"I’m an Army veteran, and my benefits are too generous"
 

Now here's a story you don't see every day.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinio...y.html?hpid=z2

The thing is that the author of the article knows none of the cuts will apply to him.
And if you took away benefits from the military the quality of the service would decrease.

People do not put their lives on the line because of patriotism but because of good retirement benefits. A pilot who puts his life on the line by landing on an aircraft carrier may decide a 401k instead of a pension is not worth the risk. It all depends on what kind of military the nation wants. By the outcry over the VA I do not think retirement benifits are in danger. The author is a middle class or upper class Lt Colonel who most likely is doing ok on his own. However the vast majority of retirees are not in his financial situation. For some the pension and benefits are all they have. It is a Walmart world they face like everyone else.

Yeah, that is bizarre for a military member (or anyone else for that matter) to be complaining that his own benefits are excessive. Either he's planning to run for office or he's crazy. I think the military and civil service folks are treated right and the rest of us are getting ripped off.

Dave

I think you are right.

And if you diluted the health care the retirees would just move to the VA system and put more strain on that.

I here some of the false debt crisis mantra in the background of his argument.

They already are. My sister is the prime example. She has two part time jobs, neither of which offer healthcare coverage and pay so low she cannot afford to buy her own. So, she uses her VA benefits. She has NO CHOICE.

He case is NOT unique, by any stretch of the imagination.

Another relative in Ohio works in the healthcare industry. She has told me that in the last few years the traffic at the VA hospital in Warren has skyrocketed------because the private sector is FAILING to provide healthcare benefits to employees, over and above the effect of unemployment.

The jobs that the private sector is creating are low paying and provide little benefit. They are rapidly becoming WORTHLESS.

Why people can't see the dangers of this is beyond me. All I can figure is that their heads are so far up their............

Well, you get the picture.

Dave

We need to vote some Democrats back into the house. In the old days even a GOP president and and a GOP congress might get something done. I do not trust the Teaparty though.

We need some basic safety net measures done along with some infrastrucuture stimulus bills.

Hear, hear! It'll be tough in the upcoming midterms but the '16 elections will be a different animal. ;)

Put-up job. Scripted.

I considered that. And I think you may be right.

Dave

I'd bet real money.

Quoted for truth.

There are a lot of right wing shills these days.

with all that Koch money of course there is.

But a pilot who lands on an aircraft carrier will probably find a post-discharge career flying jetliners for American, United, or Continental, plus your military pension to be quite worth the risk.

I have no problem with someone who retires from the Military. They I feel earned the benefits with the sacrifices endured. Agree whole heartily in the comments about this being a propaganda piece out up by those with an dark agenda. One to pit those without a retirement to look forward to against those who do now.
Another one of they ways two people can look at a third who has a good job with benefits and retirement. One will say ""I don't have that, and should!"" The other will say "" I don't have that so they shouldn't either!""


BTW, should be noted my Father retired from the Navy. My youth was spent as a son of a Chief. Moving across this country and having to witness the sacrifices. There is a reason few make it to twenty.

Barney

Actually it is not as easy to get those jobs as you think. And helicopter pilots generally do not fly once they are out.....just not enough demand in the civilians world for choppers.

Yep. For instance, military jet mechanics don't need an A&P license to work. In the civilian world, virtually every employer requires it, because it is a tightly controlled FAA program that puts you through eighteen months of some pretty thorough training in all the aspects of aircraft maintenance. The military tends to only train people in very narrow specialties. And, even after you get it, you must start all over again going through additional training if you want the good, strong paying job at an airline, anyways. Most military jet mechs get discouraged at this and go into something else when the leave the military.

Despite what you may have heard, military experience doesn't really count for much in the civilian world.

And, if your "specialty" was in artillery, well...........

You get the picture.

Dave

Your civilian A&Ps (airframe and powerplant mechs) are more highly trained than the military mechanics. It's the truth.

Dave

Used to be just about every Helo pilot in Alaska was a Vietnam vet. There are still a few, but most have retired or were forced out when they could no longer pass the flight physical.
It's scary flying with some of these young guys after so much time with the vets. Immediately obvious in the way they fly.
One of the vets flew out of Kodiak for many years, and had quite a reputation. Drinking with him one night and he made the comment that Silver Stars were only given out when you did something stupid and lived to talk about it.
"How many you got Tom?" I asked.
"Two"

Sounds like a story a friend of my Dad told.. He got the DCM in WW I and when asked how he said he was on guard duty one night and hear a noise. He challenged but got no answer so he fired, In the morning they found a dead cat so theygave him the DCM Distinguished Cat Murderer.:)

So when do the big corporate CEO's start saying that their compensations are too high and that things need to change? Those are the articles I want to read, not the guy who is retired after 20 years nailing down a whopping 30K.

I'd like to see the board of directors do the same about the low corporate tax rates.

Come on Bob, haven't you heard? The US has the highest corporate tax rates in the world. How would they pay their CEO's and stockholders if they had to pay more tax? ;)

I know.... what was I thinking? ;) We should go after the real money. Let's send the Marines to all of the offshore havens of the multi national corps and occupy them. :cool:

Au contraire mon frere. I know exactly how easy, or not easy it is and was to get a jetliner pilot job with one of the majors. I have two friends who are retired from the business, one from Northwest (L-1011's), and one from AA (737's and 757's - I think. And the former was a Huey pilot in Vietnam. I know its a tough job to land these days, buy that doesn't mean that a whole bunch of Navy and Air Force pilots don't dream about it and aren't going to take a run at it.

Worked for a major carrier and to fly with one you start out doing commuters. I was making more then those guys. They really have it tough the way the major carriers (mainline) dangle that carrot of a job.

Living away from home in an apartment with twenty or more other guys. Rent a bed that sorta thing. Having to commute from you home to the base for your trip. Then get in to late to get a flight out home and the airport authority makes you leave, can't sleep here! So they sleep in the break room on chairs. I even seen the airport authority make out of state pilots get there cars tagged if they park them in the employee parking lot.








Barney

My old friend the Huey gunship pilot loved his job at Northwest. But he's been retired for probably close to 10 years now...so I'll buy that it may not be what it used to be.

http://articles.latimes.com/2010/jan...er17-2010jan17


old article and it supports what Barney is saying

So much for all the benefits of airline deregulation, eh? Seems to me we need to decide if we want the safest possible air travel or cheap-ass fares.

And so, for a long time we got the cheap-ass fares, and now all we seem to be able to do is piss and moan about add-on charges and crap service.