I was in the military, and believe me, I don’t romantacize it. It’s not “a job like any other,” though. The people aren’t any different, but the job is.
There is such a bill. It’s the Webb bill. McCain publicly opposed it and did not show up to vote on it.
How, exactly? Other than the increased risk of injury or death I mentioned (which I suspect is not increased at all in peacetime), what makes a paratrooper any different than a postal worker?
:smack:
Postal workers sleep in their own bed and get to see their family every night.
So do most soldiers. Travelling account executives don’t; how about them?
I would imagine traveling account executives are compensated quite well.
You’re missing the point. What makes it important that we fund a soldier’s degree but not anyone else’s? Besides, some soldiers make pretty good money - and once out of the military, a lot of them make very good money.
I dunno - the fact that they’re asked to (possibly - though at this point in time, more than likely) put their lives on the line for their country while 99% of other occupations aren’t? Seems like a reasonable incentive to me.
Republican of the new school:
McCains report more than $100,000 in credit card debt
Some might wonder whether he intends to run the nation’s finances in the same way.
Again, how does this make them any different than police officers, firefighters, athletes…
Well, are police officers and firefighters sent to combat zones for years at a time where they’re away from their families and under constant threat of violent attack?
I hope so. If we could keep our debt/asset ratio at his level it would be a miracle.
Not normally, but then neither are most soldiers. When they are, they get combat pay and Family Separation Allowances.
Oh, I know. I was in the Army. The fact is, though, lower enlisted ranks don’t make shit in the military - I was eligible for food stamps as an E-4 - and with a war going on, I think it would behoove the military to offer as many incentives as they can to get people to enlist (I know I’d much rather have my taxes going for VA benefits than many of the bullshit costs of the war they’re currently being spent on). Do they have to offer education funds? No. But since it’s been part of the GI Bill since any of us have been alive, it would be idiotic to rescind it now and not expect the troops to be pissed (or stop enlisting).
I don’t disagree with any of that. My point is not that we should do away with the GI Bill, but that people get all misty-eyed and irrational when you start talking about anything “for the troops”. As I understood it, the competing proposals are over ways to improve the existing (Montgomery) GI Bill, not get rid of it.
I certainly don’t believe we could improve recruitment to meet existing quotas, let alone meet new ones, if we spend less money. I just don’t think that saying, “then you’re against the troops!” in response to any criticism of military personnel spending is productive.
Put another way, Dio wants Injured Soldier Jones, Jr. to get a scholarship to Georgia Tech because he got his legs blown off. I want him to get a full scholarship to make sure his younger brother enlists when he reaches majority.
That might sound a bit callous, but there you go.
Holy fuck, that’s funny!
I think that in the usual case, assuming you mean professional athletes, these people are members of unions. Nothing except common sense prevents them from petitioning their unions to make college educations a part of their union contract. And really, maybe they should, provided they are disabled in the discharge of their duties.
Actually, I hadn’t really thought about that. Is there any law that prohibits members of the armed forces from unionizing?
(I’m sure they’re prohibited from striking, for obvious reasons)
I don’t know about US military but IIRC, the Dutch Army (or the Holland Army, if that’s more PC) were and maybe still are unionized. Maybe the EM should check it out.