Don't worry, I don't even own a Guy Fawkes mask, so I will spare you the "Verbose Verb-age".
Now that the hype and the initial shock of "HOLY GOD NO IT'S SEQUESTRATION!" is over, the true scope of effect is coming to fruition. The shit has rolled down hill, the bottom feeders and little guys have a fine dusting of new silt to try and sift through, and these so-called cuts have hit hard, allegedly.
In true Bureaucratically Statist fashion and in likeness to the movie "The Hangover", government officials are retracing their steps and trying to figure out where they started, trimming the fat along the way. What is included in this removal of adipose tissue with surgical precision? The troops of course!
It's not like many have and are currently serving four, five, six or more tours! It's not as if they are subjected to over 310 days of combat on average! Compared to WWII with 40 days of actual combat, Korea with approximately 180 days and Vietnam with approximately 240 days! You surely couldn't say that 349 U.S. Troops committed suicide in 2012! Oh... wait...
So what does the Military-Industrial Complex do to say thanks? Chew them up and spit them out! According to The Air Force Times, The Defense Department will be cut by $46 billion. Along with the Air Force, the Army and Marines have said tuition assistance program has been suspended for the remainder of the fiscal year due to sequestration. Ok, fine, they had to cut last minute and things will be back to normal next year, right? Don't count on it. If they even reinstate T.A. next year, the Air Force will "need to review the eligibility requirements to ensure sustainability." AkA - the percentage of coverage will go down.
Am I protesting cuts in military spending? Absolutely not. To take the ax to the troops first, however, is typical and regrettable. But let's put things into perspective: Since late last year, the Federal Reserve has been buying 85 billion dollars a month in mortgage backed securities, and does not plan to stop any time soon. The total sequestration cut was 1.2 Trillion dollars. Does no one in the Mainstream Media see a problem here? By January 2014, the Fed will have spent as much as was cut in sequestration.
As a Veteran, I still have a lot of buddies in the Service and this truly does effect them. T.A. is not one of those B.S. perks that can be sucked off of with little effort. People that really want to go to school and get a degree use T.A., mainly because T.A. is a reimbursement and not an upfront payment. Service Members have to get a C or higher to get reimbursed (at least for the Air Force).
Bottom line, I saw this coming and that's one of the big reasons why I got out. For anyone in the service that thought the country could be in the condition it is in and still receive these cookies, you are foolish. I understand that not everyone is in a position to get out. If you don't like your T.A. being taken away, I have a secret to tell you. *PPSSSTTT* It's not going to get any better!
P.S. With private defense, companies would compete with each other to gain soldiers. A company that cut benefits promised would see a mass exodus and likely go out of business.
-The Slavic Libertarian
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