Homestead mailing list

["Lynda" <lurine AT softcom.net>]

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.