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  • From: "Lynda" <lurine AT softcom.net>
  • To: <homestead AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [Homestead] More cuts to the soldiers pay
  • Date: Wed, 6 Sep 2006 11:49:21 -0700

Kidlet #5, Kirk, joined the Marines one year ago. October 1 he ships out to Iraq. He lives on base and whether he uses the mess hall or not he is charged for 3 meals a day. He's lost 40 pounds because the base food is as bad or worse than fast food, he says! Of course, he went from salads, fresh veggies and fruit and homemade foods to "mystery meat" and "mac and cheese mush." He says we probably wouldn't feed the pigs some of the stuff they try to pass off as food! He's suddenly become a food critic <g> So he pays double every month for food because he goes off base to eat or orders pizza if he can find a place that delivers that has a veggie pizza.

The "free" $50,000 college education that he was told he'd get is something that is taken out of his pay check. The medical benefits for vets have been reduced on a yearly basis.

It is a sorry state of affairs when the people most likely to get screwed by the politicians are the folks putting their lives on the line to be sure those politicians can remain fat cats! Particularly when most of them are chicken hawks!

Lynda
----- Original Message ----- From: "SISU!" <erthnsky AT bellsouth.net>


This is not a new story, it's only just now being reported.

A while back, on another list, I wrote that TJ was having a hard time
finding a place to temporarily stay in NY-he didn't want to stay in a
motel while he searched for an apartment. Several members of that list
refused to believe me that the military does not always provide housing
anymore, especially for those who are not married. Of course, he was in
a training command at the time, and that does make a difference. He
eventually did find housing and split the cost of an apartment with a
buddy, but the point is, the military has changed and what used to be
considered "included" isn't necessarily so anymore. BAH, Basic
Allowance for Housing, varies according to location, rate, whether you
have dependents, and whether you are an officer or enlisted.
TJ says that in areas near bases, landlords and complexes will change
their rental rates to match BAH, and the renter is responsible for
utilities like phone, cable, internet, power, etc. That's the way
things have been for a long, long time. So basically, the
government just pays the rent. In upstate NY, TJ's apartment complex
had worked a deal with the Navy and provided electricity, but that
probably wouldn't be the case in more urban areas like Newport News or
San Diego.





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