THIS WILL MAKE YOU SICK... Kyle Becker On July 11, 2013 https://twitter/kylenbecker The Pentagon has a great plan for saving $120 million in what is a cash-strapped government that only spends $3.6 trillion a year. Unfortunately, it comes at the expense of American soldiers serving overseas. Fox News covered what could turn out to be a real blow to our bravest men and women: The Pentagon is eyeing plans to eliminate danger pay for service members in as many as 18 countries and five waterways around the world, saving about $120 million each year while taking a bite out of troops’ salaries, The Associated Press has learned. Senior defense and military leaders are expected to meet later this week to review the matter and are poised to approve a new plan. Pentagon press secretary George Little declined to discuss details but said no final decisions have been made. Senior military leaders came up with the proposed list of locations in their regions that no longer were perilous enough to warrant danger pay, including several countries in the heart of the tumultuous Middle East, such as Jordan, where hundreds of troops have recently deployed because of the bloody Syrian civil war on its border. So, we’re not even talking about billions and billions of dollars. The total savings come to only $120 million — the exact amount of the IRS’ $50 million for conferences and goofy videos and $70 million dollars in bonuses combined. That’s not to mention the roughly $1.5 billion the U.S. sends in foreign aid to Egypt every year; and will continue to send, despite the military coup d’etat of the Muslim Brotherhood-led government (Senator Rand Paul has proposed slashing the aid). The hazard pay is also less than the value of the four F-16s that are still being sent to Egypt (each worth anywhere from $14 million – $18 million) and an $83 million upgrade of the “Cairo West Air Base.” Nevertheless, our soldiers serving overseas will face a serious hit to their bottom lines: Defense officials said the proposal would strip the stipend — which can be up to $225 per month — from as many as 56,000 service members, including thousands stationed in Kuwait, which was a key hub during the Iraq war. It also would affect thousands of sailors who routinely travel through the Persian Gulf region on ships or airmen who fly over the Gulf. The $225 monthly cut in pay would come regardless of the service member’s base salary, which can range from a low of roughly $18,000 a year for a brand new recruit to a high of nearly $235,000 a year for a four-star general with more than 40 years in the military. Troops also can receive a variety of other allowances for housing, clothing or job specialties.
Posted on: Fri, 12 Jul 2013 03:09:34 +0000
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