As DOD looks for ways to cut operational costs, its focus often goes immediately to the reducing the benefits for active and more specifically of retirees. DOD historically, especially when directed by a liberal administration, heartlessly views retirees as a liability to the defense budget. One of the difficulties in the lives of military retirees and their spouse should not be the constant Government threats and attacks on their pay, on access to and cost for healthcare, and on reductions of promised benefits and services.
Many retirees actually reach a point of wondering if "the hacks" at DOD would have preferred that the retirees had died or had left the military before retiring. The following article is timely in that I received it on the same day that we learn that the present administration also has no interest in supporting parades for the returning troops from Iraq.
In full disclosure, I am a member of MOAA and a retired Air Force officer. I am also married to a lady who served "pro bono" on occasion (especially during the Vietnam War years) in supporting our operations. She and other spouses helped with tasks and covered the work created by personnel shortage. I noted this because military spouses have very strong feelings about the DOD's failures to live up to the medical and other benefits promised at the time of our retirements. And, it is anticipated that things could become worse as the DOD and the present administration seek to reduce either pay or benefits of retirees.
For those not aware of it, this is what will eventually happen to citizens who rely on the Government to live up to their promised obligations under public mandated health care and other proposed or existing programs. The government is proficient in screwing up programs and wasting your and other people's money.
By Col. Steve Strobridge, USAF-Retired, MOAA: As we come to the end of 2011, many are thinking we had a successful year and dodged some really bad things that could have greatly affected the military community.A year ago, the president’s deficit commission proposed freezing military pay, whacking military retirement, dramatically raising health care costs for retired service members of all ages, eliminating commissaries, and much, much more.
After 12 months of hand-wringing over how Congress might act on those proposals and what the grossly misnamed congressional “super committee” might suggest, it seems we’ve come to the end the year with no such changes.
But if that’s what you’re thinking, you are wrong, wrong, wrong. The $460 billion defense budget cut enacted in August 2011 is going to affect you and your family. We just don’t yet know exactly how badly.
A Pentagon-proposed plan to implement the cuts is sitting on the president’s desk, and all indications are that a large share will come from people, compensation, and health care programs. Within the next two months, that plan will be all over the news.
And that’s not all. The super committee’s inaction means a budget sequester aimed at cutting almost another $500 billion from the defense budget over the next 10 years is already in motion to take effect a year from now.
Many in Congress are up in arms over what cuts that deep will do to national security, but there are just as many who are determined to have the cuts come from the Pentagon rather than other programs.
What’s at stake? COLAs to all federal annuities, TRICARE, TRICARE For Life, major force and compensation cuts, commissaries, exchanges, family-support programs, and just about every military program you and your family use.
If you survived the budget cuts of the 1970s, ’80s, or ’90s, you know how bad those were. But they were nothing compared to the budget pressures we’re all going to face over the next four or five years.
We congratulate ourselves on our successes of the past decade — which were due to the power of MOAA members’ grassroots input to their legislators. This year, members set an all-time record on that score, sending more than 1.3 million messages to their elected officials via media we can count.
That total includes more than 820,000 emails sent through MOAA’s website, blasting past last year’s previous record of 499,000. But it will take a far broader effort to avoid budget disasters in the years ahead.
First, there are high-powered, well-connected, well-heeled lobbyists fighting (and making hefty political contributions) to preserve their shares of the budget pie — at your expense.
Second, if you look past the impressive 820,000 MOAA-generated emails, you find only 67,000 individuals generated all of those messages.
In other words, most of MOAA’s legislative effort is being carried by less than 20 percent of its members. Are the other 80 percent oblivious to the threat? Do they think, “It’s just politics and will blow over like most of the threats of the past 10 years have?” Do they assume their input wouldn’t make a difference?
Regardless of the reason, the complacency and inertia of “the other 80 percent” is the biggest budgetary threat to you and your family. If you’re in that 80 percent, you’re your own worst enemy. Your continued inaction will jeopardize not only your family and your future but also the families and futures of your brothers and sisters in arms.
The issue here isn’t ensuring the military community takes no budget hits. The nation’s budget problems are such that no segment of America will escape taking some significant hits.
The issue is resisting taking a disproportional share of hits simply because those with other interests are more active and better connected and have deeper pockets.
If you’re not getting involved to defend what your service and sacrifice has earned — and actively seeking to motivate others to protect theirs (and yours) — you’re helping paint the target on your COLAs and health care and on the troops and their families and your own family’s future well-being.
Consider yourself warned.
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Col. Steve Strobridge, USAF-Retired, is Director, Government Relations at the Military Officers Association of America (MOAA). MOAA is the nation's largest and most influential association of military officers. It is an independent, nonprofit, politically nonpartisan organization. Members of MOAA are active duty, retired, National Guard, Reserve, former commissioned officers, and warrant officers of the uniformed services - Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, Public Health Service, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The above article was posted for educational purposes under the Fair Use Doctrine.
Tags: Government, DOD, downsizing, military, retirees, benefits, reduced benefits, actions, MOAA To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
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