridiculous.)

However, the point is that in the past, I believe soldiers were generally required to do only one combat tour per enlistment if so assigned. But for this latest bogus adventure, we've been forcing them to stay longer. I'm thinking this was done purely to avoid the draft.

Dave

My son is career Army and he's done at least 6 tours to the ME.

He's in Special Forces and has been gung ho for most of them, but now with 17 and a half years in he's looking forward to getting his 20 and retiring.

That's going to involve at least one more combat tour, most likely to Afghanistan. I just hope he can survive one more roll of the dice.

[Pio1980]

Originally Posted by Tom Joad

I know.

Plenty of us seniors are in the same boat.

They would have to go back to the way they were when Ike was President for me to even consider it. And that ain't gonna happen. Most of the old school reasonable Republicans have already left. Note that New England is mostly blue now, where it used to be mostly red back in the day. What's replaced these reasonable New Englanders are a bunch of Old Slave State Rednecks that were formerly George Wallace Dixiecrats. This is the faction that basically controls the party now.

But the GOP does get a majority of the over 65 vote in national elections. Mostly because they get close to 100% of the nasty old Cracker vote, most of whom would be fucking dead by now if it weren't for the gummint healthcare they get from Medicare. .

And if I am correct I think that's the only age cohort that do.

So it seems, and the gullible that follow them. Bunch-a dip-shits voting for folks that work for their prejudices and against their interests and otherwise despise them for everything but their vote.